Early this month, I sat before the members of the ZBA (Zoning Board of Appeals) for the Town of Deerfield to present my application to run a one-bedroom B&B. They granted preliminary approval! A reporter for our local newspaper was there. His article was published in both the Greenfield Recorder and the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
Town approval takes time. I decided to list on Airbnb in the interim and use Airbnb as a way to advertise. When I went online to register, I found I already had a listing. The site popped up with a picture of me, hat on, Connecticut River in the background. I ran the first version of Bela’s B&B for three years at the Shintaido Farm, the center for the practice of the esoteric martial art and body movement Shintaido. Stephen and I founded and ran the Shintaido Farm from 2006-2016.
There was also a profile on Airbnb which I have updated as follows:
In 2013, I left a full-time position as managing director at a small nonprofit to start a new venture – a B&B! When we moved in 2016, the B&B closed. I have practiced and taught a Shintaido for more than 40 years. Shintaido translates as “new body way.” It’s a physical meditation and profound form of communication. I have a broad background that includes work as a lawyer, legal services work and attorney recruiting. I have a real estate broker license and teach continuing education for realtors. I couldn’t live without my family – my wonderful daughter who is starting out as an attorney in the Boston area, and my supportive husband, a talented writer. My husband and I have recently written a novel together, Pilgrim Maya, which will be published by Odeon Press on August 1st, 2022. After living with us for three and a half years, my mother-in-law passed away. Her passing was emotional for me, but it was also a transition that has allowed me to start a new B&B. If I have a motto it comes in part from reading The Little Prince in high school – “we are at our best when we see not just with our eyes, but also with our hearts, minds and all of our being.”
There you have it. Bela’s B&B Version 2.0 is up and running. My first guests are quietly enjoying Memorial Day weekend here.