Farming Like We Mean it
Last week I watched a documentary called Flow. It was all about the growing problem of the shortage of water and consequently the privatization efforts taking place worldwide. There was alot about agriculture and how agriculture not only uses alot of water but is also responsible for water pollution. This film focused mostly on pesticide run-off and the resulting contamination of community's water sources. Industrial production of animals also leads to water contamination as well as being pretty water intensive.
Last week I also went to hear my new shero, Sharon Astyk, (www.sharonastyk.com) speak at the New York State Museum in Albany. She was one part of a month long series about living in a small world. I was introduced to Sharon's blog by my boyfriend about a year ago and I have been following her ever since. She is a real peak oil nut and is leading the charge to wake everyone up and start living life differently NOW. She comes from a very feminist perspective, she is a mom, a farmer, she's smart and saucy, and I believe she is right.
Sharon spoke about climate change and peak oil and explained why we need to be thinking about this stuff even when it is alot nicer not to. She lives what she speaks and the thing I love most about her is that she believes in place and working with what you have and with who is around you. She doesn't believe in waiting for the perfect situation and the perfect place and the perfect group of people. She believes in "living like you mean it".
After the movie and her lecture, I thought alot about the choices I have made in my life and about Awesome Farm. I have chosen to farm because it gives my life meaning and I feel great at the end of the day. I have chosen to farm because I believe that what people eat really matters. I have chosen to farm because it affords me a lifestyle where I can produce my own food and know all the other producers and always know where my food is coming from. And, people will always need food and I am gaining skills that many people don't and will not have (slaughtering, butchering, shearing, animal husbandry, creating something from not much).
I believe that Owen and I are farming like we mean it. We both believe in low-input farming and we buy and use only what is absolutely necessary. Some of this is financial and some of this is philosophical. We are using rented land that cannot be used to grow crops. But it certainly can grow grass and weeds and clover and we raise animals that convert that into healthy, delicious food. We hope to get away from grain in the future because it would be very difficult to grow it ourselves, but for now we feed our chickens grain that is both local and organic. We buy it from a farm that we know and trust and where we know the farmers. We are trying to recycle food that is left on plates at the elementary school and at some local restaurants. Couldn't eat all that quinoa at Luna 61? Great, the chickens will eat it. We are cycling those nutrients that would have ended up in the garbage into the chickens who covert it into high protein eggs. We shear our sheep and make yarn so that people can create warm clothing out of local fiber. We use the skins from the butchered lambs to turn into beautiful pelts. We are trying to use all that we have. We are trying to farm like we mean it.
Last week I also went to hear my new shero, Sharon Astyk, (www.sharonastyk.com) speak at the New York State Museum in Albany. She was one part of a month long series about living in a small world. I was introduced to Sharon's blog by my boyfriend about a year ago and I have been following her ever since. She is a real peak oil nut and is leading the charge to wake everyone up and start living life differently NOW. She comes from a very feminist perspective, she is a mom, a farmer, she's smart and saucy, and I believe she is right.
Sharon spoke about climate change and peak oil and explained why we need to be thinking about this stuff even when it is alot nicer not to. She lives what she speaks and the thing I love most about her is that she believes in place and working with what you have and with who is around you. She doesn't believe in waiting for the perfect situation and the perfect place and the perfect group of people. She believes in "living like you mean it".
After the movie and her lecture, I thought alot about the choices I have made in my life and about Awesome Farm. I have chosen to farm because it gives my life meaning and I feel great at the end of the day. I have chosen to farm because I believe that what people eat really matters. I have chosen to farm because it affords me a lifestyle where I can produce my own food and know all the other producers and always know where my food is coming from. And, people will always need food and I am gaining skills that many people don't and will not have (slaughtering, butchering, shearing, animal husbandry, creating something from not much).
I believe that Owen and I are farming like we mean it. We both believe in low-input farming and we buy and use only what is absolutely necessary. Some of this is financial and some of this is philosophical. We are using rented land that cannot be used to grow crops. But it certainly can grow grass and weeds and clover and we raise animals that convert that into healthy, delicious food. We hope to get away from grain in the future because it would be very difficult to grow it ourselves, but for now we feed our chickens grain that is both local and organic. We buy it from a farm that we know and trust and where we know the farmers. We are trying to recycle food that is left on plates at the elementary school and at some local restaurants. Couldn't eat all that quinoa at Luna 61? Great, the chickens will eat it. We are cycling those nutrients that would have ended up in the garbage into the chickens who covert it into high protein eggs. We shear our sheep and make yarn so that people can create warm clothing out of local fiber. We use the skins from the butchered lambs to turn into beautiful pelts. We are trying to use all that we have. We are trying to farm like we mean it.
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