Whenever I have a surplus of something I love to share / give it away. This action is a direct ‘up yours’ to the messed up modern system that has been created. Today I was carving down a pumpkin much too large for our needs and with no room to store more than we will need in the next few days it needed to go somewhere. Some went to workmates, some to clients, some to family, etc. No money exchanged, and no expectation of repayment or being owed. Just the satisfaction of helping others who live within a couple of blocks of me and make up part of my community. I also plant extra seeds so I can give away seedlings. I see this as creating just a small bit of resilience locally. As for kids - I told a hyperactive one today that before they even think to open their mouth and complain they are bored, look around and see what they can do that is useful or helpful to someone. Heaven forbid that kids should learn to do someting proactive and useful rather than consume, consume, and be force fed everything that keeps them occupied for their waking hours.
Fated, I so agree with what you described! It fits my own experiences well. I had put in a water well with a hand pump a couple of years ago. Recently when a utility crew accidentally interrupted our water service overnight. I emailed our neighbors that we had plenty of hand-pumped water available. It felt so good–satisfying–to give it away. Then, a few days later, some of the kids from a recipient family unexpectedly showed up at our door with a basket of freshly harvested greens from their aquaponics project. I felt double-gifted, once by satisfaction, the other with great-tasting greens. And that’s just one example of neighbor gifting neighbor; there have been many others as well. We really enjoy our neighbors. I love where we live!
we were not made in its image
but from the beginning we believed in it
not for the purre appeasement of hunger
but for its availability
it could command our devotion
beyond questiion and without our consent
and by whatever name we have called it
in its name love has been set aside
unmeasured time has been devoted to it
forests have been erased and rivers poisoned
and truth has been relagated for it
we believe that we have a right to it
even though it belongs to no one
we carry a way back to it everywhere
we aer sure it is serving something
we consider it our personal savior
all we have to pay for it is ourselves
W.S. MERWIN
thanks for this podcast. this poem nails it, we’d rather die than go back to living in the old ways. too many of us