I’m a Massage Craniosacral Therapist and primarily work with women and was part of Unfold Yoga & Wellness Centre in Mt Barker with Loretta for many years.
My partner Urs, and I had both lived on the land – I was raised on a farm in North Dakota and he is Swiss and lived in the mountains and has now been in the Adelaide Hills for 20 years.
As well as working on a farm, we wanted to go back to the land and this great opportunity came about whilst I was massaging a client who shared that she was thinking of selling her farm and I said we were thinking of buying land and that was pretty much it!
I walked onto the farm and my roots went down like the roots of a tree and I thought ‘this is it’.
The people who lived here loved the land too but it’s a big job looking after 24 acres with two buildings, lots of sheds and everything else to maintain.
Settlement day was June 27th and guess who’s birthday is June 27th? So the family joke is that of course you would get a farm for your birthday and it wasn’t even my 60th, it was only my 59th!
We hit the ground running, I just started putting the word out that we had the farmhouse we could host events in and people were booking in!
I was running my Wise Woman Within You Retreats, which became Earth Mother Retreat, which then became Speak Up Speak Out – a gathering of women, which is now in it’s fourth year next February and that’s really exciting because it brings women together to share their passion and we love to help people help themselves.
We bought the farm in 2018 and have hosted over 100 events here including my women’s circles, half day events, full day events, weekend events, and we’ve even had a seven day retreat here too.
There’s no way I could have known then what was going to unfold, but it’s a great example of when you set an intention and you trust and just keep going, amazing things happen.
Luckily Urs and I are blessed with a lot of energy and if we’re not working, we’re thinking about it! It takes a lot of work and we’ve had helpers and volunteers and some paid work as well, because it’s a whole team effort, it takes a tribe, it takes a village.
Solstice Events
The Winter and Summer Solstice are some of our biggest events that I really align with as there’s something very sacred and special, tuning in with nature.
At the Winter Solstic we did the outdoor labyrinth which is like a maze or spiral, where you go in with a question and as you’re meditating inwards, you walk into the centre, pause for an answer and ask another question and then walk out and do that in silence.
It’s situated amongst the trees and it’s just beautiful and probably one of the places on the farm where people have had the most profound experiences between that and the tree meditations.
We have a sweat lodge, an outdoor bush toilet and shower and an ampitheatre – some people call it a dam! That’s where the sun bath happens. We’re pretty rustic here but I love it and the most common thing people say is that they feel like they’ve just come to their Grandmother’s house or they’ve come home.
You can almost see the gears shifting within someone as soon as they arrive, it’s just so peaceful here. They start listening to the birds, see and smell the roses and we hold the space but the land is the magic and the tree therapy is great, you can just go and be with the trees, hug them, sit under them, lay under them and let the magic happen.
Community Kitchen GoFundMe Page
It’s a country kitchen and we’ve had so many meals and good vibes in there but it needs to be more functional so we’ve put ourselves out there and raised about $3,000 so far.
Amazing things have happened for this kitchen like Wendy Matthews, Lily De Leo and Mark Dobson and other musicians who have contributed and performed Kirtan here at the farm (a call and response devotional singing) and not taking a cent for it.
They’ve donated their time, Wendy has brought food and we’ve sold tickets purely to raise money for the kitchen renovation and I’m just so thankful to them for that because not only are they really gorgeous people but just having them here, we feel so blessed.
Just the fact that somebody would do that, for us, shows that the heartfelt community that’s in the Adelaide Hills is so supportive. I’ve gifted back to them the use of the farm for their Chanting the Triple Goddesses event here in the Luna tent.
If you’re interested in coming to more chanting, dancing and cacao, then check out the events on the Farm for Wellbeing Facebook page.
This Sunday 19 December is the Summer Solstice event with Matthew Greenwood and myself opening it.
Matthew’s taking us into a sacred pipe ceremony, then we will have Connie van Balen doing Chakradance outside amongst the trees, then Vesna from digital New Earth will be doing a small fire ceremony as well. Then we’ll be serving a vegan supper with salads and Urs’ famous breads and finishing off the event with a Soundbath in the amphitheatre with Michelle and James Bryne from Shanti Sound.
Speak Up Speak Out Sponsorship Opportunities – Sat 12 & Sun 13 February 2022
We have presenter opportunities – most of the people that present have never presented anywhere so this is a really great platform for people to launch themselves and to give it a try.
We’re expecting around 40-50 women to attend and will be opening up the whole farm this year including the main stage area, the Luna tent, the Grandmother tree area and the sacred womb site so that people can run little sessions at those sites as well.
There are market stalls available where people can sell handmade things like, Bliss Jewellery whom I met at Enlighten Adelaide the other day, as well as crystals, and that sort of thing. Our prices are really affordable and we really are a launching pad for people if you’d love to run a workshop, hang out with us, have fun camping, bring your swag, you can go experience that.
Contact the Farm for Wellbeing
Connie van Belen is my amazing admin helper and so she or I will get back to you. Even if you’d like to volunteer, you can do that as well.
Website: The Farm for Wellbeing
11 Willis Road, Flaxley, SA
Facebook: The Farm for Wellbeing
Directory: The Farm for Wellbeing
Author: Sue Shaw
Sue offers a safe, nurturing and healing space to uplift your soul and rejuvenate your body, leaving you feeling peaceful, relaxed and bringing you back home to your heart. She is a Certified Psychosomatic Face Reader, Body-Mind Analysist, and Emotional Release Trigger Point Therapist, Reiki Master, Angel Intuitive, Hypnotherapist, Crystal Healer, Meditation Facilitator, Animal Communicator, Access Bars Practitioner, KaHuna Bodyworker (Hawaiian Massage) and Corporate Wellness Coach. Sue combines all her skills to offer a unique and individual experience, every time, so you receive maximum results. Sue is based at Carpe Diem with Remi's upstairs Haven at 158 Commercial Road, Port Adelaide, South Australia.
