Community

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In our neighborhood we have a great Google group set up for swapping.Most of the time it is geared towards gardening,extra starts,plants and surplus produce or fruits. I recently posted the Strawberry plants I had thinned and they were snatched right up.This is also where I post when I have eggs for sale. This group has proven useful and a great community builder.So far everything posted has been either free or for trade,except me and my eggs which no one minds paying for.
  Today a neighbor posted that they had some Cabbage starts free for the taking. Chance and I replied to the email and zipped across the neighborhood to pick some up. I do not personally know all of the families on the list but do know a fair number of them.Today's family was one I had met before and just had not put two and two together so it was nice when a familiar face answered the door.
   Chance and I were led around to their back yard and holy cow they had food growing every where just like here at Hrafinstaad. We were so excited to see another family so close by growing so much of their own. While visiting we found out that the brother to the family lives right around our corner and the two households were growing food together.The brother has tilled up their whole yard to grow food.Now that is some good thinking! Rumor is there are a couple of other families doing this as well. Homegrown food,feeding families that's what is all about.And it rocks!
   Although the cabbage starts were posted as a freebie I did not think that was too fair,so I brought what extra eggs we had on hand to make it a swap. Even though there were only 7 eggs the family was happy to have them and informed us they were jealous of our chickens. This family lives at the other end of our neighborhood where there is a HOA that does not allow chickens.The families are working really hard to get that changed.Even though it has been an up hill battle they have stuck to it like chicken poo on an egg, they want more control over where their food is coming from so the battle goes on. Let's all cross our fingers for them!
  I have been re-reading "Food not Lawns by H.C Flores"  (don't worry Farmer that's not the book I am mailing you though I could,just ask.)  and I have realized some great things about what has been going on lately around here.We are growing our own Paradise Garden,building community,educating others through example and feeding ourselves and others.We are doing it! If you have not read "Food Not Lawns" I recommend it.It is one of the books I can say I agree with on many levels though there are a few ideas I don't think we will use such as some of her suggestions for water but everything else is spot on in my personal book.Well and she's not a fan of chickens but that's alright to each their own right?

The rest of the day we spent in the yard planting and doing a bit of this and that.The photo of the flowers is the bouquet I picked the other day,I think it came out gorgeous. I wish I had some nifty project to share but community building is my offering for this post
A topic I am happy about especially since like our garden our community of like minded folks is growing.
   Rois