{"id":244,"date":"2010-07-10T18:41:47","date_gmt":"2010-07-10T18:41:47","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2010-07-10T18:41:47","modified_gmt":"2010-07-10T18:41:47","slug":"agrarian-road-trip-part-four","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/centernet.pcusa.org\/food-faith\/agrarian-road-trip-part-four\/","title":{"rendered":"Agrarian Road Trip &#8211; Part Four."},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_935\" style=\"width: 418px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/blain-at-gather-round.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-0\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-935 \" height=\"306\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"blain at gather round\" width=\"408\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">At Gather Round Gardens. Note: Billboard &#8211; from radioactivity to peace.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Changing Diapers \u2013 or the Politics of Urban Agriculture:<\/strong><\/h1>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">the Agrarian Tour through Ohio<\/h2>\n<p>In the Ohio chapter of our travels, we \u2013 <span style=\"color: #000080;\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/presbyterian.typepad.com\/foodandfaith\/\"><em><strong>Agrarian Road Trippers<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/span><\/span><br \/>\n\u2013 transitioned from the rural to the urban visiting and trading stories<br \/>\nwith many agrarian minded folks growing goodness in Ohio.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Day Seven<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">From the winding roads of West Virginia we<br \/>\ntraveled to northeast Ohio. We pulled our caravan into a greenhouse<br \/>\nnursery and mail-order seed distributor turned church, called <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cgnl.net\/\">Common Ground Church Community<\/a><br \/>\nlocated in North Lima, OH. We unpacked our belongings then settled into<br \/>\nthe sanctuary for an evening of agrarian theology and sing-a-long song<br \/>\nsharing.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 353px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" height=\"516\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"three sisters\" width=\"343\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Three Sisters Garden.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>First things first. Greg Bowman, formerly of the<em><strong> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rodaleinstitute.org\/\">Rodale Institute<\/a><\/strong><\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rodaleinstitute.org\/\">,<\/a> shared with us what I will call the Theology of the Three Sisters. The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.motherearthnews.com\/Nature-Community\/2001-02-01\/The-Three-Sisters.aspx\"><em><strong>Three Sisters<\/strong><\/em> <\/a>growing method (<em>milpa<\/em>)<br \/>\noriginated in the Andes and in scattered indigenous communities<br \/>\nthroughout the Americas. The Three Sisters are corn, beans and squash \u2013<br \/>\nrelated because of their beneficial interactions providing a natural<br \/>\nhabitat for little critters and a complementary nutrient give-and-take<br \/>\nwith the soil. Corn provides a trellis for vining beans to climb, as<br \/>\nwell as protection from the sun for smaller plants and animals. Beans<br \/>\nfix nitrogen from the air (complementing the heavy nitrogen-feeder<br \/>\ncorn). Squash sprawls the ground acting as a living mulch for water<br \/>\nretention and weed suppression. Now compare this to a mono-cropped<br \/>\nfield of corn \u2013 exposed soil, neat rows, minimal water retention,<br \/>\nnutrient depletion.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">How does this all relate to theology? Just<br \/>\nlike the Three Sisters, we work\/live\/pray better together than as<br \/>\nindividual people. The mouth needs a hand to eat, like the corn needs<br \/>\nthe nitrogen fixed by the beans. As we grow food and appreciate the<br \/>\ncomplex relationship between soil and sun, fruit and flower, a spirit<br \/>\nof gratitude is cultivated within us. In our fast-paced, fast food<br \/>\nsociety, we are a people in search of gratification, often lacking in<br \/>\ngratitude for the complexity and beauty of life and food.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_936\" style=\"width: 367px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/pretty-flowers.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-1\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-936 \" height=\"267\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"pretty flowers\" width=\"357\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Where have all the flowers gone? To Cleveland.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>After a complex discussion about agriculture and theology, we needed<br \/>\na good sing-a-long. Guitars were plucked up from their cases. Congos<br \/>\nand djembes pulled out from their nooks and crannies. And so commenced<br \/>\nour own versions of <em><strong>\u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.org\/2010\/06\/30\/agrarian-road-trip-part-three\/\">Country Roads<\/a>\u201d<\/strong><\/em> and <em><strong>\u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=686sBxeUm14\" rel=\"lightbox-video-0\">Where Have All the Flowers Gone?<\/a>\u201d <\/strong><\/em><br \/>\nOur music leader specialized in James Taylor \u2013 so, as you may well be<br \/>\nable to tell, our song list was confined to hippie-era music.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Day Eight:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_934\" style=\"width: 403px;\"><strong><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/skyview-of-goodness-grows.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-2\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-934 \" height=\"294\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"skyview of goodness grows\" width=\"393\" \/><\/a><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aerial view of the Goodness Grows Farm.