Epic Travel #2...Kenya Adventures

Watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you, because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places.  Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.  -Roald Dahl

 

 
Epic travel adventure numero dos....Africa!  Miraculously I was invited to participate in a biodiversity conference in Thika Kenya, an hour outside of Nairobi.  My travel companions were four women, all affiliated with MESA (Multi National Exchange for Sustainable Agriculture).  The conference was attended by about thirty participants from around the globe; policy makers, researchers, educators, farmers, and NGO representatives.  The goal was to brainstorm solutions for increasing biodiversity in food systems and to discuss problems and challenges that small land holders face around the world especially in third world countries.  We spent much of the time broken into small groups talking about issues like drought, seed saving, fund raising and how to market products, as well as listening to presentations by members of the Agricultural Biodiversity Community. 

 

 

Hosted by PELUM KENYA, the conference center was beautiful, located on what felt like a mini farm with lush gardens, ponds and even hutches of rabbits.  It was such a privilege to participate in conversation with this rich, knowledgeable and diverse group of people.  Some of the organizations represented at the conference were PELUM, ILEIA, MESA, Muliru Farmer's Group, African Biodiversity Network, South Indian Federation of Fishermen Society, Earth Net Foundation, Dhan Foundation India, WESA and  South Alliance for Indigenous Resources. 

 



 

As part of the conference we went on two field trips to local farming projects.  The first was to the Thoma Wa Mukamba Community Cultural Learning Center.  This group focuses on traditional seed saving specifically ten native food crops.  They are reviving indigenous seeds and cultural foods made with these traditional crops. 

 

 



The highlight was visiting H.I.M. Negus Shiriki Community, a Rastafarian community of artists and youth from Nairobi.  This is hands down the most magical farm I have ever seen.
(click the link to learn more about this inspiring group and our visit)

 

 

These brothers and sisters are incredible artists who create mosaic murals and make clothing and sandals with an ancient style of Kemetic weaving.  They are stewarding land in the Maragua district of Kenya.  I have never seen a farm so amazing.  The diversity of vegetation grown there for food and medicine is astounding as well as the abundance and health of the plants.  I can't describe how much I felt at home there, I didn't want to leave!

 

We received a tour of the gardens from Brother herbalist and medicine man Ras Abasa and little four year old Sista Menen (who knows all the plants and can tell you their medicinal uses!)   We also helped plant fruit trees. 

 

 

  

We had the opportunity to see some of the craftsmanship handmade by Sista Njoki, beautiful sandals and many types of jewelry.   We also got to meet her two month old twins sons, Jahwise and Jahsent.

 

 

 

The biggest blessing of the visit was the nourishing, homegrown ital meal and tea made

with lemongrass, ginger root and coconut milk.  Heaven!  A piece of my soul will forever reside with the Shiriki Community.  Peace and Blessings be upon them and may their natural way of life be preserved!

 

 

 

 

 

After the conference we spent another week in Kenya and stayed with some MESA friends at the GBIAK farm.  GBIAK stands for Grow Bio intensive Agriculture Kenya.   

 

 

 

GBIAK is run by two incredible farmers who have a mission to teach bio intensive and sustainable agriculture to all those who come to learn.  The first day we arrived they were holding a workshop for indigenous farmers from the northern region who had been using synthetic fertilizers and had depleted their soils. 

 

 

Corn, sorghum, papaya, mangoes, jute, amaranth, sun hemp, nightshade, squash, okra, melons, greens, sweet potatoes, and bamboo are just a few of the crops grown here.  GBIAK uses the farming methods of John Jeavons. They are a perfect model of bio intensive agriculture, a prolific amount of food grown on a few acres.  

 

 

 

 

The most inspiring part of visiting GBIAK was their seed bank.  I fell in love with this idea and immediately wanted to build one back home.  Farmers come from all around to purchase organic seeds from this bank at one dollar per spoonful. 
 

 

I bought many varieties I am excited to try; drought resistant corn, sun hemp, jute, moringa, black amaranth, and others.  I managed to successfully smuggle them all home in my dirty pairs of socks!

 

 

During the rest of our trip we stayed in Nairobi and explored the city.  Of course we had to spend a full day at the Masai market.  So many amazing handmade goods and colors!  It was a bit of an overwhelming experience until I learned I had to bargain!

 

 

 

More adventures included visits to the elephant orphanage, lots of babies ages ranging from a few months to three years old. 

  

 

 

 

 

My friend got lots of muddy elephant love. 

 

 

This is Ed who I met at the Giraffe sanctuary.  He was surprisingly affectionate with his long neck hugs.  Toward the end of our trip we went on safari and saw all the incredible animals living in the park.  The day ended with a pride of seven lions about twenty yards from us.  So majestic!   

 

 
We ended up spending a day and a half in Ethiopia on our way home, also beautiful to tour Addis Ababa on foot.  Traveling to Africa was an opportunity of a lifetime.  There is so much more I could say about my adventures.  I left out a lot of the magical experiences.  The inspiration and expansion I experienced cannot be put into words.  In a nutshell this trip was a healing gift...life changing.  Thank you and gratitude to my supportive family and to PELUM Kenya for making it possible for me to have this experience!  I am so grateful for the new friendships I have made and we are already implementing many of the ideas I learned about here on our farm.  Give thanks for continuous growth and learning!

