The initial objective of the Gypsy Kitchen is to create a space intentionally utilizing an atmosphere of chaos, near disaster zone conditions; a raw lump of clay in order to inspire self initiated actions towards the creation and overall “beautification” of the space, and a culture that results in a functional kitchen among many other things.
For me, the core principle of the Gypsy Kitchen is the process of activating individual and communal self love. Eating food is the primary voluntary act of survival, it is a manifest and conscious action to continue one’s existence and maintain one’s physical, psychological and spiritual well-being. To grow, prepare and cook my own food with care and attention, is the most magnificently enriching act of self love I have experienced.
       All elements of the functioning of the kitchen are seen as opportunities for individual and group empowerment through the creation of an atmosphere inspiring to individuals imagination and ingenuity. Instructions are rarely given verbally and ideally never given via signage. The only signage we have found useful is simple labeling: naming things.
       Which brings us to ‘things’; the nuts and bolts of the kitchen and how they get put together. Approximately 1/3 of the food consumed by the gypsy kitchen community is provided as a budget allocation by D.T.E., the co-operative who facilitates ConFest. The remainder is self organized and self supplied by the ConFest-goers themselves and often towards the end of the festival food is gifted to the Gypsy Kitchen by vendors in the ConFest market. Approximately half of the infrastructure (Tarps, ropes, generator, cooking gas, kitchen appliances and cooking equipment etc) is provided by Kotema and half by D.T.E.. There have also been numerous instances of participants in the gypsy kitchen gifting or repairing appliances or utensils, everything from a precious chai urn to a gorgeously resilient old-fashioned citrus juicer.
The supply pipe for the kitchen water is installed by D.T.E. volunteers, from that point the plumbing is created as the kitchen is, the collective knowledge and expertise amongst the D.T.E. volunteers is much appreciated and utilized in this process. The building of the kitchen itself is a collective and organically evolving process, there is no official gypsy kitchen volunteer force, most people participating in the kitchen are doing so spontaneously and often through necessity of circumstance or convenience of geography.
       The Gypsy Kitchen begins the process from the ground up; the kitchen itself must first be created from piles of tarps, ropes and often rudimentary cooking appliances. There is no organized work gang to do this, and in context of the eventual scope of the food process (some hundreds of people per day), little budget to do this. There are a few who have the experience and knowledge of the process, but often not the resources, time, physical strength or stamina to manifest it alone.
       This is in a sense an echo of the mainstream socio/political environment; through the act of separating us from one another we are led to believe that if we are unable to do a thing alone, then it can not be done. We have been misled and disempowered by the competitive economic/social structures we were raised in, programmed until the idea of collective co-operation towards a common goal/s is an alien one and we find ourselves struggling to create for ourselves the tools/skills we need to relate to one another effectively within co-operative, non competitive systems.
The people who participate in the kitchen have already begun, or are beginning a process of recognition of themselves as organisms with a unique set of talents, ideas and interests, which are necessary to the overall functioning of the larger community organism of which they are a part. This understanding engenders a sense of belonging, a sense of worth that inspires many people to fulfill capacities they never dreamed they could, this in turn inspires them to further efforts and to share their understanding with others and an energy cycle or system is formed. The energy is put into the system causing the energy to come out and the energy comes out of the system causing energy to be put into it.
       I have noticed also a sense of honour in most individuals regarding their awareness of their own contribution to the communal well-being. Most people who are in some way treating the system as a service, i.e. taking more energy from the system than they are willing to give to it, are aware on some level that they are doing so. I have seen a range of different reasons for and responses to this, some simply have not yet found their place; sense of belonging and empowerment in the space, reasonable time must be allowed for this to occur. Others seem to simply make a choice not to give their effort, perhaps so programmed by the ‘service’ culture they cannot easily see they have made this choice. Some will apologize honestly, but most will offer ‘excuses’ for doing less than they know they are capable of, others require that there be some one to tell them if they are not contributing. Humanity’s tendency to laziness and inertia seems to be one of the few real challenges to the creation and evolution of healthy and enriching community systems.
       In an organic way, almost all individuals who come into the kitchen find their way to the tasks that suit them best. Some resume familiar roles from their daily life, others seek new experiences and the acquisition of new skills. The first group facilitates the seconds desire to learn by passing on the knowledge, and the second group facilitates the first by acquiring these skills, thus allowing the first group to become as the second and seek out new skills themselves. It is an almost unconscious creation of a self organizing communal learning system.

