I remember the first time I visited The Way Woods.It was a beautiful, cloudless August night. Being a city kid, I had never really been anywhere that didn't have "light pollution". I had never seen such a star filled sky in my whole life. I felt like a kid who went to Disneyland and got to shake Mickey's hand. Of course, as time went on, I began to suspect that Mickey was really just some schmoe in a cheap, sweaty costume.
Yeah, I loved those woods too, at first. They were beautiful, eh? Walking around, especially late night when it was much quieter, hanging in the house of his healing presence, sitting on some really great grass sitting on the porch of that little cabin......
Then I understood more of what really went on in those woods.
I loved the way woods I went every time I was at ROA and the one time I went to the Word in Art Conference
so all totaled it was 5 times.. They were very peaceful and there was this tree stump covered in vines (not Poison ivy) that I would seek out to sit on it was off the beaten path and was so peaceful and of course I always went to the house of his healing presence to pray.
For me originally coming from Michigan but having lived out west since I was about 9 it was a delight and gave me some joy and nostalgic feelings. and I always felt at peace there. During ROA it was a oasis in a sea of people. The one place you could go that wasn't crawling with humans... and for my first ROA a much needed spot to pray and sort out what I was going to do. I had a decision to make and was not sure what to do.. So I have very fond memories of Way Woods. I took it for what it was a wild place left natural on a small family farm. IT wasn't very big but it was perfect for what I needed.. respite for my soul.
To me I liked the woods,but have been in much better,we were TOLD It was a spiritual place,It was our home we were told it was ours,we could come at any time,I went there during roa cause it was quiet.
Same as the rest of the grounds,we were told we could enjoy the fountain....
Having grown up in the rural midwest, nature and hunting and farmland was a major part of my upbringing. So, no... I didn't see it as all that special. Sure, I liked walking in the way woods.......but geez, it was only a clump of trees in western ohio.
Once again, wierwille hyped its "special-ness"......because it was obviously special to him. Wasn't it one of his childhood hiding places when he didn't want to work?
Back in 1977-1979, there used to be a hodge-podge of "meager, cheap, sleep A-frames" and such.....a 5th corps grad, Ken Str0th3r stayed in one year-round. Kinda like a hippie-craze or nomad, Ken somehow got permission to stay in the woods years before the corps chalet was built.
I did like the concept of "House of His Healing Presence" during roa when the candles were light, the straw bales were fresh, and the pathways were cleared..........but having worked on hq's staff, the area was neglected for much of the year and had no appeal whatsoever. Certainly no 'spiritual' appeal.
Sometime in the early 1980s I was diagnosed with a disease called sarcoidosis. It was in the lymph nodes in my lungs. I was told it could get better, stay the same, or get worse and eventually kill me.
I had started a new job, and I dickered around with my coworkers and ended up going to the opening Sunday of ROA, flying home Monday morning, and being at work on Tuesday. Mr. Garden stayed the entire week.
Once we had his tent set up, I went to the House of His Healing Presence, and I stayed there until I KNEW I was healed. It may have been hours, I don't know.
Four months later, an x-ray showed no progress of the disease. Six months after that it was gone.
Think what you will, I know God put His healing hand on me that day.
Well, I liked the Way Woods. Only small, of course, but I love being in the outdoors, wandering through mountains and forests. No mountains in Ohio, and WW was about the best immediately available as "forest" when in rez, but peaceful for all that (not that, in rez, there is much time to enjoy wandering anywhere).
In the Spring mornings, for our pre-breakfast run, we often went through the Woods, both sides of the road. That was specially peaceful. I really don't like running, but running through the woods was a nice start to the day.
There's a scrappy bit on the other side of the main road, not where the HHP or the Cabin was, but the other road; that had a pond (gravel pit??) and a place where we did some shooting one time. There were also the stacks of wood that the in rez Corps chopped up. Not such pretty woods, but rarely was anybody there.
An abiding memory of the woods was after a huge ice storm had gone through. Everything, everywhere, was thickly crusted with about an inch of ice. Roads and paths were really slippery. We were supposed to be going out Lightbearers but in view of the weather and danger on the roads, the Lightbearers trip was cancelled. The in rez Corps in effect got a free few hours while it was decided what to do with us. It was a brilliantly sunny morning, and I wandered round the Woods and enjoyed the spectacular sight of the glittering ice and the vivid brightness of the branches and the prisms caused by the ice. It was magnificent.
Several trees and boughs were lost through the weight of the ice, though.
Well, I liked the Way Woods. Only small, of course, but I love being in the outdoors, wandering through mountains and forests. No mountains in Ohio, and WW was about the best immediately available as "forest" when in rez, but peaceful for all that (not that, in rez, there is much time to enjoy wandering anywhere).