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong> <\/strong>The next morning \u2013 a Sunday \u2013 we woke to wonderful<br \/>\nhospitality and a continental breakfast provided by the folks of Common<br \/>\nGround Church Community, followed by a tour of their partner program, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.goodnessgrows.net\/index.htm\"><em><strong>Goodness Grows<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<br \/>\nPastor Steve Fortenberry stressed his strong belief in the church as a<br \/>\nmulti-purpose site, to partner with other community groups and people.<br \/>\nSeeing as CGCC is located in an old seed shop and greenhouse, these<br \/>\nfolks saw it fit to start growing gardens \u2013 now expanded to 1-acre in<br \/>\nvegetable production. The week of our visit Goodness Grows was starting<br \/>\nits own <a href=\"http:\/\/www.localharvest.org\/csa\/\"><em><strong>Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) <\/strong><\/em><\/a>for<br \/>\n15 families. Goodness Grows has only one staff member and a rotating<br \/>\nschedule of college interns to maintain the gardens. Volunteers are<br \/>\nanother main source of labor, coming from the church, as well as a<br \/>\nspecial needs class and GED program in the community. Another special<br \/>\nresource for the farm is access to all the horse bedding and manure<br \/>\nfrom the county fair \u2013 the largest in the state of Ohio. Future plans<br \/>\ninclude refurbishing the many greenhouses on site for extended season<br \/>\ngrowing as well as aquaculture for heat and fish production, similar to<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.growingpower.org\/\"><em><strong>Growing Power<\/strong><\/em> <\/a>in Milwaukee, WI.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_933\" style=\"width: 310px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/greenhouse-seedlings-at-goodness-grows.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-3\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-933 \" height=\"225\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"greenhouse seedlings at goodness grows\" width=\"300\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Greenhouse seedlings at Goodness Grows.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>After worship, we had another round table discussion with Pastor<br \/>\nSteve, politically-connected Greg Harget from OH Governor Ted<br \/>\nStrickland\u2019s office, and prophetic farmer Maurice Small. Greg Harget<br \/>\nOhio Department of Agriculture but now works with Governor Strickland\u2019s<br \/>\n<em><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/governor.ohio.gov\/Default.aspx?alias=governor.ohio.gov\/fbci\">Faith-based and Community Initiatives Program in Ohio<\/a>,<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\nwhich facilitates the state\u2019s summer feeding programs as well as<br \/>\nre-entry programs to strengthen the family. Maurice Small, on the other<br \/>\nhand, works outside of the conventional systems of institutional<br \/>\nagriculture and government. Maurice Small started a Cleveland-based<br \/>\norganization called <a href=\"http:\/\/cityfresh.org\/\"><em><strong>City Fresh<\/strong><\/em><\/a>,<br \/>\nexpanding access to food through urban agriculture. Because of the<br \/>\nsuccess of City Fresh in Cleveland, Maurice was invited to Youngstown,<br \/>\nOH to help invigorate new growing initiatives.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Itching to get outside, Maurice sped up<br \/>\nour conversation and we caravan-ed into Youngstown. We jump out of the<br \/>\nvan and are greeted with Maurice\u2019s first question: \u201cWhat is the murder<br \/>\nrate of the place you live? This is important. You don\u2019t know it, you<br \/>\ndon\u2019t know your people.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 471px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" height=\"346\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"Maurice - telling it like it is.\" width=\"461\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Maurice &#8211; telling it like it is.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Background on Youngstown: Former steel<br \/>\ntown. 80,000 people. 20,000 vacant lots. Worst school system in Ohio.<br \/>\nEnter Maurice Small, urban gardening pioneer. Maurice\u2019s mission is to<br \/>\nreclaim vacant lots \u2013 lots where abandoned houses have been torn down<br \/>\nor are still standing \u2013 and using reclaimed windows and boards from<br \/>\nthose houses and buildings, build raised garden beds. The first block<br \/>\nMaurice walks us through has 10 houses \u2013 only two of which have<br \/>\nresidents. This is a ghost town. Maurice shows us the foundation of a<br \/>\nhouse, crumbling and exposed \u2013 left vacant for 20-some years. Beyond<br \/>\nrepair. \u201cThey left [this city, these houses] . . . to my imagination.\u201d<br \/>\nLet me repeat that one more time: \u201cThey left this city . . . to my<br \/>\nimagination.\u201d Awesome.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_932\" style=\"width: 438px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/bethel-maurice-youngstown.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-4\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-932 \" height=\"320\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"bethel maurice youngstown\" width=\"428\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Maurice explaining what he&#39;ll reclaim from this house to build a garden.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">And his imagination envisions life and<br \/>\nfood, bountiful as the Garden of Eden. In addition to using reclaimed<br \/>\nmaterials, Maurice builds raised beds from straw bales, with composted<br \/>\nhorse manure as his soil The straw bales are great for two reasons: 1.<br \/>\nAs the straw bales break down, they become organic matter to enrich the<br \/>\nsoil, and 2. Straw bales provide a sitting area directly in the garden.