Seeds of Life

The life of a seed reassures me that nothing in this world is as it seems.  I am writing this piece because of the overwhelming amount of questions I am receiving about seed saving, the work that I am doing and how to get involved on an individual basis.

I'm a proud seed!

Here is what I have come to realize for myself:  We have become so disconnected to the very things that allowed us to grow in the first place.  Seeds are small and for at least the past century have been on a downward spiral of neglect and being taken for granted.  This is a very big problem because for thousands of years before this, ancient cultures built traditions based off of growing seasons and seed saving.  Seed was the most fundamental source of life.  It was also a basic right to save, grow and harvest from the bounty of seed. 

Since ancient times, seeds were one of the most sacred commodities of mankind.  Seeds ensured the nourishment and survival of humans.  We are beginning to re-realize the very special connection that we have to seed and to nature which faces us with reality: sadly the lack of understanding we have in our food system has caused a lot of confusion for society as a whole. 

From one seed comes thousands of generations of life, nourishment, variety, resiliancy and teachings. The magic of the seed is the knowledge it passes from one generation to the next.

Imagine if we were so grateful for our food that we threw celebrations in honor of our harvests again? We owe A TON of gratitude for the teachings and wisdom that the earth has provided for us.  Seed is not a commodity, it is a selfless and limitless gift which intends to be spread and shared.

Are we seeds?

I believe my teacher Vandana Shiva, we are indeed seed.  We are all seeds that have come to where we are from sacred knowledge that has been passed on from the beginning.  This is something that can not be exactly explained by science.  Every seed contains possibility of life for many future generations.  As humans WE contain seeds (call them eggs if you want) and we are possibility of life for many future generations!  Just as knowledge is stored in plant DNA I believe it is passed in all forms of DNA.  Nature is always evolving and adapting.  Perhaps we should be paying closer attention to our own stories and become more aware of how we have evolved and adpated from our past generations, it would probably teach us quite a bit. Check out Vandana Shiva if you are interested in learning more about this concept, or ask any elder in your community who used to farm how it was different! I think you would be surprised. I am learning so much from elderly farmers in our community.

Seed can teach us many things about life, purpose and growth.  What is the miracle of life?  What creates resiliancy and desire to thrive?  These largely unanswered questions are held in the magic of seed.  We must be more comfortable and satisfied in not having all the answers, but being grateful that the possibility exists.  The seed has inherent knowledge which many scientists are working very hard to understand and as a result, we might be making some mistakes that are possibily disobeying the laws of nature.  The miracles of nature are ever changing and evolving, this is something that is at the moment out of our ability to comprehend and that is actually VERY ok.

Food for thought: When we ask genetic engineers where they get the seed to create GMO crops, they will never tell you where they got the seed they spliced to begin with. They did not create life, they altered it. Is there any precautionary principle, is there anything sacred anymore?

If you also believe that we are all seeds then the following may be true: Our children are divine and more evolved versions of us. 

If we are all seeds, wouldn't that mean that our offspring would be regarded as having our genetic and spirtual knowledge passed on, remembered and possibly in a higher form?  What if we could recognize our children as our teachers, so we could more closely connect to the ways we are meant to love, live and survive? I ask these questions because I believe it is a possible reality for us in the future. When we can surrender to greater knowledge than our own and trust in the ways of nature that have over and over again proved that Life is divine and will prevail, then we will move to a state of enlightenement as a race. 

Why should we follow the cycle that nature has drawn for us?

Quite simply because: nature always wins.

It is the tiny seed that falls into the crack and finds the will to grow which will break down the largest stone.  In our society we see nature win back all the time- in abandoned homes, vacant lots and patios which won't stop sprouting little signs of life. In the end, the cycle of nature always prevails, we are not exempt!

Live in harmony with your planet and she will love you back.  As idealistic as the statement sounds, if we could go back to the most basic of our human needs, the earth has provided all that we could ever need to survive.

Spend time outside. What do you really see around you?

Here are three things that I encourage you to do as a holder of possibility of life for many generations to come: 

1. Save a variety of seed. This is not a difficult thing to do. Could you find one plant that you particularly enjoy and commit to saving seed and creating a tradition around it? Take your family to the garden center, pick out an organic local variety, grow it at home and harvest the seeds (you can find all sorts of techniques online specific to the plant you choose) and grow them again next year! With patience you will watch life evolve in front of your very own eyes! Get excited about being a guardian of life. 
2. Learn more about the food system. Food doesn't come from a truck, a bag or a can. Learn where the things that end up on your plate came from. Wouldn't it be a beautiful day to purchase things that had stories rather than simply contents? Who grew your food? What is their story? Why are they doing it? When you do this with food, start to do it with other things such as your clothing, home goods etc. You will feel much better about purchases that you make! 
3. Spend more time in nature. Even if you don't believe in organic, non-gmo or even healthy dieting. No one can deny that spending time outside is heavenly. Take a walk in the woods, go for a hike, get in the water. Pay a little closer attention to what you see. Nature is not novelty, it is life. What can you gather from your experiences outside? Perhaps it will evoke some deeper questions. 

Thanks for your time beautiful people! Love and light all day, all night. xoxo