Thursday 30 November 2017

A blue and pink surprise?

Today we had the first frost. I woke up to this beautiful white and shinning white color over the plants and the ground. There is a magical soul in Nature during cold days. A magic that calls to go in and rest. To sleep a little bit more. To look inside with no separation from the outside. It feels like winter already. It's so cold, and yet so sunny.
For now, I consider that we are in transition times.
We are lookind at the land and the house and see what comes, somehow!
Decisions are hard to make, because, like I said before, the experience is one of instability. But, life goes on and life is moving on, and so are we!
David is almost arriving from the UK. Yes, good things are coming!
I want to leave as a surprise and I am only going to show you and tell you about the next steps, when "they" arrive!
Until then, I would like to show you more pictures of what has been happening with the house and the land.


- We upcycled a burned sink from Mizarela, and created a wood structure so we can use it. For now, it's our exterior sink.


- David made the structure for the outside compost loo. Something simple, but it's going to be dry and protected from both the wind and the rain.




We have been clearing the burned BUS, so we can finally say goodbye.


And in one of the times that I went up to clear some more, I just saw this. An amazing butterfly standing in the ramainings of the BUS. So beautiful that it broke my heart. Nothing else is important. The beauty of life is the only thing that matters - and the beauty lies in everything and everyone. In every situation: the ones that we experience as good and the ones that don't seem so good. It's a transformation that is occuring. It's a letting go of the old, so the new can materialize itself. Thank you butterfly.

This is the place that I always took a picture from when we were building the house in Mizarela. Looking at this place, I am full of gratitude, because we moved the house before the fire. If we hadn't done that in August, right now, there would not be a house to continue to build. That's why we are really grateful for life and for the right timings, for miracles and for listening to our intuition. 



The green starts to come after the fire and we rescued our tiles - not so bad! Maybe some creative form will come from them. A very good looking morrocan bathroom on the way!

 Enjoying the sun right after meditation every morning in our room in Mizarela

 Visiting the bees every other day

Missanga's ear and Lara with not a so nice look! She loves to hide in the box.


A very long and precise work of leveling the house! Very important, because we were always feeling deasy everytime that we were in the house and for the structure itself it's very important. David can tell you more in detail later about this job.

Leveled Tiny House! Iupi!

All the people like us that lost houses and things could come to this places to get similar things that got burned. The Portuguese are very giving in these situations, so these places were and are still full of very good things that we can use, including food.

 I learned that instead of being angry because the 42m2 that we bought of wood for the floor got burned, I accepted it. What else is there to do in these kind of situations? It's a waste of time to imagine how things could have been if we had moved the wood to the land in September or so. We didn't, so this is what is! (in the picture you can see the only thing left from the floor!)


For now, we decided not to change the windows that got broken, since we are not living there yet. 


Preparing some fire wood for winter

We put some fairy lights in one of the trees next to the house. They are solar, so every night, if it was sunny during the day, we have an amazing view of the fairies on the tree!

I finished cleaning the wood burner - it took a lot of work since the plastic was completly melted on the surface. We had to use heat, a metal spatula and at the end David had to use the electrical sand to sand everything out. So now, we just have to paint it with a special paint for wood burners.

And that's it for now!
Monday we will show you the pink and blue surprise that will mark the new phase of the Tiny House building.

Until then, a big hug with love
Raquel

Monday 13 November 2017

Life changing moments

After more than one month from the last post.
Yes, we know that it is a long time, but so much happenned that we didn't have the oppotunity before to write and share with all of you.
I just read our last post and it is quite an experience doing it, because I talked about being in the unknown and my experience right now is that I don't know who I am and that it is challenging to think about the future and plans for it.
Talk about the unkown!
It feels that we are in a completely different world from before...

My grandmother died.
The season at Quinta da Mizarela ended.
There were 2 big fires in this area.
Our lifes changed deeply forever and we don't know completely how!

