If interested, click here to see today’s pictures of my garden.

(I remembered to put them on a separate page this time, which is good, since I have so many taking up space below.)

To recount why I’ve decided to experiment with growing my own food this year, here are a few reasons:

- Imported Garlic: The idea started last September when I heard that most of the garlic sold in this country is shipped from China, and I thought we have enough dirt in our own yards, to grow a year’s supply. (And I thought I could grow a year’s supply in a 3 inch wide and about 3-5 feet long row, along the edge of my driveway — a row that is shorter than my car. No big whoop. With two rows — about 6 inches wide — I’d have more than enough, to share or use as a natural insect repellant for my apple tree and other plants.)

- The “Dirty Dozen”: It was reinforced last September, when I first read about the “Dirty Dozen” foods that retain the most pesticides, and neuro-toxins. (I purposely linked to Prevention Magazine’s list that includes beef, pork, poultry, milk, cheese and butter in their top two. Most other lists just list the top 12 fruits and veggies.)

- Animal-based organic fertilizer: As a vegan, I’m not thrilled about opting for organic food that is grown with animal-based fertilizers, especially fish meal, bone meal, blood meal, or even manure — for obvious reasons, and also because I don’t want to support animal agriculture in any way. Also, I question how organic manure is, if it comes from factory farms where the animals are fed antibiotics, growth hormones, etc. I did have some mushroom compost, but have since read that it’s likely to contain chicken litter. I don’t have a huge ideological problem with earthworm castings, however, since even careful digging or spading in my garden is hazardous to the worms. But I’m more interested in composting, and making compost tea from pulled weeds, and ideas of green manure or cover crops to fertilize the garden.

- Food costs: As someone who might be inclined to want to buy organic food, and have trended in that direction (especially with the “Dirty Dozen” in mind), and with the economy what it is, I’m looking for a way to cut my grocery bill. As it is, I spend more than I need to, and as I posted earlier, what I buy hasn’t increased like most foods have, it would still be cool to be able to cut my food costs down to practically nothing — especially by the time I hope to retire.

- Genetically-modified food: As someone who’s interested in avoiding genetically-modified food, I am trending toward organic and/or heritage/heirloom seeds, to ensure that what I grow isn’t genetically modified. I also am cultivating an interest in biodiversity in crop species. (As an FYI, the PLU codes on grocery store produce differentiate whether something is conventionally grown with chemicals, organic, or genetically-modified. If the PLU code begins with a “9″, it’s organic. If it begins with an “8″, it is genetically-modified. Other than that little-known fact, food labels aren’t required to disclose if any of the ingredients are genetically-modified. Nevertheless, even USDA certified organic, doesn’t always meet the standards that are required by California Tilth, or Oregon Tilth, because the USDA is in bed with Big Ag.)

- Community-building: I gave up on my idea that anyone at my church would be interested in my original idea of having a parish-based organic gardening food exchange club. But I was happy to see that a church in New York was featured in the news for their community garden.

- Grass is a waste of space, and an “invasive species”: I agree with the Food Not Lawns‘ attitude that grass is not only a waste of space, but that it is a manifestation of Western Privilege, that Americans can rely on others to supply their every need and want; and that nice-looking lawns require more fertilizer, weed killer than farmers use on our crops, and polluting, fuel-using mowers to keep them looking nice. (Why do we obsess over growing grass, only so we have to keep cutting it?!) Also, for the meat-eaters who ask stupid questions like “What about plants? Don’t plants suffer?”, I say, our grass is screaming in excruciating pain every time we take a mower to it. Can they hear it?

- Locovorism: Getting back to the garlic, and the environmentalist view that we should “buy local”, there is nothing more local than picking food fresh from one’s own yard.

- Midwest floods: This year’s floods in the midwest destroyed a huge amount of this year’s crops. This would have been a good year for people to plant a few things, to make up for the loss, and the expected soaring costs. (Commercial farmers seem to grown only about 5 subsidized crops in this country. So corn & soy are probably the crops that were most affected by this year’s floods.)

- Tomato recall: This Spring’s recall of tomatoes, due to the cases of salmonella whose source is still unknown, made this year a good year to grow our own.

- As an occasional “dooms-dayer”, I feel that the meek just might inherit the earth, and that the people who are able to live the most simply, or the most self-sufficiently, will be in a better position to withstand any huge, cataclysmic events that could end in food-insecurity, job-insecurity, or worse. In other words, the day may come when Americans find that they’re at a loss for depending on others to supply everything we have to transport long distances to buy.

- Easy gardening methods / humanitarianism: The Square Foot Gardening, Earth Box, and The Growing Connection websites interested me in experimenting in growing food, to see how credible it would be to promote as a humanitarian alternative to supporting charities that perpetuate animal agriculture with their “buy a food animal for a poor family in the developing world” schemes. I believe that for the Church who has various special interest groups that include humanitarianism/social justice, environmentalism (with concerns about Global Warming), animal advocacy, any mission we pursue should seek a comprehensive approach that incorporates all, instead of stepping on the toes of some — especially the animal advocates’. For more information, see my page on humane humanitarian alternatives.

