At this moment in time, more human beings than ever before are demanding responsible agricultural practices, more eco-conscious restaurants, and honest recycling programs. The “Green Revolution” has made its way into the public eye, and undoubtedly even those with true intentions have gotten tangled up with large corporate interests seeking the almost guaranteed profits in “going green.”
What we need to talk about is how to dive even deeper into a more sustainable life that connects us with our Mother Earth and sheds even more light on the manipulation and exploitation of our needs. Only from this perspective can we then see how truly connected we are.
There is a bumper sticker cruising around town that asks, “Who’s your farmer?” The question has taken on a larger meaning in that being grounded in the Earth requires us to come into closer harmony with our environment. Living in Minnesota for the past 10 months, my diet has shifted tremendously due to my body and my surrounding environment taking on the same spirit of life.
Eating with the seasons started as a personal challenge and evolved into a way of life. I feed my body root vegetables such as carrots, pumpkins, celery root on a daily basis, along with pumpkin and squash, dark leafy greens that maintain in northern climates such as kale and chard, and I keep my insides warm and healthy by ingesting garlic and ginger daily, as well. I now believe that our bodies are individually looking for this balance all the time. When we crave certain foods such as sugar, caffeine or salt, what we are actually craving is a deeper connection with the ground on which we walk, a re-connection with our roots, or home, our Earth.
You may be asking, “Well, how do I find all of these healing foods that will connect me to the earth?” I would answer you by saying all you have to do is look! Found in any local co-op’s produce section, we are offered a paradise of local foods. Ask friendly staff for help or do some research online. We are also blessed to be in an agriculture heaven where Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is plentiful. My partner and I receive a winter CSA from Nate Watters of Uptown Farmers, grown right here within our city limits. Sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, leeks, many varieties of potatoes, and carrots to name a few of the items we receive during the winter months. Produce is just the beginning of local and seasonal eating (the two seem to go hand-in-hand). Co-ops also carry locally produced cheese and dairy products coming from animals who eat fresh Minnesota grass filled with the nutrients our bodies so desire.
There are many companies making bread right here in the Twin Cities, noodles made in neighboring North Dakota, and mushrooms coming in from Wisconsin. We can eat jams and sauces that are grown and produced in the city and animal meat so rich in Minnesota goodness that one can easily forget the taste of factory farm anything! The local food movement is not just a fad, it is a journey of understanding how nature intends for us to live, grow, and create a world where nobody goes hungry.
Not only can we save on the fuel used to get our food from California, Florida, Argentina or Mexico to our grocery stores and local restaurants, but we can also strengthen the bonds of our community. In connecting with our environment in the most direct way possible, we can cut ourselves off from the world of over-production, mass-consumption and disharmony in which we find ourselves today, while simultaneously re-asserting our right to create a strong community built on trust, good health and co-creation.
It is my experience from which I speak, in finding balance with my environment, understanding my role on this beautiful planet and, most importantly, that my body and mind are never separate from the larger body of molecules, atoms, and energy which make up our world. I hope you will take this journey with me. It has proven to be life changing.
