Ever feel like the ball at the end of a cue stick, getting blasted from one end of the pool table to the other? The entire meaning of things seems to be getting through one event so you can make it on time to the next.
This is what “disconnected” feels like to me. Rolling around at the mercy of outside forces, with nothing to hang on to. Interestingly, by just tuning into the seasons it’s possible to gain a toehold and a sense of reconnection.
I always write about the seasons at this time of year, likely because it’s such a poignant, meaning-laden time. With a final blaze of awesome gold glory, summer’s green vibrancy collapses into winter’s cold and darkness. Take even an hour to feel and absorb the changes underfoot and you can’t help but sense the bigger order of things–the fabric underneath all those smashing pool balls.
The food connection? Easy. We are leaving summer’s eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, cucumbers, peaches and cherries; shifting on to winter’s comforting root vegetables and cold weather greens, brassicas, pears and apples.
Note this shift. Bring some of the local autumn bounty to your table each day. Acknowledge and savor the change of seasons: something very real to hold you on the pool table of life!
Here’s a great way to acknowledge the seasonal shift. Join the Food Day celebrations coming up Oct. 24! Just commit to have a local foods meal, for just you and your family or invite friends over. You can make it a potluck. Watch a food-related movie together. You get to decide what your “event” looks like. Just be sure to map it on the Food Day site and you’ve taken a powerful stand in support of the local, healthful, safe foods that not only give us connection, but also taste great! Read all about Food Day (it’s like Earth Day but with a Food Focus) and the Boulder County Eat Local Challenge which has been organized to help Boulder County folks participate in this important day.