Seren: Julia Lynam's Blog: Cluny

View from my room, week 1

It feels as if I’ve been here a very long time. When I look back at the photos of snow on trees I took in my first week here, they seem to have been taken many years ago. Time expands in the Findhorn Community, because, I think, we pay so much attention to our spiritual, emotional and psychic lives. A lot of time is spent in meditation, and a lot of time working with one another to understand what we’re doing and why. Add all that processing to the physical work, whether it be spring cleaning, cooking or gardening, and a great deal seems to happen every day.

Snow!

An awareness of the synchronicity of words, thoughts and events also adds to this elongation of time. When you stop to examine the meaning of just about everything from birdsong to bus timetables, time slows.

Yesterday I found myself needing to get from the Park to Cluny, a distance of some five miles, at a time when no buses were running. I voiced my need to my work group as we walked toward Moontree. Someone said: “Oh, you can easily hitch hike, there are always people going that way,” but Angus said: “If you go to our house right now you should find Elisabeth just about to set off for Cluny.” Their house was two minutes away and, indeed, there was Elisabeth putting on her coat, delighted to be able to help me. Since I had two heavy bags to carry, it was my turn to be delighted - not to have to hitch hike. Life here, if you expect the best, seems to progress as a series of happy accidents. They call it “magic”

In reality, I’ve been here just 19 days. I’m spending my first three weeks staying in Cluny Hill College, one of the two campuses of the Findhorn Community; the other is called “The Park”. Cluny looks a bit like Hogwarts, here’s a photo:

Cluny Hill College, Forres, Scotland

It’s a rambling old hotel with more than a hundred rooms, and it’s set in northern Scotland, in the small town of Forres, famous for its floral displays and charity (thrift) shops. No floral displays right now in February but abundant goods in the charity shops. Rudolf (from the Netherlands) even managed to buy a real kilt, Black Watch tartan, which he wore for Scottish dancing last Saturday.

Cluny’s resemblance to Hogwarts extends to being a place of learning: many courses and workshops are held here, attracting participants from all over the world, and, like Hogwart's, it has a really impressive dining room.

Cluny Dining Room

The food is particularly good – no meat but occasional fish – and tea, toast and jam are available round the clock.

Everything, even the carpet cleaner, has a name.

Susie certainly enjoys the food!

Many course participants share rooms, it’s considered to be a part of community living, but I’m fortunate (I think) to be billeted alone in room 33. It has two single (twin) beds, a wash basin, a closet (wardrobe – which language am I writing in? ) a chest of drawers (bureau) two nightstands (?)and an efficient radiator. Nonetheless I make myself a hot water bottle every night from the always-boiling water in the kitchen, just for the comfort factor. I’m supposed to have a room-mate, her name is Anna, but she’s got herself involved with a staff member who lives here permanently so she resides in his room, not mine, which is very acceptable to me.

You’ll have noticed from my description that the bathroom is not en suite. There are three bathrooms on this corridor (the “30s” corridor), two with showers and one with a bath - and what a bath! Long, deep and green, it’s the height of luxury. We’re asked not to take baths between 10pm and 7am in order not to disturb the people in adjoining rooms (that’s me). Consequently I take a bath whenever I think of it, to reduce the risk of yearning for one during the proscribed times.

Big green bath: the bathroom is called "Emerald".

There’s also a sauna, fired up on Wednesday and Saturday evenings, a laundry room and a boutique. The boutique is wonderful – it’s a little room in the basement where people leave things they don’t want. Every day new treasures appear: I’ve gleaned two dancing skirts, two pairs of shoes; some purple nail polish (varnish); a pair of yellow Crocs; knitting wool (yarn), several books, and a china dish for my rings from Cluny and from the boutique in the Park I scored three real wool blankets (they were in the bags I had to transport in Elisabeth’s car), which I need because . . . .

. . . on Saturday February 14, I’m moving to the Park!

See my next post!

As a bonus, here are three photos from my first week here: "A Gift to Cluny" was a week we spent spring cleaning many bedrooms and several meeting rooms. There were 19 people in the team, many of whom come back year after year to enjoy this task.