A friend recently mentioned a book she read, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. I have made a goal to read more so I went to the library and checked it out. Robin is a scientist, a Distinguished Teaching Professional of Environmental Biology and a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.
The book compares the scientific communities views on biology to those of her nation. It talks about the community between plants and humans and how they have evolved. It talks about the honor and gratitude they have for each other.
She talks about going out in the Spring to harvest leeks. She uses a hand trowel instead of a shovel. While a shovel would make quick work of the harvest it would also shorten her time in the woods. She says, “Not everything should be convenient.”
Indeed.
In our convenience economy that is a soothing message to hear, more as a form of reinforcement than a new message for me.
My husband John and I have changed our lives dramatically in the past three years because we have made a commitment to homesteading. To us homesteading means being self-sufficient and working with and learning from nature. It is a fascinating education.
A large part of our homestead focus relies on not buying anything new when we can find a used product. It also means growing and foraging as much of our food as we can. It is hard and rewarding work. It is work. We are working to live.
In our journey we have also made a commitment to be a zero-waste household. It has been an adventure and changed our lives and outlook. It has changes our thought patterns and changed how connected we have become with our community.
Not everything should be convenient.
We are currently swept up in helping others focus on community versus convenience through sharing stuff. The stuff we are currently focusing on is dishes and such. A multitude of people in this community has made a decision to put convenience aside for community by using real dishes, napkins and such at gatherings. The community builders are doing this by making reservations for our supplies, sharing their commitment through setting a beautiful table and saying to those in attendance, I honor you by taking my most precious gift, my time, and using to deliver a wonderful table to you. A table that says you are worth it to me. It is worth it to me to replace convenience with a zero-waste event that makes our community cleaner and more sustainability. By composting our food scraps, creating biochar from bones and shells, we create fertile soil which we use to grow food and flowers. We grow local, our food and our community. I have met so many people I would have never met. It is divine.
