How About A Tour?

Friday, January 10, 2014

Patagonia clogs are all I wear these days

The more I'm on this new land of ours, the more I fall in love with it, the more right it feels, and the more the vision begins to comes together. I have a folder on my desktop called "school inspiration" filled with green boundaries, trellises, pagodas, outdoor classrooms, gazebos, natural playgrounds, gardens, and stone amphitheatres. It's a lot of fun to dream up what can be. We're really into the theme of going back to earth and back to nature, sourcing our materials and our team locally, and reducing our carbon footprint. At the same time, it has to be structurally sound, efficient, highly functional, enduring, kid friendly, and low maintenance.

When I was attempting to buy land for the future site of our school, I had land deal after land deal fall apart. I'd sign contracts, write up agreements, and put stakes in the ground marking boundaries to absolutely no avail. Once, we even got as far as town hall to put the land in our name but at the last minute, for whatever reason things would fall apart. This went on for nearly a year. When the final deal fell apart I was devastated. I cried alone in my room and convinced myself that I'd never again find the right piece. I was incredibly attached to that land and especially sad because there was a HUGE tree on it with a little temple. I could get over losing everything except for that tree and temple. I thought I'd never find anything like it again and I didn't want to settle. So I gave up. I gave up and put the whole thing to rest for nearly 3 years.

Then one day Gagan Malla pulled up on his motorcycle to take me for a ride. When I asked him where we were going he said he had to show me something. A curving dirt road to a part of the valley I'd never been before, led us to small field with rice paddie terraces and some little farm houses, surrounded by trees. We got off the bike and had a look around. Back through the field, behind the tree line was a mango grove, with a steep drop into a ravine. Then he walked me down a little path that lead to the most beautiful tree I've ever seen and a temple. Well, that was the end of that. The temple was stunning. But what really got me was the story behind it. It was the first temple ever built in the valley because the old originial footpath leading up into the mountain villages actually started there. It's now mostly out of use, but years ago, back before there were roads, all the villagers, nomads, and people with their goats and ponies, coming through Surkhet for the first time would stop at the temple for a blessing before they reached down into the valley.

"What do you think?" Gagan asked me. In an instant I could see that all the stress and strain was for a reason. "I think we HAVE to get this." I was so scared about the land falling through and so paranoid about all the middlemen out there that I actually sent decoys (Principal Jeff) out to opposite sides of the valley to keep people off my trail. Hearing Jeff tell that story is funny. Much to my surprise, within just a matter of days, the easiest, most peaceful, and most loving real estate transaction the world has ever seen, was complete and the land touching the temple was ours.

I love it where we are. It feels permanent and good and right. These last couple days we've been laying the foundation to our first building. Pouring stone and cement into the ground. Things got real these last few days. Having a vision and inspiration is one thing and actually building it is another. All the details and all the moving parts, the materials, the construction team, the constant decision making and mediating. Right now I'd be lying if I didn't say it was stressful, overwhelming, and that I don't have all the answers. I'm giving myself constant pep talks. I'm reading. I'm trusting the process and trusting the fact that things fall into place just as they should and the right people come to help you when you need them and you don't have those answers.

But enough talk, here's a tour! I've been walking around in the evenings snapping photos. I'm a little insta-obsessed these days.

The new desk and work space set up overlooking the construction site