The Restory Retreat Centre

  Wendell Berry A Simple, Exceptional Man The Conversation Elements From The Conversation Just Wendell Berry Music Wendell Berry’s hope is neither hasty nor clamorous. It grows slowly out of one’s relationship with a place, with other people, and with the simple act of living. Gregory Alan Isakov’s "The Stable Song" conveys something of this return home—not to a perfect world, but to a world in which we can once again be present. Lyrics of The Stable Song: Remember when our songs were just like prayers Like gospel hymns that you caught in the air? Come down, come down sweet reverence Unto my simple house and ring And ring Ring like silver, ring like gold Ring out those ghosts on the Ohio Ring like clear day wedding bells Were we the belly of the beast or the sword that fell? We'll never tell And come to me clear and cold On some sea Watch the world spin in waves Mad machine Now I've gone crazy, couldn't you tell? You threw stones at the stars, but the whole sky fe...

  Yutori The Conversation Elements From The Conversation Music As always, with our love. George & Matilda

Photograph by George Angus Photograph by George Angus Next on our renovation list is the small scullery. That will be done through upcycling and the use of appliances that became redundant when friends renovated their homes. To borrow from Ernest Rutherford: “We don’t have money, so we have to think.”  In other words, be creative. To install the upcycled sink, I’ll have to reroute the plumbing. But in order to do that I must remove the old dilapidated cupboard that’s currently doing service in the scullery (It was previously in the bathroom, but we moved it when we created two new bathrooms). But in order to do that, we must find storage space for the linen we keep in there. And in order to do that I had to build a new cupboard for the kitchen.  It’s like operating on tonsils by pulling toe nails. There’s method in madness. That’s where “ Oupa George se kas ” (Grandpa George’s cupboard)  comes in. It must be at least 65 years old, built in t...

Mahatma Gandhi played a huge part in the political history of India yet lived a very simple life despite his influence and stature.   In the end he scaled down to wearing only a loincloth with sandals and having only a pair of glasses, a watch, a book of songs and a bowl. He found that by limiting his material possessions he not only simplified his life but also created inner peace Lately I find myself often thinking about Gandhi while helping Matilda with Oupa Frans. He is totally preoccupied with a few possessions: his cap, his watch and his glasses. Sitting buck naked on the little bench in the bathroom after we have showered him, he’ll be looking and asking for them first thing. Despite being then strangely overdressed naked, according to him he is ready to face the world. When asked why it is so important to him to have his glasses as his eyes are not that bad,   he replies: “They are the only glasses I’ve got. Gandhi would have said: “They are the only glasse...

"Simplify, simplify, simplify!" - Henry David Thoreau