Mietzke's Holden Adventure

The Snow is white
The mountains are tall
Falling so quickly
It makes me feel small
Snug in my cabin
I dare not go out
For fear of the snow
It is so cold

© Nyrie Mietzke 2007

Yesterday we had the Holden Winter Olympics. Well actually it started Friday night with the Torch Relay and the lighting of the Eternal Flame. The events started with the game of Broom Ball, a close cousin of ice hockey, complete with a penalty box (the outdoor nativity mentioned in an earlier post). Next came the Dog Sled Races, with two human “dogs” and a musher being pulled in the sled. We moved through Snow Rolling, an event with the contestants rolling down a snow covered hill. Snow rolling led to the creation of a new sport: Kid Tossing for distance (un-pictured). There were also Bobsled Races with teams of varying sizes from two to four all competing in the same field for the best time on a down hill run(also un-pictured). The bob sleds were followed by Full Contact Sledding, which was run in heats with a main, in two classes: under and over 100 pounds. The over 100 pound last chance heat is pictured here. For the more artistically inclined we had a Snow Sculpture event with two entries, and a snow castle building with a performance piece including princesses, dragons, angry serfs and a rescuing hero. Some of the other un-photographed events were Snow Polo, a lot like water polo, in seven feet of snow rather than a swimming pool. A Tug of War, and Ski/Snow Shoe races, where the contestants had a ski on one foot and a snow shoe on the other. Hot Chocolate Spitting for distance, and Snow Trench Digging were a couple more of today’s events.

The awards ceremony was held at the end of the dinner last night, with every one getting a medal for one thing or another, even if it was just being within ten miles of the village during the events.

As I’m sure you noticed Jordyn participated in most of the events, and won several (Kid Toss, Dog sled races, and Full Contact Sledding) Nyrie, Ang, and I weren’t quite as competitive, but we participated in a number of events as well.

Three Words

I found a piece of heaven in the falling snow
So subtle, almost hidden in the clearing beneath these powdered trees
I look out across the white clearing and for a moment I see only vast whiteness in piles and billows, hills and valleys
But as my eyes adjust to the white, as I slow my pace and take in the wonder heaven appears gently with dips and curves, a path leading to the heart of God
I walk to the entrance; depths and shadows curves and straights taking shape before my eyes as if appearing from a mist though there is none there
I shed my scarf and hat and unzip my coat a bit to let the cold brush my skin and then I enter in silence, only my snow shoes make a noise as they break through the new snow and pack the path down
I walk in silence breathing deep breaths and relaxing into my work for the spirit is moving within me propelling me forward in short bursts unraveling all that I have raveled in the week
My breaths come fast as I use these good feet and legs to widen the path to my very own center. At times I am, as if in a daze with all the curves and straights I am lost in thought and my path is not completely clear to me save for the pace in front of me, How close am I to your heart oh God? I want to feel it beat with in me.
I walk on pausing to catch my breath from time to time feeling like I have spent an eternity here on this path not really going anywhere and then to my surprise I can see the center just ahead and it has not really taken me long at all
I wait in the center waiting for the profound to take hold but instead a gentle soft wind is the only thing stirring the snowflakes round my head
I set to work to widen the path around the center and catch small glimpses of myself in my work and three words come.

It.

Is.

Good.

I smile to myself knowing that I am waking to something living within me, if only for a moment, I have caught the scent of love on the wind and it is all for me
The path out from the center takes far less time for I have already done the difficult work
I have taken that moment of quiet to listen and I am reminded that I am alive truly alive and I am love
I found a subtle piece of heaven in the snow that embraces me on my way back through these powdered trees through the mists of my own creation
I carry with me the knowledge that heaven does exist here and now but heaven is a journey

Okay so it’s been a while since I wrote an entry for the blog. There have been a few things on my mind in the last few days. I had a realization today about one of my difficulties in adjusting to Holden Village. I have for the past few years worked in community, that is to say working closely and interacting frequently with my co-workers, friends. Here we have been surrounded by and enveloped in this amazingly welcoming and nurturing community. However during my work day I have been for the most part working on my projects, on my own, often without seeing or interacting with my co-workers except on breaks, and at lunch. It has been hard for me to keep my focus and accomplish my tasks in isolation. I find myself going over to the shop to get something, or walking up the hill to the chalet for a tool, or my water bottle. I have a hard time deciding what tools or methods to use without someone to bounce ideas off of. It seems counter-intuitive that in order for me to focus on, and be truly productive at my work there has to be some social interaction. As I look back over last couple of weeks I find that I have been missing my friends at work, missing the short conversations, or just having someone available, in sight, to lend a hand.

Another thing is: I got a little remote control helicopter for Christmas (Like Jeremy’s). Here in the Village we have a huge gymnasium, empty in the winter, perfect for flying it in. There is a problem with the battery; it won’t take a full charge, so the flights have been short. I’m going to try shock-loading it with a twelve volt charger, and see if that won’t get it to charge up. If not it might just start a cool battery fire, which could be fun too.

