LifeGarden is a membership organization that is
GREEN through and through. There are no prerequisites
to membership other than a willingness to assist a
young nonprofit committeed to teaching the principles
of ecology in order to foster sustainable lifestyles. Our
members include people of all ages, income levels and
ethnic backgrounds who are united by a love of nature
and a desire to make a difference in the world.
We offer many opportunities for volunteer involvement
- from writing for our publications to working on our
restoration projects. As members you have access to
our expanding library of books relevant to an understanding
of natural processes and applied ecology in our daily
lives. Membership fees help defray the operating costs
that make possible important program work. We are all
volunteers. We have no staff to do much of the thinking
and the work. Connecting with us links you with many
of the most forward looking individuals and organizations.
Please help us by completing our downloadable membership
form and sending in your check today!
Please download
a membership form (pdf, 1 page) and send it with
a check to LifeGarden, 860 Bellows Court, Walnut Creek,
CA 94596-5867.
Green Meditation:
This space is devoted to the writings of our members
that pertain to the LifeGarden Mission. Please let us
hear from you.
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Slow Food
I love the season of fava beans,
of days compiling minutes,
of the sun stinging
my neck as it singes
the edge of a passing rain cloud.
A season that signals
the nearness of ripe peaches,
the end of mustard greens and kale
as the leafy frenzy
of April wilts
under the swelling days
of May.
This afternoon I'm shelling fava beans.
A three pound bag.
A mountainous pile
that would overwhelm
the most professional fast food connoisseur.
Send him speeding toward the closest
drive-through, perspiring at the thought
of sitting in one spot long enough
to accomplish this feat.
My fingers attend to one pod at a time
in green meditation.
They sneak down the seam
pop open the stubborn halves
rouse each sleeping seed from its fluffy bed
and bounce it into my great-grandma's bowl.
She and I know that not one
will ever grow up.
Instead they will learn to mingle with
Rosemary, thyme and garlic
and bathe in warm olive oil
They will simmer together
until they pale and soften,
at the realization
that it is time for me to eat.
Their beds get fed to worms
who cast rich batter
into a deep pan of earth,
and bake it into spongy cake
with calories counted on
to plump up the soil
just in time for the next crop - peaches.
I love the season of peaches.
Jan Enderle
2005 |
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