When I came up with the idea of having a Holistic Healing Center be the central project of the village, suddenly everything fell into place that helped me to wholeheartedly want to pursue this vision of community.
It is easy for me to envision the following possible future now, and for that I feel so grateful.
It is five years from today, 4-12-25
As I lay my head upon my pillow in my simple tent structure nestled among others which are on tent platforms where we get the ideal of shelter and sleeping outdoors, I reflect upon the most beautiful day I have every had. I mean, days had been great up until now, but it seemed that all the elements that I dreamed about the community had finally coalesced in such a way that the perfection was revealed.
I talked to Jesus as I shared my reflection, for He is the one who helped all this happen. With his support in healing my past traumas, childhood, teen, and adult life, I could finally clear away the blocks that prevented me from living the life that he had planned for me even before I was born.
Starting with the morning devotions with the other monastics, I felt the bliss of connection with each other and with Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We experience every spiritual practice known to man within a month’s period, but the main ones that we share in our 2 hour morning time with God are essential. Prayer, Scripture reading/meditation, bible study adn discussion, Trauma Healing with Jesus (almost always including grieving and tears), stretching, walking and sprinting in nature barefoot (when weather allows–but we are working on barefoot walking in the winter), singing unto God, confession and sharing our vision for the day are all wonderful ways to start our day. After many of us being together for 5 years, we have created a bond that gives us security and a feeling of being loved that is matchless.
Anyone in the community can join our morning time. We break it up into sections so that if people are not willing or able to participate for the whole time can experience the benefits of what we are doing. Fortunately we meet in the large meeting hall that can hold up to 300 people which means that is the limit of each village and monastery. But we all are part of a smaller extended family of no more than 20 people so we can feel a deeper connection to some of the people.
The two hours of spiritual practices fly by with the result of everyone feeling joyful, connected to God and each other, and having boundless energy to pursue the day’s activities with great enthusiasm.
7:30 Everyone in the village who is able wants to (and just about everyone happily joins together except for bedridden patients who simply can’t get out-but no one has to come) for a short period of prayer and bible reading before the breakfast meal of fruit and juice. (Note: I am still trying to figure out the ideal diet for the community but this is what I have come up with right now). Everyone is talking in a lively way, and there is much laughter and smiles. Children who often eat faster than the adults are already playing with abandon.
The day before, plans have been made for the days activities for each person. We have an amazing, miraculous way of tuning into God’s will and everyone gives input as they want. Even long term patients know what their duties are, for they need to feel useful. Laying in bed with hours of boredom is definitely not healing! The activities are endless since we have food to prepare and grow, trails to blaze and make, building projects, repairing vehicles, engaging people of all ages in educational activities. touring with guests. cleaning, organizing business planning, blog writing, website designing, working with AI, community outreach service projects, planning long term, raising funds, and so much more!
Everyone does what they love to do because everything involves learning and growing in people’s gifts. Even those who are not Christians love the Christ-centered approach to everything because there is so much love, tenderness and cherishing of each other, the animals, the earth and all of life.
8:30am The end of breakfast bell rings. There is a moment of silence and the bell rings again and everyone happily goes to where they are assigned. One essential task is for the gardeners to harvest the wild edibles, greens, root crops, fruit crops like tomatoes and various other foods for lunch. Dried beans, nuts, winter squash and various grains have already been grown during the winter, and they will be prepared as well. I feel so excited to know that all the food we need is grown in our permaculture inspired food forests which are interspersed among all the little extended family settlements on the 17 acres of land.
Of course the food preparers are combined of expert leaders and learners who crave to know how best to prepare food which is whole food, nutrient rich, mostly oil free, 85 percent raw and above all, delicious! Our last meal is at noon, and everyone who is able and willing fasts after 1pm. Intermittent fasting is alive and well, and people thrive because they don’t over eat and they only eat super healthy foods.
Lunch is so similar to breakfast, only now people are in planning circles talking about what to do the rest of the day to complete the tasks at hand and make sure all loose ends are tied up by 6pm which is the end of the work day. People have lively discussions and use consent decision making in a very natural way in order to problem solve and find the very best ways to do things. We are a community committed to always learning.
The beauty of having the healing center is that it provides an income for the whole community. Although we have a sliding scale, we also accept donations and we have billionaires who see the benefit of having healthy people living in healthy communities. Since we are already starting 5 more sister communities, people who achieve optimum health at the center do not have to go back to what might be toxic environments. They can use their newly found energy to help start new communities with great inspiration. We have such abundance.
We also provide work for the local community. Not all the workers live on site, for in order to get all the ponds dug, land moved for fast building of various permaculture structures such as berms, green houses built, trees planted, we need lots of workers. They get free health care and meals, and if they want to rent an apartment or dormitory place, they can. This is enriching Madison County immensely because so many young people were forced to work at places where they did not learn much, and were treated rather poorly. We are able to pay over a living wage, and they can even attend the night school to learn extra skills if they want to. Having so many young people and enriching their lives, helping them stay out of gangs, out of drugs, out of prison, and enjoying their energy is so satisfying to all of us old people.