The snow is getting deeper; all of the windows on the north side of the house are buried now. I have managed to keep the back door clear with daily shoveling, twice on the day it snowed twenty-two inches. The snow building up on the north side of the roof has been acting like a glacier, every day creeping down a little further. I have been breaking it off over the door and then shoveling out the well. I don’t think it is going to slide catastrophically any more this winter. It is supported on a sheet of ice that reaches down to form a tunnel along the house.

Angela’s parents and Karma arrived here at the village today. It is great to have them here and to be able to share some of this experience with family. We had another short present exchange and caught up on the past few weeks. It was funny Ang and I kept starting to tell them about some little thing or another and they would stop us and say, “Oh yeah, we read about that on the blog”.

On Friday nights the service is Prayers Around the Cross. We enter in silence, sing some short chants, and there are a couple of readings. After that all are invited to light a candle and pray around a cross in the center of the room or just stay in their seats and pray while we sing some more. There are two types of places to pray, one to pray by yourself, and another to have others pray with you. You may stay for as long or short a time as you like. For me it is a very peaceful centering time, as well as a time to think about all of you.

In Peace,
David

What a magical night! The moon is full and the whole village has been singing and celebrating decorating Christmas cookies and visiting Chalets. There are candles ablaze in the snow banks. The Nativity is the quiet centerpiece of hope. It has been a busy Joyous day. With a reminder that humble beginnings can bring great light to so many. I wish that I had a way to bottle this experience and share it. It is like a story book Christmas. The snow glistens in the moonlight and those Mountains, so ominous such majesty towering over this little village. I tried tonight to capture it with my camera but there is no way to put it into film or words. I will have to be content just to have experienced it. The Christmas service was beautiful and the children sang in a way that would melt even the coldest heart.
We awoke this morning with Nyrie snuggling into bed with us. It is Christmas morning she whispered. (Whispering does not come easily for Nyrie.) Can we get up and open presents? So we rolled out of bed woke Jordyn, and the children began the unraveling of presents. It is our family tradition to open one gift at a time and honor the person doing the opening. Once you have opened a gift you go to the tree to pick out a present for someone else. It was a quiet, exciting morning filled with love. Jordyn and Nyrie made some beautiful gifts. It was our first Christmas with just our family. It was a precious time together. What a relaxing morning! Jordyn, Dave and Nyrie all got matching Carhartt work overalls and they are wandering about matching one another, and looking about as cute as they come! Jordyn and Nyrie have adorned their heads and necks with new home made hats and scarves from Auntie Tam and they are listening to new music on their walkmans. (I don’t have to listen to Russians by Sting every five minutes because the girls have headphones! Don’t get me wrong it’s a good song but even good things can be overdone.)
Dave made bacon and eggs for everyone while I sorted through the Christmas wrappings. I separated them into burnable, recycling, food compost, candy wrappers and re-usable items. In the village the garbage is dealt with very efficiently because we have to ship anything we don’t compost, recycle, burn or reuse down lake to be put in a land fill so we are conscious of every scrap of garbage. It is amazing sorting through things to realize how much you can actually re-use. It also is not easy to get things up here so you begin to think as you are opening presents, for example about Christmas next year and how if you are careful unwrapping you can use the paper again next year.
It was amazing to be unwrapping our presents sitting by a fire and looking out on the beautiful mountain landscape that fills our living room window. The trees and the roof tops covered with snow, smoke coming from the next door chimney. It is our own living Christmas poster. God is good! The only thing that is missing is all of you. Friends and family you are deeply in our thoughts and prayers this Christmas! Know that you are valued and loved beyond measure!



The thing that really struck me this year was the lack of commercialism, thus the lack of stress. Eric, the pastor, gave a great talk last night about commercialism and consumerism as a reflection of our human longing. We are all trying to fill a void in some way shape or form and many times that need supersedes what is truly good for us. My experience of myself in the preparation to come to Holden spoke to that. I did so much shopping to get ready for this experience, some needed, some not. As I got rid of things from our furniture to our home, and left friends and family behind, I wanted immediately to fill up again. I wanted to cover up or fill in the gap that the absence left. I was trying to buy the known because I was deeply uncomfortable with this adventurous unknown. I was trying to fill my void with the comfort of knowing that all my ducks are all in a row. We are all looking for comfort. My hope in this time is that I will learn how to be in the moment to really experience the losses and the things gained and will be able to live, even an uncomfortable moment with the knowledge that I have more in love than I could ever purchase.

