Farm to Everyone's Table

Yesterday I enjoyed a lovely meal in a lovely setting. It was fresh from the farm and prepared well. All local, including the wines. And the company was lovely as well, as was the setting. In many ways, it was the ideal meal - consciously chosen, locally produced and enjoyed with friends and good conversations.

Try as I might to eat that way every day, at least one of the ingredients is often missing. Some days I eat a quick meal standing at my kitchen sink so I can get back to work. Other times, I succumb to purchasing something that is out of season or from out of the area. Rarely do I purchase processed or fast food, but even there I sometimes fall down and do. Yet I can choose to do those things so I am choosing how I eat. And this consciousness is something that would not have been present 20 years ago for me.

On the other hand, there are so many people who cannot make the choices I do. Perhaps it is because they have a limited source of fresh, seasonal foods or don't have the financial ability to choose them. Perhaps it is because they are unaware of the impact of their choices on their health, the health of small farmers and the land on which their food is grown. Or perhaps they are so pressed for time that any thought of cooking is elbowed aside by convenience. For whatever reason, by choice or by default, these people reach for the fast, the processed and, as evidence continues to mount, the unhealthy.

As I've written and said so many times, eating isn't optional. However everyone should have the opportunity to choose the food they eat. Truly choose - not between Burger King and McDonald's, but between fast food and fresh food. Idealistic? You bet. A big change? Yep. Something that will continue to require education and support. Most likely. But something that has started and is gaining speed? I do believe so...

Thinking about the future

Recently I've been out of sorts. Down in the dumps. Anxious. The space between my ears has been occupied by thoughts I try to keep at bay, but every so often, they assert themselves and make me, well, miserable.

Some thoughts are personal, ones we all have (at least I assume everyone has them...) as we go through life and lose loved ones, lose things with age, lose opportunities we no longer have sufficient time to take advantage of, or lose the desire to do what we once wanted to do. All that is manageable in doses. But once in a while a tsunami of these things collides with the global issues that also occupy my head space. Things like climate change, soil loss, broken food systems and the like. When that collision occurs I come to a screeching halt. What's the point, I think to myself. What's the point of trying to do anything? We're doomed - individually and together. Fortunately there are people who view the world from a more "half full" perspective than I can in those moments. But, I say to myself, it's still a half full view. I don't know anyone who is unabashedly optimistic about the future. Is there anyone out there whose glass is totally full and who honestly sees it continuing to be that way?

Like everything, this too will pass. But there is a sadness hanging about, even when enjoying a meal with friends or being inspired by others who share my world view who are working to make their communities better, more resilient places. I know doing nothing isn't an option. It only helps ensure my worst fears are more likely to be realized. But putting on a game face and getting back out there and working can feel like a fool's errand when I'm in my miserable place.