Possible

Sunday was an unusually cool day for Philly events.  Bartram Garden's hosted a Honey Festival & GreenPhilly had a fair on South Street.  We hit the open fields of Bartram's first.  Kevin was hobbling around on a bruised up hip after having fallen skate-boarding in the middle of the night.  I kept forgetting to wait for his slow limping when I caught a glimpse of another hard to find native plant for sale or saw dripping scoops of Little Baby's Ice Cream.

We went to a demonstration of one of their hives.  I felt calm & comfortable until about a half hour in.  Then I was itchy & nervous.  It made me want to leave because my understanding is the bees sense this restlessness & become agitated themselves.  We walked a little away under an Osage Orange tree to relax.  Kevin asked, "How will we have bees?"  I thought about it, & responded, "There won't be a crowd & I'll have to work to stay calm."  

Our ultimate hope is for chickens & bees in our small backyard farm, but we both think it's wisest to wait.  For one, we want to be sure none of our neighbors have severe allergies.  Also, we'll have to push the township to change some of their codes.  But all things seem possible.

An awesome friend, Mike, sent Kevin & I Helen & Scott Nearing's, "The Good Life."  The authors were Lefty school teachers in NYC in the 1930s.  Watching the financial meltdown that lead to the Great Depression, & growing fascist strains internationally, they methodically began considering an alternative life.  Ultimately, they elected to become as self-sufficient as possible in the wilds of Vermont.  

You should read the book.  Especially if you're curious about how they arrived at this conclusion-- read the book.  The early pages gripped me immediately.  This book was intended for Kevin & he hasn't gotten a whiff of it yet.  Reading their description of the financial crisis feels incredibly current.  Change a few names & their analysis of global unrest is pertinent.  Not only were they radicals, environmentalists, but they were animal rights advocates who ate vegan & wouldn't have domesticated animals used on their land.  They composted!  They had a composting toilet!  At each chapter head they quote their inspirations-- most of the authors cited wrote centuries ago.

I feel so uplifted orienting myself in this way.  They quote authors from the 1500s questioning common diet & urging the reader towards whole fruits & vegetables for optimal health.  They quote vegetarians advocating for animals centuries ago!  

This reading evokes so many responses within me-- one, I consider my own grandparents who were so formed by the Great Depression.  In some ways, I always deeply respected how this had oriented them.  They were frugal & cautious.  Realizing that I've come of age in a time of uncertainty, in some ways I'm grateful for that shifted perspective.  Like the Nearings I don't feel secure linking all my earnings to a single career, or stocks, or many other prescribed methods of financial health-- no more than I feel physically healthy by relying solely on pharmaceutical medication.  I feel increasingly secure linking my physical & financial security to land. 

What I mean by this is I'm trying to diversify my skills & my sources of sustenance.  I work jobs for money (because the mortgage company doesn't barter) but I'm also learning to grow more food so I have to buy less.  When I had strep throat last spring I went to a doctor & took antibiotics.  However, as often as possible I try to practice preventative medicine in the form of a healthy, plant-based diet & active lifestyle.  I try to be outside often for my physical health and mental well-being.

So much of this is unfamiliar to me.  However, all things are possible.

The Nearings began living this way when they were in their 50s!  They learned on the ground as well.  They write extensively about building in stone.  They found it creatively satisfying, physically demanding, & beneficial towards each individual project.  They encourage the reader to begin developing habits that will enable each of us to build in stone.  During the description of one project, a stone garden wall they built in Maine, they casually mentioned that it took twelve years to finish!  & that at it's finish Scott was almost 90!  

I freaking love it.  I love that my timeline can be expansive.  I love that this reminds me to reset my expectations.  I love that this reminds me to use my whole life to pursue the life that feels worthwhile.  & I love that I can potentially be vibrant, active, & engaged until I move back to soil.

I think Kevin & I can have chickens and bees.  As long as we move steadily & attentively, we're creating the possibility.  If we tried to plow through, hurry & install chicken coops, we could easily be cited by the township, be embroiled in a big, discouraging battle, & ultimately give up the entire project.  Nope.  I want to be 90, tending my bees, building my stone wall.