Water the Mountains

When Jesus delivered some of his most famous teachings, he did so on a mountain. When God met Moses to deliver his law, God did so on a mountain. Jesus was transfigured on a mountain, his glory outshining all.

There is nothing sacred about mountains per se. They are symbols of permanence in scripture, associated with God's power, mystery and vision. Psalm 104:13 reminds us that as mighty as the mountains are, they too benefit from the provision of God:

"From your lofty abode you water the mountains..."

My dear on-line friend Blue Mountain Mama knows the beauty of mountains first-hand. She is mourning that this beauty is being eclipsed by mountaintop removal practices. And she is mourning that such practices are affecting not only the mountains but also the streams and the valleys and ultimately the life that has gained its sustenance in these places.

No, there is nothing sacred about mountains per se. Which is perhaps why some have purposed to remove them without guilt. But I would suggest that we judge this practice by the Psalm where we hear that God waters the mountains. The Psalm goes on, "the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work." Yes, we might consider whether this practice is satisfying the earth with its fruit.

Blue Mountain Mama is mourning about the fruit of mountaintop removal. The clogged streams, the toxic flow of elements. Again, I revisit Psalm 104, which says, "When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground." And I ask myself, does this practice renew the ground? Does it allow creation to flourish?

If you have a little time and are willing, check Blue's recent post and this site on Mountaintop Removal. Consider sending forth a part of yourself, to create and renew the face of the ground that Blue and her community must live with, want to live with for years to come.

RELATED:

Nameless Creek's No More High Places Forever

Sermon on the Mount illustration & Photo by L.L. Barkat.

Saving the Farm

About 80 percent of U.S. consumers prefer to support sustainable farming, but their tax dollars actually work against the small farms that are more likely to use such techniques. That's what I learned from Steven L. Hopp, in a sidebar in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.

What's up with that?

It’s because of the Farm Bill, which subsidizes based on volume and crop type. So three-quarters of subsidies go to 10 percent of growers (the big guys), effectively supporting soy and corn crops and making it hard for small farms to stay afloat (including farms in poor countries across the globe...believe it or not, our policies influence "plenty or want" for vulnerable people beyond our borders).

farmaid.org tells us more.

And, like Bread for the World is currently requesting, we can call our representatives and senators BY JULY 17, to have a say in how the new Farm Bill is settled.

They suggest these simple messages to our legislators…

- reform commodity policies that hurt small farmers in the U.S. and abroad
- invest in rural development


How to Find Your Senators and Representatives

To call about the Farm Bill, dial 1-800-826-3688. Connects you to Capitol switchboard. Ask for your representative's office to leave a message with staff. Call your senators too.


Jumbled Garden (red russian kale amidst garlic and clover) photo by L.L. Barkat.

Green Inventions Invitation: If you write a post related to this post and Link It Back Here, let me know and I'll link to yours.

8 Things I Used to Do

Thanks, Haddock, for tagging me with an 8's tag. I'm going to bend the rules, as usual, to fit my fancy (I guess this means I actually play by the rules, if my rule is always to break the rules?)

Here are 8 things I used to do. On my journey into stewardship living, I've changed my ways. And I'm still changing. The key is to start where we are and make changes as we learn, grow and discover, isn't it?

1. I used to buy liquid soap in plastic bottles (see lovely green bottle above). Now, my daughter Sara taught me something new. I can make my own liquid soap by cutting up a bar of regular soap and letting it sit in a cup of water overnight. No new plastic bottles to buy. And most of our soaps are used-soaps that we keep from hotel stays.

2. I used to eat meat. Then I read too many things about the "third world" and how "first world" eating habits impact that. The article that "tipped" me into veggie land was about a poor woman in a famine-stricken area. She sold her children after she simply had no other means to care for them, and then committed suicide out of grief. The point of the article was more about market forces, but when I put it together with all my other reading, my heart was touched. I don't expect other people to feel the same way, or make the same decisions I have. But I feel better living this way.

3. I used to buy granola, ketchup, bread and peanut butter. Sometimes I still do, but mostly I make my own. It's amazing what we can make with our own two hands once we discover how.

4. I used to throw my kitchen scraps in the garbage. Now I compost them. In the winter, I use the vegetable scraps to first make vegetable broth.

5. I used to bag up produce in plastic bags, take it to the register and carry it home in more plastic bags. Now, when I remember (which is more and more often), I just put things into my cart loose and bring them home in canvas bags I provide.

