The Road to Hectors Farm

Plant a tree.

hectorsfarm — Fri, 07 May 2010 14:12:01 +0000

A set of four beautiful educational cards produced in India. Each card contains viable seeds for a particular type of tree. Red Sandalwood / Adenanthera pavonina, Flamboyant / Delonix regia, Copper Pod / Peltophorum pterocorpum, Indian Laburnum / Cassia fistula.

Lend an active hand in greening the planet and conserving its amazing variety by planting a tree. A wonderful gift to share, whilst playing a part in sustaining our planet.

A pack of four cards are available to buy here

Picnic time!

hectorsfarm — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:48:35 +0000

The sun is shining, birds are singing. It is that time of year again. Time to get outdoors and enjoy the spring air, and what better way to enjoy your lunch than having a picnic!

We wrote about wanting to sell blankets a little while ago on our blog. Well, we have found some wonderful picnic blankets we would like to share with you. They are 100% pure wool. Check them out here.

The joys of raw chocolate

hectorsfarm — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 13:48:23 +0000

Raw chocolate, cacao; the bean, or nib of the bean, in its natural state – not cooked, over-processed or mixed with cheap filler ingredients. It is mixed with with cocoa butter or agave syrup, berries and nuts to create delicious chocolate treats. Cacao is said to be richer in antioxidant flavanols than green tea, red wine or acai, and contains protein, fats, calcium, iron, carotene, thiamine and riboflavin.

A delicious treat that contains only healthy ingredients. Check out raw chocolate recipes here. Raw chocolate taster kits are now available to buy at Hector’s Farm, providing everything you need to get started in making your own chocolates. The kit contains enough ingredients to make around 30 chocolates, or 3 bars, it also contains a recipe booklet.

Manifestation of the farm

hectorsfarm — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 20:34:42 +0000

It is quite some time since we have written about our progress. Manifestation of the farm on the surface appears to have come to a halt. I am settling into my new life as a yoga teacher, finding my feet, my yoga identity. It seems to be a time for nature and nuture, it is tempting to forge ahead despite this (and I have had a couple of futile attempts!) But we have given in to the forces around us and taken time out to nuture ourselves by responding to our calling, for me time out in nature, walks amongst the trees. It feels as though the first period of transition is coming to an end, what is round the corner though is yet to reveal itself. Hector’s farm is still very much in our minds eye, a clear vision as we originally talked about on this blog, the preparatory work taking place is internal.

We will soon be heading to Quinault Rain Forest in the National Olympic Park, for rest and more food for our soul. On our return we will work on our website, we will be selling some products we are fans of on our website, blankets, incense and chocolate making kits. My soap making abilities seem to have deteriorated, so no soap yet! So Hector’s farm is being created, it is coming from a deep place within ourselves and taking time to manifest into physical form, but it is coming!

Scotland at its best

hectorsfarm — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:06:00 +0000

For the last week we have been on holiday in a little cottage called Callakille on the breathtaking west coast of Scotland.

Callakille

The cottage was about as remote a place as you could find, which was ideal for a week away from the day-to-day routine. The location was simply stunning; the Applecross peninsula is an amazing place. It has the best that Scotland has to offer, the coast line is right on your door step with Otters skirting in and out of the water on their fishing trips along the rocky stretches and Seals appearing in the calm waters of the many hidden away white sandy bays to take a look at who has come to visit their home. Inland, the hills rise up to accomodate the deer herds which were in abundance, climbing all the way up to high peaks which form a natural barrier to keep this peaceful area secluded from all but the determined.

Applecross Bay

The weather at this time of year gave you an idea of how hard life on the west coast can be, with strong winds and icy cold rains keeping you pinned inside snuggled up in front of a peat fire. On occasions though, the wind would drop and the clouds drift apart to allow the sun to shine down on this amazing place and give you enough of a view to enchant you forever.

We spent a few days exploring the hills, with Hector loving the freedom to charge around with nobody else around for miles.

Hector discovers the hills

On one walk, we came across two stags that were feeding just above the beach in one of the bays, as we walked up the hill, they both crossed in front of us, yards away from where we were walking, giving us a magnificent view of these gracious animals. The first picture below shows how well suited the animal is to blending into their surroundings.

A Stag allows us to walk on his hillside

Stags above Sand Bay

The highlight of the week though was talking a walk to the top of Sgurr a Chaorachain, the hill over which the highest road in Britain passes; the Bealach na Ba. The road itself is breathtaking, both from a driving perspective with the hairpin bends and also for the views. But taking the walk up the track from where the road crosses the hill and past the radio mast to the summit is well worth the effort to be rewarded with views down Coire a’Chaorachain which raise the hairs on the back of your neck.

