Wow! That sounds like a truly amazing life-changing experience. Thanks Sheryl for posting and Sascha for sharing.

From Sascha:

"Oh my god it's so hard to believe it's the end of week 3 for me, time is of no relevance here, it's not a topic of discussion.  Our days revolve around our shifts in the kitchen, classes and other activities such as yoga, meditation and temple.  If it wasn't for knowing what time to turn up in the kitchen on each given day we would only be able to distinguish with the weekend as we serve brunch and dinner opposed to breakfast, lunch and dinner weekly.
 
Well this has been a very interesting (have paused for a very long time to remember the events of Monday, through Wednesday... still thinking...) as I didn't get last weeks email off until Thursday I think I covered my road trip to Nogales, yes I drove all the way there and back on the right side of the road, scary stuff, turning corners at intersections is frightening until you get used to it.  We all got home safe and unscathed, tired from power shopping and laughing so hard during the movie.  We saw RV about a 'typical American family' and their road trip which was fraught with disaster and unconditional love at the same time.  Robin Williams was the dad so you can imagine how funny it was.  It's more of a kids, family movie, however being here we are so much more sensitive to media etc so we chose the cutest movie of all to warm our hearts and ensure we didn't feel overwhelmed or violated.  (It probably sounds really funny coming from me, not that I could watch violence or blood & guts before however I certainly loved action & drama, did I have more tolerance or was I just desensitised to mass media before???)
 
On Friday Kim, Rose-Marie and I were rostered off and decided an afternoon shopping in Nogales could be fun and maybe see a movie, recently a movie theatre was built and they are still finishing the parking lot, so very very new... Anyway Kim & I decided to climb the mountain behind the Tree of Life, I think I’ve mentioned it before, Red Mountain which I have affectionately renamed 'Big Red.' 
 
The adventure begins...  It was a stunning spring morning in Patagonia, the alarm went off at 5am, I thought it was Kim’s, she thought it was mine and turns out it was Mea's, she was getting up to go on shift.  Anyway we got up and got ready to head out on our  hike, unaware we had risen an hour earlier than planned.  We packed our back packs and hiked up to the cafe, grabbed an apple each to eat at the top whilst enjoying the magnificent view.  We jumped the gate to the national park, hiked through and met with the dried up river bed which was our path to the top, surrounded by native trees, cactus and brilliantly coloured birds, we joyfully began to negotiate the boulders, climbing logs and scrambling up rock faces.  We stopped for regular water breaks and to take in the view, marvelling at the sights below, we were up there with the birds, being here for this time we are now used to the altitude so the walk wasn't too taxing on our respiratory systems.  I took many photos which at some point I will download and share...
 
Back to the story... As we made our way up, we shared many stories from our childhoods, fears, and what brought us to be here... We made it to the top, sat for some time admiring the stunning view of Patagonia and beyond, birds flew below us, we were able  to watch over them as they circled the shiny blue sky.  It was hot already, probably 30 degrees Celsius, that’s very comfortable dry heat here, approximately 745-8am, we finished our apples, so decided to head back down...
 
We continued to discuss our future opportunities and plans, what we wanted out of life and our personal goals, relationships, children, love...  think we just about covered it all.  (diverging slightly)  It's truly beautiful to think you can fly half way around the world and come to a place like the tree, meeting a whole bunch of new people and within a week or so you have forged loving & positive relationships with so many people and they feel like your family.  We are so open an honest here, we allow our vulnerability to show, we nurture each other and support each other, I just wanted to share that with you, not that I didn't have that with some people before, it just is here...
 
Anyway... we were hiking down the rocks, getting a bit tired and wary, we had been walking for about 3 hours by now, we stopped for a water break, as I went to sit on a rock, I went straight over it, I managed to save myself from injury and had a wonderful laugh a my miscalculation:)  We continued, with me letting out a giggle each time I remembered the experience.  As I jumped down quite a steep lot of rocks onto loose shingle, I slid sideways on it and went over on my left ankle, it was painful, I just picked up my leg did a quick healing on it, just a minute or so then put weight back on it and kept walking, it was fine, there was no pain or swelling.  We continued down the trail & came back onto the track (still shingle) we were having a great time, sun on our faces, a light breeze and the prospect of being 15mins away from the cafe when my legs just went out from under me and I landed flat on my back, my bag broke the fall and I lay there laughing so hard, it was absolutely hilarious:)  Eventually I got up with a few extra grazes on my elbows, dusted myself off and walked back to the gate, over it and to the cafe unscathed.  We felt amazing when we got back what an accomplishment, even with my mishaps, which proved to be down right amusing, we had such a fun time and did the round trip in 3 1/2 hours.  You know it's hilarious to me as I have never really been a clumsy person, so the fact I had 3 incidents is beyond hilarious:)
 
