Healing Garden Helpers — Festival Coordinators

Hello

Thank you for your interest in helping to create our beautiful HealingGarden at this year's Buddhafield festival.

Here’s a bit of information to help you to make up your mind if you would like to join us, and some questions to help us decide if you’re what we are looking for. It is just to give you a guide to the type of things we will be asking of you. We don’t expect anyone to have everything we need, or necessarily to know what they’re doing (though it helps if you’ve had some experience/skills – especially when it comes to bench making/wood work). We will explain what is needed as we go along - to the best of our ability – then we’ll all get stuck in and see what we can collectively conjure!

There are only a few places available and much to be done on a tiny shoestring budget. So we rely on the goodwill and generosity, (not to mention general ‘blagging for charity’ abilities) of folk like you; this is your chance to tell us what you are able to share with us. In return, a lucky few will be given a potentially life changing opportunity, to give and receive all that Buddhafield has to offer. To help us find the most suitable volunteers, please read the blurb, take a look at the questions attached, and if you feel you would like to join us, return your application telling us why you might be just what we need.

You’ll need to be on site from Tuesday 4th July to Thursday 2oth July

Types of Job

There are two types of jobs we need to get done in the field, some of them cross over, so you will need to be willing to get stuck into anything, but no doubt you will be more suitable for some jobs than others.

Some of what needs doing will be more manual, site crew type things, such as mapping out the mandala, lugging heavy stuff, making fences, creating ponds, building beautiful benches, spiking holes, digging trenches, averting floods etc. – the heavy work. All with a sense of quality in the detail, but made in a moment! Quite a challenge!

The other jobs are all about the aesthetic charm of peace and calm, decorating and beautifying in organic, colourful ways. But still with some heavy graft involved: full wheelbarrows, tying multitudes of prayer flags, making hazel/willow arches etc. Though some of it will also be sitting and painting, placing plants, hanging bottles, lighting many candles and creating an area of delightful tranquillity.

  

 

* Aerial photo of the Healing Garden Mandala within the festival in 2011 *

We will be working with the theme of the festival ‘Liberation through Imagination’ under the umbrella theme of the Medicine Buddha in our HealingGarden. So if creating garden beauty, heartseed and healing are things you value, we might be just where you need to be.

It Can be a Challenge

We don’t want you there under false pretences, the work’s often physically demanding and sometimes emotionally draining for all of us, but can also be very rewarding. There’s a lot of fun to be had and new friendships to be made. Though inevitably, from time to time things can come up for people, difficulties to be worked through, such as how to stay positive when it’s p***ing down with rain – again! We aim to be a supportive and resourceful team, but for that to happen successfully, you will need to communicate to us any difficulties as they arise and take responsibility for yourself. With the right bunch of people, we can joyfully create something from nothing and then put nothing back again!

All of us need to be willing to carry on, with a smile on our face and cheer in our hearts, whatever weather and other chaotic challenges are thrown at us! Just so you are aware, manth and The Team voluntarily work hard for at least three months, so by the time you start, we are coming to the end of our job list – albeit the busy end!  We are happy to give all that we do, but you may like to bare in mind, we are in it for the love of it, we don’t get paid and are always doing our best. We are not a perfect wheel, we are a work-in-progress, so you may need to be patient and accommodating as we endeavour to learn and grow as we go… Are you up for the challenge?

What Buddhafield can offer you in return

The HealingGarden has up to 50 therapists offering holistic health to a festival of about 3,500 people. So with around 1,000 treatments going on in a delightful area of tranquil charm, you have the potential to be involved in something of real value. You have the chance to be an integral part of what makes our Buddhafield festival an amazing opportunity for positive change in the world.

In return for all your hard work and resourcefulness, we will offer the lucky few a Free Ticket into the festival and vehicle pass (car or live-in). We will feed you three meals a day (one of those meals is help yourself breakfast; cereals, bread and jam, fruit) during the set up and tat down. During the festival, we will give you one meal ticket per day, with the hope that you have just one or two jobs to do. If the weather or other random necessity changes this, we trust you will muck in with the tasks and we will find more meal tickets accordingly.

As a member of the team, you get to experience a different connection with the festival. You are one of the lucky folk who'll get to see it unfold - from a field, into a festival, then back to a field. During the set-up and tat-down there are meditations to join in with if you wish. These are led, so there is no need for prior experience - silent meditation with others in nature is a true gift in life. We will meditate together within our team each day as well. Plus you get to meet other like minded folk in the field, a chance to dance with other dharmic eco shambhala warriors in the beautiful Devon countryside. There are many wonders and workshops for you to enjoy throughout our time shared in the field, so gather up your bundles of hazel and come join us....

If we haven’t put you off, but made you fingers tingle, please fill in the application form on the Participate website. Thanks.

We will review all the applications in June. We will be in touch as soon as we can, but we must allow time for applications to come in. If we have any questions we will be in touch with you, though don't expect to hear from us until mid June at the earliest. You are of course welcome to contact us if you have any queries. Those who manage to bring the most hazel and herbs, do naturally rise to the top of the list. The more you are able to share, the more likely we are to find a place for you.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Wishing you Love and Good Health,

The HealingGarden Team xxx