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I realize that when Christians observed a vegan Lent, back before people started looking for loop-holes and all manner of special dispensations, it was for spiritual reasons, and not out of any spirit of mercy or compassion toward “food” animals. But for people who still think of Lent as a season of self-denial, self-examination, a new beginning, etc., why not have an added benefit of knowing one isn’t contributing to the slaughter demand for just a few weeks?

This came to mind in a sort of negative way today, when I checked my site stats, and saw that someone found my site while Googling for “Do Episcopalians give up anything for Lent?” And I have to wonder, because I never hear anything from Episcopalians about giving anything up, and never hear anything like that suggested by church leaders. I hear about them taking something on, instead — often with suggestions about donating to charities that exploit animals, oblivious that they are contributing to the slaughter demand for those same weeks. Why can’t Episcopalians get away from that rut, and suggest humane humanitarian charities? Why can’t our own charity get out of the animal exploitation business? Maybe if Episcopalians were accustomed to observing a vegan Lent, they would realize that it is a healthy diet, and would stop encouraging us to give cows, goats, chickens, etc, whenever the opportunity presents itself.

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UPDATES: Here are two non-veg-related sources I found (and commented on) that mention a vegan Lent:

http://www.episcopalcafe.com/daily/fasting_101.php

http://revjph.blogspot.com/2008/02/madpriests-ash-wednesday-stay-at-home.html

The Archbishop of York is observing a vegan Lent!
(But, that should be the norm, and the expectation, and not the exception that makes the news.)

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“St. Gregory writing to St. Augustine of England laid down the rule,
‘We abstain from flesh meat, and from all things that come from flesh,
as milk, cheese, and eggs.’
This decision was afterwards enshrined in the ‘Corpus Juris’,
and must be regarded as the common law of the Church.”

(Found amid much-relaxed practices at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09152a.htm
while wondering what the vestigial significance of Shrove Tuesday pancake dinners was all about,
after 35+ years of being an Episcopalian.)

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Click here for pictures I took when I got home, after today’s blizzard.

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Food Journal

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Record day: Today, there were 500 first time visitors to this site (plus maybe 4 returning visitors), with 600 page loads (hits). Not only does that seem like a record, but the numbers are so easy to remember. The two most common searches are for “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and anything pertaining to Episcopal Lent.

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[Today's blurb bumped the Press Release about Bishop Andrus endorsing the California humane farming initiative from the home page.]

Updated 2/10: I’m going to leave the following “mullings” as they are for now. because they give a background to my recent thought processes. But I’ve kind of decided what I want to do for Lent this year. It’s basically an overhaul in my way of life and consumer choices, which may or may not last beyond Lent.

1) On the spiritual side, I joined a listserv, which has many resources that are worth reading. One that particularly interests me, that I’d like to do something with this Lent, is about how to write a Rule of Life. I’m going to try to get back to a more intentional prayer life, among other things.

2) On the dietary side, besides adhering to a vegan diet (other than sugar and whatever beer & wine might be filtered with), I’m trying to trend toward “bulk” food, as opposed to packaged or prepared; organic, especially if I want to buy something from “The Dirty Dozen” list; and using what I have, instead of buying prepared food (including pet food and dog biscuits).

3) On the traditional fasting side, I’ve never really fasted before. I’ve abstained automatically since becoming a veg’n about 8 years ago. But this time, I’m also looking at quantity. There are other things besides food that I should fast from. One thing is spending less time on the computer. I may work on that.

4) On the fast from credit card side, I decided to allocate $100.00 per week for gas, food, and other weekly expenses, and try to live on that, using cash.

5) On the environmental side, I am trying to be conscious of all the plastic we acquire whenever we shop, and bringing my own tote bags or asking for paper bags, buying loose items when available or feasable, buying food in glass or cans instead of food in plastic, when possible. I have put eco-friendly light bulbs in the two lamps by my computer, which I use most often, and also on in my front hallway (so far). And I’m limiting myself to eco-friendly personal care products, detergent, dish soap and other cleaners. I’m still using plastic containers that I have. But I am not buying any more plastic wrap, and I am not buying food in my cafeteria at work, because all they have is plastic & styrofoam for our food. (I already recycle, but I want to get away from adding to the demand for plastic products as much as possible.)

6) On the fasting from consumerism side, besides deciding that I might like to pay cash for things instead of using my credit card (hoping to get out of credit card debt a little faster, and getting used to getting by on less), I’ve decided that I will not buy anything besides the weekly necessities.

7) On the charitable side, I’m not sure. I don’t plan on making any additional donations at this time, but will continue to tilt at windmills, when it comes to people promoting charities that contribute to animal suffering, since there are alternatives that we could support just as easily — whether they are promoting “find a cure” charities, or “give a cow to a poor family” charities. But I’ll have to be charitable about how I try to do that….

I’m going to spend more time with my pets. My dog is noticeably bored, and deserves so much more.

9) I am not planning to give up chocolate! I have some great-tasting Wax Orchard (vegan, natural, and diabetic-friendly) chocolate sauce that recommends eating with a spoon. If I want chocolate, I’ll follow that recommendation, since most good-tasting chocolate is not vegan.

10) Last but not least (as I just noticing my Christmas tree in the front room), like every year, it is my goal to pack away all my Christmas stuff before Easter!

