\u201cI love the generations \u2013 the little fellers playing in the stream, the lads wrestling, young men fire walking, men laughing and singing, grandfather\u2019s sharing their lifelong experiences\u201d
Martin<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat do I remember about Manifest? \u2013 the fights in the first committee between (Mark) Joseph and John Allan \u2013 the women invading at the crack of dawn demanding our attention and the ensuing circles at Manifest and later back in Totnes dealing with some really serious community issues \u2013 (Sketti) Lloyd arriving arriving for the very first time, walking across the field with a shock of bright red hair and playing the didge \u2013 doing a \u201cdidge bath\u201d for the whole circle \u2013 Luke Anderson\u2019s wonderful cooking \u2013 taking Tom to phone New Zealand from a public telephone box in Princetown \u2013 the first wide game and Max getting hurt \u2013 the puppet silhouette theatre that Ken produced \u2013 all night stomps I avoided like the plague \u2013 Steve Hopwood\u2019s wonderful fry up\u2019s- arriving at the camp after dropping Adam at Totnes station to leave for America and bursting into tears as I touched the loss of a child now grown up \u2013 Lloyd\u2019s Dad joining the circle \u2013 the talent shows and the emotions competition \u2013 the only time by the sea and sitting drinking cocktails with Clive watching the wide game, while the wildmen raced about below us attacking each other \u2013 the arguments about whether to have an open or a closed camp, a short or a long camp \u2013 Winter manifest and Mani\u2019s story \u2013 Ollie\u2019s dad putting up the rope bridge and then the flood, watching the water rise and rise and rise and\u2026.
What do I value about Manifest? \u2013 watching a new generation grow up knowing there is a different way; friendship; real conversation; food over the fire; the freedom to hang out and talk; dark, strong, black coffee first thing in the morning, the shit pits, 14 years of commitment by so many people \u2026\u201d
Mo<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026there\u2019s a good team spirit, I enjoy mixing with all the different age groups, I have always enjoyed being there when I am there, and I\u2019m very grateful to all the people who have looked after me in the past, and all the people who have put their trust in me. I have been going to manifest since I was 3, I am now 17, and now it feels like a big part of my life. I would be sad to see it go\u2026Also it\u2019s worth mentioning I have come from a single-parent background and manifest has helped to bring me up in its own way with all the different male figures who go\u2026\u201d
Love Rowan<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In answer to are you coming this year\u2026
\u201cDef man, it was qual\u201d
Felix<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe main reasons why I went to last year\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Manifest:
I had the need to spend a few days in the company of good men. The guys who I work with are ok but\u2026\u2026.
(Result: I enjoyed a few days in the precious company of good men)
To feel the earth beneath my feet (and bed), mud squelching between my toes, feeling the wind and the rain in my face (perhaps I wanted that a bit too much), smell the woodsmoke in my clothes. In my everyday life I spend a bit too much time in grey offices and 4.5 star hotels. It takes me some time to get back into nature. Being with people who find it easy helps. I remember at a previous Manifest we were beating the boundary of the site and came to a very wet muddy part. I was worried about getting the mud in my boots, and was working out how to best negotiate a path through. Meanwhile someone else (who happened to be Sky Chapman) had taken his clothes off and was slithering through the black mud like an Amazonian snake. Yeah, that\u2019s it! I thought.
I enjoyed the communal stuff. It was amazing how enormous tasks (like preparing the food) became easy when several people worked together \u2013 although I often seemed to be absent at critical moments. The meetings in the big yurt, storytelling, soundings.
When I arrived at Manifest, driving through Two Bridges I was feeling a bit apprehensive, then I saw the reassuringly handmade sign at the gate, and I knew that I was in the right place. I was setting up my tent, eventually remembering which way round it went. Nearby, Mo commented \u2018I\u2019m getting too old for this, or he may have said we\u2019re getting too old for this\u2019 or perhaps it was \u2018you\u2019re getting too old for this\u2019. With my creaky back the hard ground did take some getting used to. I didn\u2019t enjoy the midges ( why, God?)
I\u2019d like to have more time to explore the surrounding area, walks around Wistman\u2019s Wood and nearby Tors.
Love, Andy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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