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Jan 10, 2012

Folks, this ain't normal- Joel Salatin

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been reading Joel Salatins newest book, Folks, this ain't normal.  I was first introduced to Salatin a few years ago from the president of our local organic gardening club.  The club was filled with eccentric gardeners from all walks of life.  My husband would come home with story upon story to share.  The one thing everyone agreed on was that Joel Salatin knows chickens and farming.  The night of the first meeting my husband brought home Joel's chicken raising book.

Todays post is a simple one, just a few Joel ideas that popped off the pages.
When the biggest thrill in life is becoming competent enough on the video game to achieve level five performance, what kind of environment are we creating  for our future leaders?'

What does that do for the personhood of a child?  All of us crave affirmation, especially affirmation that genuinely recognizes our contributions to society.  Being able to touch others in a meaningful way with our gifts and talents creates reciprocal affirmation.  And while I may insult some people, I submit this affirmation has a different quality, a different intensity, than simply being praised for winning a game.  Perhaps acting in a dramatic production comes closer.  But when we create something that we can sensually experience, and that represents our ingenuity, the gratitude on the part of the recipient speaks to deeper levels of our personhood.

By denying these opportunities to bring value to their own lives and the community around them, we've relegated our young adults to teenage foolishness.  Then as a culture we walk around shaking our heads in bewilderment at these young people with retarded maturity.  never in life do people have as much energy as in their teens, and to criminalize leveraging it is certainly one of our nations greatest resource blunders.

No civilization has ever spent more money remodeling and gadgetizing its kitchens, but been more lost as to where they are.  Its like getting on a jet airplane to go ten miles away.  We put all this techno-glitz into our kitchens to impress people, and then don't spend any time there.  Folks, this ain't normal.

I was in Comox, British Columbia, recently doing a seminar for a natural foods initiative.  It was a great group of people and the area had a thriving farmers' markets.  But it was illegal to have clothesline in the whole city.  Why? Because they are unsightly and make the community look impoverished.  People seem to understand the importance of normalcy in one area, but then have no clue in others.

Just a few little tidbits from what has been an entertaining and informative book so far.  I highly recommend it so far.  I'll let you know the final verdict when I am done.


PS I am going to be doing a blog overhaul (this new look just isn't doing it for me) so if things look a little funky, hang tight.  All will be well shortly.

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