This past week we have been lucky enough yet again to hatch some baby chicks, for a total of twelve little fluffballs in all now running around. The next generation of chicks is here, so the old girls (and guys) are going to have to step it up because the new competition for featured chicken is in town!

Spring is peeking its leaves out now from under the winter chill. The flowers are blooming, the pollen is decorating the spider webs, and the bees are out living it up. It’s getting close to that time for the Spring Spiritual Retreat. If you are interested in leading a workshop, we still have openings.

On Wednesday on the New Moon we had a small sweat lodge just for the staff. Everyone who participated truly enjoyed it, and it was a great chance for the staff to bond and build community amongst each other. It was the last sweat for that lodge, so for the next Full Moon sweat we will build a whole new lodge.

This weekend we had quite the circus and art fair going on. Wade from OBX brought his slack wire, and a few folks learned how to juggle while some of the staff stepped it up a notch in their own juggling prowesses. Whitney did her printmaking skillshares, and Victory from SCAD brought a twenty foot canvas that everyone painted with mud in the true spirit of Hostel artwork. Keep it coming guys; we love it when y’all bring fun stuff for everyone to share. Or, to quote actor David Niven, “Keep the circus going inside you, keep it going, don’t take anything too seriously, it’ll all work out in the end.”

On Sunday we had an impromptu fermentation workshop, led by Jeremy and Jennine. We learned about kim chee and its history and benefits for the human body, and then we made some big batches of it with fresh picks from the veggie garden. It’s going to be delicious no doubt, and if you’re planning a visit soon you might be lucky enough to get some while you’re here. And speaking of delicious…

We are counting down the days until blueberry season. The gardeners have been at work in the blueberry patch, and have transplanted some young bushes to new growing locations all around the Hostel (to make blueberry grazing more convenient, of course!). Keep practicing those pie recipes folks, you’ve got until May…

Until next time…

May The Forest Be With You…