mOrE hOpE ...

It was really cool to have Sieglinde here with us, it's always nice to have a mum around... Before she left, another visit arrived, Falko, from Germany... Miri and her mum already knew him... It was so encouraging to hear that he had exactly the same vision for a place like this ... He said that when he came he felt like arriving Home... And that's also what this place is about... to be a home for pilgrims, for nomadic people to find a resting and refreshing place...
I really have no doubts this is from God...
On the way back to the land the last time I came to the city I also saw this rainbow right above the land, and I was simply reminded of God's faithfulness...



Falko playing the guitar next to the fire...

Playing cards last night 

we've been having good conversations about different things, and also questioning ourselves about what could we do to better support this village... the young people seem to be bored with life and with no real perspectives besides getting a good job, buying a big house, a car and get married...
the old people are confused when they are confronted with papers they need to deal with in order to get some support from the government...most of them don't even know how to read and write, so it becomes really complicated to deal with papers now, after living all their lives simply working their land...

We'd like to help this community if we can... Sr. Rodrigues already opened the doors for us to do whatever we want... and he often says that we could be a great help for the population... I will speak with him this week...

For those who understand portuguese, here goes a very nice poem from an author who was born in Povoa de Atalaia, Eugénio de Andrade...
It's called "Women in black"

(attempt of translation)

“It´s been a long time since they have been old and dressed

In black that reaches their soul.

Against the wall

They defend themselves from the sun of stone.

At the fire 

They stay away from the cold of the world.

Do they have a name?

Nobody asks,

Nobody answers.

The tongue, also of stone.”

iN tHe mIdSt oF tHe StOrM, pEaCe pReVaiLs & HOPE eNdUrEs...

I've been feeling so hopeful and so at peace about all the situation with the land... it's even surprising me...it can only be the Spirit of God... I 've been feeling really encouraged as well with all the e.mails I've been receiving from people, even from those who often don't write... I really believe God's name will be glorified in all this...

Miri's mom, Sieglinde, came at a good time to visit her daughter... she has been such an encouragement in all this situation... she also has the same dream, to have a place where people can come and find rest... she came to rest herself, but she loves to work in the land, so she's not really doing nothing all day...there are many ways to rest anyway... I couldn't help but feeling encouraged while I was watching her planting flowers everywhere and helping me to plant other vegetables that Steffi from Germany also sent through her...
I´ve been learning a lot with her, she has cool tips all the time... so cool to have experienced people around...

Simon Roth from Jesus Freaks-Zwickau was here for a week to rest as well and I just came to bring him to the bus station to go to Porto...
Now I'm here with Michu at a cafe where I found wireless internet... Yes, with Michu, the cat... she followed us in the night and we only noticed in the middle of the way...
Michu is like a dog, she wants to follow me everywhere... she was surprisingly well behaved for a cat in a city...

I still feel very encouraged to keep working on the land... no matter what happens... I feel a lot of Joy as well, which shouldn't be normal in this situation as well... But I'm just in expectancy to see how God will be glorified in the end...




I still don't have any clear sign or word from God about buying or not this land, but I just got a call from Sarah, a girl I met once on my trip last year who would like to donate a good amount of money if we decide to buy the land... Sarah is a young student and she grew up with her parents in a community farm... they left eventually and she always cherished that time as very precious... she has been saving money to give to a community one day, and felt this might be it... 

I also got an e.mail of another possibility to get money for the land if need be...

I don't know... There is not so much time left I know, but I will not make any decision before knowing exactly what God wants...  it's surely encouraging that God is already moving others to believe in this vision...

I'M STILL PLANTING SEEDS IN THIS LAND, AND I WILL GO FOR THE TREE PLANTING IN THE BEGINNING OF MARCH 


green peas sprouting ... so beautifull, and so encouraging !!!

Frauke and Dominike also came for a day to say good-bye and to register Dhana Noeh in Castelo Branco... Frauke was saying that it would be a bit silly to buy this land for God when it's already God´s...it's true, but well, God is crazy enough to do that !!!

It was also a great encouragement just to be with them and speak with them... It was nice to remember all we went through in the last 4 or 5 months... They will start heading to Germany now... 

As for me, I'll keep waiting, trusting and praying...