The intergenerational school fits in seamlessly with the holistic healing center because there are seemingly endless things that need to be done including continuing building the infrastructure. The giant light concrete dome which is a work of art, too hundreds of laborers who learned on the spot how to mix and work with light weight concrete. People of all ages from five years to 90 are learning how to prepare and grow food. Learning trades like cleaning, organizing, and keeping the infrastructure running are all useful things that can be used in the outside world, or can be paid work within the community. When work is actually accomplished, people do get paid a stipend, even though they are learning.
This is benefitting homeschool parents immensely, for they can still work at a regular job until they find an opening in the community, or perhaps they love their outside job. They know their children are completely safe and learning the important aspects of life including reading arithmetic and writing in such a way that it is effortless. They also know that their young ones are being instilled with universal values that will teach them how to be responsible, useful and loving adults.
Included in the school is a giant shop made of a huge metal building that has different stalls inside where the tools are organized meticulously and students and workers alike keep learning the much valued skills of repairing cars and other equipment, wood working, natural building, and every other skill that is needed.
Interns in the holistic living center learn from certified and experienced functional and integrative doctors with a variety of skills so that whatever they choose to learn, they can learn. It is like a training hospital where there are classrooms so people can learn acupuncture, massage, kinesiology, chiropractic, and other natural healing methods with the chance to immediately work on clients who come in for free, willing to be experimented on with great supervision from experienced practitioners. They receive wonderful feedback and some of the guinea pigs love to come in even if they are not suffering just to be able to give feedback and interact. No loneliness in this space!
Of course learning goes on in all the gardening and food forest cultivation. The permaculture experiences are phenomenal and we even take it to the community for minimal fees to help everyone, first in the neighborhood, grow their own food. We have accomplished almost 100 percent food security by teaching people and helping them prepare their gardens so they can even survive from the food they grow such as Jerusalem artichokes, wild edibles, potatoes cow peas, and winter squash. Bees and butterflies, birds and frogs, lizards and friendly snakes and all wild life is flourishing as we also teach people how to create wildlife sanctuaries in their own yard–even city folks.
We were able to attract very talented folks in all the areas because the of the phenomenal vision we shared and also when anyone of any degree of talent came to visit, they were showered with love. Yes, we did need to screen visitors at first, but now we do have weekly tours and weekly potlucks so we can get to know people and we don’t have to screen them. We have ways to set boundaries so that everyone is safe.
Little homesteads made up of about 20 people connect with food forests and foot paths so that the environment is perfectly suited to coexisting with wildlife. We practice interspecies communication so that we even get along with poisonous snakes, coyotes and otherwise scary animals.
As I reflect on Monastery, School, Healing Center which are all supported by the community and the monastery, school and healing center support the community, I feel a sense of awe. Everyone is optimally healthy, so no one feels like they are pulling more than their fair share of the load. Even autistic older folks. and people with Alzheimer’s and dementia have been healed and they are full blown workers. One of their jobs is to play with the children! Great supervision is supplied for all people so that everyone is sure to be safe.
The farm animal sanctuary fits in with the school and healing center as well. Some people who have had traumatic experiences such as being in the sex trafficking trade need to connect with animals before they can connect with humans. The cows, horses, pigs, goats chickens, turkeys all provide companions for both children and adults under expert care of trained trauma healers.
Dogs and cats are also included in a sanctuary. There are so many of these poor creatures who can’t find homes, and they are cared for and fostered. They also provide loving companions for the hurting and for those who just love animals. The potential for learning how to start an animal sanctuary along with all the many skills needed is huge for those working and learning in what is part of the school and the healing center.
People in the living springs neighborhood and Madison County are so grateful for the healthcare we provide. There were so many people who suffered from severe, debilitating illnesses in the neighborhood who were able to get help no matter what their financial situation was. Now they are eating a vibrant plant based diet and they can also come and join meals and buy a meal ticket, or do a work trade–and this increases our sense of neighborliness.
After work is done, since we don’t have to take time and energy to eat, I love the variety of recreational activities. We do love our play time. Our swimming ponds have diving boards and little kayaks. Volleyball, badminton, ping pong, soccer and pickle ball are the most popular sports. Some like to go hiking to the nearby waterfall, or prayer walk around the neighborhood. Others will go outside the community in pairs or small groups to attend such things as school board meetings and local government meetings. Our members are active in the volunteer fire department, food banks, pregnancy center, and afterschool programs. Letter writing (via email) and phone calling government officials about various issues is also fun to do in a group. Each to their own, and the kids have a blast on the amazing playground that young people design. Music is popular along with doing creative endeavors in the makers spaces. Folk and square dancing, sing longs, and story telling are great for all generations. Just use your imagination for wholesome fun and you will see it done–or come and offer your ideas!
All of this benefits those who are staying in the hospital or the health retreatants, for the fun and fellowship are one of the most healing aspects of the place–remember how Patch Adams theorized that laughter (we do laughter yoga) and community is essential for healing?
