issue no. 776

MAYBE YOU NOTICED . . .

that the ills in this world don’t just magically disappear if we pretend that they don’t exist. What many assumed were issues ‘far away’ continue to show up literally closer to home - at the airports, in your neighborhood, in your pocketbook. And while we don’t like to think that it takes inconvenience, sacrifice, and personal pain for people to wake up or speak up, we do hope that the realities will open more eyes and hearts to more healthful and human paths forward.

Which leads me to my experience since I penned my last newsletter two weeks ago. Megan Leatherman publishes her weekly newsletter at the exact same time as ours (every Tuesday at 12 PM eastern time for us, to her 9 AM pacific time). This particular edition introduced the last podcast she produced in a 5-part series this Winter about messages she received from the ocean. I recommend going back to the beginning and listening to all five episodes (162 - 166) , which hold inherent wisdom needed for these times. In short, in a world of overwhelm, where the dire nature of the news, and the realities of the unsustainable systems of late-stage capitalism continue to tighten their grip, the practices and messages held within the last episode, ‘ We Do It For Joy ,’ felt so powerful.

And they felt powerful because they are powerful. They recalibrate us to the ways that our ancestors increased their capacity, quite literally grounding themselves in the energy of the Earth. Their ability to confront the challenges, with the support of the life force inherent in this web of being, opened them up to the joys all around.

Over the last two weeks, I experienced that power first hand, because the deep knowing planted a seed in my brain, my body, and my spirit. As a result, the universe put so many instances of joy, gratitude, and appreciation in my path. Instead of feeling numbed with overwhelm, I was particularly attuned to each experience that lit me up. What we give our energy to matters.

This, of course, does not mean disregarding suffering or ignoring real issues - on the contrary, it opened us up to the potential power of grounding ourselves in the midst of discomfort and conflict.

One example of such conflict was in response to last week’s newsletter . While many people (particularly job seekers) applaud our efforts to move toward a livable wage for all, there are others (namely small business owners, including farmers) who feel the crippling weight of having to fix issues that the system creates. The short of it is, for many small farmers - and small food businesses - the numbers don’t add up right now. As the costs to produce their products with care continue to rise - everything from utilities, rent, health insurance, shipping, and ingredients, just to name a few - employers alone can’t cover the cost of increasing pay, while also making less profit than ever.

Many have taken to naturally raise the price of what they sell - not to increase profit, but simply to cover production cost. Yet with everyone’s dollar getting less mileage these days, it also causes a string of other issues - such as reduced traffic and sales, as well as judgement from folks who assume they are marketing only to the wealthy. For many small-scale producers - the kind you want to see and support because they make something special - they will never reach the kind of scale that would rake in big corporate profits or allow them to have ‘loss leaders’.

So when we received an email expressing frustration at our $15/hour minimum wage policy, and our naming of the inequities and dangers that can be exacerbated by H-2A visas, our initial impulse was defensiveness. But the practice of looking out for joy stopped us in our tracks. Our capacity to experience joy also expands our capacity to sit in discomfort, to recognize that the pressure a farmer feels is not the same as one that we experience, but is similar nonetheless. And that instead of wasting our energy being angry at each other, internalizing these structural support failures, we could channel our energy into listening and concentrating on coming up with solutions to the system-level issues.

Before we fired off a response, we paused and used it as an opportunity for connection. We reached out to a few friends who work at and / or run small businesses, and we asked questions about the challenges everyone is facing.

It turns out, we are all feeling the accumulated stress - one where the systems require us to be going FULL STEAM AHEAD just to stay afloat, moving us in a direction we don’t even want to be heading.

And in those moments, there were more seeds planted, more ideas taking shape, more strands cast in a web of support that feels vital to us building the type of future we want to live in. None of it would have been possible without joy, love, and connection.

There is still so much work to do, yet every time we ground our nervous system long enough to sit in the discomfort, we build capacity to be able to resolve conflict and come up with solutions. To vulnerably express our hardships, listen to each other, share ideas and resources, and uplift each other, tackling one challenge at a time, together.

We always say: the only way out is through, and the only way through is together. We are here for it, and hope that you will join us.

In reciprocity,

Tay + Dor

tidbits...

resources on anti-racism, environmentalism and food culture AKA stuff we’re reading / listening to / watching / noticing / thinking about / captivated by this Tuesday . . .

Do One Small Thing . . . Last week’s newsletter sparked some though provoking critiques that cause us to ask for comments: What is one thing that you are personally struggling with that is rooted in a systemic issue? It can be something that shows up in your workplace, your relationships, or otherwise.

Megan Leatherman’s recent newsletter on humble folk magic for dire times and podcast entitled We Do It For Joy inspired this edition of our newsletter, reminding us of the reasons for being on this Earth, in this body, at this time.

Nadia Gilbert imparting the wisdom ‘ when you receive an idea or inspiration, and the idea of creating it fills your body with joy and aliveness, you must act toward it ’.

Herban Cura curates yet another magical zine - this one focused on Pleasure Plants . If you prefer the spoken word to the written, then join the contributors TONIGHT (Tuesday March 24th) at a virtual gathering honoring sensuality through plant connections.

The only constant in this world is conflict, but we need not fear the inevitable challenges that will surface. Join The Erotics of Liberation on Saturday March 28th (or via the recorded class if you can’t make it in real time) for their workshop We Can’t Be Abolitionist and Conflict Avoidant to learn the somatic skills to work through things together. Let freedom be something you no longer wait for, but participate in.

Foxtrot Farm & Flowers bringing joy in the form of a Dahlia Festival . Not just your average plants sale, this event will highlight tubers from a variety of growers, as well as insight on dahlia breeding history.

Little Rico sharing some truths - this winter has been a particularly harsh one for so many small food businesses . With costs up, sales down and greater income disparity overall it requires folks who have more to pitch in where they can to keep the small businesses that make our communities special to thrive. We do not have to (and quite frankly, we literally can’t) carry the burdens of these system alone.

Once again Adam Wilson intrigues us with his ‘outside of the box’ ideas - this one related to the publishing of his upcoming book This Food Is a Gift .

Priya Parker continues to delight and inspire us by crowdsourcing ideas to gather and celebrate .

Dor has always been a Writer. Check out her soul work at What the Wolf Wore and get ready for her forthcoming book , which comes out on June 9th.

View and share this free guide to How to Write a More Equitable Job Post , and stay tuned for new resources to deepen this work.

" Plenty has been written about the economic impact of the pandemic on the food industry, but not enough about its lingering effects on the bodies of people whose mission is to nourish us. " Read the latest GFJ Story on the creator behind Anjali's Cup, with words by Nicole J. Caruth and photos by Christine Han.

got a tidbit? drop it here for us and we’ll share it in next week’s newsletter.