6. I used to shop solely at the grocery store. Now I belong to a food co-op, where I buy foods in bulk. This means less packaging in the end. I'm also making an effort to go to my farmer's market every Saturday, where I bring my own containers and bags to carry things home.

7. Number seven hinges on numbers 1 and 3-6: I used to put out three bags of trash a week, to be "taken away" to landfills and incinerators. Now I put out one bag about every two to three weeks. I haven't bought trash bags in months and months.

8. I used to worry that I could never do enough to save the world. It's true, I probably can't. But somehow I don't lose hope. I wrote about it here.


Liquid Soap photo, by L.L. Barkat.

Green Inventions Invitation: if you write a related post and LINK back here, let me know and I'll link to yours.

Wordless Wednesday: Even

Even the thorn bush
blossoms ivory bells,
bleeds a pearl of nectar.


Thorn Bush in Bloom photo, by L.L. Barkat.

Giving Space

Recently, Craver asked me about beneficial creatures. Not like teddy bears and housepets, but backyard creatures. The context was a conversation about leaving "edges" on one's property. Edges are the places where we let native plants grow as they will, to support what they will in terms of insects and wildlife.

I thought to bring the discussion up here to the post level, based on a conversation I had last night. I have this friend who knows all kinds of things. She was talking about bees. How their populations are devastated. Something like 70% gone. That's serious. Somehow, we've not been leaving the bees their edges, their spaces to live and do their thing. (All sorts of theories abound, including everything from cell-phone radiation waves messing up their homing ability, to pesticide application, etc. I suggest Googling the issue. It's interesting.)

So what have bees to do with leaving edges? It simply struck me that we have not been mindful on either the small level (our own properties) or the macro level (agriculture), and we are seeing the devastating results. Somehow this reminded me of a verse (oh, I don't feel like looking up the reference) that says, "Woe to you who join house to house and leave no room in the land for anyone but you." Yes, woe. But we can make a choice to be different. We can give space.

Clover on the Edge of My Garden, photo by L.L. Barkat.

Green Inventions Invitation: if you write a related post and LINK back here, let me know and I'll link to yours.

NEW LINKS TO THIS POST:

Aisling's Wild Edges

Lawn Care

I find the term "lawn care" ironic. Care implies knowledge, first of all. And compassion. It means I do not think of myself first.

Yet, when it comes to lawn care, I am tempted to do the opposite.

- I want to think first of my neighborhood reputation. (Look at the Barkat lawn!)

- I desire to do what is simplest, requiring the least amount of knowledge; thus, I am faced with the temptation to use a chemical fix. (See Craver's discussions on dandelions and a mysterious chemical and herbicide temptations. Very thought provoking.)

- Indeed, society asks me to care very little for the creatures that live in my lawn, walk on it, or receive its runoff. (Which means, ultimately, I am asked not to care for my own health or that of my children's generation.)

So, I was excited to find these, on How to Keep a Chemical-Free Lawn and How to Create a Lawn That's Sustainable. Just a little advice, to put me on my way to lawn care. The kind without irony.


Green Inventions Invitation: if you write a related post and LINK back here, let me know and I'll link to yours.

Front lawn photo, by L.L. Barkat.

Wordless Wednesday: In the Bag

At last! I'm remembering to bring my canvas bags to the grocery store.


Groceries photo, by L.L. Barkat.

Re-Vision

Wendell Berry has a lot to say about our visions for life. In The Gift of Good Land, he discusses the destruction of prairie and forest, saying this...

"As we felled and burned the forests, so we burned, plowed, and overgrazed the prairies. We came with visions but not with sight. We did not see or understand where we were or what was there, but destroyed what was there for the sake of what we desired. And the desire was always native to the place we left behind." p.82

In saying this, Berry urges me to know my own land, to understand where I am, and what is here. I'm compelled not to simply destroy what exists, for the vision of "perfection" handed down to me. (In my county, that would be the vision of a pristine lawn with narry a "weed" in sight.)

So I am learning, and I am trying to participate in a "re-visioning."

As part of the process, I went on a wild edibles hike this past Saturday, with Steve Brill. And I came home to a weekend of discovery... that on my own property I have garlic mustard (pic above) with a "horseradish" root, and edible violets, and day lilies (don't confuse with inedible Tiger Lilies), dandelions, and wild onions.

I felt a fresh vision of the gift I hold right here, on my own small parcel of land. My ten-year-old daughter expressed it well on Sunday night. She gave this blessing before the meal...

"Thank you, Lord for this day when we could be together. And thank you for all this wonderful food, that we didn't even have to pay for! Amen."