Why am I telling this to the world, instead of keeping it private, like we’re supposed to do? Partly because I’m “thinking out loud” in what feels like the privacy of my living room. And partly because I want to give visitors different ideas of what they might like to do, just as (some of) the Church of England bishops are promoting a Carbon Fast, the NCC is promoting A Lenten Fast from Violence, groups like Restoring Eden and others are advocating a Green Lent, and EGR & ERD are promoting support of the MDG’s. These are things I want or need to do. If anyone else wants to, too, great!

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Original post:

I’ve been thinking about what I want to do for Lent this year.

First, even though I claim to be a vegan, I cheat on desserts and foufou coffees once in a while. So during Lent, I choose to go the whole time without cheating.

Second, I want to get “back to basics”. So I’ll be using Margie’s shampoo, conditioner, liquid soap, detergent, moisturizer & lip balm, (she gives a discount, if people return their plastic bottles) before I use anything that is “organic” but probably contains some chemicals. I have some eco-friendly dish soap and household cleaners, which I’ll use instead of whatever is under the sink and in the cleaning closet.

Third, I hate plastic, but can’t get away from it. (Yeah, sure, I can recycle. But that just goes into more plastic products. And our mounds of plastic will be an eternal testament to human progress — all that is left to remember our species by, hundreds of thousands of years after humans go extinct. I’d rather focus on glass, metal, ceramic, or wood.) I’ll use what I have, but won’t add to it beyond what is necessary. I’ll take my own tote bags when I shop, or will ask for paper instead of plastic. If something like peanut butter or juice or cooking oil, etc., comes in glass jars or bottles, I’ll choose the brands that come in glass. I’ll try to buy bulk fruits and veggies, unless they are from the “Dirty Dozen” list, or unless there is no option but to buy wrapped or packed things like berries or salad greens. I’ll bend for buying the 10 pound bag of carrots for $4.99, for my dog, because I can use the bag for garbage when it’s empty, and can save it until after Easter, if I really don’t want to use even used food bags for garbage. But I plan to make my own granola, and may even try my luck at baking bread. I may stock up on things before Lent, like beans for soups, etc., because they are always in plastic bags. I’ll buy things like pasta or pet food that comes in boxes or cans, so I won’t end up with more plastic containers — or I’ll make dog biscuits, and maybe even kibble. I’ll just see how much I can do in that area. But I won’t buy lunches at work, because all they have is styrofoam and plastic to put the food in. So I’ll have to bring my food to work.

I plan to “compost”. I already throw out my peelings, etc. But because it’s winter, I don’t bury it. It’s there for the squirrels and bunnies.

As for “buying local”, I’ve been boycotting products made in China since the pet food recall. (I’m also boycotting, because of the Pigs of God, and dog bludgeonings I’ve read about.) Besides, most of what I’d be tempted to buy is made out of plastic. So I want food and other things that have been made at least on this hemisphere, if not in this country. And that means I won’t be living on Indian food like I did last year during Lent. But I’ll eat what I have, I just won’t buy more for a while. Other what I need for my mom, or for my pets, I plan not to spend any money at all, except on bills and weekly expenses. I may even stop using my credit card as part of that plastic thing. (But I’m not promising.)

If I order anything from Vegan Essentials, I should do it before Lent, because they tend to wrap things like my favorite Wax Orchards chocolate sauce jars in plastic bubble wrap. You can see that even if I’m vegan, I don’t plan to give up chocolate for Lent!

I should just go shopping between now and Shrove Tuesday, for 6 weeks’ worth of food, and then not shop during Lent. That way, I won’t have to worry if my dried beans or whatever come in plastic bags.

Still thinking about that, and haven’t even gotten to what I might do around the house, or to keep healthy. I should probably limit the time I sit at the computer, so I can take care of those things that I let go.

I almost titled this page “The Pros and Cons of Everything”. It seems that it wouldn’t matter if I use plastic, as long as I recycle it. But trees are renewable. It seems better to buy organic than conventionally raised produce. But ironically, organic tends more likely to be wrapped in plastic, and the organic juices I’ve seen seem to come in plastic bottles. I have to pay “top dollar” to get organic peanut butter in a glass jar. I tend to want to “clean house” during Lent, like tossing stuff from the attic or basement. But if what I want to toss isn’t environmentally friendly (like polyester), I should forget about it untill after Easter. If I need clothes, and want them made in America, or want natural fabric (besides wool), I may have to go to a second hand store, where my purchases of man-made products won’t add to the junk pile or to the people who decide how much of anything they should make.

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Added Shrove Tuesday: As I type on my plastic keyboard….
Well. I’m taking the morning off today, to run a couple of errands before I vote and head toward the next winter storm. I spent a little time going through the plastic in my house, and am wondering what to do with it all. Should I reuse the plastic bags I have? Should I recycle them? Should I save them for the next time I have a yard sale? Should I just store them away until after Lent? I can’t get away from it, except to limit future plastic as much as I can.

