The Tale of Narrow Ridge (Butterfly-kiss)

Before reading, feel free to tongue dip in hot coffee or calming tea and just breathe. This is the story of oozing t r a n s f o r m a t i o n. Simply explore each word with the delicacy of a butterfly wing.

Climbing the trail of steady mountains to reach strawbale lodge was quite the adventure! I was mostly tired from the plane ride but, I am not one to completely rid myself of butterflies. My excitement crept in when my lips twisted and my smile slipped through my weary face. My toes welcomed the touch of wooden floors as the long open windows freely stretched their thick warmth towards me, almost as if they were greeting my unsteadiness with kindness.

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June 3, 2018

Day 1

   Part II

      Strawbale lodge is beautifully transparent. This wooden home is small yet spacious, old yet refreshing, and simple yet welcoming.  The large windows elegantly release fluttering laughter from our greatest star. Ironically enough, this light is inescapable within a non-electrically powered home. (Yup, no electricity.) This place is actually solar-powered inside out. Today is the first time I will live in a solar-powered…building? Weird, the word “building” doesn’t seem to fit here. This is more than a product of brilliant men and woman. This place is a home built by the humble souls of a hard-working community, and somehow it effortlessly carries a welcoming essence.

        My room is not the cleanest. The first thought that popped in my head was, I feel like I’m in my grandma’s house. I could tell by the restless smile on Nina’s face (my roommate,) that she thought the same thing. Our bunk beds are at least sturdy and cozy. This made me cheesy-grin…until I noticed about seven spider-webs between the space of my ceiling and the corners of my bed (Ew!) Once settled, many of us wandered around the place, exploring the old up-and-down stairs. The room I found to be the most peculiar was the bathroom. There is no “private” bathroom but a communitive one. The wooden stalls are dusty and shelter a bug or two, but what’s really cringe-worthy are the toilets. These aren’t real toilets! They don’t flush! The toilets are actually holes piled up with our waste and wood-shavings? Mizi (the director) instructed us their toilets are Composting Toilets. What does that even mean? She told us how we are required to use the toilets (as we normally would,) throw away the used toilet paper down the toilet hole, and add a cup of wood-shavings provided in each stall. Afterward, we are supposed to close the toilet lid so our waste could compost properly. I found this all very strange but still interesting…I wondered if everyone else around here has composting toilets? The idea of it didn’t seem so bad anymore.

     I stepped outdoors and breathed in this new air, following the wings of a shy butterfly. She was young, free, and sweet. Almost as if she sensed my inquiry, she moved towards me s l o w l y and rested between my fingertips. Her lips kissed the tickle of sweat in the palm of the hand. Her sweetness caught me off guard as I remained in awe. Such a fearful creature chose human interaction over her very nature to fly away into the unknown.  *Ding* Ding* The bell rung! Mizi and Bill called us downstairs and introduced us to Carol and Maryl, locals who will be cooking our veggie-meals (part of the program is eating only plant-based meals for 10 days.) They also introduced us to Salua and Zack who were previous narrow ridge participates that decided to volunteer here this summer. Would I return to this place?

     “Gather around everyone, join hands and form a nice circle,” Mitzi said with her cheerful voice. “Before we begin, I would like to share how grateful I am for all of you here.” Her smile eased our tension a bit. Are we all going to say what we are grateful for? “I am also very grateful for having the chance to meet you all, and I thank Ben (our trip chaperone) for allowing everyone the opportunity to come here.” Bill seconded.“I am so grateful for the very yummy food we are about to eat because I am quite hungry, *giggle, giggle* and also for Carol’s helping hand,” said Maryl. Yup, little by little, we all shared our gratitude. I have to say it felt nice to reflect on something positive before eating, it gave me happy vibes. After everyone shared, Maryl and Carol announced what we will be having for lunch today. We then gathered around and spun a chore wheel (everyone’s name is on it, there was no escaping this.) I was grouped with Nick (the business major that loves English) and Cesar (the sweet-hearted student.) The wheel has chores like before-meal setup, after-meal cleanup, toilets, and dishes. The rule is whichever group had dishes, eats first! Luckily, my group had the easy chore, before-meal clean up (setting the tables and sweeping the floors.)

      The after-meal cleanup group was first in line (of course!) We were all eager to see and taste the veggie handmade meal. We ate plant-based meatless-meatloaf-

 

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Let the Light- Steffany Gretzinger