AMANI NA UPENDO
Peace and Love!

 

Forging Farmers: Celebrating Women Transforming the Food System

Last week I had the pleasure of participating in this wonderful event hosted by MESA, the Multinational Exchange for Sustainable Agriculture. What a privilege to be part of a panel of such amazing women working diligently to build more resilient food systems around the world. 

The panelists were all so different and accomplished including the fiery Joelci Dannacene, a militant organizer with The Landless Rural Workers Movement of Brazil and Myriam Kaplan-Pasternak, owner of Devil's Gulch Ranch in Marin, founder and director of HaitiCoffee.com, Inc and a USAID Farmer to Farmer volunteer in Haiti and El Salvador with Partners of the Americas, Winrock International and HaitiCoffee.  The panel also included Clara Nicholls, a lecturer in the Latin American Studies Program at UC Berkeley, teaching "Perspectives for Sustainable Rural Development in Latin America" and president of the Latin American Scientific Society of Agroecology, as well as, Shu-Chen Cheng, a beginning small-scale farmer from Taiwan who hopes to educate farmers in sustainable methods, and share with her community the importance of supporting local farmers.

Not only was the conversation inspiring and stimulating, the homemade Puerto Rican tapas were off the hook!  Thank you MESA for including me in this uplifting evening, I am honored and excited to collaborate further in the future!

Year Four: Reflection and Readiness

July marks four years of our lives spent creating Soul Flower Farm. We have gone through many changes learning so much in a short amount of time. On good days there is no where we would rather be. We are certainly blessed to be surrounded by overwhelming serenity, beauty and an amazing view. Most of the time the sun is shining and the weather is sweet!  Of course we have our fair share of challenging days where we are questioning what the heck*#*!!, this is really hard work! But as in any aspect of life, hardship and ease come hand in hand. We wouldn't be strong  (or alive for that matter) if it were any different.  

So now that we know we can grow our own food, raise some livestock, put up stores for winter, and all the good stuff that comes with this lifestyle, it seems only logical the next step would be expansion.  With reflection on these last four years of exertion, production and growth, we stand with complete openness and readiness.  Readiness to give back, to be of service in a way that really matters, in a way that is tangible.  We don't know yet what it will look like but our intentions and the dreams in our hearts are waiting for the opportunity to manifest.  

"The best way to find yourself is to loose yourself in the service of others."

Mahatma Ghandi

A Day At The Green Festival

Last weekend we spent our Sunday at the Albany Arts and Green Festival.  Blessed with beautiful weather and a large crowd, we sold almost all our local organic honey, as well as many of the products from our Handcrafted Herbalim CSA. 

There was a diverse grouping of  booths at the festival; everything from solar/renewable energy to The Sierra club to The Alameda County Beekeepers Association.  We spent some time promoting our classes, discussing our farm with interesting people, and benefiting from all the giveaways (fruit trees, environmental books, compost and organic vegi starts).  

Fire Cider, Herbal Body Cream, Gardener's Salve,
Eucalyptus Lavender Salt scrub for sale

Both our honey and the model Warre hive we set up drew plenty of attention.  It was a blast talking about bees with other beekeepers and hearing about many of the local apiaries in the area. The best part of the festival was networking with so many interesting, like minded people. Of course taking home peach, apricot, and cherry trees, comfrey, globe artichokes, mugwort, and a few more starts for the garden was pretty great too.  Hurrah for the Green Festival!

 

September Happenings

We are more than half way through September and quickly approaching the Autumn equinox.  This last month has been a whirlwind of back to school activity but some of us still find time to lounge on a haybale in the sunshine with a good book. (Quiet moments like these are what life is all about!)  It's almost time to slow everything down internally and externally. But not quite yet...

volunteers Kenji and Ayana planting potatoes

There are still so many seeds to be planted and starts to go in the ground.  Give thanks for generous volunteer helpers!  As we make room for fall vegetables the animals get some well loved treats, corn stalks being an absolute favorite.  

This week we met for our home-made food co-op which has been such a blessing.  What an inspiring group of women and the food is amazing.

  
This month's trade consisted of fermented dill pickles, beet kvass, pink sauerkraut, fresh raw mixed milk cheese, sprouted wasabi almonds, gluten free power cookies, dried peaches, apricots and strawberries, golden harvest season soup, chicken sage sausage patties, and chile sauce.  Whew, pretty great stuff.  

Some news on what's been going on in our kitchen...we recently borrowed a cream separator from a friend which has been fun to experiment with.  (In goes the warm raw milk, and out pours the cream on one side and skim milk on the other.)  

The extra fridge is full of milk and cream these days so after trying my hands at cheese making for several months now I am transitioning into the world of gelato.  Yes! gelato of all kinds, coffee, avocado, persimmon, whatever I can get my hands on.  

Balancing the busi-ness of life with a sparkle of creativity can be a challenge but we must always hold onto the beauty and stay grateful for it all.  There is no time of year I love more than autumn!