Learning To Grow Good Things

More pictures are in this fun video of my friends at the Garden Department.  They have a wide variety of garden and lawn decoration offerings.  Click their name above and see their store.  Just ask for Vic and let and his staff guide you to your needs.

"Give a man a fish, and you will feed him for a day.  Teach a man to fish, and you will feed him for a lifetime."  Chinese proverb

Zen Gardener, John

We are halfway through the month of June, and my Shibumi Garden has transitioned from seedlings and small plants - to medium-sized early producing plants.  They are giving us a glimpse of the large and flourishing, food-bearing plants that they were destined to be.  My lettuce, spinach, kale, carrots, potatoes, and radish are thriving.  I have reached out to a few newer people in my area about hosting a couple gatherings for Mint, Mind, and Mingle.  They're all enthusiastic about doing it.  Some of them even revealed a few gardening secrets of their own.  Just like that, a shared sense of community has been started.  "Seeds" have been planted.

I did visit two of my local "community" gardens that were created by local entities here on Long Island.  These community gardens were designed to help share food for the community or for personal use.  One of the gardens has a beautiful location, but it also has an extremely limited offering. The second "community garden" has fallen into disarray and was full of weeds due to an obvious and unfortunate loss of interest.  Now is a perfect summer to rejuvenate a sense of community after two long years of a pandemic.  We can bring back people and families to these nice public locations.

Perhaps next summer, I can restart those local community gardens?  For now, I'll start the good vibes with a few neighbors, and "next towns over" at a time.  All it takes is just a handful of people to say "Yes".  It is always necessary to grow good things such as our gardens, our relationships, our communities, and our businesses.  When life is at its toughest, that's the fertile time to plant the seeds of hope and rejuvenation.  There's more purity in their purpose to succeed.

As I have said in my previous post, I desire to donate to my favorite charity Branches here on Eastern Long Island.  At a time when things are the hardest for many all of us need to do whatever we can to treat each other as neighbors and friends and lend a hand.  It's amazing how anyone can sit in a garden and contemplate some of the most simple life answers that are right in front of us.

If a handful of people on one block all decided to grow one different item.  Then that same handful of people shared their crop evenly with each other - just imagine all the positive energy that can build on one block?  Why can't we do the same with charity, friendships, and relationships?

This luscious red basil has doubled its size in width since this picture was taken a couple weeks ago.

 Above it and to its right side is the equally delicious Big Leaf Italian basil.

Food Is An Agent of Change

A Memorial Day masterpiece of fresh jalapenos "poppers" was a family affair in the making.  They were served alongside seasoned steak tacos and a jalapeno margarita.

"Food is an agent of change"

Jose Andres

 

by Zen Gardener, John

Last summer 2021, I started out with just about 10 or 12 vegetables, fruit, and herbs.  This year I have well over 100.  I call my garden, "Shibumi Garden" as explained in my previous writing. This is part of my "Mint, Mind, and Mingle" concept of getting positive-minded, local people together for readings, socializing, and sharing of good energy for our community.

One of the primary social ramifications that have been a result of my garden is how it has forged new bonds between me, family, neighbors, coworkers, and even strangers.  Every time I run into fellow gardeners at my favorite nursery, the Garden Department, talking with strangers is always a good vibe thing.  If you want to break the silence in any stuffy room, try mentioning how you grow your own herbs and spices - it's an instant conversation starter.

Even when you go on a vacation out of state, or out of the country, you eventually find yourself eating a food item that's locally grown and raised.  From there on, any dining conversation you have will surely transition to different aspects of things in your life.  It's inevitable that food brings people together.

This past Memorial Day weekend, I watched a mesmerizing, Ron Howard documentary for National Geographic, featuring the magnificent chef, turned humanitarian, Jose Andres. The documentary is entitled, "We Feed People."  It shows how Andres went from very humbling beginnings to a multimillionaire celebrity chef, to most recently, a world-class humanitarian. He has pioneered bringing food to disaster areas around the world and is currently using his World Central Kitchen organization in war-torn Ukraine. I highly recommend watching the eye-opening 15 minutes.

One of the biggest, and most powerful messages Mr. Andres says early on, is that "Food is an agent of change...Food is an amazing mechanism to change society in ways we don't know today."

I have witnessed how growing my own garden of herbs has become a powerful tool to bring people with good healing energy together.  We don't just feed our bodies and have a nice social gathering, we're also cultivating and nourishing our souls.  There is a high degree of self-empowerment in being able to grow your own food.  It builds up your self-esteem very quickly, which you easily share with others.

I have placed Venmo and Paypal buttons on this profile, to help raise money to donate 10 percent of the monies directly to my local community outreach organization, Branches.  I am also personally donating excess produce from my Shibumi Gardens to Branches.  Thus, all donations will go to both endeavors.  With your help, you will help me, help Branches, feed families throughout Eastern Long Island.  By defraying the costs of fertilizer, water, and pest controls for Shibumi Gardens, I will be able to host a few festive summer events with neighbors and vendors to help raise more funds for those same families.

I want to grow the concept of Mint, Mind, and Mingle, not just locally, but regionally, and eventually nationwide.  Our current economic times are going to get tough this summer.  But we have before us an opportunity to create a space where something positive can grow inside and outside for all of us.