OMG this butternut squash was amazing! . . . Why connecting to nature connects to people and motivates saving both
I wish I could put into words how delicious this squash is. Most people seem to think of squash as something you have to cook, but they taste sweet and delicious raw. As you can see, I dice them to put on cereal like any other fruit.
One thing making this one so special is that it was given to me from the crew who grew it at Drew Gardens in the Bronx. Everyone tells me people who don’t live where I do or look like I do can’t do exactly what they’re doing. Luckily nobody told them they’re powerless. It seems mostly rich, polluting people tell me that nonsense. I don’t think even they believe themselves. They just want to sleep better, claiming others are powerless because if they convince themselves they’re powerless they won’t feel guilty for polluting everyone’s world for their comfort and convenience.
But I wanted to post not to complain about them, but point out:
Nature is everywhere, including where you are.
The travel industry’s great victory is leading us to believe nature is elsewhere, somewhere else. Believing so helps their profits, but leads us to wreck where we are, then homogenize and wreck everywhere else. It makes us miserable not seeing the glory everywhere around us, potentially in every bite when we aren’t filling our maws with doof and in every breath when we don’t pollute our air.
The travel industry taught us to move flying distance from family. It taught businesses into having to compete with everyone everywhere all the time. So we’re lonely, isolated, anxious, and fearful.
We are a culture of people flying around world seeking nature elsewhere, moving away from family, fearful of losing our jobs. People sitting on beaches looking at social media pictures of other beaches wishing they were there. People not enjoying local food, wishing they were somewhere else eating a different local food.
Flying doesn’t make our world better. It deprives us of nature, family, and security.
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