<br \/>\nMaurice purchases the bales from a local farmer for $2.75, has horse<br \/>\nmanure gived from the county fair, and receives woodchip mulch and<br \/>\nwater from the city for free. He plants perennials and fruit trees and<br \/>\nenvisions the neighborhood children grabbing an apple on the way to<br \/>\nschool. He envisions neighborhood farm markets on garden property,<br \/>\nwhere eater and grower get to know one another.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 458px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" height=\"336\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"straw bale\" width=\"448\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Straw bale beds &#8211; with composted horse manure soil.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Besides building gardens, Maurice is all about building community.<br \/>\nWhile Maurice\u2019s visions are beautiful and inviting, he is adamant that<br \/>\npeople do not flock to the places romanticized for their poverty or<br \/>\ntheir potential. No gentrification. White people stay out. Help where<br \/>\nyou are from. This must be an indigenous revolution. The community must<br \/>\ndo for themselves. Then integrate slowly. Although Maurice is from<br \/>\nCleveland, he has been invited into Youngstown to help. Maurice has<br \/>\n$400,000 over the next three years to jump start the gardens. He hopes<br \/>\nto be out as soon as possible and let neighbors take the initiative to<br \/>\nkeep growing. Pointing to his toddling son, \u201cI\u2019m just here to change<br \/>\ntheir diapers \u2013 then get out. Set \u2018em on their way.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_923\" style=\"width: 414px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/prophet-of-youngstown.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-5\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-923 \" height=\"720\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"prophet of youngstown\" width=\"404\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Maurice Small &#8211; the prophet of Youngstown, aka the Jamacain Farmer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">With heads still whirling from the wisdom<br \/>\nof prophet and poet Maurice, we jumped in the vans and headed towards<br \/>\nCleveland to dine with and tour the gardens of some folks involved in<br \/>\nan entrepreneurial market garden program in and around <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ecocitycleveland.org\/ecologicaldesign\/ecovillage\/intro_ecovillage.html\"><em><strong>Cleveland\u2019s EcoVillage<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 458px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" height=\"336\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"ecovillage\" width=\"448\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Market Gardens in Cleveland&#39;s Eco-Village.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>Day Nine:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>After a much needed deep sleep, we took to the road again to explore<br \/>\nthe urban agriculture scene in Cleveland \u2013 as led by Maurice. We Road<br \/>\nTrippers continually made comments about Maurice\u2019s incredible ability<br \/>\nto identify every pocket garden and food project around the city \u2013<br \/>\nindicating some extremely detailed mental map of urban agriculture<br \/>\ncraziness inside his head.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_926\" style=\"width: 403px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/garden-craziness-at-gather-round.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-6\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-926 \" height=\"294\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"garden craziness at gather round\" width=\"393\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Garden craziness at Gather Round Garden.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Our first stop, <a href=\"http:\/\/vimeo.com\/groups\/49209\/videos\/12319008\"><em><strong>Gather Round <\/strong><\/em><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/gather-round-garden-cleveland.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-7\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-924 \" height=\"158\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"gather round garden cleveland\" width=\"210\" \/><\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/vimeo.com\/groups\/49209\/videos\/12319008\"><em><strong>Garden<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<br \/>\nPlanted on top of a parking lot of an old convenience\/liquor store<br \/>\ntransformed into a childcare center. Lots of amoeba-shaped raised<br \/>\ngarden beds in every shape and form. Bantam chickens and roosters cluck<br \/>\nout of their coop refashioned from old windows and boards. Food goes to<br \/>\na store-front shelter and soup kitchen organized by a Catholic Worker<br \/>\nHouse \u2013 as well as being distributed throughout the neighborhood.<br \/>\nWorked out a lease with the landowner for $1. Been growing for 4 \u00bd<br \/>\nyears.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">\n<div class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" id=\"attachment_925\" style=\"width: 463px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/kentucky-garden-garden-gate.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-8\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-925 \" height=\"604\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"kentucky garden garden gate\" width=\"453\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gate to Kentucky Gardens, Cleveland, OH.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Second stop: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kentuckygardens.com\/\"><em><strong>the Kentucky Gardens<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<br \/>\nBeen around for over 50 years. Less than one acre. 200 families.<br \/>\nCommunity greenhouse. Plots are rented out by the summer growing season<br \/>\n\u2013 $10\/large bed, $5\/small plot. Each gardener is required to contribute<br \/>\nso many hours of service to the maintenance and upkeep of the property<br \/>\neach year. Has a fruit orchard and beehives. Here we met Maurice\u2019s<br \/>\nmother.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_927\" style=\"width: 333px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/alley-chef-garden-erin.