+++++++++++++++
Granny Ilda:


“(...)
My dear grandmother Ilda died past Monday (25th of September). She was 106 years old. It was hard, even her age was 106! My father saw her leaving, supporting her in his arms. It was devastating but very pacific. After all the time that he took care of her, together with my mother.
A very inspiring life. A beauty. A woman that showed me that transformation is possible. That joy and love are the nature and foundation of life. A mother, a wife, a sister, a grandmother, a woman, a person. Wise and so funny! She was my grandmother and I miss her very much.
The tears that roll from my eyes express a deep sadness.
Our family has a broken heart. A heart that has nothing else than love. Because she was/is love.
She was determination and elegance.
She is an example of an evolutionary woman.
She was born on the 11th of March of 1911, just one year after the Republic started in Portugal.
She went through hunger and very hard times in Portuguese society. She made hats and she was an amazing seamstress and cook.
She was a loving person, a wonderful mother, a dedicated wife, a funny grandmother.
She was in bed permanently for 2 years already and my mother and father dedicated most of their time to her.
My mother is an amazing woman. Very inspiring to see and live this dedication.
I love my grandmother. I love my mother and I am very inspired about these two women.
I am very honored to be part of their family, to be their grandaughter and daughter.
With a broken and gigantic full (of love) heart
Raquel Perdigão Williams

+++++++++++++++
It was a beautiful, commited and full on season at Mizarela. We had amazing volunteers and the quinta was shinning in a different way. Our events were very successful and the project evolved a lot with so many good and inspiring people joinning. The garden looked amazingly prepared for winter and we had fruit like never before. So many grape juice and jam was made! And the talks with the garden expanded not only in time but with people interested as well. I made an amazing plan for the garden, for next year, since me and David planned to spend more time with the Tiny House and the land that we bought. The fire wood for winter was dry and beautifully stacked.

+++++++++++++++
At the beginning of October, the fires not only threatned, but attacked again Portugal. After 67 people died and thousand of hectars of forest and/or monoculture burned in Pedrógão in last June, the fear was strong. The fire was very close to where we live. As you can see in David's pictures and report.

"These are some pictures from the fires that were raging very close to where here in Portugal. We had just gone to bed when Marko called us to say the fires had picked up and were heading in our direction. That was the first time it felt real. To see the flames coming over the mountain top was a moment I will never forget.
The next 48 hours were intense as we prepared to evacuate. We had planned it before hand, what we would do if this happened. We rounded up the animals and a few personal belongings, you really see what is important to you in a moment like this! and headed up to a safe place where we could see how the fire was moving.
It was very surreal to watch, as it headed metre by metre down the hill side. We took it in turns to be on watch as others rested. The next day some of us went to offer support to the firefighters. It was amazing to see everyone coming together, people bringing food and water, turning up in pick up trucks with water in the back. The local mayor was manning one truck and with a team preventing the advancement of the fire on to the local houses in the village closest to us.
Within 48 hours things were under control. The firefighters were and are amazing, the way they work is quite something.
We were relieved and extremely grateful to be living back on the Quinta. The animals were roaming around again and we were happy to be with them.
There were still fires burning all over Portugal and Spain. My heart and blessings go out to everyone affected.
David"






On the 15th of October the wind started to be very strong, due to the Ophelia hurricane.
We went to the mountains to have a look in case the fire could be up again. And that happened. Luadas and Monte Frio were with fire. This time everything looked more real, more intense, maybe because of the winds. The fire looked closer. WE started to pack things and put the animals in cages so we could carry them. I remembered stopping some seconds inside of the BUS and asking: do we have everything that we want? Did we pack everything that we need? I thought so at the time. We evacuated. The fire was crazy, running through the mountains, coming closer and closer. Some roads were already closed, police was guiding us to other roads. We only had Tábua to go.
The next day was my birthday and we were in Montemor o Velho after lunch time, in a friend's house. On the way, we had a phone call telling us that the Quinta was burning. That was it! We cried and accepted that everything was burning. Everything that we left.