It would be a greater miracle to see Yves and Regina´s hearts changed, but that's not up to God as well, because God always chooses to respect the free will we have...

I'm still at peace...shantii, shantii
Nothing else I can do ...
 I´m really thankful for all those who make me feel I`m not alone in all this...

tReE cAmPaIgN & dIsCeRnInG GoD´s wIlL...

this is just a short post about the tree campaign and for all those who have been responding positively to it and even buying trees for this land...
We just received the information that the couple who bought initially this land want to sell it now... they went back to Belgium and don't want to be acountable anymore for the land...
So, they got an offer of 45.000 Euros from business people who want to make turism, and they gave us until the 15th of March to pay the same if we want it...
So, this is just to let you know about the situation (I will spare details here) and ask for PRAYER , we do need discernment from God about all this...

I do have peace...God must have a plan... Sometimes I wish I was furious and angry and shouting to God to make something, but I’m simply at peace and waiting for God to do a miracle, or opening a different door...
I feel broken though, and very small, because I can’t do much more than waiting and praying ...

I still don’t have anything specific and clear from God, but I simply feel I should TRUST and keep going...
I can’t stop taking care of the plants and I keep working at the house, so, in a way it’s like I can’t give up HOPE...
And I´m still willing to plant the trees people are buying...

be free to send your impressions if you get anything...
Thanks...

mOrE guests...aNd 1 mOrE gOod-bYe...

Two girls came from Germany for a week, Judith and Christy... I didn't know them before, they are nice and they have been helping us also in what they can...It has been raining since yesterday, but I hope tomorrow we'll have the sun back again...It's not fun to stay inside the house all the time...



Eddie left today...well, we never know about Eddie, I might find him when I go back now...
Eddie is a zimmerman, like many in Germany...this is a cool tradition of craftsmanship, like carpenters and others...they learn for 2 or 3 years, and then they need to travel for 3 years and practice whith other carpenters or helping in places like he came to help here... they have some interesting rules, like they have to wear this traditional clothes, they only have one for working and one for going out, they have to pack all theirs things in a traditional way, and only carry what they can in their bodies, they cannot take public transports or pay for it, unless they get offered, they cannot have mobile phones or other technologies...they cannot stay for more then 3 months in the same place, etc...

It´s a very interesting way I have to say... they also have to go to the authorities of the places they go, present themselves and get their permission to stay and find work there...
They also have to get the stamp of the cities they go to and so I went with Eddie to the Mayor to do that...
Traditionally they have to say this secret poem which identifies that they are really zimmermans, but here Eddie tried to translate it because it wouldn't make any sense to say it in german...
So I translated it into portuguese to Sr. Rodrigues, his wife and daughter who were all very amazed and amused with the almost ceremonial act... They got really touched with it and Sr. Rodrigues wrote in his travelling book a very nice message...something like " May you have luck to accomplish such noble mission which is to spread Love"... I was surprised as well... So cool !!! 
In the end Eddie also blessed him, as the Mayor of Povoa de Atalaia, and blessed the village and his family as well... It was  really touching !!!

Eddie is a really funny character filled with so much love and joy that he impacted the whole village I guess... 

I really enjoyed having Eddie around and get to know him better... 
Love you Eddie !!! God bless your journeys !!!!

wOrK iN tHe lAnD ...

Since all the others left for Porto and other places we've been having more time to work in the land... the land needs it and I enjoy it...
Tim still helped to start pruning the Olive trees and now I'm doing the rest...but it will take time...I'm making maybe 3 or 4 a day, so it will take almost one more month to finish... but shantii, shantii as always...
I also have good neighbours who have been giving me tips on how to do things, because most things are new for me and they have been doing this for quite a while...

My neighbour Tia Adelina also brings us potatoes and onions for us as she has much left from last year...
I don't have a tractor or machines, so I just prepared a small part of the land where the soil is already good and is also  next to the smaller pond, so it´s easier to get buckets of water...we don't have pipped water yet... It's hard, but fun... 

Many times I think about Jesus´ parables about sowing and harvesting... I think it's the hardest work to prepare the fields, especially those who were never planted or are abandoned for long time...But it's so cool to see in the end how it's all nice and ready to plant... I love it !!!










the garlic is loving it, they are growing so fast !!!