For a related post on my other blog, visit Discerning the Violet


Here's a recipe using dandelion greens. Pick them young, before the flowers come, for milder greens. If you've already got flowers, you could also eat those instead. Just pluck the green part off the bottom.



Caldo Gallego

Saute in a bit of oil 'til brown:

- 1 onion, chopped


Add and saute briefly:

- 1 garlic, minced
- 1 TB "bacuns"
- 1/2 tsp. smoke spice (if using Liquid Smoke, add at next step)
- 1/2 tsp. fennel seed
- 1/4 tsp. red pepper
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin


Add and boil about 15 minutes (til potatoes tender):

- 2 potatoes, large dice
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups cooked red beans or chickpeas
- large tomato, chopped, or small can diced tomatoes
- water, to cover all (put more or less for thicker or thinner soup)


Finish:

- good pour olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- bunch of dandelion greens, chopped (let wilt in soup before serving); if dandelions are out of season, substitute spinach

Serve with crusty whole wheat bread or rice and a salad.

Caldo Gallego photo by L.L. Barkat.

Greenwork

Sometimes when I sit out in my "woods", I see things that surprise me and give me hope. Like the "cross" that's in the picture above. As a person who's into preserving the world, I need such hopeful surprises. For, there are moments when I feel like my greenwork is not making a bit of difference. I feel endlessly sad that perhaps I, and others like me, will fail to keep the world intact.

Indeed, the book of Revelation suggests this is exactly how it will go. The world will be assaulted until it is ruined beyond hope. And those who participate in its destruction will be judged...

...your wrath has come, and the time for judging...both small and great, and for destroying those who destroy the earth. Rev. 11:18

Yet, Revelation also offers hope. Even as its writer, John, weeps, he is told to stop, for there is one who is worthy to open the scroll and herald in a recreated heaven and earth. Indeed, this assurance, found in Revelation 5, ends with a hopeful chorus, sung by "every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them."

To whom do they sing? To the one who was "slaughtered" that we might live (Rev. 5:9). And this song, and the one to whom it will be sung, comes to me in the simple visions of my little "woods." And I am renewed in strength to go on with my greenwork, as a prelude to that greater, future song.

Photo by L.L. Barkat




Speaking of approaching our work with hope and strength, this week TheHighCalling.org is going on blog tour to bring you special ideas about living and working— including many aspects of work and family; gifts and leadership; excellence; integrity; attitude; professional relationships; and service.

If you'd like to be encouraged, inspired, or revitalized by some of HC's earth-in-mind resources, consider these tour options...

Membership... become a member of TheHighCalling.org


Awesome Articles... Memento Mori, Skyscrapers and Leaves


Amusing (and Awesome) Article... Packing Faucets


Other tour rest stops...

Seedlings in Stone
Gordon Atkinson
Gina Conroy
Craver VII
CREEations
Milton Brasher-Cunningham
Mary DeMuth
Karl Edwards
Emdashery
Every Square Inch
Amy Goodyear
Marcus Goodyear
Al Hsu
Jennwith2ns
Chalres Foster Johnson
Mike McLoughlin
Eve Nielsen
Naked Pastor
Ramblin Dan
Charity Singleton
Stacy
Camy Tang

Have a Great Trip!!

Thought Spin

Thanks to these generous bloggers who think I think (they think, therefore I am?)... Heather, Craver, Irish Church Lady, Katrina, Flourishing Mother. I hope I didn't forget anybody!


In turn, here are some bloggers who think green...

Sara of the dreads, the long walks, the cloth everything, and a free spirit.

Haddock of the green gardens, and small cars, and plants that overwinter in the basement.

No Impact Man of the New York composting with worms, dancing with his daughter, and kneading bread.

The Artist of the Aussie water shortages, and hopeful paintings, and big ideas.

Charity of the new old house, and the low thermostat, and Wendell Berry thinking.

Geothermal project was developed by my own thinking Sara, along with her Dad. What fun they had trying to make it work! When you heat the can on a burner and the water inside boils, steam emits through a hole and spins the "turbine."

Project by Sara, 9. Photo by L.L. Barkat.

Wordless Wednesday: Lotion

I keep my empty olive oil bottles next to the sink. A few little drops of the leftovers makes a wonderful, natural, safe hand lotion. No plastic bottles to feel guilty over when the last bit is really gone.


Photo by L.L. Barkat.

Trashwalk

After posting this on my Seedlings blog, I got to thinking. Part of why I am nameless in my community is because I don't have a big "presence" here. I give my neighbors Christmas cookies during the holidays, and that's about it.