As a vegan who wants to avoid wool, what do I do about rugs? My old carpet is from the mid ’60’s. Should I replace it with some sort of polyester material? Should I get the hardwood floor sanded down and coated with polyurethane (plastic), to protect it from my pets? What would I want for any future carpets, rugs, furniture, etc? Will I just keep what I have until I die, and leave it for my kids to “Freecycle” or trash? I’ve decided that I’m pretty much limited to cotton, linen, hemp, or whatever, if I don’t want synthetic or anything made from animals. So, I’ve decided that, although it would be nice to have new stuff someday, the alternative would be to shop at second hand stores, to avoid contributing to demand for more man-made products, and to avoid contributing to the non-biodegradable garbage dumps. (The sad thing about second hand stuff is that I don’t feel like I have anything of “my own” — nothing worth passing along as having any value.) By the way, I found the “no impact man’” blogsite last weekend, which was timely. I’d like to do most of what he did, at least during Lent:
http://noimpactman.typepad.com. I might also like to do what a friend did for a year(?), and not buy anything other than weekly expenses like groceries, etc. (including no non-consumable items.) Here’s her article: http://www.livefreelearnfree.com/13Draper.html . Still wondering what to do, and how to do it…. I just think that humankind, who likes to consider our species to be created in the image of God, should have more to show for ourselves than heaps of plastic shipped back and forth across the ocean, and other toxic and non-biodegradable garbage. And I don’t consider myself an environmentalist.

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(Today’s post bumped information about the Bali conference, articles about meat and Global Warming, and a link to a HSUS Press Release that mentions the Episcopal church from the home page.)

In support of the Episcopal Church’s promotion for dioceses, parishes and individuals to donate a minimum 0.7% of our income toward the United Nations’ various Millenium Development Goals, and reading somewhere that 07/07/07 was an easy-to-remember target date for doing it, I’ve decided to split my donations between the following 7, for a number of reasons:

- All Souls’, San Diego “Kenya Project” (Episcopal)

- Solar Light for Africa (Episcopal)
- Floresta (Tree Program — only)
- Plenty, International (vegetarian)
- Seeds of Hope for African Families (linked on The Rainforest Site)
- Operation Bootstrap Africa (Lutheran)

- HIPPO (vegan, based in the UK).

Each of these is among a list of “cruelty-free” humanitarian charities that I’ve been compiling. I chose the particular initiatives mentioned above, because I don’t feel the need to support charities that focus on animal agriculture (and besides the inherent animal suffering involved, contribute to Global Warming). At least five that I chose are in support of efforts going on in Africa, where I believe humanitarian aid is most needed over all. Most, if not all, are environmentally-friendly. And they cover a variety of needs from growing plant-based food, clean drinking water, restoring forests, supplying free solar powered electricity, medicine, education, and some amount of economic development potential.

“May our MDG’s be cruelty-free.”

As Mike Russell+, the rector of All Souls, San Diego, says one one of his email signatures, “Every three seconds a child dies from poverty related causes, every eight seconds the death is from water borne causes. Three hundred die during the average Sunday sermon, sixteen hundred during the average Sunday Eucharist.” And on his church’s website (on their “Kenya Project” page) it says, “Every three seconds a child dies of poverty related causes. Twenty a minute, 1,200 an hour, 28,800 a day, 201,600 a week, 10,483,200 a year. Every eight seconds it is from water borne diseases. That is just the death rate for children, the must vulnerable of the populations at risk. One sixth of the world’s population, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, lives in extreme poverty, on less than $1 a day.” He also told me a couple of years ago, “Our projects are focused on sustainable vegetable agriculture because that is what it takes to keep people from dying of starvation. It is focused on medical care and education especially for
the AIDS orphans and urban poor children.”

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As an “after thought”, my next few blog-blurbs (which should be of equal interest to humanitarians, environmentalists and animal people) touch on reasons why well-meaning people should stop supporting humanitarian efforts to increase animal-based economies in developing countries, until the charities themselves shift away from their current concept for feeding the hungry and striving to “Make Poverty History”. And I’ll say it plainly. I’m referring to Heifer Project, International, Episcopal Relief and Development and any other charity that promotes the purchase of animals as “gifts”. “Gifts” of livestock are trojan horses.

See 7/8, 7/13, 7/14

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I spent the rest of the day on a mini-retreat at The Dekoven Center.

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[Today's post bumped 'Al Gore: Let's Talk About Meat' from the home page.]

I found this tonight on a veg restaurant poster on Food for Life Global’s website:

October 15-21 marks the annual observance
of Feed the World Week (FWW).

<snip>

Feed the World Week is a call for action, for
the world to move away from the meat-based dietóthat
robs the earth of vital resources and leaves billions homeless
and hungry. ìMost non-vegetarians are unaware,î explains
Paul Turner, Global director of Food for Life, ìthat more
than 70% of the worldís grain production is fed to livestock destined
for slaughterhouses. That same grain could feed humans. Every
year, millions of children in the developing world die from hunger,
alongside fields of fodder destined for the Westís livestock.î

Does anyone in the West care enough to change the way they live? (Maybe that bishop who mentioned “Western privilege” as an argument to dismiss GC2006 Resolution D041 should. Should I ask him? How about the MDG advocates? Here’s my argument for supporting cruelty-free relief and development charities: Go veg, so you aren’t taking food away from the people you want to help. And stop funding the spread of animal agriculture in poor countries for the same reason.)

I sent this to the people on one of my listservs today:

At the last minute, I decided to go on my annual relatively vegan-friendly “wildly silent” meditation retreat this weekend. This is “mildly off-topic” only because you’d have to dig for an animal connection. (It’s there, historically. And I know the connections, even if it is only in the sound of the birds in the midst of the silence, bearing some message I’m “supposed to” get, when opening myself up, and memories of past influences. Those who know me well and for a long time, have been “victims” of past sharings, too.)

