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 This January, on the beautiful Kapti Coast in New Zealand, 28 energetic, young people and 8 experienced wise ones, arrived to form something quite unique. It was a Gathering that was run for youth, by youth, and was held at Te Ra Waldorf School, where lovely and generous staff opened their arms and facilities to us. The themes that we discussed and workshopped were centred around freedom and responsibility, and for 5 days we worked in the realms of thinking, feeling and willing.
We were lucky to have Sue Simpson (the general sectary of the Anthroposophical Society in NZ) join us for the 5 days, and contribute eurhythmy and movement in the mornings. We also welcomed David Garb, who workshopped with the group with emphasis on personal freedom. We also had Martin Whittchow speak on the bigger pictures of freedom, and look at questions relating to ‘What is freedom?’ and ‘Can we attain it?’
As organisers, we were a team of 4, directing from afar or from centre stage, as well as taking part in the Gathering itself. Before hand, we were also in charge of the script writing, communications, location hunting, banking, promotions and much more. But when the time came, the stage was set and the main speakers were ready in the wings, the theatre was created as we went along. The atmosphere, mood, emotion, discussion, point of view, connection, and warmth emerged in its own way from the cast of colourful characters that appeared on stage.
The afternoons saw us break into practical workshops to give people space to be creative, and also to digest and process all of the information and experiences from the morning. These included Art (working with wood, clay, paint on canvas and instillation), Biodynamics (Peter Proctor lead the creating of compost heap, stirring and spreading 500, making a Cow Pat Pit and planting seedling) and Yoga (which focused on breathing and relaxation), with time for a swim at the beach before dinner.
When I think of the event, words and concepts that come to mind are; community, sharing, discovering, caring, freedom, forgiveness, creating bridges, warmth, energy, learning from the land, creative outlets, individuality, choice, respect, responsibility and the spaces between us. A huge thank you to the team who gave their energy to putting this together, to Te Ra for hosting us, to the speakers and work shop leaders who gave so much knowledge, energy and warmth and to those who came to take part in the Gathering. Hope to see many of you soon for the winter conference!
Rosa Scarlette Henderson is the Youth Section Leader in New Zealand. This article will also appear in the Summer issue of LILIPOH Magazine.
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