Fast forward... we had some breakfast, hiked back down to the dorm (15-20 min walk away), I had a shower, put a load of washing on, grabbed a couple of kombuchas (a drink made with the kombucha mushroom, fermented with sugar, which makes a sweet as natural soda which has healing and restoring qualities) for us to relax with, yummy.  I lay down on my bed to savour the moment you first put your feet up after heavy duty exercise, ah.  Then my ankle began to throb & swell and within 15 minutes I was in so much pain & could barely walk.  Fast forward... Saw the nurse, had it strapped, got natural aspirin (willow bark) and creams then got carried to my room and slept for hours.  I’ve been resting ever since, when it happened and throughout the painful experience I kept saying "it's happened for a reason" then as I was coming out of the bathroom, I mentioned to whomever was acting as a human crutch I kept saying to myself on the hike, "I SURENDER" and indeed I did, it was one of those moments where you are filled with so much clarity!  I found the experience to be so very informative about how the body will react and go into survival mode.  I knew before we left, if anything happened, it was only us who could get ourselves out of it, so my body waited until I lay down and was fully relaxed before it produced any pain or swelling, now how amazing is that.  You hear survival stories all the time, however it's not until you experience it for yourself do you really understand.
 
Anyway I have watched a number of foreign films & march of the penguins (it was a stunning doco, magnificent cinematography, magical piece of work.  I've had the time to sort out my homework folder (huge task), sort out dates where I can head to Texas and finally catch up with Lara (a beautiful friend from Melbourne whom I haven't seen in about 6 or 7 years), I've read books, magazines, had amazing chats with all the beautiful souls who have come to check on me, deliver my meals and assist in any way they can.  I am truly blessed to have all these generous people around me, all the hugs and smiles have been so uplifting.  Being in this situation has taught me a lot about myself, it's been humbling to ask for help to get to the bathroom, it wasn't long before I found a broom to lean on, however the important thing was when I needed it, I would ask!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Now I’m trying my best to stay in my room and rest, it's been a blessing to have the time to get some things done, however I kind of miss going outside and walking in nature.  Well if I keep healing the way I am I will be back in the kitchen in the next day or so, even if I have to sit on a stool & chop, I will be there:)  It has given me a wonderful opportunity for me to practice grace:)
 
Well that’s about it from me, that's another week of my journey for you to digest.  I have to say I am so touched at the emails I have been receiving, I am so happy so many of you are sharing in this adventure with me, your words are inspiring and you are in my thoughts, know that when you think of me, generally I do know, and with that...  know we are all connected, each and every one of us for we are one collective consciousness, so love each other, be kind to strangers for they are of you and if that’s too profound for you, store it for a rainy day:)
 
With immense love and gratitude
 
Sascha:)
 
Mum, If you feel like you want to send anything, the address here is... (or anyone else for that matter)
 
Sascha Therkleson
Apprentice Dorm
HC2 Box 298
Patagonia
AZ  85624
USA
 
OOOXXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOOXXXOOO"

Another update from our friend Sascha!

"Hello all you beautiful people,

Well all is amazing in my world!!!  It's been a full on and hectic week or two here at the tree...  We have had David Wolfe here, due to the masters program which is on at the moment.  He did a 3 hour lecture on raw consciousness related topics, he is such a charismatic and intelligent person, he mesmerises you with his intense passion for life & consciousness.

"Saving the world is the only cause worth dying for."  We have also had extra lectures from Dr Cousens, over and above our regular Q & A sessions.  We get to sit in on some of the Masters classes, it's very intense, he covers a lot of topics and answers very thoroughly.  I had some time to speak with him today and got some fabulous advise on specific enzymes and other supplements I should be taking, as I don't have a gall bladder my body has difficulty processing fats, it's become so much more apparent as I continue to detox, it's something I will be able to manage with diet and enzymes. As we detox all the heavy metals & pesticides and dead food from our systems, we become so much more sensitive.  The way we were designed, rather than oblivious to how food makes us feel & deadened by dead food.