So when my kids asked to do a trash walk today, I decided it was the community thing to do. We packed some old plastic grocery bags into the knapsack and went to the library. On the way back, we gathered enough trash to fill what you see in the pic above.

It's not like I've done anything big, I know. But I can't help remembering the words of Wendell Berry...

Small destructions add up, and finally they are understood collectively as large destructions.

Conversely, maybe my small reconstructions can add up to something largely positive. Just thinking in this way seems like the beginning of something big.


Sidewalk Trash photo, by L.L. Barkat. Berry quote from essay "Contempt for Small Places," in The Way of Ignorance, p.7.

Chameleon

pssst...can you find the squirrel?


Whenever it snows, my older daughter begins telling everybody what to do. "You can't walk here. Only step there." She wants to preserve the pristine look of gently rolling white.

The other day, as I walked to my secret spot, I understood her urgency in this matter. Every step I took felt like a violation. I so wanted an invisible footprint. Similarly, sometimes, when I lie under the pine tree, I imagine what it would be like to melt into the ivy in total camouflage, with my presence creating only negligible impact.

Of course, this is impossible, both in my yard and in the world in general. For instance, as an American, my "footprint" is rather large compared to what the world can support. As I recall from Radical Simplicity, there are about 4.5 acres for each person alive... that's what it takes to support a life. But the average American footprint is 24 acres. In other words, I am far from being a world chameleon. You might say I'm wearing red neon in the forest.

Still, one way I'm learning to live a little lighter is through my food choices. Some of us do other things like drive a gas-economical car. But food's my thing. It's one small way I'm trying to leave a little snow patch pristine, so to speak.

So here's an earth-light recipe. With the king-of-chameleon as its highlight: tofu. Tofu is bland, yes. That's its star quality. Because it melts into the background, it simply absorbs all the other flavors and showcases them. This makes it a great choice for dishes with rich or spicy flavors.




Tofu Joes

Saute in olive oil 'til light brown:

-onion, chopped


Add & saute briefly:

- 2 garlic, minced
- 1 to 1 1/2 TB chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/4 tsp fennel seed
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- optional dash red pepper flakes


Add & simmer about 10 minutes:

- 2 TB shoyu or soy sauce
- 1 package firm or extra firm tofu, mashed
- 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce
- 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

Finish:

- pour of olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
- chopped cilantro

Serve on wheat buns slathered in olive oil (raw olive oil is always good for us!). Add a side of fried potatoes and something green.

About tofu: HIgh in protein, calcium and iron. Can help control cholesterol.

Squirrel Chameleon photo and Tofu Joes photo by L.L. Barkat.

Myth & Meal

On vacation, I go to the Leu Garden in Orlando. My family and I pass by the starfruit tree. It is heavy with golden, liquid sweetness. Smashed fruits lie beneath the tree. The children ask, "Pick one! Please?!"

No signs forbid it.

So I pick.

A cry and laughter burst, "You picked the fruit! You are Eve!"

Later, I meet Christianne for dinner (a blessed privilege). I tell her my forbidden fruit story. And how my family and I decided that if we were the owners of the Leu, we'd put the fruit in baskets with signs that say, "Take. Eat. Enjoy."

"Good idea," says Christianne. "No one's going to eat it anyway."

"Yes," I say, biting into my Greek salad. Then a thought comes, "I bet Eve thought that in the garden— 'look at all that Tree-of-Knowledge fruit just falling to the ground. If I don't eat it, who will? What a waste!'"

Bite.

Today, as I write this, I'm reminded of the Greek Pandora myth. We humans open some boxes, eat some fruit, pillage some of creation's resources thinking, "If not us, then who?" Open. Take. Eat. And we become Eve of Eden, all over again.


On a different note, here's a delicious Greek meal. Nothing forbidden. Deliciously healthy. Make. Serve. Eat. Enjoy...




Potatoes & Olives



Add and saute briefly in large pot:

- small pour olive oil
- 5 red potatoes, unpeeled, washed and chopped into 1-inch chunks
- 2 garlic, minced
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Add and boil for about 20 minutes or 'til potatoes are tender:

- 1 28-oz. can Muir Glen organic pureed tomatoes
- 1/2 to 1 cup pitted kalamata olives
- water to cover all

Finish:

Salt and pepper to taste, plus a few pours of olive oil. Serve with orzo, lentil salad, and something green.

