As we continue deeper into the COVID era and several aspects of our daily lives remain unusual and socially distant, many of us are wondering what life will be like on the other side of this.
We're nearly five months into this strange Twilight Zone episode and, here on the farm, we've been fortunate to feel a bit distant from the intensity of it all. Peak season means much less time for the computer and every distraction it promotes. It also means we miss most news updates and all the latest trends, for better or worse (mostly for the better).
But what we haven't missed out on are the dreams of what might come. Despite the many struggles this viral shut down has caused, we know we aren't alone in seeing it as a grand opportunity. Considering the momentum of the Great Consumerism Machine that had virtually all of us caught in its teeth, it would certainly take no less than a global pandemic to bring it to a grinding halt.
And we deeply hope it will be enough.
We understand the desire to get back to "normal" as so many lament right now. And we too are eager for the gatherings and connection and community we took for granted just a few months back. But we don't have to look too closely to see how our old "normal" was leading us all to an unkind demise. It was a normal that was anything but when viewed from even the slightest distance on our human timeline: never before has our everyday living threatened the viability of our planet.
We have the chance to walk away from a tragic sort of normal where, on average, 150 species go extinct every day. To abandon the normalized dousing of carcinogenic chemicals on over 99% of our crops. Or to escape the distorted kind of normal that finds the average American household owning more than 300,000 items (while still throwing away more stuff than any other culture on earth).
Who wants to go back to a sinking ship? Especially when something much more beautiful and fulfilling is so clearly beckoning (possibly yelling) for us to come.
Many silver linings outline this crisis and one of the brightest for us has been an increased interest in and support of local businesses, and especially, of local farmers and ranchers. We don't need to explain this one for you, of course, as you jumped on the CSA bandwagon long before the pandemic stopped us all in our tracks. But our waitlist of nearly 100 others who now would like to join is a testament to an important shift. A shift towards knowing your food and your farmer, to better local connections, increased transparency, strengthened local economies, and ultimately, towards more local sovereignty. The more empowered and connected our local communities, the better positioned we are to make important changes for the storms undoubtedly heading our way.
As a culture, we've been taking baby steps in this direction, but this pandemic has initiated more of a leap over the past several months. And we think it's a strong enough move to inspire wider action and cascading influence. Food has always been at the center of great cultural shifts because it not only sustains us—it's what brings us together.
Our hope is that we find safe ways in this new terrain to connect with one another amidst fears of being too close. That the meals we once shared with those of opposing views can either reemerge or be reimagined. Perhaps through exchanges between masked mouths and sincere eyes in the now-much-slower lines at the farmers markets we can continue to uplift, expand, and inspire one another. We won't always agree on the big and small, but we will all be in line for good food.
At the farm, we're comfortable not having any answers. None about what's happening out in the world and actually very few about what's happening on our own little farm. Life is a beautiful, baffling mystery and unfolding the details of it only inspires more awe and curiosity. We envision a "new normal" where we collectively respond to conflict with a greater concern for connection. Where perspectives and beliefs no longer divide us, but expand us. Because if there's anything we're continuously taught out here on the farm, it's that we are far more interconnected than our eyes will ever see.
May we one day cheers to this over good local food and unmasked happy faces. We might be "turning the compost" these days, but it's surely for a better harvest to come.
Anjali keeps busy on the farm by kissing all of the ladybugs for their hard work.
Inside Your Box This Week
Slicer Tomatoes
New Potatoes
Cucumber Carrots
Zucchini
Salad Mix
Heirloom Garlic
Dino Kale
Dill
Recipes Worth Trying...
{click images to go to recipe}
For supporting our small organic farm.
For helping pave a way forward for regenerative agriculture.
For investing in young farmers.
For buying local.
We're honored to nourish you!