Comments on Food

Melanie and I had the experience of eating out in the past few days. And we came to the same conclusion. The Food that we ate came from Industrial Food Complex: Factory Farms positioned long distances from our Plates. What we ate was a far cry from what we eat at the Farm.

When I think of the Special Banquet I attended, I would call the Food on my Styrofoam Plate and in between my Plastic Utensils something closer to a Food Model. It looked like Food. But it didn't taste like Food. I am not even sure that it was Food. It seemed a kind of Gruel or Plastic that might have been fed to a Prisoner who had no other choice.

As a result, Melanie and I pondered the criteria which have become a basis for the Food we eat on the Farm:

• Food should be eaten "in season". That means Strawberries are consumed when they are ripe. We don't eat a Tomato until we can find a ripe one in the Patch. Yes, we do preserve our Food. We can, freeze, dry, which extends access of the Food beyond the Season.
• Food should come from Local Food Sources. The Food should be grown on the Soils where we Humans are at home. That means that we grow most of our Food in our own Garden, which we have planted and tended with our own Hands. What we don't grow in our Garden we get from Local Farmers. That especially applies to Meats.
• We eat Food which is Chemical Free; some call that Organic. We like to think of it as the way Nature intended for us to eat.
• We eat "Whole Foods". We run far and fast from overly processed Foods. We find most of them gross and disgusting. We do eat some, like Crackers and Chips. These are organic.
• We try not to eat Foods that have additives and preservatives. If we can't pronounce it, we surely won't have much of a Stomach for it either.
• We have substantially decreased our use of Refined Products, especially White Sugar and Flour. Refining has stripped these ingredients of their Nutrients. Why would a Living Creature want to eat a Food with decreased Nutrients?
• We drink Filtered Water. Instead of Flavored Beverages, we show preference for Water.
• We prepare the Food ourselves. We intentionally put Loving Energy in the Food. We prepare the Food Mindfully. That means Food Preparation takes longer, but the rewards are worth the Wait.
• We try to eat Foods which have been grown on Healthy Soils. We focus our attention on building Healthy Soils. We are deeply concerned about what "we can give back".
• When we eat out and we do on occasion, we pay attention to how we feel afterwards. Often we feel like "crap". We have a yukky taste in our Mouths. Sometimes we have headaches, tummy aches, or just feel "off".
• We freely express our Gratitude to all Beings who brought and offered this Food to us.
• We begin each meal with a Blessing.
• We believe that we have been given a Gift. That Gift is "Life". With that kind of trust, we believe that we should treat our Bodies as the Gift they were intended.

We are deeply grateful that we are afforded the opportunity to eat the way we do. Doesn't everyone eat like this?