       A kitchen is a familiar environment to everyone. The Gypsy Kitchen with it’s odd collection of infrastructure, from a proper gas oven and stove top to the coolgardie style refrigeration, from the daintily woven cane spice cabinet to the roughly covered uneven floor, is somehow reminiscent of all kitchens everywhere.
Almost everyone also is familiar with the concept of the kitchen system; the multitude of small tasks that create the overall function of ‘kitchen’.

       Excerpt from ‘report’ on the Gypsy Kitchen at ConFest – New Year ‘06/’07
       “Cooks, dishwashers, chai makers, musicians, floor sweepers, the healers and coffee perkers, the magic makers and cake bakers, people to oversee our temperamental generator, change empty gas bottles and fine tune our plumbing, erect the tarps and install the lighting… create and rake our fire circle and collect wood, clear and wipe the benches and deal with the rubbish, the food contributors and food contribution sorters, the tea towel launderers, the cushy fluffers and shopping trippers, the ice carters and esky cleaners, the raft builders, sign writers and the compost angels… and most important, those with the time to lend a kindly ear or word and touch hearts with others and help them find their niche, amongst a chaotic but self organizing and functional community space.”
       
        Although instantly recognizable as a kitchen, the Gypsy Kitchen is an unusual one; in the general scheme of things dwellings are bought or rented with the assumption of an existing kitchen. The lighting, water, power and gas are all already or easily connected and installed, and will continue to be supplied with little more maintenance from us. The fridge is a large white box which pretty much does it’s own thing without need for our attention. The sink is shiny silver and built into a system which magically takes the dirty water away. Our responsibility for the rubbish we create ends at our driveway, etc.
       Initially, some of the less familiar tasks and processes in the Gypsy Kitchen will need to be displayed or performed. Information or instruction given verbally is usually done so incidentally, almost accidentally. It generally only takes the first few days of the festival for the culture to be seeded and emerge strongly enough that the original facilitators of the kitchen can for the most part assume the role of participant with everyone else.

       In the heart(h) of our memories the kitchen holds a special place; it is a place to give and receive love and care, sustenance, succour, nurture and nourishment, help, health and healing, all these things are also in the very definition of well-being. For most of us I believe it is the room which most symbolizes our sense of home, and most contains the sense of welcome which is a large part of the definition of home itself. The people who come to the Gypsy Kitchen, whether they are conscious of it or not, do so seeking one, some or all of these things.
       That sense of home gives the participants the permission to relax, to be themselves and to reach in, pull out and explore parts of themselves they feel unable to in other environments/situations for various reasons. For some it is an exploration of joy and happiness, for others it can be an opportunity to release or express more negative or difficult aspects, emotions or psychological states in a space in which they feel safe and supported in doing so. These two groups also form a symbiotic relationship of gifting energy and a sense of place to each other. Many of those who are experiencing difficult emotions will almost inevitably find some one who is experiencing the empowerment and state of emotional generosity inspired by feeling their particular talents and interests are valued and appreciated. In that state, in fact in most states of being we are all potential healers to each other, the feeling of having contributed to the healing and well being of another is as enriching as having another contribute to your healing and well being.
       This understanding is manifesting as a network of people in and around the kitchen who make it their concern or interest to observe behaviours and states of being of individuals, and the collective states of being and behaviours of the kitchen community as an entity. Within this network there are professional healers of all descriptions and modalities, people trained in how to respond in a first aid situation or an emotional/psychological crisis, people with the skills and characteristics to respond to violent situations, people with the people skills to help prevent these situations occurring. And always there is the community as a whole, while multi-faceted and sometimes seemingly at odds with itself, it has when necessity demands it, a strong and unified voice. When a situation occurs which is truly contrary to the spirit or principles of the community as a collective, this voice is heard. Sometimes subtly but always unmistakably, in my experience this has been enough to resolve these situations in as big a scope as a regular, but temporary therapeutic community can.

