As we prepare for what the fast-approaching growing season will bring, it is helpful to remind ourselves of how much the holiday season gave us to be grateful for. A unique gift we received from EarthDance supporters, Ulrike and Tom Schlafly: inclusion in their 2014 Christmas card. The reactions of staff made it clear how warmed our hearts were by this gesture–even to call it a “gesture” fails to encapsulate how special this was.
The card featured an original poem, a human narrative of 2014 in rhyming verse, which captured the scope of both local and global-scale tragedies. As we know, what happened in Ferguson became both. EarthDance is honored and humbled to have been recognized as a source of hope for Ferguson residents throughout the tumult they have faced, and we will continue striving to empower our community as it continues to heal and rebuild. It is a privilege to spread peace, justice, and joy through connecting people to the land. Thank you, Ulrike and Tom, for reminding all of us that this connection is rooted in growing community.
While Obama pledged to halt
Corporate inversion,
No one halted Putin’s
Ukranian incursion.
Inversion is a way
To minimize taxation.
Incursion (or invasion)
Led to annexation.
While Putin banished critics
To languish in Siberia,
The dread Ebola virus
Spread throughout Liberia.
On the streets of Hong Kong
There were demonstrations.
Close to home, in Ferguson,
There were confrontations.
Also here in Ferguson,
Not shown on TV screens,
At EarthDance Farms we harvested
Chard and collard greens.
With members of The Garden Club
We harvested by hand
With dirt beneath our fingernails,
Connecting with the land.
Schlafly Beer became
Even better known
When we did a tasting
On TV in Cologne.
At the German Embassy
On German Unity Day
Schlafly was the only beer
From the USA.
Although there seems to be a state of constant crisis
From natural disasters
To grisly deeds by ISIS,
At EarthDance Farms and elsewhere
Seeds are being sown;
Vegetables and fruits
And hope are being grown.
Gardens hold the promise
Of spiritual rebirth.
Our gardens can provide
Peace on–and from–the earth.