Some herbs too...


In the morning, before breakfast, I go to water all the plants and little trees... it's not so easy yet, as we don't have piped water... so , this is the way for now, with buckets, taking the water from the pond.

I'm so thankful for the abundance of water in this place... Often I remember  Daher's farm in Palestine, the "Tent of Nations", where they collect the rain water during the winter in cisterns underground and then they pump it up and water every tree by hand... hundreds of them... wow...that's hard work !!! nothing compared with my little effort here...


Miri has already finished our cold house to grow some seeds...She's so good and detailed in all she does... we must have the best green house here...
now it's the season for most of the seeds to bloom...

Eddie was just finishing details on our first guest room and tool room...it's so nice... Good work Eddie, and Sven at the start...

We also have nice chilled times at the end of the day...like this one when we decided to have a face mask ... Not to become more beautiful but to remember how beautiful we are ...

Miri's mom sent this package with all sorts of things, sweets, cheese, etc... and also face masks...
It was fun, and our skin did feel better... Except Eddie who by mistake put the cream first and not the mask...

fOuNd mY nEsT iN tHe wOoDs

I finally found a place to make my nest in the land ... It was a bit of an accident, when one morning I went to have my time alone with God next to the pond and it was really windy... the kind of wind that  gets in your nerves and makes you tired of it...
I went to find refuge in the woods and while I was worshiping and praying with my guitar I looked around and thought that could be a nice place to make a house for me...
Wow, I got so excited... It looked perfect for me... when I had my retreat in the mountains after new year I was reminded how little I need to be satisfied...I just found a small cave where I stayed for 3 days in my sleeping bag and everything seemed so beautiful... fire at the door, waterfalls just down the valley...perfect !!! what else does one needs...

I started to look around on the place I was praying and I started to picture the place... the cool thing about it, is that I didn't need to transport much of the building material either, besides the pallettes my cousin brought me from the factory to make the floor... All the structure is out of one living tree and other trees around...all Mimosas, which need to be cut anyway because they are too many in the woods... I have also a pine in front of it, a little coark oak, a big normal oak, other Mimosas and one eucalyptus (I'm glad none of these species are a problem - monoculture- in this area)...

It´s a good neigbourhood, very chilled, quiet, not to mention the pond right next to it with all the tranquility that it brings...
I'm really happy and excited about it... I've been working just a bit everyday, when it's not raining, because there's much work now in the land in general...
But that will be another post...

sHoRt pOsT...

Hey, I just wanted to say that I´m really excited about the Tree Campaign and really happy with all the responses I´ve been receiving on the Blog and through e.mail... Wow...I´m really happy !!!
I just have to say that I don´t have my computer for a while because Mark accidently took my charger in his bag, so he had to send it by mail from Porto... Thank God I noticed before he took his flight back to Germany.
I hope to get it pretty soon.

A lot of people has left as well.. Only me, Miri and Edi stayed.. it´s really cool to have a break of having so much people around... I have to confess it was a bit too much for me the last weeks... but good as well...we don´t have the best structures yet to give better facilities to people, and most are not really used to this kind of "rainbow" style conditions...it´s understandable ...well, I like it ...
now we´ve been also having more time to work in the land because I don´t spend most of the time cooking and cleaning ...
it´s a new season now, and the land needs those who work on it ...I get really excited to see the garlic growing and to prepare the fields to plant more vegetables... I just love it !!!

Dominike, Frauke and the baby, Tim, Monike and Juran are in Porto with my sister Edna and Paulo... I guess they needed a break from off-grid living...I heard they are already learning how to pierce each other´s ears...
Simone went to visit her grandma who lives near Lisbon and Peter left to Germany as he got offered a flight to visit the USA...

We´re fine and well, and today 2 more girls from Berlin are arriving, Judith and Christy... We´re excited about that..

O.k, I´m running out of time here... I´ll post more next time when I have my charger back ...

Oh, and I´m also building a house for me...I found the perfect spot in the woods... I´ll post pictures next time.. I´m reeeealy excited about it... 

Much Love
PEACE
Give a smile to those around you :-) it´s healthy :-)