The "Matt Harvey & Friends" event went tremendously well. The evening of entertainment was packed with up to 80 people, and an 'auction of promises' that raised almost £2K for the Heart of Dartington campaign.

The evening was nimbly facilitated by poet Matt Harvey, who wore many hats - poet, compere, auctioneer. We had wonderful poetry from Beryl the Feral and Tom Hirons. All three are local to Dartington.

Mark Jeffreys sang two fabulous songs - 'Heart of Dartington' and a song about a young boy's relationship with nature.

The community wrote a wonderful poem together on the theme of "In my backyard..." which was put together and read by Beryl the Feral (her performance of this poem we hope will soon be on our Facebook page).

"On the Rocky Road to Dartington" (A Community Poem)

In my back yard

A flurry of friends, a world of wild, the laughter of my children

No concrete in my backyard, but mic and bats and hedgehogs

i want to see the moon and the stars

Sweet trusting hedgehogs visit every night,

So timid that I only dare to listen, not go close

In my back yard walnuts wobble off their tree

Weeds pleasing to my eyes

The robin waits for me to open the kitchen door

So s/he can fly indoors for breakfast?

Who pooed, is it fox?

It's not squeaky squelchy hedge hogs!

In my backyard...

The hedgehogs are humping,

The noise is quite scary and sets my heart thumping

In my back yard a river runs through

And bats

And owls

They Twit and Twoo

Swollen berries, bursting fruit, hedgehogs merry, owls hoot

3 lovely dogs doss in my back yard

And there in my backyard is an apple tree

The weeds grow tall, to feed the small (insects!)

The spider sups a cup of dead bee soup

Blue tits chirping sweetly

Layers of years of growth and fecund fungus,

Warm and soft

Ramshorn snails in the little pond play hide and seek

A sunflower reaches for the sky

Wild, wonderful, wicked, western winds... and weeds

Infinite ever green edibles cascading through communal kitchens

In my back yard... I want elvin shelving

Happy times making beer in my garage...

Children hunting for Easter eggs

A washing line full of frilly pants

Somewhere to eat in the sunshine

I sing and swim

There are lots of lovely people, trees, and other beings

In my back yard there is peace and time to ponder

A hammock between two trees

In my backyard of my dreams there will be no FENCES, just Wildlife. Full of Heart and Joy

Affordable housing for the locals in need

Community owned wind turbines producing electricity in my backyard

I long for a compost toilet

In my backyard I can talk as much as I like!

Moon rising over a precious land

Betwixt and between

Caring, looking out, drawing in

Darkness and Silence

HUGE gratitude goes out to the creative artists, everyone who attended, the generous local people that donated to the 'auction of promises', the Dartington Parish Council who funded the event, Dartington Village Hall for the cosy venue, and the HOD team, that together made this event possible and such an enjoyable evening.

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