An Old-timey Christmas at our House

Christmas morning dawned and our excited 8 year old could barely contain herself.  What did Santa bring and where do we start? Stockings, always the place to begin while Mom and Dad drink their coffee! 3 years ago, I made us all matching stockings from an old knitting pattern. I kept some of the graphics but created new designs to suit each of us. The stockings each had an orange and Rebecca got a pomegranate, which she SO wanted. There were other little goodies in the stockings too. What a festive bunch of paper tearing and ohs and ahs.. Even before the stockings were done, Rebecca declared this "The Best Christmas Ever!"
This year most of the presents I gave were hand-crafted.  I made Rebecca a pair of knitted fingerless mittens, knitted and felted wool and mohair slipper boots and a kitchen apron made of muslin and printed fabric trim with a pocket. I made David a new pair of wool socks and fingerless mittens designed to keep his hands warm while playing the fiddle in cold weather at outdoor festivals. There is something really special about making a gift for someone. The energy that is knitted in with every stitch, the love that is incorporated in the  design and the good wishes that are wrapped in for eternity make the gift a lasting reminder of your feelings. I like that.
It was a morning spent opening presents and playing with our new treasures and enjoying each other's company.

Once the meal preparations were well underway, David made us a Christmas Day Bonfire in the yard. It served as a gathering place as our guests arrived for dinner, bits of snow remaining after our big storm last week..and Rebecca's snowman slowly disappearing....

Our Christmas meal was most amazing. It took all day to prepare.. well, the preparations began the day before,  got the turkey in brine and assembled the ingredients for our feast, planning and all that...
We had a beautiful, moist and tender turkey complete with all the trimmings: stuffing, candied sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, divine gravy, spinach salad, cranberry relish, cranberry sauce, wild rice with shitake mushrooms, pumpkin soup, homemade sourdough bread...YUM! Not as many of the ingredients were from the garden as I would have liked.. but we used onions, garlic, potatoes, sweet potatoes, sage, and apples from the garden.
For Christmas Dessert, I made the Sweet Potato Pie again and it was fabulous. I forgot to put the sugar in the filling.. so it was not as sweet as last time.. but really nice. The sweet potatoes have plenty of sweetness in them and the recipe does not call for very much sugar, so it all worked out. We also made some homemade whipped cream for the top. WOW.  As you can see from the photo, I decorated the pie with dried apple rings and raisins. It was a lovely and impressive presentation.
All in all it was a fabulous day, simple and joyful, filled with love and laughter and friends, and a minimal amount of commercialism.

Snowy Weekend in the Mountains

We've had a big snow event over the weekend. More snow than I have sen around here for a long time! We were lucky enough to keep power the entire time and we were happy to have a good excuse to be still for a few days. David got out and took some photos of the garden blanketed in snow. Then he stitched several photos together to make this panoramic view of the main garden from the front porch. Pretty cool.

It looks like the snow will be around for a while, which is unusual around here. Usually after a day or two it is all gone and just a chilly memory.
I am wondering how my covered rows of salad are doing.. but the row cover material is pretty delicate in the snow so I don't want to mess with them at all... time will tell.
Happy Solstice. 

Noxiousness to the Organism

Genetically modified Corn was in the news this week, Big Time! A study in the International Journal of Biological Sciences proves the toxicity of three varieties of genetically modified corn to mammalian health. Yikes! This study is a comparative analysis of blood and organ system data from trials with rats fed three main commercialized genetically modified (GM) maize (NK 603, MON 810, MON 863), which are present in food and feed in the world.
I first read about this yesterday in an article published by Truthout and then I went on to read the actual research paper.

"For the first time in the world, we've proven that GMO are neither sufficiently healthy nor proper to be commercialized. [...] Each time, for all three GMOs, the kidneys and liver, which are the main organs that react to a chemical food poisoning, had problems," indicated Gilles-Eric Séralini, an expert member of the Commission for Biotechnology Reevaluation, created by the EU in 2008.

