Water and values

I've spent most of my life living in the Pacific Northwest on the west side of the Cascades. Water has not been an issue for us. We are inundated with rain during the rainy season, the mountains are store houses of snow (and run-off for the rivers), and the sub-surface water is available.

Apparently, our well for Aisling is only 60 feet down. Yesterday I was driven out of the garden because it was raining and hailing very hard. Yet I know in two months the temperature will soar to 100 degrees and irrigation will be required, even here. As I learn the art and science of gardening, the issue of water continues to present itself to me. What can I plant that is enjoyable to eat and doesn't require a lot of attention, and water? Just like there are fair weather runners/bikers/hikers; I'm a wet weather gardener. I'd much prefer to have just enough rain each week to keep the plants growing; oh... and maybe just enough natural repellents to keep the slugs and snails and insects away!

I did learn my lesson last year about water and making sure that water penetrates the soil deep enough. I kept having insect problems and I learned from a friend that I was underwatering and in doing so, I was stressing the plants. This was like a beacon to all those insects that like to eat the distressed plants of the world.

However, water is becoming more and more of an issue in the world. National Geographic recently published a new water map entitled World of Rivers. We are land-centric and to see the world in a river-centric perspective is quite dramatic. It is startling to see that the lands of north Africa have almost no rivers. I can't imagine living my whole life and not knowing the flow of a river or the power of a rapid. On the flipside of the map they present water usage in a very impactful way. The bubble diagrams compare how much water it takes to produce some of the things we consume: 1857 gallons for one pound of beef, 1382 gallons for a pound of sausage, 2900 gallons for one pair of denim jeans, 2800 gallons for one cotton bed sheet, 43 gallons for a pound of beans.

Around 20 years ago I made a dramatic shift in my eating habits because of the book Diet for  A Small Planet by Frances Moore Lappes. Her work focused around energy and protein- it was shocking to me that it took so much energy to produce beef. I still don't eat very much red meat and this look at the water impact really reminds me that choices we all make impact people more than us.

Which leads me to another book, one that I am reading right now: Values Shift by Brian P. Hall. He mentions two  values that were new to me:

• Ecority: the capacity, skills, and personal, organizational, or conceptual influence to enable persons to take authority for the created order of the world and to enhance its beauty and balance through creative technology in ways that have worldwide influence.
• Minessence: The capacity to miniaturize and simplify complex ideas or technological instruments (tools) into concrete and practical objectifications in a way that creatively alters the consciousness of the user.

Interdependence is key to our survival and our children thriving in a humane world. Sometimes I wish for an ignorance that would keep me blind to the impact of my purchasing choices on other people. It is clear that one of the evolutionary changes that has happened in the world is the expanded awareness in the world about how interconnected we actually are. People think in systems viewpoints much more than they have in the past. Even in choosing to murder large numbers of people in a terrorist act, it is being done with the awareness that it is sending a shock wave into the rest of the world.

Water connects us all. Whether through something like the hydrologic cycle or in the energy cycle. Does that mean we shouldn't play on desert golf courses (or golf of any sort), go to water amusement parks, or give roses to our mothers on Mother's Day (the roses probably come from Mexico, Peru, or some other warm climate and the energy use is quite high)? I don't think there are straightforward answers to these types of questions- it is a world of gray.  However, as someone who has returned to golfing occasionally after a 30 year hiatus I find myself thinking about the energy use, herbicides/ pesticides, the recreation industry, people who are malnourished and impoverished.

The Jains come to mind. This religion, founded in India, has non-violence as its core tenet. It has been said that the most conservative of Jains will not go out at night because of their concern for inadvertently killing insects. It is for that reason that some of them wear masks around their mouths during the daytime. Is this too extreme?  There are those who will say that if we are so concerned about harming someone else that nothing will ever get done... that we will be outpaced by those who have no conscience/ environmental laws/ human rights protections. But maybe it is time for a new age of being overly conservative and concerned about these issues. Maybe it is time for conservatism and progressiveness to join forces so that the water flows clean and the winds freshen. Maybe it is time for those of us who have been blessed with so much to tone it down and consume less. Maybe the Buddha had it right and that it is time to sit down beneath a tree until clarity and sanity return to our minds. Maybe it is time for aggressive inaction.

Many Colors of the Rainbow

This time of year the weather is tumultuous. Today it was warm enough for us to go on our hike/walk in a pair of shorts. Just a few hours later it was cold rain, thunder, and lightning as I finished off planting a few plants: artichokes (the others were killed in last years severe freeze), lovage, summer squash, and a tomato plant. Let's hope that a late frost doesn't come in like last year.

This walk/trail that we have is just outside our backdoor and is a remnant of the logging activity in the area. Most of the 3-hour hike (40-minute mountain bike ride) is on abandoned logging roads that are used by horse riders, an occasional ATV, and us.
During the winter time it is very muddy, but now there are few puddles left. Minus a few stretches through clearcuts, it is a wonderful stroll through the forest land of the leeward side of the Coast Range.

The green permeates the land. In two months the surrounding lands will be hard as concrete, but beneath the forest canopy the green will still flourish. This time of year it is so lush.


Beauty comes in many colors. The Poison Oak is so beautiful in the various shades of red, green, and yellow, but the oils are things to stay away from. What competitive advantage does the urushiol give to the plant? I know it is a deterrent from me doing anything to it, but it is such a delayed response, what advantage is there for the plant? It is so prolific in our area that it will restrict my bike rides. There is one bush that we hike by that is over 10 feet tall.

Today there were a lot of Mariposa Lilies along the drainage ditches that weren't there when we walked last week.

At one point along the walk there were a couple of these butterflies/moths.
Susan and I were having this discussion about whether they were moths or butterflies. Some experts say that you can only tell through genetic testing...
guess we'll leave this to any of you who are "experts". It was great seeing these and the Mariposa Lily near by since mariposa means butterfly in Spanish.

Just around the corner from us is this large field of Camas Lily. This plant was such a vital part of the indigenous people's life. It is a beautiful part of the rainbow of life in our area.


We came across a series of "wildlife trees"- these are trees that have been left for the express purpose of preserving habitat for wildlife. One tree in particular seemed to be a nesting spot for a Red-Shafted Flicker. There were a number of hollows carved into the decaying tree. This is one very small indication of how things have changed ... only a few years ago there was negligible attention given to keeping habitat for animals.

I do wonder how our environmental laws will prevail when natural resources become more strained. When the competition for petroleum, uranium, chromium, and other resources become more and more adversarial, how much are we willing to let go of? With the rise of the radical conservative fringes in the world (like the "tea party" folks in the U.S.), how much will be left for the flickers, Spotted Owl, and Marbled Murret? I think most people want a healthy environment... but they don't want to suffer any difficulties by having to give up something that they want.

Still, the beauty is all around us. The storms and rain mixed with the sun bring us the rainbow. I don't think there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but this is a jewel and glad that we get to walk along the path.