God’s Kaleidoscope

If you’ve taken the time to explore our website and social media, you’ll have noticed the quality of the film work: beautifully edited vignettes that capture the beauty of the farm and its residents, as well as the feel of what we’re trying to achieve. There are bags of energy, fun and warmth in these flickering reels… something I’m sure we could all use right now. Hats off to Belal, our resident filmmaker. We’re lucky to have him around.

Last week I bumped into Belal on a particularly bright, frosty morning. It was weather that reminded me of lyrics from my favourite Christmas hymn:

‘Earth stood hard as iron,

Water like a stone.’

We stamped our feet on the iron and breathed like dragons.

“What are you up to?” I asked.

“Sending up this drone. I want to capture the golden morning sunlight.”

“Cool.”

I watched as the tiny drone buzzed insect-like, up, up, up, and out of sight, away from the yard and its necessary clutter of machinery, outbuildings, and tools.

“Look at the screen,” said Belal.

I stared down at the controller in his hands. Framed on the screen was a pixelated slice of heaven. Rolling hills of frosted white, bathed in honeyed sunshine that spilt and refracted, like we’d placed an eye to god’s own kaleidoscope.

“Wow.”

We grinned at each other inanely. Temporarily, words had been defeated.

Now, days later, thinking back on this moment, it still makes me smile and take pause. Sometimes life can close in on you. The financial squeeze, an unkind word, stress, illness, a lack of sleep - there are myriad ways the crows can start to circle. And sometimes there is no rhyme or reason at all. Occasionally, sometimes often, we wake up sad and can’t shift the feeling, stuck in the clutter of our negative thoughts.

But I know this much. When I elevate myself for a second, seek the broader perspective, imagine the infinite passage of time and the small role I play in it, the clutter and its influence fades.

Gautama Buddha said: “The root of suffering is attachment.”

Held up by nature, floating in the ether, I start to see what he means.