       Among those who return, and keep returning to the Gypsy Kitchen there is a growing awareness of it’s significance as a place of healing and well being, and a growing understanding and commitment towards its evolution as a therapeutic community within the larger therapeutic community of ConFest.
Perhaps more importantly, among those who have facilitated and in some senses created the Gypsy Kitchen there is a rapidly growing awareness of, and connection to a wider community of therapeutic communities. There is also a sense of energization and rising exhilaration brought on by the joy we feel in the witnessing of, and contribution to the seeding and emergence of new ones.
       Quite simply put, my participation in the Gypsy Kitchen, and the Kotema Community as a whole are my plan to change the world into a better place than I found it, and I’m happy to report that it’s coming along beautifully.

Joy,
Kristen.

      Thanks to all who populated the Gypsy Kitchen at Autumn Confest. Through the self organising, autonomous action of the many people who participated in the kitchens activities, we feed around 500 meals each day and provided chai etc to many more.
      Nearly $1000 was provided by D.T.E. to seed fund Gypsy Kitchen with much more food etc. gifted by Confest participants.
The Gypsy Kitchen is still open; it's been packed up and moved to "Kotema", a community property in Narbethong.
      It is hoped that a community food and land project will evolve, networking "Confest" type community resources to develop a "Confest" lifestyle for those who participate. Further resources are to be found by the community trading with the "outside world" through a community owned legal entity.


The ART of Salad Making

      Whilst cutting vegies one night at the gypsy kitchen, I overheard a young woman talking with her friends, "They wont let me sell my Art" she complained. She was a little upset that her handpainted scarves were not to be offered for sale in the Market place at Confest...
      AHHHH! I thought, "What of the people who’s "Art" is healing?" I asked, "Should we be paying for the Healing Arts at Confest?” She looked a bit confused by my comment so I went on," What of those who's "Art" is plumbing? ... A separate charge for water perhaps would be in order? ...
      What of those who spend Confest offering First Aid in the First Aid tent?... How much is First Aid worth?... What of the entertainers, the Tai Chi teachers, the steam tent builders, Musicians, Toilet cleaners and Ticket Collectors? (If you don't think there is an ART to operating Front Gate at Confest then you haven't tried it!) What of the ART of all these people?" I asked her "What of the Cooks?" Our discussion went on for a while, she gave ground but was not convinced, and I had to agree with her that "there is the Material Cost of her product to consider"
      She walked off still a little disappointed that she "had not been allowed to sell a few scarves to cover the cost of her ‘holiday’ at Confest. As I finished cutting the lettuce which someone had offered, the red peppers from the box which the "Holy Cow" sent over, the cucumbers from Benny, and mixed through the salad dressing I had with me ... Now we had salad to go with the Dahl ... We needed the Dahl because we had to have something to serve with the whole box of flat bread the "coke stall" gave us...
      But I digress...
      As I finished the salad I watched her walk off and considered she did have a point... ”There is the MATERIAL COST of the product to consider"

Michael

The aim?… well… to feed ourselves… of course…
But more than this… much more…
It’s an open invitation to become involved in an organic community process…
Everyone is offered the opportunity to contribute to the overall well-being…
In their own way and in their own time…
To feel a valued part of the community around them.
For many… this is a rare experience.