Well, I could go on and on about how everything has worked out perfectly as I envisioned it 5 years ago. I could talk about how we observe Friday sundown to Saturday sundown as our resting time. We don’t do this in a legalistic way, but rather to honor the wonderful Seventh Day Adventists who have joined us. Because they believe so strongly that the Bible teaches that Saturday is to be a day of rest, and many other Christians are not attached to which day, we want to make it possible for the Seventh Day Adventists to be a part of the community.
Celebrating the Sabbath is the highlight of the week, for it combines all the things previously mentioned that the monastics do in the morning devotionals–with fun, recreation, hiking, and all the things we like to do after the day is over. We invite people from the community to join us and we are able to share the love of Jesus in such a beautiful way. Many have decided to give their lives to Jesus because of this amazing day of honoring God.
I need to mention our evening devotionals where we do a shortened version of the morning. All are invited but none are required except the monastics who have devoted their lives to helping all in the community to foster their walk with Jesus in such a way that serving Jesus becomes their whole life. Morning and evening we have a special time where the young people of all ages are ministered to in unique ways so that the parents can participate and the young ones can feel engaged without boredom or feeling as if they are forced to sit still and be quiet.
One of our ministries is to take to the road in a big bus and share the message of healing, veganism, and Jesus with people all over the United States. Soon we will be taking this tour all around the world, but for now we are content to offer a beautiful sing along, story-telling, inspirational, intergenerational presentation which inspires people with hope and love. Even atheists and people of other religions are enthralled by both the quality of the musical section, and the message itself.
Non-profits, churches, and service-oriented local businesses are invited to have tables where they share what they are doing to help the people in their geographical area so that attendees can participate more fully in being part of their own village, town, and county. People are encouraged to take part in local politics in such a way that the needs of all people, creatures. and the earth can be nurtured. A day-long “unconference” using Open Space Technology provides a space for all participants to create a strategic plan and coalition of folks who can provide support for people to cooperate. This coalition is connected to Wilberforce with a mentor who can help guide and mentor them in using such tools as Sociocracy 3.0 in order to have fair and efficient governance where everyone’s voice matters. Building bridges between left and right, poor and rich, religious and non-religious, democrats and republicans–is essential and an integral part of this unconference. The miracles that have resulted fill our hearts with joy.
Of course I must mention how we have a fantastic production team that is always making videos and podcasts along with our very prolific blog and website so that people can stay in touch with our up to the minute uplifting stories. Our educational series teaching people how to garden, resolve conflicts, heal themselves with life-style changes, and inspiring people to become vegan are phenomenal.
I just feel grateful to all the people who have inspired the vision, and the millionaires and billionaires who have funded everything. Even though much of what we do is not for profit the people who are staff/residents at Wilberforce do earn a very nice living and are responsible for their own little homestead improvements if they wish to create their own space which they can then bequeath to their children as long as they abide by the covenants laid down in the Community Land Trust agreements. We also make sure that if people need to have their elderly parents or wayward children with them that they can do so provided they abide by the rules which make this community a sober-living paradise. Our rules against drugs, junk food, animal products of any kind, and alcohol are not ones that people resist because they just make it easier for everyone to be totally free of addictions. We have so many things that bring joy and peace that our residents, clients and visitors have no desire for unhealthy products of any kind.
The wilderness living school which is part of the Wilberforce School of Living is thriving as well. They are situated in the lovely valley near a creek, and there are not even hints of civilization. They have created a village of homes made only from the materials found on the land learned from the native Americans who lived here before. This provides yet another avenue for healing as well because to completely withdraw from all manmade substances really helps some people to get in touch with God, similar to how I felt when I went backpacking and had revelations of God even when I did not believe in Him.
Thanks for listening to my story, and I hope to be writing soon about all the sister communities which are being built in every county. Our vision is a community like Wilberforce to be in every county and then more smaller communities within the county until everyone who wants to can live in a community experiencing interdependence and yet always being free to leave if they want and having the means to do so. Some communities where all is shared in common seem ideal until someone wants to leave–then it becomes hard because the person wanting to leave has not built up any equity or savings. We empower people to leave if they want to, and especially love to empower young people to go and create new communities. We are not forcing anyone to be exactly like Wilberforce, although we do have some who are almost identical and we consider ourselves to be similar to a denomination where we agree on key principles as described in the values in this blog.
Creating a governance system using Sociocracy 3.0 is giving a model to everyone so that there can be a new form of decision making and political decisions are no longer things that encourage narcissists to engage in. Humble, servant leaders are emerging now and people are waking up to the fact that we have given our power away to many greedy people who do not care about the needs of the lower and working class.
Slowly but surely. we are inspiring people to change their characters. More and more people are choosing to be vegan, and that decision along with surrendering to Jesus is making a huge difference. The critical mass of people needed in order to help God bring the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven is being achieved faster than ever imagined. Even though the first 5 years have been rather slow in the building, now we have reached a place where duplication is increasingly easy.
Thank you, Father God, Dear Jesus, and Holy Spirit–for helping all of this happen. I surrender this vision to you. Please adjust it according to your will. amen.