Oh, down by the bookstore on the reading rack were brochures for H.O.P.E. Safehouse . So that was cool. (I forgot to take my ASWA/ENAW “propaganda” this time. But interestingly, there were non-religious books on diet, too. So they seem open to a variety of information for their wide variety of guests. And if any of you authors have a book to promote, they get quite a cross-section of visitors over a year’s time. It might be a good place to donate a copy.)

I want to share a quote from the inside jacket of a book I found in the bookstore (if I can read my writing, and if I copied it correctly), some prayers, and a poem I wrote last night for “show and tell” today [where we shared art, poetry, or thoughts about the weekend].

We weren’t supposed to “read other people’s words” this weekend, because it would break our silence, so I just sneaked a quick peak on the inside cover of Flying Changes: Horses as Spiritual Teachers, by Carter Heyward+, which said,

“Other creatures of the Earth are asking to be our spiritual [teachers?] says Heyward, and learning from them is a source of hope for the world….”

After brunch, Sr. Dorcas… wrote out a prayer for me, that she said before the Eucharist today. (She’s a dancer, did or still does teach folk dancing…, and is the person who leads our movement meditations between the sittings at this yearly retreat.) She gave me permission to share her prayer with you, because prayers should be shared and prayed — as opposed to being copyright, for example.

“Heart of the great dance of the universe,
tune our ears to the music of the Dance;
open our eyes to the patterns of the Dance;
fill our hearts with the Spirit of the Dance and
quicken our feet to the measure of the Dance.
Lord of the Dance, let our lives be danced by Your Love.”
(What I like about this, other than the message that reflects a positive view of God that some may not have, is that it illustrates a way to form a prayer around some attribute of God that we can identify with in our lives. That’s helpful for someone like me, who doesn’t know how to “pray right”, so avoid doing it in public like the plague.)

I think the liturgy we used for the Eucharist, called “Summer” might be from a Scottish alternative prayer book. But on the back of the sheet we were given were 4 versions of the Lord’s Prayer. The one I’m including comes from the New Zealand Prayer Book (1), and then the post-Communion prayer (2) probably comes from the Scottish liturgy. I’m offering these, because retreat Eucharists tend not to be as “by-the-book” as our weekly congregational worship. So these might be new words for some of you that might give a different meaning to prayers we repeat all the time by memory, without thinking a lot about them, other than their familiarity.

1)

Eternal Spirit,
Earth-Maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver,
Source of all that is and shall be,
Loving God, in whom is heaven:

The hallowing of your name echo through the universe!
The way of your justice be followed by the peoples of
the world!
Your heavenly will be done by all created beings!
Your commonwealth of peace and freedom sustain our
hope and come on earth.

With the bread we need for today, feed us
In the hurts we absorb from one another, forgive us.
In times of temptation and test, strengthen us.
From trials too great to endure, spare us.
From the grip of all that is evil, free us.

For you reign in the glory of the power that is love,
now and forever. Amen.

2)

Generous Giver of Life, you supply us with
all good things. May this bread and wine be
the nourishment we seek, and may it
transform us into disciples who serve in
your creation. Amen.
Although I’m making a life project of trying to create something a little “DeKoven-like” in my yard (a sacred “place apart”) and spend too much time as it is in silence (except when I’m on the Internet), it was important for me to make my yearly trip because I needed to be with the people that I associate with there, and to relive one of my favorite weekends of the year in the “Brigadoon” of Southeastern Wisconsin. My poem is something that could be taken at face value (even the part about the dog fence, since I just have a cheap wire garden fence, that even my old cat knows how to knock down), but has some hidden meanings, too. I drew a picture of the statue of St. Fiacre that is in one of the gardens, after sitting in front of it for quite some time, having a silent conversation with a “graven image”, asking for advice about what to plant in my yard. (He really looks a lot like me, except for the beard and the monk’s attire.) So here’s my poem, for your entertainment, or whatever:

O, “garden god”, Fiacre,
(you could be my brother
if you weren’t made of stone):

I want to stop
at a garden shop
so I can take you home.

To bring a little memory
of my DeKoven stay,
a pine cone and a lilac seed
that might grow tall someday.

The season’s short.
I’m getting old.
Seeds take too long to grow.

I’ve wandered ’round
DeKoven’s grounds.
And this is what I know:

My lilies need more sunlight.
The weeds’ lives are worthwhile.
I’ll line my yard with potted plants
to fence my dog in style.

We may be “seeds”, or
we may be “plants”
(both are silent and still)
Both contain the power of life
and a strong internal will.

But planting seeds is not enough
to change the world around us.
Planting plants will fill the gaps
in dirt, and will astound us.

VIGEAT RADIX!

(I’ve heard that translated as “May the Root thrive”, but I translate it jokingly as “vegans eat radishes”.)

I stopped at a garden shop on my way home, and now have the “St. Fiacre of my dreams”.

Sue
(the “Dandelion”, who’s always looking for more to share our turf)

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Click here for pictures I took at DeKoven last year.