In the Spring mornings, for our pre-breakfast run, we often went through the Woods, both sides of the road. That was specially peaceful. I really don't like running, but running through the woods was a nice start to the day.
There's a scrappy bit on the other side of the main road, not where the HHP or the Cabin was, but the other road; that had a pond (gravel pit??) and a place where we did some shooting one time. There were also the stacks of wood that the in rez Corps chopped up. Not such pretty woods, but rarely was anybody there.
An abiding memory of the woods was after a huge ice storm had gone through. Everything, everywhere, was thickly crusted with about an inch of ice. Roads and paths were really slippery. We were supposed to be going out Lightbearers but in view of the weather and danger on the roads, the Lightbearers trip was cancelled. The in rez Corps in effect got a free few hours while it was decided what to do with us. It was a brilliantly sunny morning, and I wandered round the Woods and enjoyed the spectacular sight of the glittering ice and the vivid brightness of the branches and the prisms caused by the ice. It was magnificent.
Several trees and boughs were lost through the weight of the ice, though.
Actually there are mountains in Southern and Eastern part of Ohio, or rather foothills from Appalachians(KY and WV do border the state).
I guess there might be, Thomas, but when you're in rez and it is an exciting expedition to go to New Knoxville (a place I only went once) or St Mary's (might have made it there twice), mountains elsewhere don't feature highly in one's memory.
That's why trips like Lightbearers were so enjoyable (if that's the right word).
In respect to those buried there,this thread is not about them,It is about what we thought was so great about the cornfield,
woods.To me I liked the woods,but have been in much better,we were TOLD It was a spiritual place,
I like the woods--forests, mountains, streams the ocean--nature in general---to me there is at times a spiritual element to being alone with nature...But no matter how hard I try right now i can not conjure up any image of "The Way Woods" that stands out to me. I have a vague remembrance of The Shack Of his Healing Presence ---that and i saw some big raccoon type critters there--Im sure it was 'nice' but nothing noteworthy to me 20 years later.
Just about everywhere has places that are just as nice if not better.
So---Im sorry i cant help you out on what was so great about it--the grounds were very clean maybe?
The spirituality of the way woods was an extension of the "Wierwille myth"...the snow on the gas pumps, etcetera...
What it actually was...was a small area of woods in the middle of flat corn country...farmers would always leave a small area of woods alone for whatever reason...I've been in many woods in my time and there was nothing exceptional about this place...spiritually or otherwise. I thought that the campus of the University of Miami was "spiritual" when I walked around it all night doing LSD...
...so what is it boys and girls?...If I was a younger man, I would take a flame thrower to that place...
The spirituality of the way woods was an extension of the "Wierwille myth"...the snow on the gas pumps, etcetera...
What it actually was...was a small area of woods in the middle of flat corn country...farmers would always leave a small area of woods alone for whatever reason...I've been in many woods in my time and there was nothing exceptional about this place...spiritually or otherwise. I thought that the campus of the University of Miami was "spiritual" when I walked around it all night doing LSD...
...so what is it boys and girls?...If I was a younger man, I would take a flame thrower to that place...
I hear ya, Mr. Marx.
Was it a wetland? If so,maybe that's why it was initially passed over as being unplantable.
No. It had mature oaks and maples and a few other kinds, but not many hard wood trees so it wasn't really a mature "old growth" woods.
Was it a wetland? If so,maybe that's why it was initially passed over as being unplantable.
Im not a farmer, I do know that in my area most farms of that size (wasnt it about 100 acres or so ?) or bigger almost always keep a woodlot. Whether for building material, fuel or what not Im not exactly sure but it is not an uncommon practice.
Im not a farmer, I do know that in my area most farms of that size (wasnt it about 100 acres or so ?) or bigger almost always keep a woodlot. Whether for building material, fuel or what not Im not exactly sure but it is not an uncommon practice.
IT really wasn't that big. it was long and narrow with young growth trees vines wildflowers and black berry or black raspberry growth.. birds and bugs and like I said during the ROA it was quiet or relatively. mostly because the house of his healing presence was there and people were quiet because they didn't want to disturb those who were praying. I know when I went during the word in Business conference it was pretty much deserted, a perfect place to go and pray and walk and think.
NOT sure how it was after 1982 but that is what it was like when I was there. I don't remember it being touted as spiritual at that time but I guess I was pretty oblivious to that stuff as I was never a Corps till my last ROA and just a spouse corps at that. being just a leafytwiglet we didn't know Anything of import.
Im not a farmer, I do know that in my area most farms of that size (wasnt it about 100 acres or so ?) or bigger almost always keep a woodlot. Whether for building material, fuel or what not Im not exactly sure but it is not an uncommon practice.
