This is an entry from my personal journal, originally typed on 8-28-05.
Get the post-hole-digger out because there’s going to be some major picket fencing in this entry.
Today we went to the grocery store, and on the way home, we picked up fresh blackberries and corn. As I sit here typing with purple stained fingers, I can’t help but wonder if people in large cities know what they’re missing. Prior to finding the blackberry stand on the way home, Mom picked up a pint at the store. In comparison…well there really is no comparison, at least when it comes to taste. The store bought ones are prettier, but only because they’re bigger. The local one taste better by far. Sometimes it’s not about the presentation people, it’s about the flavor. Kind of like the whole don’t judge a book by it’s cover. I know that they have farmers markets and such in the big cities, but there’s nothing like fresh picked vegetables that came from your friend’s, neighbor’s, or relative’s garden. Apple pie tastes so much better when you pick the apples yourself. I don’t know how people can live on Meijers and Wal-mart all year round.
This brings us to the first fence I suppose. I love living in Northern Michigan. Period. When people ask why I don’t move out of Alpena, my fist reason is usually that my family lives here. But when I stop and think about it, it’s pretty much a tie. I love watching the trees change color. I love the first real snowfall. The kind where, at the very least, you have to brush off you windshield before you leave home. I love watching the first flowers greet the spring sun, sometimes it’s even through the remaining snow. There’s something about that… a kind of content hope. A knowing that the wheel has turned again and summer is on it’s way. It’s a time of planting and planning. And then there is the first summer day where you get to walk out of the house without long sleeves. And the first summer night, when the temperature is just right. Cool enough for a fire, but warm enough that you won’t get too chilly.
I love watching the year change. I suppose that is a big basis for my religious beliefs. Most major religious systems base their beliefs on a book or some long ago prophet. Things that depend on faith. With earth based religions, you see it every day. We celebrate the cycle of the year, the turning of the moon, the change of the seasons. What we believe and use as the base of our beliefs is tangible. From the fertility rituals in the spring and the plantings of summer, to the harvest rituals in the fall and the quiet resting and planning of winter, every point in the year gives us reason to celebrate. I suppose that’s exactly it. We celebrate. We celebrate the giving of life, whether given to us or by us. We understand the many cycles. Birth, death, and rebirth.
Hmm…there goes another fence I think…So hey, what’s one more…
Or maybe not. There was a brief time lapse in this entry as I was helping my mother make dilly beans. I think I lost a little steam. Though I suppose it all wraps nicely back around to the whole locally grown food rant. I love canning. It speaks of planning for the months ahead…at least it used to. Now you just run down to the grocery store and pick up commercially grown, trucked in from California, produce and make whatever dish you desire.
We were raised on convenience. Grocery stores, fast food, cable tv, and microwaves. Not to mention good old computers. So when it all comes down to it, we would rather have convenience than spend twenty hours a week canning for two months, to ensure enough food for winter. Not to mention the four months of growing, and the actual harvesting. Nope, we see the ad on tv, run down to the 24-hour convenience store(note the store type), then drive home, pop it in the microwave, and in less than an hour are, conveniently, satisfied. Or are we?
Why is it, in the age of instant gratification, most people aren’t satisfied with their lives. They’re still looking, searching, for something else. Some know what’s missing, but fail in knowing how to obtain it. Others just fail to know all the way around, and sit discontented with their lives not knowing why. I think in our fast paced world, we often lose track of the essentials. The basic rhythm of life. Having a new vehicle, or expensive jewelry doesn’t come close to the quiet solitude of an ocean bluff, or watching a meteor shower on a late November night, freezing your bum off. It’s the experiences, not the possessions that make a life worth living. And yet knowing all of this, I’d still buy that new SUV in a heartbeat if I had the money. So is it basic human nature, or the way we’re raised that affects our desires. Hmmmm…another fence?
Get the post-hole-digger out because there’s going to be some major picket fencing in this entry.
Today we went to the grocery store, and on the way home, we picked up fresh blackberries and corn. As I sit here typing with purple stained fingers, I can’t help but wonder if people in large cities know what they’re missing. Prior to finding the blackberry stand on the way home, Mom picked up a pint at the store. In comparison…well there really is no comparison, at least when it comes to taste. The store bought ones are prettier, but only because they’re bigger. The local one taste better by far. Sometimes it’s not about the presentation people, it’s about the flavor. Kind of like the whole don’t judge a book by it’s cover. I know that they have farmers markets and such in the big cities, but there’s nothing like fresh picked vegetables that came from your friend’s, neighbor’s, or relative’s garden. Apple pie tastes so much better when you pick the apples yourself. I don’t know how people can live on Meijers and Wal-mart all year round.
This brings us to the first fence I suppose. I love living in Northern Michigan. Period. When people ask why I don’t move out of Alpena, my fist reason is usually that my family lives here. But when I stop and think about it, it’s pretty much a tie. I love watching the trees change color. I love the first real snowfall. The kind where, at the very least, you have to brush off you windshield before you leave home. I love watching the first flowers greet the spring sun, sometimes it’s even through the remaining snow. There’s something about that… a kind of content hope. A knowing that the wheel has turned again and summer is on it’s way. It’s a time of planting and planning. And then there is the first summer day where you get to walk out of the house without long sleeves. And the first summer night, when the temperature is just right. Cool enough for a fire, but warm enough that you won’t get too chilly.
I love watching the year change. I suppose that is a big basis for my religious beliefs. Most major religious systems base their beliefs on a book or some long ago prophet. Things that depend on faith. With earth based religions, you see it every day. We celebrate the cycle of the year, the turning of the moon, the change of the seasons. What we believe and use as the base of our beliefs is tangible. From the fertility rituals in the spring and the plantings of summer, to the harvest rituals in the fall and the quiet resting and planning of winter, every point in the year gives us reason to celebrate. I suppose that’s exactly it. We celebrate. We celebrate the giving of life, whether given to us or by us. We understand the many cycles. Birth, death, and rebirth.
Hmm…there goes another fence I think…So hey, what’s one more…
Or maybe not. There was a brief time lapse in this entry as I was helping my mother make dilly beans. I think I lost a little steam. Though I suppose it all wraps nicely back around to the whole locally grown food rant. I love canning. It speaks of planning for the months ahead…at least it used to. Now you just run down to the grocery store and pick up commercially grown, trucked in from California, produce and make whatever dish you desire.
We were raised on convenience. Grocery stores, fast food, cable tv, and microwaves. Not to mention good old computers. So when it all comes down to it, we would rather have convenience than spend twenty hours a week canning for two months, to ensure enough food for winter. Not to mention the four months of growing, and the actual harvesting. Nope, we see the ad on tv, run down to the 24-hour convenience store(note the store type), then drive home, pop it in the microwave, and in less than an hour are, conveniently, satisfied. Or are we?
Why is it, in the age of instant gratification, most people aren’t satisfied with their lives. They’re still looking, searching, for something else. Some know what’s missing, but fail in knowing how to obtain it. Others just fail to know all the way around, and sit discontented with their lives not knowing why. I think in our fast paced world, we often lose track of the essentials. The basic rhythm of life. Having a new vehicle, or expensive jewelry doesn’t come close to the quiet solitude of an ocean bluff, or watching a meteor shower on a late November night, freezing your bum off. It’s the experiences, not the possessions that make a life worth living. And yet knowing all of this, I’d still buy that new SUV in a heartbeat if I had the money. So is it basic human nature, or the way we’re raised that affects our desires. Hmmmm…another fence?
posted by TealSwann at
4:19 PM
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