We got nearly two feet of snow today! At one point it was snowing three inches in an hour. Over dinner seven inches accrued. It was beautiful and amazing! The walkways from the chalets are up to my shoulders in places. It is amazing how fast it can accumulate!
Today’s festivities included trimming the tree in the fireside room and welcoming new guests as well as a nice evening service and an open mike night. It doesn’t sound like much but being this social can be tiring. We retired early tonight we are all feeling a little tired and grumpy today. I can’t believe that tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I wrapped some presents and hopefully I will have some time tomorrow to just be quiet before the Christmas Eve festivities begin. Jordyn finished her weaving today and it is beautiful! Nyrie started on a loom also and has been working bit by bit. The snow seems to have stopped and the moon is shining through the haze. The cold is strange here it doesn’t get into your bones like it does in Tacoma. It has been in the teens and I am comfortable with a sweater and a light jacket. It could be also that we are in constant movement up here.
Today I inherited Library Ken (a Barbie doll that is passed from librarian to librarian here at Holden.) One of the Matts gave him to be before they departed the village for a three month trip to Peru, and Bolivia. It was sad to see them go but I know that they will have an impact in the world for the better.
I hardly saw the girls at all today. There are many children up here for the holidays and the girls are having fun introducing the new kids to their winter home. At night they are tired from a days play and sometimes weepy. There is a lot of adjusting to be done still. Sometimes I feel exhausted from all of the new input, the sights sounds smells and information. I guess I feel a combination of exhausted and inspired. I imagine that the girls feel the same. The new faces are fun and exciting but tiring all at the same time. Jordyn is testing the ten year old waters and Nyrie is often complaining about it. They have been bickering and sensitive towards each other for the last few days.
Dave and I seem to be doing pretty well, although it is difficult to get dates alone up here. There aren’t many places to go. There are only about four places to go really and most of them we have already been to several times during the day. I hope to get some snowshoes soon and maybe if the snow lets up we can get a snowshoe date in the wilderness. With the volume of guests in the village right now there aren’t a lot of extras around. We do good snuggling at night though and read together in the mornings, and at Holden we can hardly help but see each other throughout the day. We love you all and miss you, and thank you for the many times you all took the kids so Dave and I could go on a date! We have been so blessed by our Tacoma and greater community over the years for so many things. Each one of you has really helped to build us up and support our marriage and our parenting! Happy Holiday to all of You!

It is getting close to Christmas! Just two days away and the village celebrated posada this evening. Posada is a re enactment of Joseph and Mary’s journey, their rejection at the inns, and finally finding a stable to rest in. The whole village came out which is about a hundred people right now. We taught a song to all of the children and the “Inn keepers learned there echoing part and all of the people processed through the village from place to place seeking shelter for Mary and Joseph (who are solid, wooden, very heavy, statues carried on a litter by four people in the snow) Dave happened to be one of these people and the pathways to the different “inns” were not really wide enough for four people so he kept sinking off of the main path and getting a pant leg full of snow. All of the litter carriers kept slipping and sliding. Last year they lost Mary and Joseph off of the litter head first in the snow but we strapped them down this year. We paraded from house to house until at last we ended by being accepted into the dining hall for a fiesta equipped with burritos, salsa music and singing.
I’ve got such a great job! Today I got to decorate the dining hall and sing with a bunch of children and put lights on a Christmas tree! The tree that we put in the sanctuary is beautiful and about 16 feet tall. We will decorate it as a community tomorrow. It was so fun watching Jordyn and Nyrie parading through the snow with their candles they were having a blast and both are such good singers!
I am thoroughly enjoying all of the candles in the celebrations and there is always something festive going on. Someone is always spear-heading something new and fun to do, but to stay sane you have to take breaks from it all. I took the morning off today, and watched a movie with my family and sewed Dave’s decorations onto his stocking. It turned out cute.
Last night we had a sledding party with the two Matts who are leaving tomorrow. It was a great success! We had many visitors to our chalet and it was an amazing night for sledding! It was clear and crisp and cooooooold, A whopping 15 degrees! The moon was out and rose high above the valley casting blue light on the mountains! Everywhere you looked people were laughing and having fun. There was a big fire pit in the snow and we served chips and salsa, amazingly gooey brownies, hot coco, and lemonade! It was great to see the kids having so much fun and we were all up way too late but it was worth it.
All of these festivals with candles and processions remind me of waldorf. There is something magical about celebrations that link people together. It is strange to know that somewhere in sunny Mexico and other Latin American countries Posada was being celebrated, perhaps at the same time! We are not really that separate after all even with the distance between us. We are all in this same path of humanity sharing joys and sorrows with the rest of creation. Love is the thing that unites us. Whoa, pretty deep huh? It must be getting late again. Goodnight all!