The original twi property was 147 acres.....and the wooded acreage was approximately 5 or 6 acres.
Looking back......for me, walking in the woods had more to do with being ALONE than the "beauty" of the woods. People, people everywhere......brc basement, class, meetings, trailer park, etc.....it was good to just get away and breath the fresh air and have some quiet time.
Perhaps it was a windbreak; I notice that around these parts too, or a fence row that has had trees grow up in it. Wind at least in central Ohio can be quite fierce at times.
According to VP and maybe Uncle H, wasn't this the supposed sacred place where St. Victor of Wierwille preached to the birds and animals, rocks and trees? oops, that was St. Francis of Assisi and Billy Graham. Proably hid there to escape farm chores and Daddy Ernest's threats of spanking. btw, Wierwille never ran away to the circus, just brought one called ROA. Hi Mr.Linder.
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waysider
I remember the first time I visited The Way Woods.It was a beautiful, cloudless August night. Being a city kid, I had never really been anywhere that didn't have "light pollution". I had never seen such a star filled sky in my whole life. I felt like a kid who went to Disneyland and got to shake Mickey's hand. Of course, as time went on, I began to suspect that Mickey was really just some schmoe in a cheap, sweaty costume.
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Shellon
Yeah, I loved those woods too, at first. They were beautiful, eh? Walking around, especially late night when it was much quieter, hanging in the house of his healing presence, sitting on some really great grass sitting on the porch of that little cabin......
Then I understood more of what really went on in those woods.
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Bolshevik
used to go on H. @llen's squirrel thinning gigs there. . . never got any
did get within 10 feet of a deer . . . a deer w/ a .22, that'd be crazy
It was especially gorgeous in the wintertime, with the trees hanging over that large ditch covered in snow.
although in the spring that ditch would fill with water. some of us wanted to get a rubber raft . . .
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leafytwiglet
I loved the way woods I went every time I was at ROA and the one time I went to the Word in Art Conference
so all totaled it was 5 times.. They were very peaceful and there was this tree stump covered in vines (not Poison ivy) that I would seek out to sit on it was off the beaten path and was so peaceful and of course I always went to the house of his healing presence to pray.
For me originally coming from Michigan but having lived out west since I was about 9 it was a delight and gave me some joy and nostalgic feelings. and I always felt at peace there. During ROA it was a oasis in a sea of people. The one place you could go that wasn't crawling with humans... and for my first ROA a much needed spot to pray and sort out what I was going to do. I had a decision to make and was not sure what to do.. So I have very fond memories of Way Woods. I took it for what it was a wild place left natural on a small family farm. IT wasn't very big but it was perfect for what I needed.. respite for my soul.
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Ham
Squirrel "thinning" gigs?
Yeah Frank.. they told us it was "home".. didn't they. Normally one does not evict "family" on a mere spiritual suspicion of sorts..
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skyrider
Having grown up in the rural midwest, nature and hunting and farmland was a major part of my upbringing. So, no... I didn't see it as all that special. Sure, I liked walking in the way woods.......but geez, it was only a clump of trees in western ohio.
Once again, wierwille hyped its "special-ness"......because it was obviously special to him. Wasn't it one of his childhood hiding places when he didn't want to work?
Back in 1977-1979, there used to be a hodge-podge of "meager, cheap, sleep A-frames" and such.....a 5th corps grad, Ken Str0th3r stayed in one year-round. Kinda like a hippie-craze or nomad, Ken somehow got permission to stay in the woods years before the corps chalet was built.
I did like the concept of "House of His Healing Presence" during roa when the candles were light, the straw bales were fresh, and the pathways were cleared..........but having worked on hq's staff, the area was neglected for much of the year and had no appeal whatsoever. Certainly no 'spiritual' appeal.
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Watered Garden
Sometime in the early 1980s I was diagnosed with a disease called sarcoidosis. It was in the lymph nodes in my lungs. I was told it could get better, stay the same, or get worse and eventually kill me.
I had started a new job, and I dickered around with my coworkers and ended up going to the opening Sunday of ROA, flying home Monday morning, and being at work on Tuesday. Mr. Garden stayed the entire week.
Once we had his tent set up, I went to the House of His Healing Presence, and I stayed there until I KNEW I was healed. It may have been hours, I don't know.
Four months later, an x-ray showed no progress of the disease. Six months after that it was gone.
Think what you will, I know God put His healing hand on me that day.
WG
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Twinky
Well, I liked the Way Woods. Only small, of course, but I love being in the outdoors, wandering through mountains and forests. No mountains in Ohio, and WW was about the best immediately available as "forest" when in rez, but peaceful for all that (not that, in rez, there is much time to enjoy wandering anywhere).
