to share a couple of storys that may be helpful to lilly..we had a woman thar came here with multiple sensitivities, she lived over by the ocean and thought it would be helpful to try our biodynamic food. Just driving inland and breathing the air of the industrial agriculture chicken industry which ventilates the houses puts alot of ammonia into the air.. when she arrived here ,she could smell the corn pollen in the garden and could not even get out of her car because of the air . it made me sad that i could not help her. we did hear a positive story when we visited david ronniger of northern idaho. he had a family from germany ,move there because their son who had severe allergys could breathe well there, so the dad accepted a low paying job, sold out their possesions and moved to northern idaho.. perhaps.a more remote pristine envirnment would help ,if you can do it economically... there is also a book called" breathe free "by daniel gagnon , of herbs ect in sante fe that might be helpful....o allen i think it is appropriate to be very honest and blunt at times .it helps to see things in a truthful light.....about the chips.. i've watched a neighbor dump ,dump truck loads of woodchips to cover an acre of ground the was basically sand, 2 foot deep at least. it sat there for almost 20 years. they just tilled it and planted the most beautiful garden and lawn.. course most folks don't want to wait that long but it is an option if you have lots of chips :)sharon
From: "Allan Balliett" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, July 12, 2002 11:57 PM Subject: Re: Lily's life/ health > >WWOOF means Willing Workers On Organic Farms (...also Biodynamic). > >I know of this because I worked on a Biodynamic Farm in Canada that > >accepted many WWOOF'ers from all over the world. The typical > >arrangement is that people come to live on the farm to learn about > >farming in exchange of labor. But... I've also seen people come for > >therapeutic cures... Sometimes living on a BD farm, eating BD food, > >and helping in whatever way possible can be just the right thing. I > >know because I've seen people heal from the land. Here is a www > >link for the US. > ><http://www.wwoof.org/wpusa.html>http://www.wwoof.org/wpusa.html . > >Perhaps you can find something just right for you. > > > > Folks - > > I've hosted a lot of WWOOFERS in the past 5 years. Most of them have > made great contributions to the farm; a pitiful few came to the farm > hoping to exploit the program (they didn't stay with us for long). I > personally do not know of a BD farm that could afford to carry > someone who is too ill to work, let alone spare the time to listen to > them talk about their problems or express unique needs - - at least > not in the growing season, of course. > > The WWOOFING movement is based on that WILLING WORKERS aspect, which > is a deep understanding of how much all biological farmers need the > willing labor of capable workers. The workers, in my experience, get > the satisfaction of supporting the whole foods movement by helping > out on the farm and the opportunity to get deep insights into how > another farmer works his patch. This picture, of course, can be > substantially different on robust farms that have a sizeable paid > staff. > > It's a wonderful program. I'd hate to see it abused and I'd hate to > see Lily given false hope that would take her energy from discovering > appropriate solutions for her situation. > > I do know BD farms that practice 'agrotherapy,' which is an > oppotunity for the ill to heal in the healthy atmosphere of a living > garden. Agrotherapy, in my experience, is a service that one pays for > and not something that farmers I know can afford to provide for free > or for the sort of labor that can be provided by the infirm. > > Having pretty much pulled myself through chronic fatigue and > (officially diagnosed) multi-chemical sensitivities and into full > time biodynamic farming in the past 20 years, I feel qualified to > recommend that Lily experiment with the excellent mask/filters that > are available now for reasonable prices (and do not mold between uses > like they did when I needed them) and to experiment with charcoal for > clearing the leaky bowel syndrome, always remembering that millions > of other people are breathing those same crappy molecules and > eliminating them without getting loopy, weak or woozy? In fact, to be > honest with you, if you can't deal with the dry cleaners, you > probably can't deal with the pollen load on a biological farm, > particularly one rung with forests, like my own. > > Do I sound harsh? I probably do, but I have to say that a turning > point in my own "cure," which is not to say that I know what is best > for Lily, was the day that a college professor who patiently listened > to me talk about how atrocious my life was due to chemicals until he > apparently could take no more said "Can you hear how you sound like > a goddam baby crying in a crib? What is it that you want, baby? What > is it you think adults can do for you that you can't do for yourself? > " I chewed on this one for a long time before I started looking > towards where I should be going rather than where I at the moment. > > That said, does anyone know if Camphill programs have work exchange > programs that someone with Lily's needs could participate in? > > -Allan > > >