On Saturday last week I had an instance last week where a couple of 3lb buckets of organic coconut cream arrived at the cafe, we have a desert class every Friday & Saturday afternoon to prepare the deserts for the next day as we serve brunch on the weekend followed by desert.  We all went nuts over this divine, decadent coconut cream adding carob, cacao & goji berries to the mix or dipping fresh strawberries in it, oh my god it was magnificent, sensory overload then we all got belly aches, not used to the fat, especially me with no gall bladder, I had to go out for air & walk around for 20 mins, 2 hours & 3 digestive enzymes later a few of us finally got some comfort whilst laying on our bedroom floor, needless to say, when coconut cream is mentioned most of us let out a slight groan, it may take a while to get a taste for that stuff again.

Spent time in the community garden last week, got to dig a meditation garden, our service to the Patagonia community.  That was part of our 2 hour class time for the garden, we had so much fun and got so much joy from spending the time together and being able to see what we created in such a short period of time.  We're looking forward to seeing it all planted out & flourishing with life.

I've had my first vitamin B12 shot last week, they generally last a month, I only took it as a precautionary measure, not for anything in particular, it kept popping into my head to get one & I honor that within myself.

I've been doing massages, trading with others for Reiki, massage & a Brazilian bikini, oh and money of course.  It's so much fun with all the trading we do here, with anything we have including our time, it's all about the community, what benefits the community.

Went to Tuscon last week, we left with our lunch boxes overflowing with lush salads & nori treats... hung out on forth street, kept running into people we knew, now that's freaky considering how big that city is...  Saw the Divinci Code, loved it!  Did a bit of shopping and visited all 4 health food shops (again), had enough of Tuscon now, the pollution is repressive.  Such a stark contrast to the stunning clear blue skies here, it's hazy & grey in there, the air is thick and I always come home with itchy eyes & a runny nose.

Taking loads of photos of the food & people, I’m creating a disc of all the recipes with pics from the kitchen & garden to give to each person when we finish here, it's my gift to share with them.  It's a huge job to get it all set up, 3 sets of recipes or menus per day, that makes for a whole lotta paper, which we do recycle of course:)

Collecting a load of world music while I’m here, there's such a wide selection to choose from, we always have beautiful & funky music playing in the kitchen which keeps the vibrations up and sometimes something to sing along to:)

Shanti kidnapped me today (started this email Tuesday) and took me to Mexico.  We had soooo much fun, it's like a different world the moment you cross the border, I took a couple of pix however it's really hard to get the feel without being there.  It was really fun dealing with the shop owners, talking them down to get what we wanted, I’ve never had the guts to do it before and nothing can stop me now.  I'm organizing a trip in the next week or so, take a bunch of the girls over for an adventure, minus the Tequila of course, which many a shop keeper offers you when your in the store.

I am bringing such a huge selection of books home with me, i've been ordering it up with Natures First Law, taking advantage of the generous discounts & Amzon.com are processing a huge order for me, my library will be over flowing with health stuff.  I have many talks from David Wolfe and others to keep the energy going when I get home.  Planning on doing a 21 day juice fast when I get back which will be an amazing completion to this current journey, I will be able to meditate, do yoga, listen to talks & read all these amazing books.  I'm so filled with information right now it will be awesome to be able to share it with you, if your interested when I get back.  We watch movies and docos here which make you very aware of the consumerism that goes on in this world, the degradation of soil & the food supply.  'Supersize me' is only the tip of the iceberg, there's so much information out there if you take the time to look and I’m hoping to get my hands on some copies of the docos too, awareness of what is happening to our race & our planet is soooo important right now.  It's time for people to wake up to what's happening in our world, if we need to make changes and shift the consciousness into awareness.  It is us who are destroying this beautiful planet with our acid stomachs and acid thinking, wake up people become aware of how your attitudes and actions affect the planet.  It all starts with one choice, one change, one shift in consciousness, that being your own:)

Well it's now Wednesday & time to get this email off before another week fly’s by.  It's funny here, time flies by so fast, yet it feels although I’ve been here for sooo long... paradigms of time...

More lectures for the next two days with Dr Cousen’s which is super exciting, so much to digest, wish I had a digital recorder to get it all down, he lets us record the lectures which is really wonderful.  I've just got enough time to race up to yoga, so I hope all is well in your world, may your days be filled with light & understanding and remember we always have the power to
choose:)

With love & gratitude
Sascha:)

"You are worth your purpose"
David Wolfe
3/06/06"

From Sascha:

"Well hello beautiful people,

It seems like soooo long ago I sat down to write my last email to you all, time flies by here...  Well so much as been going on and as our apprenticiship draws to an end, there is so much happening and on the agenda.  We still have the masters students here, Arizona Live starts in a week, our menu days, chef days and demo's are coming up in the next couple of weeks.