On the 17th of October I wrote this:
"Querida família, queridos amigos, estou sentada confortável na cama de
uns amigos. Com a Lara e a Missanga ao meu lado. O David Williams, a
Laura Williams, o Marko Maitz, o Marco Nilo e a Katja Schläfli estão
entre a Mizarela, a Quinta da Floresta e a Tiny House. Estamos
desolados, mas felizes por estarmos vivos. De volta à quinta foi
desolador ver tantos e tantos e tantos quilómetros de floresta, terra e

casas ardidas. Algumas áreas, mesmo depois da chuva, ainda
fumegavam. Perdemos a noção do tempo. Já não sabemos quando tudo
isto começou. Estamos cansados. Dormimos no chão dos bombeiros de
Tábua, felizes por termos onde dormir. Dormimos no jardim de Tábua,
na relva fresca, até as chamas se aproximarem. Não tínhamos como
fugir. O fogo rodeava Tábua e o fumo estava a intoxicar tudo e todos. Os
bombeiros deram-nos de comer e beber. Cuidaram de nós. Os
bombeiros fizeram aquilo que podiam para apagar os fogos. Ouvi-os
dizer: não sabemos mais o que fazer. O vento soprava tão forte que não
havia uma direcção, mas muitas em que o fogo rojava forte. Ao sairmos
da Quinta nem queríamos acreditar naquilo que nos rodeava: um
perfeito inferno de fogo, de fumo, de medo, de desolação, de tragédia, de
destruição. Saímos na altura certa, pois minutos depois as estradas
estavam cortadas. Tanto fogo por todo o lado! Monte Frio, Luadas, Pai
das Donas, Pardieiros, Mata da Margaraça, Relva Velha, Côja, Tábua,
Oliveira do Hospital, Seia, Barril do Alva... É, foi, será desolador ver,
sentir este fogo. Uma força inacreditável que pára quando não se espera
e que avança da mesma forma. Imagens inesquecíveis de desalento e
destruição. Um sacrifício a que a Terra se presta. Estamos desolados,
mas felizes por estarmos vivos. Há um cheiro a queimado. Há um cheiro
a resina queimada como se fosse incenso. Há um luto indescritível. Há
um lamento por aquilo que foi. Há companheirismo como eu nunca vi.
Há abraços e olhares sem palavras de conforto. Amigos que perderam
literalmente tudo, incluindo as casas que construiram ao longo de anos
com tanta dedicação. Felicidade quando ouvimos que as pessoas que
conhecemos estão vivas. Que algumas casas e terrenos
sobreviveram.Cresce agora a vontade de voltar, de estar com aquela
terra preciosa, de renascer destas cinzas, de re-construir. Não sabemos
o que vai acontecer, mas sabemos os passos seguintes a tomar. Ficamos
desolados, de coração partido ao vermos o nosso querido BUS (lar) e o
yurt da Laura e do Marko completamente destruídos. alguns (maior
parte) dos nossos bens foram com o fogo. Choramos. Deixamos a dor
falar, expressar-se. Madeira para o inverno ardeu. Alguns canteiros
destruídos, o sistema hydro, o deck e 2 casas de banho foram-se
também. Mas os edifícios estão de pé. Os santuários estão verdes e
intocados. Um verdadeiro milagre. A casa da Laura e do Marko intocada
- outro milagre. A nossa terra ardeu. As árvores ficaram. E por um
verdadeiro milagre, a nossa Tiny House está lá! No meio de tanto medo,
desgosto, luto, desolação, resta-nos o milagre da vida. Da certeza que

tudo está bem como está. Aceitamos a vida como é e se a vida é com
fogo, assim seja. As forças são agora de recuperação e de perceber os
próximos passos, De estar com tudo. De listar o que precisamos. Por
agora, ficamos felizes apenas com a chuva lá fora, mansinha, de leve
para ir hidratando aos poucos a "nossa" Terra. Muito obrigada
bombeiros heróis, familiares, amigos. Muito obrigada à terra por se
sacrificar. Um abraço muito grande em todos e mais uma vez, quando
tiver rede lá da Quinta dar-vos- ei mais notícias. Resta-me agora fechar
os olhos e descansar um corpo exausto e uma alma dorida, mas cheia de
força."

When we went back to our lands, even knowing that somethings burned and others didn't, it was a terrible and traumatic choque to see the ashes, the melted metal and all the forest burned. The smell is impossible to describe and the soil under our feet it looks like the moon soil or like a planet without life. The BUS, with everything that we left was unreconizable and the wood that we bought for the floor for the Tiny House got burned as well. But, by a miracle, the Tiny House stands tall and not burned! Only with some windows cracked.

 At the entrance of Mizarela

 The forest and the BUS

 Trees that we were going to put in the land that we bought

 The BUS


 Here she is, with the same face. She had fire all over and she stands!

Our garden sanctuary not touched by the flames and a small gift to the earth by Laura.

