I thought that the food distribution last Saturday had a pretty good turn out, and I was glad I joined in the fun (however, my back was telling me the next day, that I should not have unloaded that truck with quite so much enthusiasm.) The thing that sort of bummed me about the food, was that most of it was not "staple food" (yes, we had onions and potatoes, but caramel apple dip, BBQ sauce, Slimfast, and whipping cream?). Kathy looked at all of it, shook her head, and said, "Look at all that sugar going out the door". I know that Rik & Heather's neighbors were really excited about what arrived at their door, (which makes me happy), and I realize that free food is always good, and better than letting it all go to the landfill, but in general, I guess I was hoping to see a bit more nutritious fare being offered.
I got to thinking that a community garden on the plot of land north of the parking lot might be a good way to plug some good solid food into the monthly distributions, (and get to know the neighborhood). Bags of beans, corn, and tomatoes would be a welcome addition to packaged food that Gleaners brings in. (I was told that they do have more of the fresh stuff come summer, so we'll see). Still, I wonder what people would do if we tilled up available land around the church, and offered our local neighbors an opportunity to claim an assigned area to plant vegetables. Maybe we could even offer seeds, and offer to help plant and/or water, if they would do the weeding and harvesting. It would give those apartment dwellers a chance for some free, fresh produce, and we'd have a chance to work alongside them, and get to know them.
We have a lot of open land around our building, and it all just sits there, and has to be mowed during the summer months. Why not put some of it to good use? We have a good share of gardeners within the church family who would be a valuable resource of knowledge for any first time gardeners, and we have home gardens with strawberries and raspberries that could be transplanted to the church plot for future harvesting for the neighborhood.
Wouldn't it be fascinating to see a church landscaped with vegetables and fruits? (Hey...watch your step as you enter for worship, those cucumbers have kind of grown over the sidewalk).
Just a thought..
;-)
Reveling in the Freedom of Truth (#940)
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During Wayne and Sara's recent stay in Austin, he sat down to catch-up with
a good friend, an occasional guest...
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6 days ago
3 comments:
That is a fabulous idea! I would love to help out in this as I'm sure others would as well, (I LOVE to garden) but we would need someone to take charge and get things rolling. So how about it? And because when you post on the main page-your name shows as ournewchurch, we don't know who you are! :0) And I know there was sugar there but I actually heard two of the families say that we had great food that day. Thanks for posting!
I didn't sign my name, as my post was intended to simply get people thinking about using some of the resources we already have in place. If we ever decide to move ahead on this idea, it would take a group effort, (lots of planning involved; soil preparation, plot planning and advertising in the neighborhood). I am not sure what current plans are in place for the eventual church launch, and I don't want to get in the way of that by initiating a project that will take a lot of people's time and effort, and perhaps pull efforts away from any plans that are already in place. If the core group gets excited about this idea, our neighbors seem interested, and people decide to give it a go, I am willing to be a part of that effort. -- Sue
I think it's an awesome idea. And while it seems things are moving very slowly, I'm sure God is in this. I'm trying to be patient. To hang in there. :0) But we miss you and others. :0) I do hope you continue to share with us your thoughts and ideas and especially your encouragement and prayers.
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