Eartheart Dialog is a place where we discuss how our lives are evolving and reflecting the wisdom of nature, of which we are a part, as we reach to fulfill "our heart's desire". In this space we can share creative experiences, work and explore our common ground. This is also an invitation to discuss matters of spirituality and the environment, art and design, and a heartful planet.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Where Did the Onions End Up?

For those of you who asked me to write reflections from the road between Santa Fe, NM and Montpelier, VT, my apologies that this comes so belatedly.   The 2,400 miles are finally being shaken off----as they followed closely upon packing and putting things in storage-----again.  In many ways it still feels like a long time since anything felt normal and I admit to being a fish-out-of-water;....no pun intended, but things stay quite damp here.  Fruit is more likely to mold---than petrify---if left too long on the counter.......and towels never dry.

The reference to onions in the title of this blog is somewhat humorous.  Heading east from Albuquerque on Rte. 40, a semi-truck with a huge, tarped load of bagged onions became a frequent traveling companion for miles and miles across the Texas panhandle and all of Oklahoma.  On the highway entry ramp, beginning the second day on the road (from Tulsa, OK), a large bag of onions rested where it had fallen, I assumed from my travel companion.  When I caught up with the onion semi, somewhere in Missouri, I wasn't surprised.  Somewhere between St Louis and Indiana, the truck vanished.  Where did the onions end up? Felt like warning someone, somewhere that the onions are coming, the onions are coming!!!

While all those onions set me to thinking about grilled onions--I thought of that a lot, it was also noted that no one needs to cart onions over all those miles.  Don't know where they started out or where they were headed, but onions grow most everywhere, so all that transport is pretty ridiculous.  In the US, there is a lot of traipsing produce from coast to coast.  The day will arrive when that will be seen as a waste of fuel.  Food security will need to be closer to home.

A couple years ago, I marveled as then one year old Isla crawled between rows of green beans and cherry tomatoes in the front yard---that is where the sun is---picking and eating fresh produce.  At her young age---still with no vocabulary and no word for food---she knew where food comes from.  The front yard, don't ya' know!!

Carrying this food theme further, I'd like you to know that food production is going on at the Vermont State Capitol grounds.  Cara tells me it is free for the taking---should you need that---and that there is a group in Vermont planting similar plots on corporate grounds, too.  What is not harvested by those in need is harvested for them and taken to food banks.  Vermonters walk their talk!

And when I asked Cara where I might find Whole Foods (I know that isn't politically correct, but I am accustomed to shopping there), I expected her to say in Burlington---about 50 minutes away.  Her answer was, "there are none in Vermont."  I googled that and did find it is true.  Haven't seen a Starbucks yet, either!  And Montpelier has no fast food establishments (which I do not frequent)---as far as I can see.  Again, Vermonters walk their talk.  No wonder it is considered the healthiest state.

Carrying further on the theme of food.  I have actually witnessed Cara biking off to the Food Co-op.  Arriving by bike, she is given an extra 5% off her grocery bill.  Cara's family lives up hill from the co-op---way up hill; just so you can get the full picture.

I will soon share more from the 2,400 mile road trip and my first couple weeks here.

Ciao, Elizabeth



Monday, May 21, 2012

Force of Nature

Something subtle, but noticeable, about forces of nature is the giving, giving, giving nature of these forces.  Water, light, heat, air move out from concentrations to dissolution...nothing left un-given.  Water your tomato plant and the water doesn't stay there around this one plant, but moves out through the garden and continues to spread until it reaches the farthest it can.  Heat from the fireplace or campfire does the same.  The light from that campfire, the same.  Ever notice how the dark of night rings the campfire's reach......light goes as far as it can, gives all it has and meets the edge of night.

Science calls this running out of juice, the second law of thermodymamics, the law of entropy....spent, finished, kaput.  Sounds kind of negative.  Is it possible that we are missing the benevolent nature of this spreading out as far as possible.  Serving completely, giving freely.  What a model for humanity and community this is.

Somehow we see in society an awful lot of sucking all resources from the farthest reaches---all the little guys---to concentrate where the few get most.  What is that about?  Certainly not benevolence or spreading out the resources to the full community.  And looking at what happened in Joplin, Missouri a year ago.......the sucking of a natural force in the other direction, from dissolution to concentration, into a whirlwind of air that destroyed a town and took 160 lives, the lesson of what happens when things go in the wrong direction is clear.