On the 31st of October:
"Quinta da Mizarela, acima da Fraga da Pena, 31 de Outubro de 2017,
duas semanas após o fogo que ardeu e queimou sem piedade.
Ainda há um local antes de entrar em Benfeita que fumega. As raízes de
uma árvore ainda ardem no interior do solo.
Os nossos corações fumegam assim, da mesma forma.
O choque ainda está presente, o medo vai-se esvanecendo, mas acorda
de vez em quando, quando imagens do fogo aparecem na net, ou quando
se lêem relatos desses dias, ou mesmo quando se fecham os olhos e no
sono se revive tudo outra vez.
Tudo está diferente e ao mesmo tempo nada mudou.
Estive dias em profundo medo que o fogo voltasse de novo. Ou apenas
imersa num medo que não sei de onde vinha, mas que parecia mais forte
que a vida.
Estou viva, o meu marido está vivo, as minhas gatas estão vivas. A minha
comunidade/família está viva. A floresta que nos rodeava morreu. O lar
onde vivíamos ardeu, assim como os nossos pertences que ali estavam e
grande parte do meu trabalho também. O lar dos meus cunhados ardeu.
A casa em rodas que eu e o meu marido estamos a construir sobreviveu
por um milagre –apenas 4 janelas partidas. As casas de xisto da
comunidade sobreviveram. Muitas casas de amigos e terrenos foram-se
em minutos. Animais perderam a vida.

O que fazer? O que ser?
Há um sentimento de estar perdida no desconhecido. Algo que pensei
estar habituada, mas que aprendi agora que desconhecido é sempre
desconhecido. Não é um hábito, não é algo que se reconheça como um
amigo ou algo que já se viu. Desconhecido é desconhecido. É novo.
Abro aos poucos o meu coração ainda com medo. Sim, tenho medo. Sei
que não sou este medo. Sei profundamente que das cinzas se renasce e
isso é o que me move. 1 dia depois do incêndio se ter apagado, choveu
miudinho. Tão devagar que a terra absorveu esta água o máximo que
pôde. Pensamos todos que a chuva chegou tarde demais. Mas foi muito
bem vinda. Pois 3 dias depois, do solo rompiam plantas. O verde que
subia do preto. O verde que trazia esperança. A esperança que nos deixa
respirar de alivio e nos deixa dormir à noite. Um descanso que a vida é
vida sempre e que não morre, nem mesmo com o fogo.
Aprendi que até o fogo é vida. Forte, fugaz e que leva tudo à sua frente.
Transforma e devasta. Leva tudo. Coisas que se transformaram em
cinzas e outras que derreteram.
Mas e a floresta? E a dor que fica numa floresta queimada? O que fazer
com esta dor? O que fazer com a incerteza do que será esta área? O que
fazer com a tristeza de um negro que cheira a queimado, que parece não
ter vida e que soa diferente?
Só nos resta ser o que se é. Aceitar que o fogo é fogo, que a mudança é
mudança, que o medo existe, que a esperança é real, que a renovação
ocorre, que a Natureza regenera, que os humanos se adaptam, que a
vida é como é e que não há qualquer controlo seja do que for. Não há
previsões do que é a vida, mas que apenas se tem o respirar que nos diz
que o coração bate e que mesmo que o coração deixe de bater, o espírito
nunca morre.
Ao olhar para esta paisagem tão diferente há um registo visual de morte,
mas uma profunda certeza e um sentir de uma presença igual. A
presença da vida, da Natureza, do Universo, de Deus, da Deusa. Uma
presença tão forte que nos move a todos a ser vida.
Às vezes acorda-se com um cansaço inexplicável. Outras vezes com uma
tristeza profunda. Outras com um sentimento de zanga com tudo o que
aconteceu e do que ainda se vê. E há outros dias ainda que se sorri
porque a vida existe e os pássaros chilrreiam e a água jorra! E porque
tudo é novo. Tudo é novo.
Neste momento, sinto a dor da separação. Porque por vezes nos
esquecemos que não há diferença ou limites entre nós e a Natureza.

