Trip to Thrift Farm

These are photographs of residents from Camphill Milton Keynes visiting Thrift Farm in Milton Keynes.

Thrift Farm is a 52 acre farm and is a Rural Training Centre/working environment for Adults with Learning Difficulties. Approximately thirty trainees attend the farm each day. Places are also provided for students from Special schools and other local establishments. The trainees work on the farm with the help and guidance of a small, experienced staff team. Thrift Farm has a good selection of farm animals - cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, pony, donkeys, chickens, ducks, geese, rhea and turkeys. There is a hatchery with various small animals - chicks, ducklings and guinea pigs and rabbits. There is also an aviary with budgies and cockatiels. On the Animal Park is also a play and picnic area. People visiting should feel free to bring a picnic with them. Thrift Farm also sell's some animals - guinea pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigs and goats. Thrift is a small farm most suitable for younger children and has a cafe with a children's menu at reasonable prices. At Thrift Farm's cafe you can have a lovely homemade lunch and cake. There is a play house and tractors for children to play with. You can purchase at the Gift shop children's books, gifts, toys, homemade jams, free range eggs (chicken, duck, geese, quail and turkey) and also buy hatching eggs and more. There is a Garden Centre producing a variety of shrubs, perennial and bedding plants, herbs and hanging baskets. A small shop sells planters, wind chimes, seeds and other horticultural sundries.

https://www.thrift-farm.co.uk/

Alex Fox

Easter Sunday service with Grace Church Milton Keynes

On Sunday 17th April, Grace Church Milton Keynes held a special Easter Service at the Chrysalis Theatre in Camphill Milton Keynes.

Grace Church Milton Keynes is established to advance the Christian Faith, the preaching and proclamation of the Christian Gospel and the teaching of Christian doctrine and principles and the pastoral care of Christian people. And also to help relieve people who are in conditions of need, financial hardship or who are aged or sick, advance education, both general and vocational, but always on the basis of Christian principles.

Easter Sunday marks Jesus's resurrection. After Jesus was crucified on the Friday his body was taken down from the cross and buried in a cave tomb. The tomb was guarded by Roman soldiers and an enormous stone was put over the entrance.

On Sunday Mary Magdalene and some of Jesus's disciples visited the tomb. They found the stone had been moved and that Jesus's body had gone. Jesus was seen later that day by Mary and the disciples, and for forty days afterwards by many people. His followers realised that God had raised Jesus from the dead. Christians call this the resurrection.

https://gracechurchmiltonkeynes.org/

Alex Fox

Kanbutsuge

On Sunday 10th April, there was the festival of Hana Matsuri, known in English also as the Flower Festival to celebrate the birth of the Buddha.

Before the bathing of the baby Buddha with sweet tea in the flower house the monks and nuns opened the ceremony with the Kanbutsuge which is the Bathing of the Buddha gatha or chant, below is a translation of the Kanbutsuge.

We now bath all the Tathagatas, whose Pure Wisdom is adorned with innumerable virtues. They cause sentient beings of the Five Periods of Decay to be seperated from their sufferings and together attain the Pure Dharma-body of the Tathagatas.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mkbuddhism

Alex Fox

Community Assembly

These are some photographs  of residents and co-workers having a community assembly at the Chrysalis Theatre in Camphill Milton Keynes on Wednesday 30th March. We usually have these assemblies every month in the community so that we can discuss issues and bring up news about events happening although they had to stop during the lockdown. Since the lockdown has stopped, the community has started community assemblies again.

Alex Fox