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-9\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-927 \" height=\"576\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"alley chef garden erin\" width=\"323\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Back alley garden for chef of Marigold Catering.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Third stop(s): two chefs. Chef one \u2013 growing in an alleyway betwixt two very large buildings. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.marigoldcatering.com\/\"><em><strong>Marigold Catering<\/strong><\/em><\/a>. Herbs, edible flowers, vegetables, and mushroom logs. Chef Two \u2013 Chef Karen Small of the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theflyingfig.com\/\">Flying Fig<\/a>.<br \/>\nWith the help of youth recruited and trained by Maurice, built raised<br \/>\nbeds in her backyard. Grows herbs, vegetables, and watercress (in a<br \/>\nsimple outdoor aquaculture system) for use in her restaurant based<br \/>\naround local foods. Here our fingers \u2013 and lips \u2013 became stained with<br \/>\nthe purple blood of mulberries, as we avidly harvested backyard berries<br \/>\nat Karen\u2019s invitation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_929\" style=\"width: 367px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/heart-ers-picking-huckle-berries-in-backyard-garden.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-10\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-929 \" height=\"267\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"heart-ers picking huckle berries in backyard garden\" width=\"357\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Road Trippers picking mulberries in Chef Karen&#39;s backyard.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Fourth stop: <a href=\"http:\/\/web.me.com\/blueheron55\/NAC_Site\/Strawbale_Greenhouse.html\"><em><strong>Vel\u2019s Purple Oasis<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<br \/>\nStarted in 2008 by a grandmother and her granddaughter Kayla. Bought<br \/>\nland 20 years ago with the dream of someday having a garden. Named<br \/>\nafter Vel\u2019s love of the color purple \u2013 which represents majestic<br \/>\nroyalty. The garden is an oasis in the midst of Cleveland\u2019s death and<br \/>\ndrought. Rebuilding the soil by <a href=\"http:\/\/ncsu.edu\/sustainable\/IPM\/weeds\/spec_pra.html\"><em><strong>solarizing<\/strong><\/em> <\/a>the weeds, laying down cardboard and sickle-cutting hay to build<a href=\"http:\/\/www.motherearthnews.com\/Organic-Gardening\/1999-04-01\/Lasagna-Gardening.aspx\"> <em><strong>lasagna garden beds<\/strong><\/em><\/a>. Built a strawbale greenhouse with the help of Brad Massey at the <a href=\"http:\/\/web.me.com\/blueheron55\/NAC_Site\/Welcome.html\"><em><strong>New Agrarian Center<\/strong><\/em><\/a> in Oberlin. Recently bought some nearby house to open as a community kitchen and place of holistic healing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_928\" style=\"width: 367px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/farmer-kayla-with-chocolate-mint.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-11\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-928 \" height=\"476\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"farmer kayla with chocolate mint\" width=\"357\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Farmer Kayla tours us through the herb spiral at Vel&#39;s Purple Oasis.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>We were unable to visit the <a href=\"http:\/\/web.me.com\/blueheron55\/NAC_Site\/Welcome.html\"><em><strong>New Agrarian Center<\/strong><\/em><\/a><br \/>\nin Oberlin, OH, due to the craziness of our schedule and the wealth of<br \/>\ninformation already clogging our noggins. So we went to the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.westsidemarket.org\/\">West Side Market<\/a><em><strong> <\/strong><\/em>(Cleveland\u2019s year-round indoor market) or falafels. That evening we enjoy a sunset \u2013 and the Summer Solstice \u2013 on Lake Erie.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" id=\"attachment_931\" style=\"width: 463px;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/hotugc.files.wordpress.com\/2010\/07\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"\" rel=\"lightbox-12\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"size-full wp-image-931 \" height=\"604\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/summer-solstice-on-lake-erie1.jpg\" title=\"summer solstice on lake erie\" width=\"453\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">the Summer Solistice on Lake Erie.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>My closing thoughts:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">\u201cTo everything, there is a season, and a<br \/>\ntime to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born and a time to<br \/>\ndie, a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted, a<br \/>\ntime to kill and a time to be healed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px; text-align: left;\">&#8211; Ecclesiastes 3:1-3<\/p>\n<p>End Day Nine. End Part Four.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-info\"><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<p>-bethel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At Gather Round Gardens. Note: Billboard &#8211; from radioactivity to peace. Changing Diapers \u2013 or the Politics of Urban Agriculture: the Agrarian Tour through Ohio In the Ohio chapter of our travels, we \u2013 Agrarian Road Trippers \u2013 transitioned from&#8230;<\/p>","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.5 (Yoast SEO v23.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Agrarian Road Trip - Part Four. - Food and Faith<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/centernet.pcusa.org\/food-faith\/agrarian-road-trip-part-four\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Agrarian Road Trip - Part Four.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"At Gather Round Gardens. Note: Billboard - from radioactivity to peace. 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