View from Sgurr a Chaorachain

Of course, fearless as ever, Hector lead our way to the top:

Hector conquers Sgurr a Chaorachain

Breathtaking views back towards Applecross

Another sunny afternoon saw us discovering a sheltered cove near Cuaig with a pure white sandy beach. The calmness of the place reached deep inside as soon as your came along the path. The wildlife around you carrying on in their activities, seemingly oblivious to the intruders. After a few minutes though, a Seal popped its head up just off shore to take a good look at us playing with Hector on the beach. Happy we were doing no harm, it casually floated on the surface for 15 minutes taking in the sight before heading back underwater to leave us to enjoy the peaceful location.

Cuaig Beach

We discovered some hidden gems in Kishorn and Lochcarron which we’ll talk about in another post. Yesterday though, under clear blue skies, we said goodbye to Callakille and the surrounding beauty and made the drive back through some of the most beautiful countryside in the world to Edinburgh. We love Scotland and this holiday gave us another taste of why that is.

Callakille - beautiful and remote

something on yoga

hectorsfarm — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:00:48 +0000

Where goes the hand

there goes the eyes,

where go the eyes

there goes the mind …

So you are to guide your mind, directing it where you want it.

A leap of faith

hectorsfarm — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 10:55:48 +0000

Today is the last day of my old working life, I have finally done it. I have been toying with the idea for almost as long as my working career, and now that day has come where I am actually leaving the corporate world behind for good. It is exciting and terrifying, I fluctutate between these two emotions, I am free! That is where the fear comes in, there is no safety net to catch me, but equally there is nothing keeping me bound up. Today it is exciting and I am busy planning more yoga classes, and purchasing products for Hectorsfarm. I am looking forward to recouping my energy levels, living a more balanced life, walks on the beach, a regular yoga practise, teaching yoga, giving treatments and continuing to learn and grow, sharing the things that I benefit from along the way.

Horticultural Passion

hectorsfarm — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:27:22 +0000

I recently started a course at the fantastic Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh. The course is brilliant, all of the tutors are incredibly knowledgable but what strikes you the most is that this isn’t just a job for them, it is an incredible part of their life. The passion they have for horticulture is breath taking and it is contagious! As each lesson begins, you can see everyone on the course being captivated by these green fingered gods. As each subject unfolds, and the depth of feeling behind it begins to become evident in the voice and animation of the instructor, everyone in the room adopts a broad, comfortable smile across their whole body.

I began to think what their life must be like, day-to-day having the opportunity to work with plants and the wonders of nature and in such a magical location too. They are incredibly fortunate, few people in the world find such a vocation that allows them to feel it is part of their life in such a way. I feel lucky to have seen it for my own eyes too and I’m thankful for the great experience I’m having on the course which was a brilliant present from Nichola. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Babaji’s guidance

hectorsfarm — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:55:36 +0000

Love and serve humanity.

Assist everyone.

Be happy, be courteous.

Be a dynamo of irrepressible joy.

Recognise God and goodness in every face.

There is no saint without a past and no sinner without a future.

Praise everyone. If you cannot praise someone, let them out of your life.

Be original, be inventive.

Be courageous.

Take courage again and again.

Do not imitate, be strong, be upright.

Do not lean on the crutches of others.

Think with your own head. Be yourself.

All perfection and every divine virtue are hidden within you.

Reveal them to the world.

Wisdom, too, is already within you.

Let it shine forth.

Let the lord’s grace set you free.

Let your life be that of the rose,

In silence, it speaks the language of fragrance.

Om namaha shivaya.

Babaji, 1984

Yoga for Children

hectorsfarm — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 08:03:32 +0000

I have now expanded my yoga teaching to children. A slightly daunting prospect, but I an exciting one too! Yoga can help to develop many positive qualities in children, as well as the benefits of exercise, yoga can improve childrens ability to be calm and focus. It is a creative outlet for children, an outlet for their emotions to flow freely, helping them to be more aware of their thoughts and feelings, building their trust in themselves, allowing their intuition to grow, helping them ultimately to make better choices. It can help them to fall asleep more quickly and deeply at bedtime. It improves confidence and self-discipline when practised regularly.

A yoga class is active, but also includes activities such as storytelling, music, art,games, and relaxation.

For more information on classes contact me