resistance is fertile

2/29/08

"the old lakota was wise. he knew that man's heart away from nature becomes hard; he knew that lack of respect for growing, living things soon led to lack of respect for humans too. "

-chief luther standing bear

today we had an ally-led training about the impact of food on our health and well-being. i think a lot of people take it for granted how something so fundamental can have such a profound effect on all aspects of life.

the team presented on a variety of issues like diabetes, high fructose corn syrup, reading nutrition labels, and the importance of urban gardens. naturally, there is always more to talk about, but i feel that the information presented was comprehensive and informative.

the evil of the day was basically summarized by flamin' hot cheetos. as we struggled with some identifier, i am struggling with my feelings on the topic. i am a believer in conscious nutrition, in movement, and in all forms of self-sufficient existence. we should take care of ourselves and our children by respecting the functions of our bodies. these are our temples, right? why would you fill your temple with garbage only to be surprised by its inevitable decline?

rather than just talk about all the problems, this group took the approach of saying, "these are the problems, and here is the information you need to educate yourselves to make change." for some reason, even this was met with conflict, as most things in our group often are

jackie talked about urban gardens, and also brought seeds to plant. i thought that was an awesome way of saying, "here. now you can do something." but rather than going the route of action, some of the allies poked at her, insisting perfect answers for everything: what if there's lead in your soil? what about war affecting food? why should people bother to eat local or organic? even after she answered the questions to the best of her ability, or suggested the name of an organization of someone who could, one of the allies mouthed, "she doesn't know what she's talking about."

to me, it seems that jackie is one of those allies who lives what she believes in. though she may be quiet, she's always willing to take action when she encounters an injustice. she's also one of the first to offer a helping hand or good suggestion.

i find that there are times i am so busy pointing out the flaws of others that i hardly have time to correct my actions. we cannot force change on others, only in ourselves. i think that if we take those small steps, greater things can happen and things can right. having this training reminded me of my grassroots, literally. my first acts of defiance involved plants and nutrition when i became a vegetarian and grew herbs in my bedroom windowsill. it was such a simple act, but looking back on it now sheds a light on how i came to be who i am.

if our bodies are not nourished, how will we find the strength to nourish our minds? if we are irresponsible with the resources the earth has to offer, they will be gone. the key to progress in the truest sense is sustainability, not more progress. there is more than enough here if we can learn to be more self-sufficient.

the very act of gardening is synonymous with freedom. what is more revolutionary than having control of your own life, starting with the food you put onto your table? if it is grown in windowsills or backyard plots, there is no need to worry about what mystery substance is being introduced. there is no high fructose corn syrup, no strange hormone, no trans fat hiding in a bunch of fresh-picked spinach.

what are we waiting for? resistance is indeed fertile.

walnut way

2/6/08

it's snowing insanely. we're expected to get anywhere from 10 to 20 inches of snow. i think that's maddness! still, coming in to work today was kind of an adventure. the busses ran on time, i got here at 8 and found out we're shutting her down at noon. nice!

many of the other placements sites are also closed, so i'm not too worried. besides, there are a few things i've got to work on. yesterday, i went over to walnut way to hammer down the details of our teaspoon project.

first, i met with nicole. she showed me around the building, which is a classic home that was rehabilitated by the neighborhood residents (but primarily sharon's husband) to serve as a community center. the places is gorgeous, most of the woodwork is period, salvaged from other homes that have long since been torn down. the house is the office of the walnut way conservation corporation, as well as the headquarters for the fondy farmer's market.

as nicole and i talked out some of the finer issues with the porject, sharon came in. we all sat down and talked about what they want and need, as well as what the ASSET team would be able to provide. i really enjoyed talking to sharon. she was a kind woman with an obvious passion for what she does.

the center has all kinds of programs going to serve the residents, but the most visible one is the gardening stuff, which emphasizes sustainability. walnut way has several production gardens which are used as classrooms for those interested in learning the skills. particularly, the gardens are geared towards educating young people on economics and future: the kids grow and work the garden, sell the produce at market, and ultimately open up banking accounts to manage their own money.

i used to live over in that neighborhood (part time) when i was young. it was rough. now, it seems like things are starting to look up. i had a discussion with sharon about origins of neighborhood folk in particular, a topic of interest to me because my family is from mississippi. she told me that the black folks are a mixture of northerners and southerners, and that even in those splits, there are smaller groups. she said that peoples' gardens reflected their homes, and if the home was good, that was a wonderful thing. she briefly went into a discussion on the views of a sharecropper's outlook on gardening versus someone who grew up remembering their grandparent's fruit orchards.

i encourage anyone interested in seeing asset-based community development in action to check out walnut way. also, one of the things i really liked about their site was a link to a uwm project on multiculturalism. check it out here, and when you're done, head over to walnut way!