Valley of Aluna

The Valley of Aluna has slowly evolved from our desire to engage the Universe Story at a deeper level. It represents our attempt to enter into fellowship with the land and the living communities of Genesis Farm. From the Universe Story, we have learned that that land supports an amazing array of life that is interdependent, connected, and diverse. Its complexity is still mostly beyond human understanding.

Aluna, the Kogi say, is “memory and possibility.”

The word “Aluna” was introduced to us many years ago by dear a Colombian friend who shared that in her culture the word means that which is possible but not yet realized. The word comes from the creation myth of the Kogi, indigenous peoples who inhabit remote regions of the Colombian Andes.

Life does not spring forth haphazardly, the Kogi believe. All that is to come is also grounded in that which has already come before. In scientific terms, we know this Kogi belief to be accurate. Life’s memory, carried forward through the dynamics of physics, chemistry, and biology, brought forth deep within the DNA of every living cell, sets the conditions for an unknown future, for possibility.

The Valley of Aluna is Genesis Farm’s ongoing attempt to consciously align those two great forces, memory and possibility. Both memory and possibility have propelled the Universe through its creative journey in time and space. As humans look back in time, we see all that has come before: our departed friends and mentors, our ancestors, historic events, our incredible evolution through time. As we look to the future, we seek ways to create and enter into meaningful and mutually enhancing relationships within the entire community of life.

We think of the valley's eastern slope as a tribute to memory and the past. Here grows our Memorial Orchard where we plant trees to remember and honor those who have died -- those who have passed from the finite into the infinite, from the physical into an enduring mystery. Every person we honor here leaves both a visible and invisible imprint on the land.

We think of the valley's western slope as a sacred space for exploring possibilities for the future. Here we have planted several Demonstration Gardens, and created the Path of the Fourfold Wisdom. Genesis Farm offices, barn, housing, and greenhouse are also located here.

This place where memory and possibility connect becomes, for us, the Valley of Aluna. From the turbulence of our times emerges creativity. Human consciousness can be used to shape a new future for the entire planet.