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Monday morning, rainy weather and mood to match. The phone rings."Hello, I would like to offer a skillshare!"  Yipeee! Clouds dispelled, I feel this generous offer warming my heart and waves reverberating into the community and the land. Bringing joy to giver and recipients alike, each such gift helps to reinforce a web of abundance to replace our current unsustainable money-based and growth-addicted economy. This system relies on a mentality of scarcity and isolation, so gestures of generosity are benevolent yet revolutionary acts which seed the way to a much more nurturing social landscape.

Coordinating skillshares in the past months has been a delight because the project embodies so well the spirit of transition:  we have fun in the process of building together the world we dream of, encourage each other to express our deeper needs and aspirations, and create synergy whilst sharing our journey of transformation.

Each skillshare session I have attended has been highly enjoyable and I feel much gratitude to the givers. Unable to do them all justice, I'll just mention the last three sessions I attended – all gardening events, two of them not originally skillshares but based on the same principle of free sharing. I loved all three! As a novice gardener, I received support, encouragement and inspiration from enthusiastic growers and felt my fingers getting noticeably greener!

So I feel grateful to Jane Pickard for sharing her passion for a permaculture approach within a setting – the stunningly beautiful grounds of the Sharpham Estate – where historical traditions also matter deeply. Her knowledge of gardening and love of nature were shining through the delightful tour she guided us on, and it was so uplifting to hear her ideas about possible community projects at Sharpham!

Jane showing a development in Sharpham's walled garden

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