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What are your early fond memories of food?

Submitted by saraneppl on Thu, 07/30/2009 - 9:02am



Michelle Bates-Benetua (pictured above), panelist at our upcoming food sustainability program, comes to our panel from Solid Ground and the Lettuce Link program. From their website: "Lettuce Link (an innovative food and gardening program growing and giving since 1988) creates access to fresh, nutritious and organic produce, seeds, and gardening information for families with lower incomes in Seattle."

Without too much filler from us, we'd like to let Michelle, and the image above, speak for themselves.

"I’ve found inspiration in the hands-on work of groups around the country such as Growing Power (Will Allen) in Milwaukee, the Food Project in Boston, the Tohono O’odham nation in South Central Arizona, Nuestras Raices in Holyoke, MA, etc.  These groups are engaging community members who have been hardest hit by health and economic disparities in producing and eating healthy, culturally relevant food.  Their work demonstrates how local food it is not just a hobby or a cute trend, but a powerful people’s movement and one solution to the quagmire of inequity across our food and economic system.

"It isn’t about giving up things or even going 'back to the land.'  Many of us don’t have land to go back to. Rather, it is about adding a richness and different type of time into your lives. Many of us are so busy, there seems to be little time for thinking about anything new, much less growing or shopping for or preparing our own meals. Starting with one plant, one meal, one gathering, one letter to your representative might be all you can do.  If you’ve got the resources, it is easier. If you are struggling to make ends meet, there are still ways, especially when you pool resources and tap into the programs here in Seattle. I’ve talked to busy immigrant families (2 jobs, 2 kids) who are able to maintain their traditions and make new ones in part through the food they grow and prepare."

Lettuce Link has put together a great guide, "Gardening for Good Nutrition: A Guide to Growing Your Own Healthy Food", and you can click here for a PDF.

When asked if she has any questions for you all to think about before the program, Michelle asks, "What are your early fond memories of food?"

You are what you eat! Check us out on Thursday, August 6!

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food memories

Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 08/03/2009 - 11:33am.
As a child growing up in rural Oregon, my dominant memory of food is that it came from outside our house... quite directly. We lived near abandoned orchards, where I happily climbed up for plums and apples and cherries. My brothers caught fish and shot birds. We ate widely and happily from the land, and although we were the grandchildren of European settlers, there are ways that our lifestyle was more similar to indigenous peoples than to our urban European kin. I always think of wild places at sources of food. Sadly, I don't think my children share that notion.
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Great comment!

Submitted by saraneppl on Mon, 08/03/2009 - 12:04pm.
Thanks for your comment! I have a more subdued version of your memory, I think - my mother kept a garden (in rural Iowa), we picked our corn straight out of fields in the summer, and ate freely from the neighborhood fruit trees. I suspect this is why I have a tendency to forget about washing vegetables before I eat them - I grew up eating them straight off the plant!
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