Porque quero perceber porque tudo isto aconteceu e quero arranjar
algo a que me “agarrar” para me dizer: estás aqui, és alguém e há um
objectivo e um propósito em tudo o que aconteceu e na maneira que as
coisas são agora. Mas saindo deste lugar seguro, o que resta, de novo, é a
vida. Cheia de experiências, sabores, cheiros, cores, texturas e
incertezas.
Hoje é dia 31 de Outubro, segundo a tradição pagã, o dia em que a roda
do ano inicia. Vou ao vale da Quinta, ao pequeno altar e ofereço o meu
sangue. Numa estrutura cristalina coloco bolotas. Fico com a força das
sementes que querem crescer e brotar para o novo. Enche-me de mim,
do todo, de Deus@, do ar fresco do verde húmido. O negro é belo
também. Estas montanhas são as mesmas montanhas. Eu sou estas
montanhas. Respiro-me sem controlo. Entrego-me à verdade.
Desapareço na beleza da noite. E a lua brilha, quase cheia.
Subo as escadas, cheia, com uma calma intrínseca à vida.
Vejo o brilho de 2 olhos no escuro. Mais um gato que aparece por aqui.
E a esperança invade-me.
Porque a separação é irreal.
Agradeço tudo.
O fogo, o medo, a incerteza, a insegurança, o desconforto, as dádivas de
todos os que nos têm ajudado, o tempo que alguns amigos passaram e
passam aqui para reconstruir este lugar, a união das pessoas que vivem
na zona para reflorestarem estas montanhas, a vontade de mudar o que
não funciona, a entreajuda, o apoio dos vizinhos, a vontade de ajudar, a
vontade de partilhar, os sorrisos de todos, os abraços, a simpatia e a
solidariedade das pessoas nos centros de apoio aos afectados pelos
incêndios, a roupa nova, a cama confortável, a luz acesa e a água para
tomar duches, a água que corre no ribeiro, o frio que entra pela porta, o
sol que seca a roupa, os amigos, os telefonemas, a família, a Quinta da
Mizarela, o Projecto Vida Desperta, a madeira, a Tiny house, os amigos, o
facebook, as vozes, os sons, a vida e a morte.
Agradeço tudo.
Obrigada
Raquel"

What about now?
Like I said at the beginning, nothing is the same. With feelings in waves, it's hard to make decisions or to think what to do. We worked quite a bit in the land and the Tiny house after all of this happened, but new ideas come for both and right now everything is uncertain.
I feel a pull to have/create a very simple life, house, land and work. But what does that mean?

For now, it means that we have a new recycled sink, an almost new dry compost loo, some lights in the Tiny House and a temporary floor on the bedroom loft.

 The forest around the Tiny House. Some trees are green, but only on the top! Below everything is burned. There is only a small patch that didn't burn.

 David preparing the chainsaw

 so we could cut some trees above the Tyni House. It's important not only because of the fires, but because of the strong winds that we normally have here. We don't want to take a risk. The house survived the fire, so we want it to survive the winds!


 The wood that we cut and our new water tank (we want something more solid for the future, but for now, it's good. Just because plastic melts with fire!)



 The happiness of picking wild greens 
 Just a friend saying hello at lunch time - I used to not like them because they eat a lot of good things in the garden, but for now I am just happy to see life! Even if it is in the side of my plate!

 Gratitude for a beautiful bowl of bean stew (feijoada)

 Lara adpating to her new temporary house

 First part of the fire wood boxes, made with palets that a friend of ours gave to us

 Picking pine cones for the winter - I thought that a lot got burned but there are quite a few coming down now, and good ones!


 David puting plastic inside of the boxes so the wood doesn't get wet with the rain.




 Our new woodburner got affected by the fire, because we had a tarp on top of it. It melted and now we had to clean all the bits. It looks that it works - that's good news!


 And the last detail of the fire wood boxes is the plastic in the front, like a curtain - water proof!

 Pedro came and helped us with the bedroom loft

 Sia helped us cutting some dried and burned broom and we had a communication with the land. Ângela came and visited us as well.

 João came and helped David building a sink structure

 The dry compost loo is almost ready



Thank you João, Pedro, Sia and Ângela for helping us.
Stay tuned, because we have more to show in the next post and we are going to explain why we are building an exterior loo and sink.

Lots of love to all,
Raquel&David

P.S. - writing this post was very good. I was resisting a lot to do it, but now that it's done, it's amazing. Kind of therapeutic!