Colette O'Neill… Author, Publisher, photographer. Creator of Goddess Permaculture.
There was always understood to be a contract between the people and the land. This reminder formed the words as I walked the woodland sanctuary, on this last day of November. The leaf-covered earth I walked upon reminded me of that sacred contract, one long since forgotten by humankind. From the sacred well flows the life-giving […]
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This is a morning in early winter, at Bealtaine Cottage in the west of Ireland. On this Sunday, the twentieth day of November, I awoke to frost, clear skies and that bitter cold signalling immersion in Winter. Bealtaine Cottage didn’t always look like this…you can see how it once looked at the bottom of this […]
Read MoreMorning in the west of Ireland on a perfect day in late June. The back door of the cottage is open; wood pigeons call softly to one another as blackbirds swoop noisily in and out of the blackcurrant bushes, feasting on the heavily laden stems. Morning…full of stillness and promise, the prelude to a hot, dry day of […]
Read MoreThe full moon rises above Bealtaine Cottage. Last night there was a new moon, somewhere in the sky. Often times I watch the moon and think of all those it shines upon. Many dark nights, when the stars fill the sky with their own light show and shooting stars leave a momentary arch in the […]
Read MoreRio+20. The truth is more terrible than we could have imagined. The truth hurts. The truth will set us free. Yes, that is true…for it will set us free, but only after a terrifying journey headlong into the abyss. That is what I encountered after listening to Dr Vandana Shiva say a few poignant and […]
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Early winter and the weather is brilliantly sunny with clear skies above the cottage and moonlit nights that are bright and cold! It’s worth enduring the rain and grey for mornings like this… Colours continue to develop in the densely planted gardens. This palette of colour continues all the year round… Dense planting as is […]
Read MorePotting, planting, protecting and nurturing the future of Earth…the babies of Gaia are secure in the Nursery beds as the storm approaches from the west, with an early winter not far behind…in late October to be expected! Visitors to this permaculture blog topped 70,000 this week. Interest in permaculture is booming as the forces that rule […]
Read MoreFresh eggs from my hens. Food. Without food we would die. How fundamental to our existence is that then? I grow lots of food here at Bealtaine Cottage. I grow it on trees, bushes and plants…most of which are grown from seed here at Bealtaine and saved here and in the locality. But, if the […]
Read MoreThis is for the record. I am very angry that my government here in Ireland has granted licences to 2 Gas Companies, to drill for gas in the NW of Ireland. In all probability these companies will use Hydraulic Fracturing as a method for extracting the gas. If this happens, I will not stand idly […]
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