Menu days are where we liase with the chef on the planned menu and take over the basic running and execution of the shift that day, thats in prparation for our chef days, where by the chef becomes an apprentice & the apprentice the chef and the kitchen is theres for the day.  It's our opportunity to run our own show for the day, try out new recipies, really it's our day to do whatever we want & to shine.  My days not until the 6th July, i've not planned anything as yet and in my true style since i've been here I may just walk into the fridges and decide on the day, what it is we will do.  I've become less of a planner and just take things as they come, some would call that flying by the seat of ones pants other spontaneous:)

Went to Texas last weekend to visit with my beautiful friend Lara and her family, it was a lovely trip , we got to spend 3 days together catching up on old times and creating new memories, her partner & child were absolutely delightful and it was a nice relaxing weekend.  Lara has an ion machine which is used in a foot bath to remove toxins from the body, I had one done a couple of years ago and you could smell the nicotine coming out of my body and I hadn't smoked in about 5 years, so they are a really non evasive way to remove toxins.  If you get a chance to use one, go for it, the results speak for themselves, I have a photo of the water from my treatment, it was like tar, eeewwww.  Ideally 5 sessions are required to really make a significant difference in your body, I had one and got noticable results.

Also there's a bodywork therapy here called 'Raindrops Therapy' which has been coming up for me, so when talking to Lara about it, turns out the natropath at her office does it, long story short (and many phone calls) she ordered the set of oils for me and all the other stuff I need for it and it's been shipped out for me to get started when I get home.  Various techniques and gifts if you will have been manifesting from me (that sounds so daft) ok, since i've been here, my healing abilities have good stronger and various, if, this is much easier to explain in person, it's been a journey of one thing would happen then another...  I am also keen to learn  cranial sacral therapy which I have had the pleasure of experiencing here, it's the most amazing natural therapy I have come across thus far.  I have been working with a healer for a month or so now, she has worked on me and taught me so much, i've been learning a bit of muscle testing too.  So who knows what I will be doing, there's so many choices, oh and I want to study Ayuvedic Massage & nutritional beauty, so yeah who knows...

We went to Shanti's house the other day for an aromatherapy class, it was so much fun, hanging out morrocon style in her front room drinking white & rose tea, smelling loads of beautiful oils and learing to blend them... I'm putting in an order this week as shes an aromatherapist and will blend oils for us, i'm really interested in the immune, travel & healing blends, especially with all the travel i'm doing.  It feels asthough i'm on and off planes all the time, even though I had been here for a couple of months before I took another flight... I guess it's because I know what's coming up too!

My head is swimming with stuff to write about, i'm burning cds (The power of now, Eckhart Tolle) and doing washing while I type this, some things never change.  I have major plans of what I want to do once I return home, there's so many things to do, it's hard to pick one to start with.  I'm planning to do a 14 day cleanse then a 21day juice fast (no I won't die or starve to death)  It's so benefical to the body to give the organs a rest, you only have to jump on the net to see what happens to the body when you allow it the freedom to cleanse, it's a bit freaky what happens to the body and how it distroys it's own cells in the regeneration process.  Check it out, but don't eat while your doing it:)

Been stocking up on books, suppliments, cleansing stuff, NCD natural cellular defence or ziolite for the removal of heavy metals from the body and other products not easily accessable at home. Have put in a large Natures first law order (david Wolfs company) taking advantage of the 40% discount, man i'm going to miss that  Will be getting all the mercury fillings taken out when I get home, it's one of the major sources of heavy metal poisoning along with pesticides.  Will have some amazing docos to share on the pesticide issue, the chem trails and how we are being poisoned everyday by the choices we make.  I thought I was healthy before and aware of what was going on in the world, oh my god, I was living in a bubble of unconsciousness, now i'm much more aware of what is happening and how we can improve our health by making better choices, what a journey:)

Well there's bound to be so much more to say, yep so much more however my washing will be ready & it's time to think about getting up to brunch... it's my day off today so just crusing and having a relaxing day, taking care of bits & bobs (where did that come from, the 50's?) oh well...

Wishing you all a wonderful week filled with magical moments, friends & joy.

With love & gratitude
Sascha:) "