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[Today's posting bumped Open Letter to Episcopalians on choosing cruelty-free charities to reach the MDG goals from the home page.]

From Accessible Airwaves:

Mainline churches should be silent while Religious Right political leaders get to speak their mind? Do you care?

I’m posting this banner, because I’ve heard from various groups recently that the news we hear is slanted in favor of whoever owns those reporting it. I heard it in Chicago when I went to the peace rally and march. I heard it from doctors who are trying to get the message out that switching to a low fat whole food vegan diet will not only prevent disease, but reverse it. I’ve heard it from animal rights groups who try to get documentaries or PSA’s on regular TV stations. I’ve read how the number of cattle in the USA with Mad Cow Disease is being played down by the USDA. And now it’s which Christians get in the news.

Maybe someday, people in this country will start to question the information we’re being fed — not only by the media, but by advertisers, the pharmaceutical companies, the charities that fund animal research, the government, and anyone else that stands to profit by the information we’re given. The question ought to be, “Who’s benefitting?” from the information we’re given? In Chicago, I saw a banner that said something like “There’s no profit in peace”. There is no profit in protecting animals. In fact, all legal exploitation of animals is good for the economy — and especially good for the companies that depend on it for their bottom line. There is no profit in choosing a healthy diet. There is a profit in selling drugs (and especially a cholesterol lowering drug) that allows people to continue their lifestyles-of-choice. We are an over-medicated society, and we seem to like it that way.

Click on the following URL to watch, or listen to, a 45 minute excerpt from the 2005 Healthy Living Expo: http://www.healthylifestyleexpo.com. If you don’t have 45 minutes to sit, watching it, open it in a new window, click, and then listen while you’re doing other things on-line, like looking around at this site.

Here’s one quote by Neal Barnard, MD:

“Dietary changes are first-line treatments. The patient comes in with high blood pressure. The prescription should be a diet change…. The person comes in with high cholesterol problem, or they come in with a weight problem. The first line of treatment should be diet. Medications and surgeries are alternatives. Medication is a complementary medicine…. We should address the cause. And that’s diet.”

Here are a few other things that came to mind:

“Youíll Get the Truth Only If There Is Money To Be Made”, by Dr. McDougall

U.S. Ate 777 Mad Cows

Analysis: What That Mad Cow Means

Safe Food

(ENAW/ASWA will be located at Exhibit Hall Booth # 1.
And we will have a few hundred orange ribbons to offer.)

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Travelling to Columbus this June? For a directory of veg or veg-friendly restaurants, click here, and choose ‘Columbus’ in the drop down box.

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“Walking with God, we find ourselves well beyond the limits of our
well-reasoned design, in places where all reason says we cannot be. We find
ourselves where we never dreamed we would be, seeing things we never dreamed we
would see, saying things we never dreamed we would say, doing things we never
dreamed we would do, accomplishing what we never dreamed we could
accomplish. We find ourselves by God’s side as God’s friend. If we are truly wise, we
will not ask how or why. We will just be thankful, and keep on walking.”

– The Rev. Sam Portaro, from
Brightest and Best: A Companion to the Lesser Feasts and Fasts
(in reference to Wulfstan)

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Added to this page on 7/4/2006: That was wishful thinking. Here’s how I felt when I came home….

‘Animals don’t have a prayer in the Episcopal Church!’

Added to this page on 7/9/2006: Open letter to Episcopalians about choosing cruelty-free humanitarian charities, with MDG’s in mind

One of the priests on the House of Bishops/Deputies’ listserv had posted a compelling (and convicting) message yesterday, that caught my attention. So I started corresponding with him, to find out what he considered the most urgent need in Africa, and if he could recommend a good charity. He did. Although he said there are probably a lot of good charities out there, he told me about the one his church sponsors, and asked me what I thought about it. The more I read, and the more we corresponded, the more excited I was that I decided to write to him. Here are a few things I like:

1) It has an “Episcopal face”.
2) Most of their work is withinparishes of the Anglican Church of Kenya.
3) It meets the most urgent needs known to the missioners “on the ground” there.
4) It is relatively grassroots.
5) 100% of the money raised goes to the projects listed on the site at the URL below. (All Souls absorbs the credit card and paypal
charges associated with the transactions.)
6) Donations are tax-deductible.
7) On-line donations are as easy as bookmarking the URL, and visiting it periodically.
And most attractive to me, is that all the projects just happen to be cruelty-free!

This quote says it all:

“Our projects are focused on sustainable vegetable agriculture because that is what it takes to keep people from dying of starvation. It is focused on medical care and education especially for the AIDS orphans and urban poor children.”
– the Rev. Michael Russell, Rector, All Soul’s Episcopal Church, San Diego

(Please note that first sentence! He didn’t say animal agriculture is what it takes to keep people from dying of starvation. Remember that when you choose a charity.)

So I want to pass this information along to you, not only for your own charitable consideration, but to share with your congregations and anyone else who would be interested.

(He said that the Nairobi projects need the most help right now, especially raising the money for the water project.)

Please bookmark this site.

For those who don’t feel comfortable donating on-line, checks should be made out to
to All Souls’ Episcopal Church with ate least “Maseno” or “Nairobi” in the memo line.

The address is:

All Soul’s Episcopal Church
1475 Catalina Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92107

If needed for inquiries, the phone # can be found here.

