Salima

“Come and be in the Love! Open your heart to receive the deep Love, Peace and Mercy” –  Salaam P., participant

Are you curious about the teachings of the Sufi Way or are you seeking to experience those teachings more deeply?

Join Salima Adelstein for Gardens of Truth, a monthly Sufi School at the Farm of Peace.  You will learn from the lives of Sufi masters, study the secrets of the Divine Names and letters, receive deep healing and teachings that allow your heart to open to living a life of greater love with more mercy and peace.

There will be a Sufi healing circle (Dhikr circle) on Thursday evening at 7 PM.  The class takes place on Friday and Saturday from 9:30 AM to 5 PM, and on Sunday from 9:30 AM to 1 PM. This month’s class happens on Feb. 9-12.  Come and taste the beauty of your own heart.

Call the Farm of Peace at 717-573-4722 or contact us for information and to register!

“The Love Salima carries is beyond words! Thank you, thank you, thank you! ” — Halima C

A question for leaders in private industry, government and the nonprofit sector:

What if you had access to a perfect advisor who would give you unerring guidance for all the difficult decisions you must make, and who always had the comforting, encouraging message you most needed to hear in times of stress, anxiety, or uncertainty?

The truth is that you have that resource available to you always through your own inner wisdom: All you have to do is learn how to access it!

Foundations of Enlightened Leadership, Jan. 17-18

The Farm of Peace presents a new workshop geared toward leaders in all sectors who may be experiencing dissatisfaction in your leadership role in any way, or if you are simply seeking a way to enhance your ability to take your organization to its full potential

This two-day workshop presented by seasoned, experienced business consultants David & JoAnn Ross, will help you expand your awareness, develop a broader perspective and achieve your highest aspirations. Learn skills and practices that will help you gain greater clarity and insight, helping you to resolve real-life challenges.

Stepping into your true potential as a leader starts with one powerful step!  What are you waiting for?

Find out more here!

It is a chance to be in the presence of a very holy man, Sidi al-Jamal, our spiritual Guide, and to drink from his teachings and the love that he gives to all. It is a chance to learn from other amazing Sufi teachers. And it is a chance to be in an amazing community of seekers of God, where the feeling of love is palpable! All of this takes place in a majestic, stunningly beautiful setting at the Farm of Peace.

I first came to Sufi School East eight years ago, somewhat reluctantly, at the request of my beloved friend (now my wife). I met Sidi and experienced the profound love that he and this community radiate. Since then, my life has been transformed (for the best) in almost every way. I certainly can’t promise any specific experience to anyone, but I firmly believe you will treasure your time there. So TAKE YOUR CHANCE. — Nuh Ross

Sufi School East, Oct. 13-17, 2011 at the Farm of Peace, Warfordsburg, PA

REGISTER: Complete information about Sufi School East and online registration is available here.
Tuition is $320 for all four days! Special rates for newcomers, young adults.
Free kids’ camp. Special newcomer classes to support your receiving the most benefit from this retreat.

We look forward to seeing you!

“When you find the love, you find yourself. The secret of God is in the love.”

Come –  meet and learn from Sidi al-Jamal, who writes about the love of God in his book, Music of the Soul.

Sidi is an internationally known Sufi Master and spiritual guide from Jerusalem whose heart brings the teachings of love, peace and mercy directly to your own heart.

“If you want to go beyond all that you have been, to find the secret of God, then I am your brother to take your hand and guide  you from the darkness to the light and to the garden.”

Sufi School East, Oct. 13-17.  Find out more  here!

Maryam Hand has been caring for the orchard this past year, putting in some Asian pear and liberty apple trees along with the cherry trees, pears and crab apples. For the apple-lovers, yet another blessing — home-made fresh apple sauce to grace the dinner table. (The donkeys love the apples as a special treat, too.)

Visiting campers get a tour of the orchard

Maryam with apple harvest -- soon to be applesauce

A section of the orchard is devoted to blackberries and strawberries, so special to taste in their seasons.  Maryam has planted comfrey among the rows; it’s beneficial for the trees.

New trees were planted in the spring, and lots of work and care go into the orchard, from mulching to weeding to watering to mowing.

It’s so rewarding to see the trees beginning to become full and sturdy, and replete with their fruits — another of the many signs present on the Farm of the glorious abundance that God sends to us to enjoy.

Maryam and Fawn mulch the orchard

Surprise!  It was white inside.  That was almost two weeks ago, so now I am convinced they really are just about ready and this time he agrees!   We’ll see in a couple of days if the vines are ready to let go.

This is a gift that I so enjoy in the garden:  learning to watch the subtle signs and feel how the plants communicate.  Many fruits will “let go” and drop into my hand as soon as they have reached fruition; a few days early, I’ll have to tug.

Such a blessing to see how life shows us this all the time — when the timing is right, things fall into place, just like the tomato drops into my hand when it is ready.

When we are pushing and tugging to make something open or happen in our life, maybe it’s a sign that it’s time to step back and be patient and let it come into fruition.  White watermelon isn’t nearly as sweet and tasty as a juicy pink one!

– Halima Jen

Our friend, sister Mary El Khatib brought about a dozen youngsters and their parents from the Nur Center in Northern Virginia to discover how carrots and other vegetables grow and to explore other delights of nature at the Farm of Peace. In an overnight Nature Camp organized by staffer Maryam Hand, the kids and their parents enjoyed time in the country and had hands-on experience of farm activities.

