I’m sitting at the San Jose Airport on a chair facing the
window in the direction of the plane I will momentarily be boarding to fly
across the Pacific Ocean and land in an archipelago, thousands of miles from
any substantial land mass, to what Mark Twain dubbed “The Sandwich
Islands.” I am 25 years old. To some, this is regarded as old, and
others young, and in the past, this age may be interpreted contrary to the present.
We’re always spinning, and it is desirable to have constants
such as family, landmarks, arbitrary dates like New Years and holidays, to hold
onto. I have found these helpful with
grounding and gaining faith or trust in the world and processes outside of
yourself. I would suggest this as
convincing an argument for a reason to choose to believe in a higher
power. In the last year, I have
explored the new, in the form of Asia for 8 months and the Middle East for 2
months, and have recently come back to America, where I have attempted to
utilize all my abilities and resources to revisit the familiar. To arrive at a reliable
geographical site (that contains a personal history) and to try to understand
it within the frame of one’s past context. And then to examine experiences post being there to discover
a healthier, deeper perspective on this life, this world and oneself. Balancing this with new places
and old faces, and old places with new faces has been the crux of the last
month on the mainland, from New York to Colorado to California.
I now face Hawai’i.
My home for over 3 years, where I grew to love ecology, observation,
getting dirty, plant identification, building and growing (shelter, food and
community) from the ground up, appreciation and respect for traditional
culture, and formed many lasting relationships with people and place. It has been a year since I stepped foot
on the lava rock, inhaled the coastal tropical sea breeze, and engaged with the
vivid and pure sensory experience that has remained with me on my travels and
occasionally in my dreams. I miss
it dearly but do not long and weep for Hawai’i, and given that I am here for 3
weeks, it appears to an appropriate length of time. It is my final escapade before returning to school after a
5+ year absence. I am very
grateful to be returning to education in such a nurturing setting as the Blue
Ridge Mountains.
With life, I accept the chaos and randomness, though
appreciate when the patterns and symmetry come to the forefront of my
attention. (Both schools of thought
are always present, it is what we are drawing our mind and attention to in the
moment that dominates our reality.
Also there is scientific proof and debate of both theories existing
simultaneously and not being contradictory [thanks Bill Bryson’s A Short History of Everything].) What
lays ahead of me is a 2 week Permaculture Design Course (PDC) on Oahu, instructed
by a friend of mine who nearly convinced me to take the course 3 years ago. There are multiple Guest Instructors
who I have tremendous respect for, including the woman who helped bring me to the
island of Maui in the first place and introduce me to land I would fall in love
with and the concept of ecological design, exactly 5 years ago. Meeting her on the side of the Hana
Highway in between Waianapanapa and Airport Road to the present has been a
journey.
The upcoming PDC will outline design principles and ethics
based on the observation of natural systems, and the integration and
implementation of those systems into the functioning of those landscapes and
the lives of those interacting with them.
Paraphrased from Introduction to Permaculture, the best way to learn
Permaculture is to go through a walk in the forest and observe all the life
around you . After working in
sustainable agriculture in the tropics of Hawai’i, the high altitude mountains
of Nepal and the desert of Israel and Nevada, I would agree. I can relate to how all systems are
fairly similar with the flow of water, structure of the soil and the functioning
of the plants, displaying their disparity mostly in directional flows and names
of the species. The design
techniques will help me understand this foundation of nature and apply this
knowledge to diverse ecosystems. I
am grateful to take this course in Hawai’i, where I have a familiarity of
plants, landscape and function. This
is also the place where my passion for this understanding began to germinate.
I have seen edible forest gardens in the desert with little
to no water access, tropical food forests grown in geodesic domes at 8,000 ft,
fully self-sustaining communities in the woods in the North East America, 200
edible/medicinal plant species being grown in 1/10th of an acre (in
an area that receives snow), small villages subsistent from the land for their
shelter (natural building using the clay deposits in their soil) and high food production
and seed saving in Southeast Asia, and people trying to integrate rather than
segregate with nature across the globe, based primarily on Permaculture Design
Principles (another way to say Ecologically Conscious Design). It began
theoretically 40 years ago in Australia, and this and the following generation
are aiming to prove or disprove if this is a viable solution to regenerate our
society and landscape presently designed without conscious care for the land
being farmed (earth), people (farmers and consumers), and community in
mind. The jury is still out,
though small-scale solutions have been noted across the globe with favorable to
spectacular outcomes.
I will certainly be learning more in the next few weeks, and
I will share it here in the future.
---
Highlights on the places I’ve visited since returning to
America:
Northeast (Fingerlakes in upstate New York and Western
Massachusetts). Blown away by some
artists, potters, woodworkers, major community and co-op vibes, wineries and
breweries (Two Goats!), and the beauty of the area (specifically Watkins Glens
and the foxes).
Colorado:
Culture of the state whose passions include Eat Good Food, Drink Good Beer,
Play Outdoors! Aspen-Tree with Eden,
family vibes, cooking and biking and highway driving!
California: Chico to Mt. Lassen to Bay Area. The beauty and amazing ecology of the
Northern California Forests, a very warmed heart as a result of seeing familiar
faces, gardens, family and friends.
Beer drinking, beer brewing, Jazz and Brass/World Live Music, San
Francisco’s old style architecture and modern interiors and artisan food makers
and bakers. Brief reunions with
friends, More family vibes, Brotherly bonding and Dal Bhat Khane.
Hawai’i: Kolea
Farm on Oahu North Shore. Green,
lush, vibrant topography. Oahu’s
stunning rock faces, green forest, true blue oceans, bursting flowers, towering
canopy trees, diversity of plant species, make this, among millions of other
reasons, a really special place.
Used the o’o, weedwhacker, machete, sickle, and worked with cut flowers,
harvesting, and landscaping in a few short days. Papaya, White Sapote, Soursop, Lychee, Ice Cream and Apple
Banana, Jamaican Liloquoi. Tropical Fruit, how I missed thee!
