This Land

Out of the womens movement of the 1980s and 90s emerged small groups of women who purchased land together, usually in the country, sometimes in the wilderness. This Land, with its blend of fiction, memoir, poetry and essay, describes and reflects upon one such venture: eight women who bought 50 acres of Adirondack forestland in which they camped and built shelters, then more abiding homes. From diverse backgrounds they shared the American dream of a place for us, a place where they could find both sanctuary and adventure, solidarity and solitude, change and support. These survivors of 60s and 70s ferment and activism anticipated the challenges of group living, but coming from cities, they had no idea how much they would be changed by their encounters with the nature which surrounded them--its storms and vistas, animal visits, tree energies, and powers of water, fire, stars, lightning. For each of the eight women these meetings with natural others provided discoveries which helped them chart the whole of their lives, while guiding them toward paths of environmental guardianship. This is a story about how place shapes friendship and friendship informs place.