In the CSA garden, Jesse Amin showed the kids how to pull onions and carrots, and the kids had a blast unearthing their food!

With Maryam, they visited the orchard, seeing apples and peaches growing on the small trees. Maryam gave the children some of the apples as treats for the donkeys.

Mu’min Shay helped the kids make friends with the still-growing pastured poultry chicks; this is where the nutritious, wholesome meat on our table comes from.

Collecting eggs for breakfast was quite an adventure. Visiting the chicken coop, the children had a close-up encounter with the rooster and hens, and explored the nest boxes for fresh eggs.  In the evening, there was a campfire and of course, toasted marshmallows!

After a full morning of farm adventure — and a yummy pancake breakfast — the children gathered with Dr.  Jeanette Hablallah, who taught them about nature, plants, animals and bugs — and the beauty and awe of the creation they’d experienced on the farm. The children completed their Nature Camp with drawings of their experiences.  We hope all  the children and their parents will come back again to visit the farm!

"I love marshmallows" -- Adam

So the question becomes how to set our hearts right.  Are you aware of the language of the heart, how to listen and follow that intimate, subtle voice?  It takes practice.  Turning the attention to the heart is a skill that can be learned.  It is simply a matter of opening to what is deeper within your own being and being open to that guidance.

We are used to listening to the mind.  It gives directions, it figures out problems, it focuses our attention on what we want and what we don’t want.  But the heart opens the awareness to a broader playing field.  Listening from the heart takes into account more than our limited, individual desires.  It opens us to a place where boundaries and limitations dissolve, a place that allows us to listen more clearly to the hearts of others.

When there is conflict, we get caught in our own position, anger or uncertainty, so hearing the needs of others is difficult.  Often it is the inability to listen to another that feeds the fire of conflict.  The Peace Partners program teaches peace, how to create peace within your own heart, how to open to the deeper connection that exists between yourself and others and through this deeper connection, resolving conflict and helping others experience their own deepest peace.  When Mother Teresa was asked how to create world peace, she said, “What can you do to promote world peace?  Go home and love your family.”

Come join me and my husband, John Abd al-Qadir,  this August 12, 13 & 14 for the beginning of a series of four 3-day workshops (Fri-Sun) over the next year,  to ground ourselves in the peace at the root of our own being, and from there to live our passion in loving relationships, harmonious families, sustainable communities, and creative and successful organizations, businesses or service programs. Numbers will be limited so that individual coaching and support can be given during and between workshops to work through the toughest issues we may be facing.

For more information about the Peace Partners program, please contact me at 240-441-8715 or  vicki_d@hotmail.com.

– Jamila Davies

There is lots of love in the CSA garden! It shows up in the abundance and vibrancy of the vegetables that are growing so enthusiastically at this time in the season.  Zucchinis! Carrots!  Garlic! Beets! Peppers!  Tomatoes! You can almost watch them grow, as Halima Jen reports:

“A daily walk through the garden is necessary to keep an eye on what’s ripening.  It’s happening so fast!  I check the tomatoes with my son, Eyrie, this morning, who has a very keen eye and deep enjoyment for spotting anything that’s ready to be picked.  We didn’t find any just yet, but later in the afternoon, while weeding the eggplants and finding a handful of Japanese purple eggplants ready to pick, my eye caught a flash of red.  I sent Eyrie to investigate and sure enough, we have a row of tomatoes beginning to send their flashy red sign, “we’re ready!”

Darcy with a bunch of carrots

The love shows up in the water, soil and hands of the workers.  Jesse and Halima have willing helpers who rejoice in working in the garden, loving all the processes and moving with commitment through the hard work.

Rifqa Rebecca, CSA gardener, receives great joy from her hours of weeding, planting, harvesting and caring for the plants.  Our intern, Darcy is here for two months through the World Wide Organization of Organic Farmers, learning about gardening and life on the farm.  Many hands make light work, especially on harvest day, with CSA members joining in to bring in the produce and prepare and pack it for delivery.

Musa

And love shows up in the delight that the children bring to their time in the garden, exploring the beauty and generosity of nature in the plants, bugs, birds and bees (and sampling a carrot or bean here and there).

So, when you sit down to a dinner of golden squash, purple beets, snappy green beans or tender spinach, let all the LOVE  fill you as you enjoy these beautiful fruits of the garden.

~~Halima R

Rifqa, Benjamin & Jesse bring in the harvest

This city girl loves, loves, loves to visit her daughter, Jen Halima, son-in-law farmer Jesse Amin, and grandsons Kyle, Eyrie and Isaac on the Farm of Peace.

Gathering eggs in the coop is a thrill, since I’ve had lessons from Kyle. Most eggs are sitting in the nesting boxes, so beautiful and fresh, there for the collecting. Then there are those eggs that are still being sat upon by the mama. They need collecting to complete the job. Kyle has me reaching right under those chickens to collect those precious goods.

Kyle and grandma Mary

He explained that the younger brown chickens in the first coop are very tame (having had them since little chicks) “Just gently reach under, Grandma. They won’t peck you.”

Kyle gave me a demo and that helped me gather my courage. Sure enough, the little lady let me reach my hand into her warm nest to collect her gift.

Then there are the duck eggs to collect — that is another fun granny adventure with the boys! — Mary Willett

Kyle collects the eggs every day & packages them in cartons. It's part of his home-school project.

Kyle cares for the chickens and their pen; here he's fixing the fence