In the Spring mornings, for our pre-breakfast run, we often went through the Woods, both sides of the road. That was specially peaceful. I really don't like running, but running through the woods was a nice start to the day.
There's a scrappy bit on the other side of the main road, not where the HHP or the Cabin was, but the other road; that had a pond (gravel pit??) and a place where we did some shooting one time. There were also the stacks of wood that the in rez Corps chopped up. Not such pretty woods, but rarely was anybody there.
An abiding memory of the woods was after a huge ice storm had gone through. Everything, everywhere, was thickly crusted with about an inch of ice. Roads and paths were really slippery. We were supposed to be going out Lightbearers but in view of the weather and danger on the roads, the Lightbearers trip was cancelled. The in rez Corps in effect got a free few hours while it was decided what to do with us. It was a brilliantly sunny morning, and I wandered round the Woods and enjoyed the spectacular sight of the glittering ice and the vivid brightness of the branches and the prisms caused by the ice. It was magnificent.
Several trees and boughs were lost through the weight of the ice, though.
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Thomas Loy Bumgarner
Actually there are mountains in Southern and Eastern part of Ohio, or rather foothills from Appalachians(KY and WV do border the state).
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Twinky
I guess there might be, Thomas, but when you're in rez and it is an exciting expedition to go to New Knoxville (a place I only went once) or St Mary's (might have made it there twice), mountains elsewhere don't feature highly in one's memory.
That's why trips like Lightbearers were so enjoyable (if that's the right word).
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mstar1
I like the woods--forests, mountains, streams the ocean--nature in general---to me there is at times a spiritual element to being alone with nature...But no matter how hard I try right now i can not conjure up any image of "The Way Woods" that stands out to me. I have a vague remembrance of The Shack Of his Healing Presence ---that and i saw some big raccoon type critters there--Im sure it was 'nice' but nothing noteworthy to me 20 years later.
Just about everywhere has places that are just as nice if not better.
So---Im sorry i cant help you out on what was so great about it--the grounds were very clean maybe?
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GrouchoMarxJr
The spirituality of the way woods was an extension of the "Wierwille myth"...the snow on the gas pumps, etcetera...
What it actually was...was a small area of woods in the middle of flat corn country...farmers would always leave a small area of woods alone for whatever reason...I've been in many woods in my time and there was nothing exceptional about this place...spiritually or otherwise. I thought that the campus of the University of Miami was "spiritual" when I walked around it all night doing LSD...
...so what is it boys and girls?...If I was a younger man, I would take a flame thrower to that place...
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waysider
Was it a wetland? If so,maybe that's why it was initially passed over as being unplantable.
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krys
I hear ya, Mr. Marx.
No. It had mature oaks and maples and a few other kinds, but not many hard wood trees so it wasn't really a mature "old growth" woods.
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mstar1
Im not a farmer, I do know that in my area most farms of that size (wasnt it about 100 acres or so ?) or bigger almost always keep a woodlot. Whether for building material, fuel or what not Im not exactly sure but it is not an uncommon practice.
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waysider
Woodlot
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leafytwiglet
IT really wasn't that big. it was long and narrow with young growth trees vines wildflowers and black berry or black raspberry growth.. birds and bugs and like I said during the ROA it was quiet or relatively. mostly because the house of his healing presence was there and people were quiet because they didn't want to disturb those who were praying. I know when I went during the word in Business conference it was pretty much deserted, a perfect place to go and pray and walk and think.
NOT sure how it was after 1982 but that is what it was like when I was there. I don't remember it being touted as spiritual at that time but I guess I was pretty oblivious to that stuff as I was never a Corps till my last ROA and just a spouse corps at that. being just a leafytwiglet we didn't know Anything of import.
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Ham
Maybe what people enjoyed and connected with in the woods had nothing to do with herr vey to begin with..
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Shellon
Exactly, squirrely one
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skyrider
The original twi property was 147 acres.....and the wooded acreage was approximately 5 or 6 acres.
Looking back......for me, walking in the woods had more to do with being ALONE than the "beauty" of the woods. People, people everywhere......brc basement, class, meetings, trailer park, etc.....it was good to just get away and breath the fresh air and have some quiet time.
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Watered Garden
Perhaps it was a windbreak; I notice that around these parts too, or a fence row that has had trees grow up in it. Wind at least in central Ohio can be quite fierce at times.
WG
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Thomas Loy Bumgarner
According to VP and maybe Uncle H, wasn't this the supposed sacred place where St. Victor of Wierwille preached to the birds and animals, rocks and trees? oops, that was St. Francis of Assisi and Billy Graham. Proably hid there to escape farm chores and Daddy Ernest's threats of spanking. btw, Wierwille never ran away to the circus, just brought one called ROA.
Hi Mr.Linder.
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