Looking at the forces of nature, you can't help but learn that benevolence is the way to go.


Sunday, April 22, 2012

EARTH DAY---what is greening up in you?

Along the way in Bear Canyon today, a question appeared, "What is 'greening-up' in you right now?"  Spring has come and gone and returned a few times this year.  Now it seems in earnest.  The wildly divergent 'greens' I see these past few days, must have stimulated the question.  It is a good one to ask.

What shows up along side this question is, "What are you nourishing right now?"  That brought me up short.  Am I nourishing what is healthy and progressive for me?  Is what is greening up healthy new growth or is it a growth which seeks to keep things as they have always been?  It all seems to boil down to what is it that increases my engagement in life; even if it is new and different from years past.  Questioning the way things have always been seems appropriate.  This is a gift of spring.

So what_is_greening up in me right now?  It seems to require deeper honesty, more playfulness and a willingness to let go of making big plans.  God shows up, after all, in the unexpected.  So, how do I find a balance of taking action toward desires and then letting it all flow.......releasing all expectations?  Daily experiences of emotional contentment---several a day actually---help me.  Noticing what shows up and how I feel are big clues.  Clues to what is greening up and what I am nourishing.

If this is a good question for you, too....consider sharing here a bit of what you see and feel.  We can be good for each other by gardening each others hearts.  So what is greening up for you?  Leave a comment if you like.  HAPPY EARTH DAY!

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Minimalist Sanctuary Garden wins 2011 NMASLA Award

Winter meant much time out of Santa Fe for me; announcing this garden winner went by the sidelines.  In December 2011, the New Mexico Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects honored the "Baker" garden with a merit award.

Somewhat Zen inspired, this small yard was transformed from a rough patch of weeds and dirt to this clean, minimalist, multi-use space which includes an in-ground spa with rolled stainless steel rail, custom designed furnishings (granite and steel table, six ipe wood and iron stools, two ipe benches and Cherry wood and stainless steel cook unit), plantings and river rock pool with Aspen trees.  The spa decking is stamped and artfully stained concrete.  A fiber optic cord illuminates the spa edge.

The space benefits from an old coyote fence with neighboring, historic, corrugated roof peering over.  This garden measures no more than 17' x 20' and yet accomplishes much for the homeowner.  It has become a place to work, meditate, relax, read, cook, entertain, star-gaze and more.  Very private and quiet, though steps away from the epicenter of the Railyard.

The garden won a Western Garden Award in 2005 from Sunset Magazine---where a Juror described it as a "brilliant manipulation of a very small space."

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Mud Season in Santa Fe

A couple days ago, snow frosted all plants, buildings and sculptural art works along Canyon Road; it was like walking into the scene inside a sugar Easter egg.  Oddly the pavement was clear---evidence of warmth releasing from Earth's heart beneath Santa Fe from several warm days before this mid-spring 'winter'.

Having already adjusted to spring, donning the scarf, boots and gloves again felt like a few steps backward---except that it was so pure and delightful to walk the loop from Garcia to Acequia Madre to Canyon Road and see this gentle (AND THANKFULLY MOIST) icing on a beautiful dessert.  New landscaping and gardens had begun and were in pause-mode while we all smiled at the gift of the great garden cake decorator, Mother Nature.

Along this walk, are two sculpted bears in a perpetual, nested together, nap in front of Sage Creek Gallery.  These bears, like a huge twin bear fetish, always make me smile----on April 3rd, covered in their snowy blanket, I laughed out loud.  Imagining them cavorting in the night up and down Canyon Road, they now rested together in their heart-centered garden room.  Such stories seed the most endearing landscape and garden designs----the things that open our hearts also open the garden gate.

Mid-spring snows at 7,000 ft of altitude can be a game changer.  Sometimes the snow acts as insulation, keeping the buds from a hard freeze, sometimes not.  Many of the trees flowering for fruits later in the season were in bloom.  Time will tell whether this snow event will sap a bit of that vitality, reducing or eliminating the production of apricots and other delicacies.  Perhaps the Goddess brought this weather adjustment due to how terribly dry we are and the need for moisture to get those fruits to market may just not be in the offing this year.  She does know best.

So Santa Fe is in mud season.....it will likely last until the weekend.  ; =