With the unpredictable weather we're having at the moment four optimistic Goodgymers met on Turnham Green in Chiswick to help rake the meadow.

Goodgym has been helping The Friends of Turnham Green with the meadow for several years. During that time we've had a variety of tools including today's tool of choice - scarifiers and the humble rake.

Goodgym hero John joined myself, Luis and Stephen (and Rosie the dog) with raking up the leftover "hay" aka the weeds and grass left behind by the council mower. Jan explained that this was not just a case of clearing the meadow but also letting the green shoots and seedlings get some much needed daylight. Who doesn't need more vitamin D as we enter the change of season!

Hopefully today's power hour of raking will help the remaining seeds grow and the meadow will once again flourish.

As ever several passers by stopped to say thank you and share how much they'd enjoyed seeing the meadow in all it's spring and summer glory.

Before long it started raining and Rosie gave us the nod it was time to pack away. Three damp haystacks were combined, ready to be cleared. We were so busy raking we didn't have chance for the usual before and after photos today.

Stephen (and Rosie) along with the community volunteers in Gunnersbury Estate will be hosting one of our upcoming wednesday night group sessions, and you can sign up here: https://www.goodgym.org/happenings/tidy-up-gunnersbury-garden-estate

See how we come to Horsenden Farm? Very demure, very mindful. We don't show off, carrying 30 kg wooden logs in front of our new joiners.

Today's first-timers, Kat and Kane, showed our GoodGym divas it's time for a reality check! They were very modest, not flashing their red t-shirts yet, but working equally hard, if not harder, as our most celebrated GoodGym heroes.

Sevan, who has reached 750 good deeds, didn't put his celebratory vest on until the pizza party time. Very demure. Or maybe Kash has forgotten about the milestone vest in her bag again this week?

While Alaa, Kat, Michelle, Sevan and Kash mindfully transported the chicken manure to the compost piles, Kane, Luis and Steph Ducat, together with a new Horsenden volunteer Tom, moved the heavy wood and bed frames out of a former chicken coop. They rested all the bulky things against the shed on a slippery slope. How all that stuff we had piled by the shed throughout the year hadn't slid down yet - we don't know. Very mindful.

Elsa suggested a third task in case we'd finished with either of the two jobs: razing a wild hedge to the ground. We don't come to work to cut green trees. We don't bring big saws and axes. That would be way over the top. Today, we cut the whole hedge at Horsenden with a few pairs of humble loppers.

When it was time to see the animals, Elsa showed Alaa, Kat and Kash how to jump the fence demurely so as not to disturb the pig residents. See how the goats were very well-behaved today - let's not forget to be demure, divas!

Stay demure and join us for another day of volunteering 🫶 + animals 🐮 + pizza 🍕 + craft beer 🍺 in October!