Updates

July 1st, 2018
 

 

Landau in der Pfalz “Gramma said when you come on something good, first thing to do is share it with whoever you can find; that way, the good spreads out where no telling it will go. Which is right.”

— from  The Education of Little Tree, by Forrest Carter

 

Many years ago, Peter Vido came upon something good, something he knew right off he had to share.  The more he learned, the more he wanted to share, and continue to learn.  His appreciation and respect for this humble but graceful tool grew, and as he glimpsed the extent of what the scythe has to offer to our battered world, it became his mission to share the Gift of the Scythe with all.  He started down the path of a scythe missionary with no way of knowing where it would lead him or how much he would eventually accomplish.  Though he touched multitudes through his work, he still saw a great deal of unrealized potential.  The burden of responsibility, to share with others the knowledge and wisdom he had gained through the years, weighed heavily on him, yet he carried that burden the best he knew how.  Shrugging at a terminal illness diagnosis, he determinedly continued the work he had begun with more relentless optimism than most of us muster in the face of unrelenting challenges, ignoring his rapidly declining health to give a final push to the humble beginnings of a book project several years in the making, and making one last trip to Europe — where years ago he had earned the lighthearted title “Sensen Papst” (Scythe Pope) — in hopes of inspiring another step towards the scythe renaissance he first envisioned over two decades ago.

Then, early one morning as dawn broke on the other side, he slipped off to more peaceful meadows where scythes inspire only cooperation, not conflict.

 

 
July 1st, 2018
 

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Announcement: ScytheConnection just had a baby!!!

It’s an unusual baby, being both past term and not quite fully developed.  It seems the conditions it was growing in were not conducive to a smooth gestation and birthing a robust, healthy child.  The pregnancy was a lot more arduous than anyone would have expected, and there were a lot of false contractions.  Even once labour really started in earnest, it went on and on with seemingly no end in sight.  This baby was breech, and for a while there it was looking like the chances of it coming out were slim to none.  There was no surgeon available to do a caesarean, and not even an experienced midwife to be found.  But then, even as hope was waning, the darkness of Winter gave way to the warmth of Spring and the birthing finally began.

This baby……… it’s not a boy.  It’s not a girl either.  It’s a book, or rather the beginnings of one, still in the incubator and needing plenty of TLC.  Although the one who conceived this baby is in critical condition in the ICU, what mother would say it wasn’t worth the struggle to bring their baby into the world?  Of course it was worth it!

The Big Book of the Scythe, Part 1

With much gratitude to Steve Leppold, Charles Hays, Marshall Roberts, Sy Schotz and Alexander Vido for help and support during the birthing process. 😉

 

May 1st, 2018