      Cooks, dishwashers, chai makers, musicians, floor sweepers, the healers and coffee perkers, the magic makers and cake bakers, people to oversee our temperamental generator, change empty gas bottles and fine tune our plumbing, erect the tarps and install the lighting… create and rake our fire circle and collect wood, clear and wipe the benches and deal with the rubbish, the food contributors and food contribution sorters, the tea towel launderers, the cushy fluffers and shopping trippers, the ice carters and esky cleaners, the raft builders, signwriters and the compost angels… and most important, those with the time to lend a kindly ear or word and touch hearts with others and help them find their niche amongst a chaotic but self organizing and functional community space

      There is no one in charge but there is always someone there to pass on the knowledge, to answer “How does this work?” or “where is the grater?” someone with the presence of mind to keep an eye on safety and hygiene. Or someone simply to notice when another seems unwell, lost or alone.

      A few days into the festival there is a network of people aware of the function of the kitchen and the well-being of those within the space. A network of care within atmosphere of play and acceptance .The only noticeable example of unacceptable behaviour removing it’s self from the site as the community network responds.

      The Space has a vibrant life of it’s own now, word of mouth spreading the ‘Kitchen Lore’ amongst it’s occupants in a quiet and subtle way. Those of us who initially knew where everything is and how it works now search for the grater like everyone else, the kitchen having evolved truly now into a fluid community system… an entity far transcending the sum of it’s pots and pans.

      During the day of New Year’s Eve there is a spontaneous gathering to prepare a feast… more and more and more food arrives, people new to the gypsy kitchen this confest have now become key information hubs, enablers and motivators. The feast is magnificent, varied and seemingly endless… and yes there were volunteers to wash the dishes at 3am New Years morning.

      At the end, as the market packs more food is gifted, potentially feeding pack up crew. We were well supported by D.T.E and Confesters alike during the pack up process.

Much Thanks to All
Kristen & Michael

         An incredible and educational experience, I am struggling to find words to describe it; the joy of watching the flows of movement through the kitchen, each being weaving confidently through the chaotic, playful busy-ness of the larger entity. The Gypsy Kitchen has undeniably become it’s own entity, there is a community now that is strong and rich enough to share all of the roles within it comfortably, as well as being a resource of support and assistance to other entities within the larger ConFest community.
         Family, Community, Culture; these words were spoken by almost everyone I connected with in the kitchen and the Kotema lounge. I feel awe at the incredible privilege of witnessing a family, a community, a culture becoming aware of itself. I saw countless people with, or coming to the understanding that the seemingly intangible spirit of ConFest is not something that we go somewhere or when to find, it is something we are. ConFest is a vital meeting place for us as a community and a culture. It is also a profound example of the abundance of skills, talents, resources we have amongst us. As well as the energy, magic, joy and collaborative creativity we are capable of when we see ourselves, and act as a collective, as a community.
         This is the fifth ConFest in which I have participated in the Gypsy Kitchen. The first was an Autumn ConFest. I spent most of the festival gathering wood for the three fires in the gypsy village communal fire circle, watching this spontaneously formed group of people create something far more than a device for producing sustenance. They created a place, a feeling that was home, and more, they created a sense of an automatic invitation to consider myself at home amongst them, and I have joyfully continued to do so.
         For the five festivals since (including Folk Rhythm & Life ’05) I have given thousands of hours of my effort and thought to the Gypsy Kitchen and to ConFest, perhaps stretching my health a little past the point of wisdom. I feel that every second of this has been more than balanced by the richness of the opportunities and challenges presented to me, the amazing people I have met, and come to know and love, and the sheer gorgeousness of the whole experience.
         The exhilaration I feel at seeing the Gypsy Kitchen Community grow from a small group of facilitators to a large group of collaborators is immeasurable and certainly indescribable, as is my gratitude and appreciation for every being who contributed to this experience.
Joy,
Kristen.