Pictures and journal

The following are some humanitarian organizations I found on the Internet whose missions (intentionally, or coincidentally) don’t exploit animals. They’re listed in no particular order. Please check out their websites by clicking on their logos below. If you like the work they do, please support them, and recommend them to your outreach ministers and others in your churches — and add a link on your church’s website. As always, it’s up to you to “do the homework”….

Or, to help you “do your homework”, and pick a humane humanitarian charity, Global Giving presents 500 pre-screened grassroots projects to choose from– education and economic development to health and environment in over 100 countries. You can use their “Donation Wizard”. If you select the answer to one of the questions with the John Muir quote, “When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world”, chances are excellent that you’ll end up with a variety of eco-friendly charities to choose from, that don’t exploit animals. It’s a win/win/win/win for the beneficiaries, the environment, the animals, and you, who will be given periodic updates of the projects you support. Hat tip to Anna of UFETA.

“May your MDG’s be cruelty-free!”

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This looks like a comprehensive and successful Episcopal-based program, which doesn’t mention animal agriculture at all on their site, or in the videos. They are looking for congregational backing, which might be an alternative, and direct people’s attention away from the types of charities they’ve supported in the past, that exploit animals. If you like this one, ask if your church would like to become a Millenium Congregation.

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Read my blurb endorsing The Kenya Project. It (and the logo above) links to All Souls’ Episcopal Church’s website, where the projects they support are described.
This is what the Rev. Michael Russell from All Souls told me:

“Our projects are focused on sustainable vegetable agriculture because that is what it takes to keep people from dying of starvation. It is focused on medical care and education especially for the AIDS orphans and urban poor children.”

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“Trees for life is a non-profit, people-to-people movement that helps plant fruit trees in developing countries. These trees provide a low-cost, self-renewing source of food for many people and protect the environment.

“In this way, Trees for Life demonstrates that in helping each other we can unleash extraordinary power that impacts our lives. Our programs include three elements: education, health, and environment.”

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Plenty International: A non-government alternative development organization. “Plenty has long promoted sustainable agriculture and a plant-centered diet as a way to feed more of the world’s people. Plenty is a strong believer in the value of small-scale village-based soy bean agriculture and soy foods production as a way to improve nutrition, soil quality, and food security.”

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ORE is an eco-friendly, plant-based charity that helps rural Haitian farmers move from subsistence farming, with high-quality protein corn, iron-rich beans, fruit trees and other cash crops.

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100% of all donations Food for Life received for the Tsunami Relief was sent directly to support their volunteer FFL Relief Teams — in other words, it all goes to the relief effort, and not administration costs.

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“The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation (FTPF) is a unique nonprofit charity dedicated to planting edible, fruitful trees and plants to benefit needy populations and improve the surrounding air, soil, and water.

“Our programs strategically plant orchards where the harvest will best serve the community for decades to follow, at places such as homeless shelters, drug rehabs, low-income areas, international hunger relief sites, and animal sanctuaries. FTPF’s projects benefit the environment, human health, and animal welfare–all at once!

“FTPF’s goal is straightforward: to collectively plant 18 billion fruit trees for a healthy planet (approximately 3 for every person alive). Fruit trees heal the environment by cleaning the air, improving soil quality, preventing erosion, creating animal habitat, sustaining valuable water sources, and providing healthy nutrition….”

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The Women’s Bean Project is a domestic charity that helps “women break the cycle of poverty and unemployment. [They] are a nonprofit organization that teaches workplace competencies for entry-level jobs through employment and by teaching job readiness skills in our gourmet food production business.”

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Vegfam feeds the hungry without exploiting animals. Their site includes important facts about agriculture and hunger.

Article: “Vegfam. Animal-free famine relief”

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HIPPO is a vegan organization in the UK, which doesn’t seem to have their own website. You can read about them here. And if you’d like to pledge to donate trees to Kenya through HIPPO, please click on their logo.

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“Sustainable Harvest International helps farmers reverse rainforest destruction with sustainable land-use practices that allow them to take control of their environmental and economic destinies.” Ecologically-friendly, organic, fair-trade — focuses on land use in a good way.

Please note that this organization may have a project that involves chickens. If it is more than building coops for existing flocks, please designate donations to go toward one of their other projects.

And the same goes for other organizations that are popular with church people. Please choose to donate your money toward projects that don’t perpetuate and increase animal exploitation.

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On 7/6/07, I talked to Erin at Floresta, who assured me that donations for trees will be used only for trees. There are some programs in some of the countries that involve animals. And the micro-loans are used for whatever small business a person might want to set up — which could be a chicken farm, and isn’t up to the charity to dictate. But reforestation and crop farming is emphasized as Floresta’s main mission. Check out the countries’ programs at the top of the page, for more details. And then check out the Tree Program. Support re-forestation and other plant-based farming.

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Click on the logo to read about the projects, etc.

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Christians helping the rural poor obtain safe water.

Click here for information about what a well and other projects cost.

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Operation Bootstrap Africa: A Minnesota-based, non-profit, inter-denominational organization dedicated to helping people help themselves in a variety of educational programs in Africa

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Solar Light for Africa was founded by a retired Episcopal bishop.