About Potatoes: Full of fiber that lowers cholesterol, as well as potassium, potatoes are a heart-healthy food choice. (French fries don't count, but I knew you'd ask.)


Lentil & Feta Salad



Boil 'til tender, 20-35 minutes, depending on age of lentils:
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups lentils

Drain lentils, add & mix with:

- 1 cup or so roasted red peppers
- olive oil, generous amount
- 4 or more TB red wine vinegar
- large handfull dill, chopped fine
- 2 scallions, thinly sliced
- salt & pepper to taste

Garnish:

- olive oil
- feta cheese

About Lentils: These legumes were one of the first crops ever cultivated. At about 18 grams of protein per cup (compared to 15 in a 3 oz. beef patty), lentils hold their own in the health department. They also have an excellent balance of fat and carbohydrates. High in calcium, magnesium, vitamin A, and potassium, they're a great choice for both kids and adults!

Photos by L.L. Barkat. Original recipes, modified here, were taken from The Greek Vegetarian

Of Chickpeas & Chickadees

The authors of Redeeming Creation suggest that knowledge is the beginning of committed stewardship. They believe that if we know creation on a "first-name, right-name basis" (recognizing the difference between a chickpea and a chickadee, for instance), we may begin to love it and want to care for it. (p.98)

This reminds me of Jim Merkel's suggestion in Radical Simplicity— to go to the same outdoors secret spot every day for a year, to map the area... learn every plant and animal there... explore the soil...watch the insects...listen to the birds.

In both cases, the idea is to develop a rich and intimate knowledge of the world and its creatures, as a first step to caring.

So maybe you might spend some time outdoors this week (I've been doing this in below-freezing weather and loving it!) And maybe you'll see a chickadee (do they migrate? I don't even know.) In the meantime, I'll take care of bringing you the chickpeas...



Curried Chickpeas

Fry 'til quite brown:
- 1 medium onion

Add & saute quickly:
- a couple of garlic, minced
- about a 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled & minced, or smashed using mortar & pestle
- 3/4 tsp. turmeric
- 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp. curry powder (Shan is a good brand)
- 1/4-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1/4 tsp. onion seed (Indian name is "calonji")

Add & cook until very thick, like a reduction:

- 1/2 cup diced or pureed tomatoes
- water, about two inches high in pan

Mash above with potato masher, then add & cook about 15-20 min, or 'til thick:

- about 3 or 4 cups canned or cooked chickpeas
- water to cover
- salt & pepper to taste

Finish:
- 1/2 tsp. garam masala
- small handful chopped cilantro
- good pour of olive oil

Serve with sliced cucumbers, yogurt, spicy cabbage, and rice or flatbread.

About Chickpeas: These lovely golden legumes have been shown to lower cholesterol. They contain excellent amounts of protein, fiber, iron (more than any other legume), calcium, and the B vitamins thiamine and niacin.





Spicy Cabbage

Saute 'til soft in small bit of oil:

- 1/4 diced onion


Add & saute 'til limp:

- 1/3 of a green cabbage, chopped
- small sprinkle of mustard seeds

Add & let sit covered a few minutes:

- about 1/3 of a chili pepper, minced (red looks nice, green works though)
- small handful chopped cilantro
- quick pour of olive oil
- about 1 tsp. of sugar
- salt & fresh ground pepper to taste

All photos by L.L. Barkat.

Recycle, Reduce, Reuse... Rethink?

Many people who care about creation are into the three R's. Recycle, reduce, reuse. But I find I've had to concentrate on a fourth one... "rethink."

Mostly, I realize that much of my thinking has been molded by advertising and societal views of what is cool, fulfilling, and rewarding. This affects even the simplest areas of life.

Take food, for example. My TV shows a woman using Hamburger Helper (food in a box, which is not good for my family, and is also a source of consumer waste). This woman is smiling because she has made her family happy (so says the commercial). And all this, without stooping to the indignity of creating a meal from scratch (or perhaps wasting "precious" time).

It is a strong message: you can make your family happy without degrading yourself, or without effort.

Is it true? Will food in a box make my family happy and healthy? Have I escaped some kind of drudge work that would suggest I'm less-than-important if I did the work? I'm not saying that I never cook anything out of a box, but I've had to rethink... what is it that truly brings health, happiness, and meaning? Is life really like the commercials say?

If life is not like the commercials say, then maybe convenience is not a primary value, nor effortlessness, nor throwing away the old for the new, nor buying the new to create happiness. And maybe my role in my family is not entertainer, but Guide and Mentor and Nurturer.

Photo by Gail Nadeau. Used with permission.