Renowned photographer Joseph Cosby and Esperanza Director Marcie Silvestro

Artist Wanda Morrison and husband greeting the guests

Guess what’s on the guacamole….saltamontes!

Intense discussion: Zenobia, Marcie, Pam and Trixie.

Saturday night we hosted a fabulous event, a benefit for the domestic abuse shelter Esperanza.  Musicians Jay Boy Adams & Zenobia and Raven Red Fox had people up and dancing; storyteller Regina Ress enlisted the listeners into helping tell the Haitian story of  ”Tipingee;” there was a wonderful silent auction of  the work of many of the Hillside’s artists; Marcie Silvestro, Esperanza’s Executive Director and recording artist, welcomed everyone and sang for us; and there were wildly interesting hors d’oeuvres by New World Cuisine Chef Fernando Olea.  And…the weather was perfection…allowing the music and dancing to fill the courtyard as well as the gallery, cafe and greenhouse. And all proceeds went to Esperanza. What a great party for a great cause!  (http://www.esperanzashelter.org)

July has flown by,  lit by the brilliant summer sun and occasionally washed (and/or doused!) by the summer rains.  And through it all, the coffee and teas (now often iced) flowed, as did the conversation and community growing here at Hillside Market.  Our Wildly Free StorySwap was great fun and included stories as varied as facing the fear of night diving,  a legend from  the US Revolution, and the vision of New Yorkers reclaiming the right to party in the streets of lower Manhattan soon after 9/11. Three great parties filled our space with music and fun. (This space LOVES parties!) And children came to learn stories and to tell stories. Summer is a ripe time of year and Hillside Market is blooming. We’ve got some great things coming up in August. Come play with us.

It is an ever shifting journey, being still in this octagonal oasis anchored by its central fountained- pillar with Lynn Parrish Hathaway’s Tears-of-the-Mountains glass circle  suspended above it. The world flows through the cafe, sometimes stopping, settling int to enjoy the tranquility, sometimes simply finding a quick energy boost and moving along. At our tables I note meetings of minds and meetings of hearts. Some people come for a coffee break; others, for a soul break. As our yoga teacher Laura says, “It is all good.”  The oasis certainly is good. And it just gets better and better.

Our “children’s corner” has morphed into a comfortable table-for-two semi-private space. As I write this, a woman who volunteers coordinating information for firefighters is bent over her laptop in there, working with teams dealing with the many wild fires in the region.  She said to me that the café is a real “refuge.”

If you are in Santa Fe, stop by.  We’ll be glad to see you.

Welcome to the Oasis Cafe in Hillside Market, Santa Fe. We offer Rest and Refreshment, coffee and tea, free wi-fi, and a great place to hang out, meet a friend, or get some work done.  Check out what Faye Granieri wrote about working with Robert Anderson here in the Oasis.  (Thanks Ari Ress for the great photo.)

Today the Oasis got a new and very high-flying presence….a gorgeous glass piece by Lynn Parrish Hathaway which now hangs over the fountain. Jesus, Pam and Tisha hung it, with Lynn cheering them on and me documenting the process. It is stunning and as the light shifts in the room, it changes. So the Oasis is now all decked out for our LastFriday opening on Friday, members party on Saturday, and StorySwap next Thursday. It is good for the soul to be spending time surrounded by beauty!

Our next door neighbor is a fabulous school, the Desert Academy. We’ve hosted an exhibition of student art for the past 10 days and  today was a reception for the artists and their friends and family. It was such a delight to hear the Oasis humming with chatter and laughter. We had a spread of cheese and crackers and a huge bouquet of fruit.  The photo was taken just before the Oasis filled with guests.

Collaboration is a joy.

Joe Hayes telling stories in the Oasis

Well..there is SO much to say about our fabulous Community Day yesterday. County Commissioners, Music, Community Groups and Artists….and 6 Storytellers! Beginning with a delicious story session by SF Public Library’s Children’s Librarian Walter Cook, our day included equally delightful tellings by Cynthia Dobson, Liz Mangual,  Bob Kanegis and… well, yes, me. But our featured teller was Santa Fe’s world renowned author and storyteller Joe Hayes…who has been called a  South West “Folk Hero.”

Here he is telling the story of his pet rattle snake. Don’t mess with Joe!

We held our first Tea Salon today in the Oasis. Aline Fourier whipped up some amazing dips and exquisite madeleines to accompany fine teas and talked to the gathered group about “conscious eating.”  Everything we eat nourishes us….if we eat consciously. A good Practice, indeed. I told some stories centered on the making of and distribution of food in lower Manhattan immediately after the 9/11 attack. Food for nourishing body and soul.   It was a lovely couple of hours of thoughtful conversation. And delicious food and tea. We hope to do it again.