I've been really busy with consultations lately,
and although most are via phone or skype,
more and more are becoming in-person consults and
once in a great while these moments take you to special places.
It was a foraging/green lifestyle kind of consult.
However, being December, I was a little anxious about what we would find.
Sure enough though - the stars aligned and we found so much abundance!
Check these oyster mushrooms. Perfection.
All the rain and wind created so much mushroom food...they are thriving.
There were loads of stinging nettles too.
I was picking them through my glove and I still got nipped.
The tip of my right index finger was tingling for at least 12 hours.
Turkey Tail....again, perfection.
With the evening light, they were glowing.
Look up the power of Turkey Tail...especially for destroying breast cancer.
Here, a primo flush of oysters.
The understory of food forests and any orchard/garden should be
loaded with spots like this...It was a joy to see.
We saw someone riding a horse earlier in the walk,
but then we saw this horse and buggy coming closer quickly.
I took a photo just because it was such a rare site to see these days,
especially 45 minutes from NYC. (Not counting Central Park of course).
A group of four, and who was at the helm?
David Rockefeller. Um...DAVID ROCKEFELLER?
He waved at us as if he was our cheery old grandfather.
I couldnt believe my eyes.
It was so abrupt, so unexpected, and so out of place.
Turns out that he lives in the area and obviously enjoys
taking the horses through the woods in his free time...
Now, from what Ive heard about Mr Rockefeller...
well...organizations like the Trilateral Commission,
The Bilderberg Group, The Council on Foreign Relations,
and the now infamous Federal Reserve Bank of NY come to mind.
Many people think this guy is pure evil,
and here he was, just a fragile small-statured man,
waving at us as he was riding his horse and buggy through the woods.
One minute ago I was picking oyster mushrooms in the forest,
now Im looking "Mr Illuminati" in a horse and carriage? What the..?
This is how some people greet him -
Mr Rockefeller is accused of some nasty stuff,
but would it have made sense for me to yell something mean?
Honestly, I was in pure shock when it occurred,
but had I wanted to actually yell something out,
it probably would have been "Grow Paradise David!"
"FOOD FORESTS! ECO-VILLAGES!"
I will always think the "Food Forest" term will sink into
anyone's heart once they hear it and they grasp its potential to help us.
But again, I was half shocked and half scared.
I mean...if you watch some of the related youtube vids
as I have in the past, you wouldnt take a moment like that too lightly.
Yet, it amazed me how casual the four of them were.
It was so surreal to say the least.
We wondered through the back paths of Blue Hill at Stone Barns.
This was once a part of the Rockefeller property,
and now it is a beautiful place to eat very expensive local + organic food.
This is how we all used to eat for eons. Local, lighty processed, organic food.
We have to bring this model back to the everyone though...
Its a beautiful place of course and roaming the property is amazing,
but the food really shows the value in growing our own and
making our own food with love...its beyond priceless!
And its just so wonderful how affordable it all is when you
take on the responsibility and do it yourself. Its a win-win for SURE.
A bit dark, but you can see that even in December they have lush growth
and covercrops going in the garden...nothing sadder than an
empty garden in the fall....people usually stop gardening after september
for no reason! Kale, Collards, Arugula, Beets, Spinach...tons of greens...
they all thrive in the fall weather and with care they never have to stop.
They had bees too...its a fun place to visit,
and if you dont want to visit the restaurant,
there are gift shops and places to get small treats I think.
They color the boxes to help the bees see better...
never thought of that but it sounds good to me!
Aesthetically though...I love a nice unpainted wood for my hives.
Here were some of their cows.
This was kind of sad, because although many of the cows
were truly on pasture, some, like these, were just in muddy
enclosures eating dried hay in the feed troughs.
Who knows when these cows will be consumed (eeks!)
but they certainly werent eating fresh green grass right there.
I would hope that those cows better be eating
the freshest, ocean mineral enriched, biodynamically grown grass possible.
Again...it shows the value of doing things ourselves.
Maybe they bring these cows on pasture in the spring before
butchering, but for me this wasn't really exciting.
Even the pigs they had...just roaming around in mud.
No grass or tubers or wild greens.
Just think of the amazing quality produced
when you raise animals and plants yourself...its hard to match.
So what was at first a consultation about foraging and food forests,
turned into quite an afternoon...
Its all about being in the flow and letting the lessons come your way.
The teachers are everywhere...
the mushrooms on the logs, the pigs in the mud,
the old billionaires driving their horses, and especially the sunset.
There is magic in every moment...
open yourself to it and see how it starts to flood in!
BTW - My consultation page is HERE - contact me for those
and also for setting up food forest clinics in your neighborhood.
The time is now to start planning!
-A
