From the Yard to the Table

For over a week we've been eating fresh greens from our garden. The various lettuces give us a wonderful array of greens. Carrots, still as tiny as a baby's finger, are packed with flavor and vitamins. I almost have to slap my hand so I don't pick and eat them all while I'm in that magical place, our garden. Early this morning I harvested the first tiny broccoli crowns. When we stopped our morning chores to sit on the front porch with a cup of fresh brewed coffee, we munched on delicate broccoli crowns and baby carrots.
We finished off our morning snack with a slice of toasted Apricot Cardamom bread. I'd baked three loaves earlier in the week and put two in the freezer for future eating. I took one out to give our friends from Arizona to take with them on their trip to Alaska. They drove their RV up last week and arrived just before the holiday weekend. They wanted to get on the road early before most people were awake while there was little or no traffic.

It was a relaxing few days, taking them to the Farmer's Market in The Dalles, a first for them, and then out to lunch at one of the organic restaurants there. I hope that the experience they enjoyed at the market will encourage them to seek out organic growers and producers when they arrive back in Tucson. Like a lot of us, they said they had heard of Farmer's Markets and of organic food but hadn't yet tried them. If we can encourage others to eat local organic food, we can shift the path society is on and do much to save our planet. At the very least, we will be helping others to eat healthier and have less need for medications. Who knows? Some may even decide to do a little gardening on their own.

Each week another dozen or so jars of preserves go into our pantry and a few more packages into the freezer. Next week I start picking up the first in our scheduled meat packs from our CSA. If they snow piles us this winter as it has in the past, we'll have enough on hand to last us on those days I'm not able to get to the market in town. And now, with my sprouting jar, we don't have to worry about fresh greens because we can always have a dish of sprouts or throw some on a sandwich.

I hope you and yours had a wonderful Independence Day weekend and that everyone made it home safely. Remember those suffering in war-torn countries, those who are homeless, without food or medicine, and count your blessings every day. When you think life is hard and the struggle more than you can bear, find a haven where nature still sends up growth and new life. For me, that haven is my garden.

Remember what Gandhi said, 'Live simply so that others may simply live.' In a nutshell, that's what simple abundance is.