I awoke last night with a tight throat. I got up got water and a cough drop and stoked the fire then headed back to sleep. As I slept I dreamed that I was with my grandmother and she was dying. It was my last chance to say good by and Grief spilled from deep within me. I basked in her smell and snuggled close to her and held her to me and then it was time for me to go, to let go. I walked out of her room feeling a deep ache that moved through my entire being. The alarm went off and pulled me out of sleep, but I felt myself wanting to hold on to both the dream my grandmother and my grief. Dave had to come in and remind me that the waking time was upon me. It is time to rise and move forward. As I showered I could still feel the idea of loss and I thought about all of the people who are struggling at this time of year, struggling with death, poverty, war, sickness, loneliness, depression, anxiety. The thought that stayed with me though was a thought of the abundance that I live in. In this moment I am overwhelmed with my good fortune. I found myself being deeply thankful for having two loving grandmas for 34 years, maybe more, of my lifetime. Dear grandmas who have taught me so much about life and love. I have been so lucky to have had so much good time with them. I know that they love me and that I am held in their thoughts and prayers. How lucky I am!
I found myself looking at our Christmas tree, overflowing with gifts, while I was dressing and feeling almost embarrassed at my prosperity.
This led to me thinking about selling our house and how tightly I clung to the ideas of security that this possession offered. Every step of the way I secretly questioned the sanity of selling this security. I thought of the fear that crept up for me every step of our transition, this fear of loss. Then I thought of my friendships, my community in Tacoma, of all of the friends and family who spent hours and hours, days and days with me helping me to prepare to leave, helping me to let go. They let go of me, of my family and helped to move us forward into this new experience. What a gift! What an honoring! I realized how loved I am. I am fortunate in every aspect of my life. I feel filled with this Christmas which seems to teeter on the edge of holding on and letting go. I am dancing this dance surrounded by so many dear friends old and new. I am dancing this dance which is love and abundance. God with us.

Today was another good day. The snow stopped and the wind blew clouds of snow in blasts across the hillsides and through the village. The sun peered through the clouds in between the mountain peeks and it shown white in the sky. A woman named Ani and I went snowshoeing into the forest to cut branches to decorate the hall. We waded waist deep in places even with snow shoes. Once the branches were cut we brought them back to the dining hall and people gathered and made swags and wreaths to finish the decorating. When we were through the dining hall looked beautiful and smelled even better.
Jordyn started working on weaving a rag rug and she was having so much fun working on the loom! I was so inspired by seeing her work that I began a weaving project of my own. I think that Jordyn learned the technique much faster than I.
The library is coming together I have been sorting through paper work that has been here for a long time. Today we got rid of thirty boxes of old books and the library is starting to look open and inviting. I am feeling more and more at home in the library now. Yesterday Matt, the previous librarian dubbed me the new queen librarian. I am really starting to have a vision for the space and I think I have most of my tasks down.
Nyrie and Jordyn had their class play today and they were wonderful. In only a week and a half they memorized their parts and made them their own. They even helped make the programs. It was fun to see them participating with the class and making it their own. The story was about Saint Nicholas helping a poor family with three girls in it and the blessing of kindness that he brought with no need for recognition for himself. It was sweet and funny and they ended the performance with a recitation of Twas a Night Before Christmas. The whole village participated, but the children remembered way more than most of the grown ups.
The moon is out and beautiful casting its blue light on the snow. If you look closely the snow it sparkles almost like water. The glimmer on the mountaintops is spectacular and takes my breath away as I look out on the village. I think that we might have a full moon on Christmas which would add to the magic of this place.
It is supposed to be a cold night and the village is low on power so we have brought up a lot of wood for the fire. I love how accepting everyone is in the village. If we are low on power everyone makes sacrifices to help things go smoothly. This week the village will go from 50 people to a little over a hundred and fifty for Christmas. It is fun to see new faces and hear new stories. There is a lot of preparation that is being done to welcome the guests for the holiday season.
Dave has been making a stable for the outside nativity. Each chalet is creating a nativity figure that they will leave on the pathways in the village. Anyone who finds one of the nativity figures will move them forward ten paces until hopefully they all make it to the safety of the stable escaping the deadly roof-a-lanches. Nyrie is making baby Jesus and Jordyn is making a cow. One of the village carpenters made a cartoon cut out of Elvis for his “King” bringing murr to baby Jesus as an offering, I have no idea what others will come up with… It should be a fun activity and I am interested to see the creative things the villagers come up with to express their own picture of their character.
I love the worship assistant job the pastor I am working with is kind and talented and full of great ideas. He is really gifted at bringing people together.
Something that I have loved about being up here is that I am free from the bombardment of Christmas commercialism. We are experiencing Christmas in the every day activities and peoples attitudes towards each other. It is nice to see people banding together to make the season special without all of the commercial nonsense and stress. Blessings to all, we will update you again soon. How are all of you? We miss you and hope to see some of you up here soon. My folks and Karma are coming up on the 28th and I can’t wait to see familiar and much loved faces. I am looking forward to sharing this experience with them.