The second Giftival has been a blessing
by Rowan
This second iteration of Giftival has been a blessing. Launching into it felt like a free dive off a cliff into a glimmering crystal sunset blue. We knew we wanted to do it, we knew it’d be beautiful, and yet, did we feel prepared, was it the right time? Was there broader desire for it? We trusted and we jumped and it was ecstatic!
We’re learning about the Giftival each time it comes along. The gifts it brings us in connection, learning, care and joy. There are moments in the last month that have nourished and inspired and whittled memories into our beings.
For me, one gathering that feels especially blessed, one that comes to mind like a carving each time the word Giftival comes up, is a little circle that took place at Dacres Wood on May the 22nd. It was me, Yasmin, Matiga, her doula partner, Saklia from Dantours doulas, and their apprentice of sorts, mindful flow and movement practitioner, iamuwa, and we were there to talk about birth
The quiet room was transformed, for two magical hours into a womb, held by women, incubating wisdom. The glory of Matiga’s channeling smile, the story of a 5 year old who knew who her doula was, the naming of herbs, the embracing of spirit, and the trust in the journey of birth and sensing into ritual and ceremony.
My understanding of the world, and my place in it gathered a gleam, and I am grateful.
For me, the Giftival was a platform where I was able to explore so many living enquiries that have been brewing in my world. I was able to launch London is Your Campus, a pilot to see if unschooled teenagers can be held in community in the city through their learning years. This project has welcomed a number of Free We Grow alumni as well as new curious and seeking folk. We’re now just over half way through and we’ve explored playgrounds and people, kindness and the unexpected from Stratford to Elephant and Castle. Look out for an invitation to join us for a celebration on our last Monday together, on the 23rd of June.
I’ve been able to explore, in community, ideas around walking, journeying, language learning, storytelling and more, and attended events that channel the creativity, enthusiasm and wisdom of members of our community from Lebanon to Silverdale, from mending to communicating.
As this Giftival comes to a close, at a time when looking up and around, it feels like the world is in a scary, dangerous and sad place, I wonder what it is that we’re doing, and what it is that we’re seeking. In her book, The Serviceberry, an economy of abundance, Robin Wall Kimmerer describes life in a capitalist society as being ‘yolked to extraction’. The economic unit, she says, in a gift economy, is we rather than I, as all flourishing is mutual.
We will over the next period have a moment to reflect. It’s so easy for whatever is planned next to take us in it’s wave. If you’ve enjoyed a moment at the Giftival, if you will treasure a particular moment, if you learnt something, if you have an idea for what you might offer and lean into if it happens again, if you have a question or a curiosity - please do send it to use at gather@freewegrow.co.uk and we’ll collate it as part of our learning.
A big thank you to everyone who showed up - who offered an event, supported an event, attended events, shared the program, and brought our community together to share in our gifts, and to invite others into the little woodland in London that hosts us.