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Found on a search for reforestation charities. This is generally an eco-friendly charity that does have one existing project that involves bulls & oxen for transportation and fertilizer, but doesn’t specify they’re used for meat. They currently have 4 bulls & 2 ox carts, as of this posting (11/07). This is one among many projects. And their projects are easily designatable, when making a donation on their site. (Beekeeping is a new project they’d like to try.) Mostly, I’m listing this one, because they have many tree and fruit tree initiatives. And just as the UN’s FOA reported that animal agriculture contributes more to Global Warming, so does deforestation.

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Cool Earth is a new charity that invites people to donate a relatively small amount to protect an acre of Rain Forest from being burnt or cleared for cattle ranching, farming, logging, etc. Although this is is an environmental charity, it’s premise to protect the destruction of Rain Forests will help protect all of life, human and non-human — “All Creation”. Not only does the destruction of Rain Forests (like animal agriculture) contribute more to Global Warming than all the use of fossil fuel, but the forests they concentrate on also supply our atmosphere with 20% of the world’s oxygen. I’m listing this charity on this page, because, as mentioned on the FAQ page, it helps local people in several ways, by giving them a livelihood that doesn’t depend on ranching. This, like some of the other charities on this page, are paradigm-changing. And that’s what we should be thinking about, when it comes to the charities we choose to support, because too often, what we support is the status quo — in larger quantities….

What do local people get out of Cool Earth?
Answer: Conservation only works if local communities benefit. Helping to ensure that local people have better livelihoods working with rainforest protection is key to Cool Earth’s success. As well as making sure that, with every project, local people are employed in monitoring and protecting the forest, we also make sure there is full access for local people to protected areas for rubber tapping, nut and fruit extraction and other traditional trades. The employment we create also helps to keep communities and families together, while logging or ranching can take men hundreds of miles from their families for months on end.

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On a search for vegetarian charities, I found this link to two vegetarian orphanages — the Lotus Children’s Centre in Mongolia, and the East African Mission Orphanage.

The webpage says, “Several orphanages around the world, often in the poorest countries, remain vegetarian for cultural, religious or other reasons” and features those two, with links to make donations. (Both orphanages have websites, but I didn’t see anything on them to indicate they are specifically vegetarian. That’s why I’m linking to the page where I originally found them.)

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I found this “Seeds of Hope for African Families” after clicking on The Rainforsest Site. Here’s a little info:

When normal agricultural cycles are disrupted and sources of crop seeds are gone, people struggle to survive at the most basic level. Sadly, this is all too often the case in Africa. But with a “Seeds of Hope for African Families” Gift That Gives More, you can help plant seeds of hope for the future — literally.

$30 provides 15 kilograms of seeds — nourishing maize, millet, carrots, spinach, peas, beans and onions (even spicy curry leaf and chili peppers) — providing food for 15 people for years to come! Now isn’t that a seed worth sowing?…

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Play the word game to feed the hungry.

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The following aren’t necessarily charities, but could be useful for groups that are partnered with others, such as companion dioceses, or churches with missionaries working overseas.

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Sun Ovens International “Saving Lives by Preserving Forests Around the World!” along with protecting health and encouraging entrepreneurship.

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The Growing Connection (TGC) is a grassroots project developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the American Horticultural Society supported by a progressive coalition of private and public sector partners.
The Growing Connection links people and cultures in a revolutionary campaign that introduces low-cost water efficient and sustainable food growing innovations hand in hand with wireless IT connectivity. It provides a sound educational foundation, and offers hundreds of families, both in America and abroad, a concrete opportunity to earn income and climb out of desperation. Perhaps most important, The Growing Connection engages people ñ a network of committed individuals - in an elegant solution to one of manís fundamental challenges.

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Click on the logo, and then on the “Global Gardening” and “About Us” links on the left side of the screen.
SQUARE FOOT GARDENING FOUNDATION
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
I. To Encourage and Foster the Conservation of the Earth’s Natural Resources through composting and practicing Square Foot Gardening
II. To share Square Foot Gardening with the entire world enabling all people to live a more nutritional, healthy, and self-sufficient life.
SFG STRATEGIES
1. Promote the 3 R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)
2. Encourage Composting.
3. Emphasize Conservation of Water. (A Natural Resource)
4. Enhance Principles of Self Sufficiency Through the Use of SFG.
5. Accentuate the Beauty of SFG.
6. Show Adaptability Anywhere in the World.
7. Explain the Efficiency, Economics, and Ease of Starting SFG.
8. Demonstrate the Suitability for all Ages and All Abilities.
9. Highlight Simplicity, Ease of Learning, using Natural Materials.
10. Emphasize Earth Friendly, Non-Polluting, Non-Land Destroying.

I found this on their “Humanitarian Project” page (linked on the left side):

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, Teach a woman to garden and she will feed her family for ever…”

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On a separate, but related topic, please check out the links below to find out which health-related charities [do or] do not fund animal testing:
http://www.caringconsumer.com/resources_charities.asp or
http://www.humaneseal.org

As long as there are charities that help people without harming or exploiting animals, it seems reasonable that charitable people would want to prefer to support only humane charities.

For information pertaining to animal research, see:
http://www.curedisease.com or
http://www.pcrm.org/resch/anexp/position.html or
http://thecelebritycafe.com/interviews/dr_ray_greek.html