Farmers’ market musings

WB: It’s a good fire, Mary.
MK: Thank you. Can I get you a Kentucky Bourbon? Or would you
like something from my neighbors? Hafner Chardonnay? Vyborny
Cabernet?
WB: Something made by your neighbors- that would satisfy me. How
do you happen to have Kentucky Bourbon in your larder?
MK: My grandfather was from the Ohio River Valley, so I keep it
for my mom when she visits. You remind me of my Grandfather. There
was a big disconnect with his roots in the Great Depression. Now,
in this time of what Thomas Friedman calls the “Great Disruption,”
I’m thinking more and more of those roots. He played the harmonica;
his mother played the piano by ear. I started playing the piano
today; no electricity required.
WB: I think the Great Disruption has made a lot of people pause
and reconsider the direction of their lives.
MK: I’m glad you are here. I was listening to NPR yesterday, and
I heard things that made me feel like that pause wasn’t making
enough of a difference. I heard a lady say that over the last
decade she is looking into more and more screens. She and her
husband took a vow to turn off the computer, the cell phone, and
all other work related technology by 8 p.m. And then to relax … she
watches TV. I heard someone say that Reality TV was number one in
2009. Who has time for TV when you are living reality? Then I heard
a man say that bottled water was the beverage of the decade.
Bottled water! My sister told me that the wealthiest woman in China
is one who has figured out how to recycle disposed plastic from
America and turn it into products “Made in China”, that are later
shipped back to America and sold to us. Is that crazy?
WB: (long pause) At least it’s a nod. It takes time for people
to connect all the dots. I find the most maddening situation is
that we, as a people, aren’t willing to pay for the true value of
food. Our system is set up to barely pay the farmer for production,
but what about the maintenance, the durability of the farm. That
makes it difficult for farmers to stay with, and truly care for,
their land.
MK: Maybe I should just focus on that one big issue…after all,
that is what our Farmers’ Market is all about…but I’m interested in
so many things. You don’t use a computer, do you?
WB: No I do not.
MK: I thought so. That’s why I didn’t try to email you, to ask
your permission for writing about this imaginary conversation. I
could have written a letter; I hope you don’t mind. You know what
else is crazy? Toting a tote bag as “Green” when it was made from
fossil fuel produced plastic in America, shipped to China to be
turned into a “Made in China” tote bag, and then shipped back to
America using even more fossil fuels. There is a lot of that “Green
Washing” going on now. What would you use for toting groceries?
WB: Your Farmers’ Market canvas totes are good, and durable.
Made in America, that makes it more expensive, than the “Made in
China” bags, doesn’t it? We subsidize the oil industry so we can
ship things all around the world and that undercuts the cost of
good quality made here at home. What about baskets? Weren’t the
original people of this area famous for their baskets?
MK: That reminds me of a story Alan Foppiano told me. He
remembers standing near Dry Creek with an old couple who were
Pomos…but I am already over the word limit for this column….another
time.
WB: You have what Aldo Leopold would call “A Sense of Place.” It
does take time to notice and ponder and write about all that you
see and love, doesn’t it? (Pause) What’s your New Year’s
resolution, Mary?
MK: Peace. In my heart. I am tired of being angry, being afraid
for the planet. I want to be informed, and informing, without being
alarmed and alarming. It takes a lot of determination to remain
cheerful and avoid being a ranting Mad Woman. My friend Patty Ford
reminds me to take my anger to the Altar, and it works. These
columns appear a little less angry by Monday morning when I send
them off to Kerrie. I have you to thank for that.
WB: I have given a considerable amount of thought to the value
of the Sabbath.
MK: …and Grace before a meal…it’s important to pause, isn’t it?
A friend gave me a volume of your “Mad Farmer” poems for Christmas.
She gave me “The Unsettling of America” when I graduated from
College.
WB: So you know that it is possible to be a Mad Farmer and have
enduring friendships and good conversation with a new friend by the
fire in the evening. Like Thomas Merton, maybe a dose of anger is
fuel for your fire. Shall I bring in another log, Mary?
MK: Yes please do. We have a lot to talk about in this New
Year.
Note: Wendell Berry is alive and well in Kentucky. Only his
volumes of prose and poetry were in my presence as this
conversation occurred in my imagination before a good fire on New
Year’s Day. Our durable Farmers’ Market is taking a pause until May
1st.
Mary Kelley is the manager of the Healdsburg Farmers’ Market.
The market is dormant for the winter.