We may be in strawberry heaven right now, but the season for the fruits only lasts about a month. By the time our melons and other summer fruits start ripening, the only strawberries around will be the boxed-up, trucked-in grocery store variety. I do buy grocery store strawberries, and I know I will in the future, but they really can't compare. There's really something a bit poetic and lovely about having such a fleeting time to totally indulge in these beauties until you're sick of them...and then they're gone until next year. Reflecting on strawberries also got me thinking about my time here in Vermont: it feels beautiful and indulgent to get to partake in such an awesome experience, and I'm overwhelmed every day by the abundance of all I'm learning and experiencing. I know my time here is short, so I'm trying to make the most of it.
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| Strawberry fields forever |
Last week, the FTP got to participate in the UVM Food Systems Summit. In its fourth year, this year's theme was "The Right to Food: Power, Policy, and Politics in the 21st Century." We heard from some incredible speakers--particularly human rights lawyer and advocate Smita Narula and food systems activist Raj Patel--who outlined the injustices in our national and global food system and the links between food sovereignty, chronic hunger, and food insecurity. It was an overwhelming two days and spawned lots of discussion among our group. Creating an equitable and just food system is, I think, going to require a complete overhaul of our social, economic, and political systems, and it's very easy to feel like I'm not doing enough. However, I came to this program precisely so I would have the tools to advocate for a better food system--for farmers and consumers. In the days since the food summit, I continue to feel so inspired (and, yes, overwhelmed) by the conversations I've had with my classmates and instructors. It's given me a lot to think about, and reaffirmed for me that this is a cause I could happily devote my life to.
I had an opportunity to practice what I preach just days after the summit: last Saturday, I joined local advocacy organization Migrant Justice for a march for the Milk with Dignity campaign, which is fighting for fair working and living conditions for migrant dairy farmers in Vermont. We marched to Ben & Jerry's to encourage them, as a socially conscious company and major buyer of Vermont dairy, to put pressure on their suppliers to improve working conditions for their laborers. It felt good to take action after getting fired up at the summit--plus I can't resist a good protest. :)
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Farm life is in full summer swing, with planting, weeding (lots of weeding), and harvesting. We students are slowly taking on more management of the farm, leading our weekly farm walks and reporting back to our instructors with our priority list. On my rotation last week at Intervale Community Farm, we harvested arugula and zucchini for their CSA members. Plus, I got to use my new favorite farm tool: the waterwheel transplanter. Basically, it's a tractor implement that consists of two chairs on the back of the tractor, trays to hold flats of transplants, and a waterwheel that punches rows of holes and fills them with water. The two people sitting behind the tractor drop the transplants into the resulting mud puddle. It's so much faster than transplanting everything by hand (which is what we do on the UVM farm), but it is a wee bit stressful when you're trying to get transplants in the ground as fast as you can. When I took my turn, I felt exactly like I Love Lucy wrapping candies on the chocolate conveyer belt. Even so, it was a blast!
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| A demo of the waterwheel tractor |
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| Lake Champlain sunset |
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