Festivals……
Depending on what the intentions and foundations are, these gatherings can be very transforming.
I feel in popular culture today, many people adopt perspectives of gluttony and lustful pleasure when it comes to these music festivals. Many see these gatherings as places filled with drugs and loud music, populated with people looking to escape from the norms of society.
This is a real reality within these festivals, but its one side of the coin.
I have personally witnessed transformations take place. There is such a feeling of belonging at these places, a sense of tribe. Some of these festivals have actually started to dive deeper into this tribe I speak of. Gatherings are now incorporating many interpersonal and educational components to their events. They now providing a multitude of workshops and even certifications to the public. Which is very much benefiting the community in my eyes.
There is also another potential epic gain from attending these gatherings. That would be ..
NETWORKING.
That’s right, just think about it. There are hundreds if not thousands of people coming into a location with common interest in mind. You are going to be in a prime environment for connecting with these like minds, especially if the festival is centered around creating community and permaculture. It's a glorious recipe for collaboration!
I have also observed it to be much more fulfilling when I have helped create the space.
I have been to 4 Texas festivals to help build(thanks to the Pachamama Portal and The 
I had worked for The NOHM apothecary and elixir bar at Lucidity festival near Santa Barbara earlier this year. Thanks to a bond that was made with the founder of The NOHM a year ago, I was plugging into a network of like mind sets on regeneration. It was a total win win. I cultivated this bond with my NOHMies at Lucidity.
Once again The NOHM was presenting me with yet another grand opportunity!
Collaborating with Envision festival, the NOHMies were going to create the Village Witches at the Oregon Solar Eclipse Gathering! Aannnddd they had asked me to come along for the ride!!!
HERE it COMES...i'm going to say one of my favorite words…..aaaaah. G-A-T-I-T-U-D-E!
Wooh Wee that was refreshing.
So there I was, in it neck deep. Fully immersed into the festival environment. I was building my booty off for a handful of days, then bar backing the elixir bar during the gathering. On my time off I got to explore land. My favorite place was definitely the Permaculture Plaza, where they had just finished a Permaculture Design Course prior to the festival. On top of that they were holding space as the hub for regeneration, providing a plethora of juicy presentations!
(First day on build site)
(The DJ stage I helped build)
(dream catcher chandeliers)
It was such a warm feeling knowing we had many indigenous communities from around the world grace us with their presence at the Eclipse. The First Nation’s installation was the place to connect with the roots of the land. I was honored to have been surrounded by all of these first nations.
I of course had plenty of chances to get my boogie on. Losing myself in the music felt so healing. Nothing else matters when you are completely present with your body and the music.
I met tons of valuable human beings. I can definitely say I felt intimidated by such remarkable people, but I have come to learn that perspective does not serve me. I would benefit from seeing these people as allies, not competition. We are all doing the same thing. We all want to be happy.
There were a few extremely important connections that I made at the Oregon Solar Eclipse Gathering. They would later be a pivotal influence on my future.
I helped with striking(tear down) the Village Witches and then headed on a whim towards Ashland, for a spontaneous adventure to Mystic Rising festival thanks to my good friend and teammate at the Eclipse. I had my 25th birthday at this small intimate gathering. Laying naked under the sun on a floating raft in a small lake was exactly how I wanted to spend the day of my birth. At one point I see my 3 friends floating their way to me on a huge pink flamingo. They sang happy birthday while getting on the raft, presenting to me a small raw cacao cupcake. It caught me completely off guard. It was such a blissful memory of mine. I am forever grateful for that space and time.
After hanging around at Jackson Wellsprings near Ashland for a couple of days after the Mystic Rising, I re-calibrated my trajectory for Eugene.
There I would visit the much anticipated Lost Valley Education Center and Medowsong Ecovillage.
I hope you all enjoy my 10 min video about my adventure!
http://www.thenohm.com/
https://envisionfestival.com/