Forget Bad Memories Associated With The Term “Hutch.”
Two of my daughters stewarded rabbits with names like Fiona and Ginger. Their hutch was a miserable thing to clean, so imagine the opposite sort of domicile.
That would be North Wind Manor, our study leave headquarters for a week in Antioch, TN.1
The manor was built by the folks at The Rabbit Room as a place for readings, music, and retreats. It’s rather hooked up.2
Our friend Rob told us the tile fire place once belonged to J.R.R. Tolkien. Why shouldn’t it be?
How it got there is none of my business.
I picture a kleptomaniacal fanboy with a Southern accent panting, “My Precious! My Precious!” on board an ocean liner bound for The Outer Banks, hugging a curiously heavy and fragile fruit box.
The manor apartment, where we hutched, is above the main meeting area. It could sleep nine adults in luxury.
We were utterly bowled over and grateful for the opportunity to stay there.
The staff, who were only around a bit during the days, were present, welcoming, and unobtrusive.
One evening, a small group of folk were recording music downstairs for an upcoming conference. We adored the heavenly intrusion.
Their playing was reminiscent of the years our kids were home, filling our row house with strumming, singing, and drumming.
Wanna meet a Rabbit? Becky and I had a good hour with one named Pete Peterson.
Who’s Pete?
First of all, that’s not his given name. The same could be said for Becky Becker.
Second, A.S. Peterson, who goes by “Pete,” is the Executive Director and Managing Editor of The Rabbit Room.
Third, he leads the team at The North Wind Manor, and we sat with him for a little chit-chat in the library, near a shelf full of Madeleine L’Engles’ personal books.
What Is The Rabbit Room?
TRR started as an online forum of blogs centered on creativity and Christianity.
They’ve always promoted a vision for culture that is rooted in Christian enchantment.
At some point they became a non-profit arts organization and were able to garner a lot of community support to build the manor and grow their presence.
A few years back, they published the poetic prayers of Douglas McKelvey, a book our friend Ned Bustard designed called Every Moment Holy. It’s actually catapulted the growth of TRR. Good job, Ned!
Brothers Andrew and Pete Peterson started TRR with gusto in 2006 as a labor of love with very little plan. Like The Row House, what started as a wonderful romp among friends, continues to grow, touching more and more people.
Whereas TRR community began online and became more localized, TRH began in our home and has slowly gathered a broader following.
As the TRR online community grew, there was interest in a gathering. They named their conference Hutchmoot which makes perfect sense to anyone cool enough to be a Tolkien nerd.
Moot=meeting; Hutch=where rabbits hang out 🐇3
Before the pandemic, in mere minutes, the several hundred tickets would be snatched up by fans the world over, fingertips charged with anxiety, their pinkies bludgeoning the Return button until, “Success! I’m in!”
The next Hutchmoot will be “homebound,” so you have a striking chance of attending, albeit in your own domicile.
And what’s with the Rabbit, anyway?
The pub where J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and their crew swapped snippets of stories and slaked their thirst for ale was called The Eagle and Child. You can still go there in Oxford (U.K., not Mississippi).
In that pub was a certain room, and now you know all.
What’s This Have To Do With The Row House?
Minus the rodentary mascot, we too began as a passion project by friends who wanted to create some fun, regenerative, and timely culture for our city of Lancaster.
In 2010, the ring leader was me, but Becky also lent her unwavering support, as did a few key co-conspirators.
Throw in a few board members, and we were off and running with twice-monthly events, a membership scheme, and a revolving spread of coffee, sweets, and savories.
Our beginnings were quite humble, but we did have a mission statement with a pretty a clear vision.
Besides the events “engaging current culture with ancient faith,” we also envisioned a platform for my writing and speaking (partially underway), and a “community within the community of church and city.”
The communitarian part exists now at our live events, and we’ve been able to create a bit of a family among our Members.
Eventually, though, we hope to create a cohort of folks who will engage ideas, share meals, and find ways to serve together in a focused way.
Having our own venue, similar to an urban North Wind Manor, would be the bee’s knees4 too.
What Did We Learn From Pete?
Relationships are king. I was reminded, as he took time from his schedule to have coffee and listen to my questions, that it was (and is) friendship that creates the very best works of culture across all times.
Do what you love as well as you can. Our events are unique and helpful to a lot of people, so I’m told. (I always enjoy them!). In my pitch for support, I always say “come and see.” Maybe that’s how we’ve been able to gain trust in our community, attract members, and enlist donors.
Ask for help. When TRR re-organized from a small business to a 501(c)(3), they were astonished at the generous and sizable donations they received. At TRH, we’ve only begun to tap the scores of folk around Lancaster who could help us grow too. We just need to make it easier for them.
If you don’t yet have a connection to The Row House, our Forums, and our online presence, why not dive in now?
Go to www.therowhouse.org. Join us in our mission, and for heaven’s sake, come check it out for yourself!
Listen to me describe our mission in a conversation with Leslie Bustard on the Rabbit Room’s podcast network.
Antioch is what planners call an “exurb,” an old rural hamlet slowly being taken over by sub-divisions. But North Wind sits on a piece of private property that feels secluded. A wonderful walking path is just down the hill, and I was sure to menace it several times on my gravel bike. The rich, multi-floral scents after Hurricane Ida’s rains permeated the air in that part of Middle Tennessee.
The manor was funded on the front end with a $450,000 capital campaign. A bevy of eager, mostly Nashvillian donors made it happen. They even have a continuing fund that makes stays like ours possible.
Remember when Treebeard summoned his fellow ents for the entmoot in The Lord of the Rings? 🌳
Some discussion ensued with one of my editors over “the bee’s knees.” I argued against the plural form, “the bees’ knees.” And won. But I could be wrong. Give me a buzz if you know the proper form. Andrew Peterson keeps bees on the manor property. He might know, but I won’t bug him about it.