September's Postcard from The Path- Building with Natural Materials; and a Journey to the Nation of the Q'eros

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Postcards from the Path

September 2026

Hello friends and a peaceful Libra season to you.

In this month's Postcard I'll be sharing with you some photos from my first efforts at building with natural and recycled materials, and a visit to the Q'eros Nation. Plus a video about how you can create your own spiritual roadmap.

Vamos!

(Click for a short video montage)

Allow me to introduce you to my landlord, Grover. Grover is a veterinarian. He travels to the traditional farms in the Andes and administers vaccines and medications to sheep, cattle, alpacas and roosters, as well as dogs and cats and more.

Grover built this house by hand. For the wood he cut down nearby trees and used hand tools to create flat planks from their trunks.

One of my goals in living here is to learn how to build, grow, or gather as much of my food and other household goods as I can. I am off the grid but part of a much older network of support, and my neighbors are also often my best teachers.

My first project was to gather the bark from felled trees to fill in the spaces between the planks of the floor. I then broke down cardboard boxes to use as a layer of insulation.

I then bought a thin layer of plywood to finish the floors and an inexpensive mattress. The plywood was great but the mattress was cold and hard.

So I turned to my neighbor Jovenal for help. Jovenal is an excellent farmer and keeps a large store of shredded corn husk for his cows. I used this hay-like material to fill the plastic bag the mattress came in, and wrapped it in a tarp to place under my mattress.

My nights became instantly softer, and far more warm.

"When I was young and didn't want to go to school, in the morning I would hide in the hay pile and go to sleep!"

-Jovenal

These small steps are teaching me that when I create something by hand, or with the help of my neighbors, I appreciate them in a new way.

A trip to the Nation of the Q'eros

Hosted by Climaco and Geraldo of the Nation of the Q'eros

Before moving into my present home, I took a journey to the Nation of the Q'eros, in the highlands of the Andes. The Q'eros are known to be among the most powerful shamans of Peru, and preservers of the cultural heritage of the Inca. They also serve as an inspiration for many of us from the

west learning how to live more harmoniously with the earth.

I arrived with two friends from Germany, Anna and Tim. After a day of travel from Cusco, our hosts Climaco and Geraldo welcomed us into their homes with warm food and a sharing of coca leafs.

The leaves of the coca plant are a sacred part of the cultural heritage of Peru. They're chewed and held in a ball in the side of the mouth where they're said to give energy to the heart and help with the days work. They're also used in divination, prayers and offerings to the spirits of the mountains or "Apus."

The Q'eros value "Aini," which is a quechua word often translated into English as "sacred reciprocity."

"Aini" refers less to a transactional exchange than to the principle of helping those around us, and trusting that we will be helped in return. And this principle extends not just to people but to the animals, and land, and, especially to the spirits of the mountains or "Apus." The Q'eros make offerings to the Apus of foods, libations and other favorite things, as well as their prayers.

On this day, our shaman Climaco prayed to the Apus for our health, our families, and for the well being of Mother Earth.