Weaving together - a way of being and doing.

the warp and weft of mutuality and cohesion for peace and preservation of our planet and human / more than human bonds.

Weaving leaky dams, hedges and coming together for peace, wellbeing and unity

Could people just weave together a little more? We could plant some strong stakes of living, growing optimistic stability interwoven with flexibility and variety to allow gusts of energy to pass through whilst forming some kind of protective cohesion. This might just be a way to think of working together.

I have been hedge laying - a good time to think about how we as people could weave together effectively, creatively and for some kind of common supportive aliveness.

small watercolour made because today is heavy rain and I am thinking.

And then there are the Leaky dams: Yesterday in a small volunteering community we made bundles of hedge clippings, hazel and willow, beech and birch. These are going to the uplands for our construction of leaky dams. We slithered in mud and got incredibly wet but the group was working together for common good (flood prevention, as modelled by beavers, for this area of West Wales). These structures work with nature, not against it, helping to reduce flood risk while enhancing habitats. Many are being built across rivers these days but ours are destined for fields where there is too much rain run off causing problems below. This village flooded badly in 2012 when twenty-seven homes were left under water. The Floodees (villagers affected by the flood) have come together to form a stronger community as a result of the devastation and some are working with the Woodland Trust to prevent further instances. Here is a lovely 9 minute film from the Woodland Trust about this village and the flood work:

For a leaky dam living willow stems are grown in two rows twenty-five centimetres apart. The bundles we made will be packed into these two lines and can be added to as needed.

Working together our laughter and chat in both Welsh and English wove together a harmonious working party of all ages. A sense of community, worthwhileness and cohesion, with room for difference, was built as well as the foundations of a physical structure. This group also plants trees in the upland hedgerows of farms to

• intercept rainfall before it hits the ground

• increase water absorption into the soil, reducing runoff

• stabilise the land and prevent soil erosion, which can contribute to river flooding.

By planting woodlands and hedgerows on farmland higher up in the catchment, they are creating natural barriers that will slow the flow of water, reducing the risk of sudden floods in the village below which can also be seen in the film. I have enjoyed taking part as a new resident to the area and am stunned that 4,000 trees have been hand planted so far by the group this year and 42,000 since 2012.

This is how we can build a better world. Surely? (see Seeds of Good Anthropocene) and this talk by Elena Bennett

Weaving has come up a lot in my thoughts. I have been pruning a hedge in the garden, by my slightly rusty hand - loppers and my beautiful Niwaki Japanese saw (moku) such a pleasure to use. I don’t want to take too much growth but it is restricting light. I am learning to use the longer poles of hazel and wild privet to weave in below in a laid hedge fashion, keeping smaller brash for kindling - a long term daily snipping task between now and next winter and a useful opportunity to nip out between showers. This way small mammals, birds and frogs (newts would be a joy) can come through the garden and a gentle windbreak is formed. It’s a project which will circle through the year, trimming and building, trimming and building, snip, weave, reuse, no waste.

In this village are disused tweed mills and small dyeing factories- all abandoned. Weaving of wool was the industry here along with lead mining and agriculture. The other day I wove my own way through the brambles to look at what’s left of one of the buildings. Looms and machinery are still there., rusting quietly. The work in these mills, until the middle of the twentieth century, would be long and hard but communities were woven and church and village hall activity provided the warp for the weft of mutuality.

We must, in these times of cataclysmic leadership styles, forge local bonds, mutuality and cohesion for peace and preservation of our planet and human / more than human bonds.This brings me back to our tree planting and leaky dam building projects outlined above.

I took some photos this week:

I have spent hours looking at these scenes and imagining the workplace in its heyday whilst hoping not to fall through the floor!! Gazing at a snapshot of former weavings.

I can go on about the weaving, over, under, strong, leaky, way that I am melding myself into the landscape but I shall save more for next time.

A bientôt and bora da!

Clare

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