Before any light is shed on the situation – there’s complete darkness. Now imagine no breath. Your only connection to anything is a gradual soaking up of water. Bit by bit, pore by pore, water comes in, filling every nook and cranny with the potential for full, vibrant life. This water then essentially flips a switch, a small light turns on, respiration begins. As this water continues to flow in, pore by pore, the pressure inside swells, more and more, until the unbearable moment when all of the prayers from the earth and sky couldn’t change the course – a hugely relieving split – a crack, as the containment of all that was finally breaks open, revealing the centre of this respirating tiny pulse to air, water and mineral.
If the initial shock of the entire universe as you know it splitting open wasn’t enough, a probing root starts tunnelling, down. Down and down, with minuscule root hairs protruding from its edges all around. Like tiny arms, these root hairs grasp for grip, nourishment, and someone else to make this whole unfathomable experience that is occurring seem a little less lonely.
Another direction of growth emerges, with the sure, steady and unstoppable momentum of twenty freight trains, up, up, and THROUGH! And now, without one ounce of doubt, because, in reality, this is the only imaginable next step, you spread your primary photovoltaic surfaces and begin to drink, in a way you never have before, all of the golden glory of information and sustenance – the pure prana that is sunlight.
And this is where I have to stop. I would love to keep going, but this moment of first photosynthesis is unlike anything any human can even fathom experiencing.
Oh, well, lets try….
Imagine, from this cosmic ray collecting succulent surface you now feel a little trickle of awakened life, which tastes almost like tears or maybe the loose mucous you can taste after thoroughly weeping your heart out. It infiltrates every cell of your being with a very clear message from the sun – a message so validating, so true and so resonating that it wipes clean the unimaginable and numbing oblivion of life before you ever started that first swelling with water. It all suddenly makes so much sense – the closest word to describe this would be the essence of what we mean by Gratitude.
Its easy to get carried away by the world of plants. Our silent allies, always listening, and so often willing to share as well, if only they could be certain that we’ll listen.
This is one of the reasons I love what I do. I love working with plants. I also love good food. I love living with a kitchen that uses whole, fresh ingredients that have unique flavour and change as the weather and as the seasons change.
I love seasoning with fresh herbs. I love pairing cooked roots with meat and eggs from the farm, and I love fresh succulent salad greens that reflect the weather we’ve had, and where we are in the season.
This is why I offer Community Shared Agriculture. Its amazing what a diversity of high quality vegetables and herbs can do – the zest it can bring to meals, and life in general. By building a community with others who value fresh, novel flavours, and the good that ripples out from these foods, I get to do what I love to do – grow delicious nutritious food for families to enjoy locally.
In exchange for a commitment of support, which includes a financial commitment, ahead of the growing season, my CSA members embark upon a journey. Farming is risky and every season is different. Rather than completely walk this risk alone, I am heartened to share it with a small community of people who really seem to get it. They get that there are fewer and fewer farmers each year and most of them understand that this is because farming can be a tough way to make a life. Uncertain weather, and resulting pest infestations, as well as and a food system, propped up by poor policy and a kind of long, drawn out cultural decay that has degraded the value of food to the lowest possible designation, resorting to uncecessary pollution and exploitation to maintain artificially low prices – all of these factors could be seen as reasons not to get into farming.
But I’m not alone – the risk is shared. And losses have occurred. Hot and dry weather makes hard growing for crops that have small root systems. Such was the case for onions last year and as a result, yields here were down at least 30%. But other crops, like lettuce, tomatoes and carrots, each with more robust roots, thrived. That is part of the beauty of CSA. There is such a diversity of crops being grown, that in the event of one or two not working out so well, others can step in to ensure weekly shares stay full and diverse.
I am not about to say that CSA shares are for everyone, but if you are interested in closing the gap between your dinner plate and where you food comes from, or if you’d like to invest in a super fresh diversity of flavours, I would highly recommend signing up for a share. I’ve laid out all the details about the program I offer here. Further questions? I’m happy to answer – you can reach me from my contact page.
Thanks for reading, and here are a few comments that reflect how others feel about Kolapore Gardens CSA program – these comments aren’t posted to brag or boast, but to try to exemplify what many are experiencing having participated in the CSA.
~Mike
“Joining Kolapore Gardens was one of the best food decisions we have ever made. Fresh, delicious, healthy food, grown close to home – and it comes with cooking ideas, food education and free smiles! Thanks, Mike.”
~Sue H
“So happy that we are CSA members from the beginning. The produce is excellent, very varied and offers new delicacies for the taste buds; fresh makes all the difference for upping the cooking skills. Look forward to next summer season. Happy spring planting.”
~Christine R
“I appreciate all that you do to put such tasty fresh food on my table”
~Wendy E
“Thanks so much, Mike. We really enjoyed the great food and we tried so many new recipes which are now part of our regular diet. We love it! All the best”
“We very much appreciate the wonderful produce! Looking forward to the winter shares. Great communication too.”
“We really appreciate all your hard work. Thank you!!”
“Can your program be more incredible!? Hugs”
“I really appreciate the quality and freshness of the vegetables you grow for us – and all your hard work!”
“Mike – if there’s ever a farmer that I would want growing my vegetables it would be you! You are so calm and nice. Thanks for making our summer eating a great experience. Looking forward to the winter to see what goodies you come up with. We are spreading the word around for you.”
“I love your veggies. Keep growing.”
“Great job, Mike. Thanks for helping us stay healthy!”
“Just want to say THANK YOU to you and the team for the fabulous veggies we got every week. I know it’s a lot of very hard work… We are very happy to be able to look forward to the winter shares! After this summer, the veggies in the regular stores look so poor, don’t even feel like buying them. Last week there were no shares, and I realized once more the incredible richness of the local organic food that you provide. We enjoy every bit”
“Keep up the excellent work.”
Kolapore Gardens 