Liver and Kidneys! These are our detox organs. Their primary function is to expel toxins that result from the body's metabolism of food and drink. In this way they support the overall health of the body. When the liver and kidney are compromised, we have major problems.
This research looks at the Monsanto research which was only conducted for 90 days.

Caen and Rouen University researchers, as well as Criigen researchers, based their analyses on the data supplied by Monsanto to health authorities to obtain the green light for commercialization, but they draw different conclusions after new statistical calculations. According to Professor Séralini, the health authorities based themselves on a reading of the conclusions Monsanto has presented and not on conclusions drawn from the totality of the data. The researchers were able to obtain complete documentation following a legal decision.

Our family has been concerned about these genetically modified foods for quite some time. I was troubled and started asking questions when I learned that one of the "benefits" of GMO's is that the genetic modification makes the crop  "Round-up Ready" (resistant to Round-up, a serious pesticide). So the crop can be sprayed with Round-up to kill competing weeds while leaving the corn "un-harmed". I find this alarming! The amount of pesticide residue in these crops must be monumental.
Organic is not allowed to be genetically modified. So we buy organic. Corn is in so much processed food. Read Michael Pollan's book, The Omnivore's Dilemma, for many reasons but the "Story of Corn" will change your life! or at least the way you look at corn.

The researchers conclusion:

These substances have never before been an integral part of the human or animal diet and therefore their health consequences for those who consume them, especially over long time periods are currently unknown. Furthermore, any side effect linked to the GM event will be unique in each case as the site of transgene insertion and the spectrum of genome wide mutations will differ between the three modified maize types. In conclusion, our data presented here strongly recommend that additional long-term (up to 2 years) animal feeding studies be performed in at least three species, preferably also multi-generational, to provide true scientifically valid data on the acute and chronic toxic effects of GM crops, feed and foods. Our analysis highlights that the kidneys and liver as particularly important on which to focus such research as there was a clear negative impact on the function of these organs in rats consuming GM maize varieties for just 90 days.

These substances are currently approved for consumption. My advice: ask questions, read labels, eat local, grow your own and don't believe that something is safe just because it has been approved.

Inspired Sweet Potato Pie

Wow!  I think I have managed to invent the world's best ever Sweet Potato Pie. A while ago I posted my Coconut Pumpkin Pie Recipe. I used it to create this new pie.
Imagine Candied Sweet Potatoes with dried Apples and Raisins. We had that for Thanksgiving Dinner. Sweet Potatoes from the garden and dried apples from my neighbor's tree with butter, brown sugar, raisins, and orange peel. They were fabulous but I made a lot and we had left-overs for a while.
When we tired of the Thanksgiving left-overs, I made a "Thanksgiving Left-over Soup". First step was to make bone broth with the bones. Then I added Turkey, pureed sweet potatoes, mushroom gravy, broccoli, and mushrooms. The soup was served over the left-over stuffing. It was like Thanksgiving dinner all over again in a soup. Oh yeah and we had homemade cranberry sauce with it too!
Anyway, when I pureed the sweet potatoes it got me to thinking about how I could substitute them for the pumpkin puree in my Coconut Pumpkin Pie Recipe... Inspiration!

Inspired Sweet Potato Pie 

~Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

~Cover the following with water in a pot on the stovetop and cook until tender.

4 medium Sweet Potatoes skin on, scrubbed and cut onto chunks

1/4 cup  Raisins

1/4 cup chopped Dried Apples

~Drain Sweet Potatoes and allow to cool. Puree in food processor with

2 Tablespoons Butter

3/4 cup Brown Sugar

1/4 teaspoon Orange Peel

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Ground Ginger

1/4 teaspoon Cloves

1 can Coconut Milk

2 eggs

~Pour into Pie Shell. I used my recipe for Coconut Almond Pie Crust. And I decorated the top with a dried apple and raisins in a sunburst pattern. Pretty!

~Bake pie at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking for 40 minutes or until knife inserted comes out clean.

~Serve at room temperature. YUM!

 We went to a Christmas Party/Potluck/Music Jam this weekend and brought this beautiful pie as our potluck contribution. IT was a big success. Give it a try. I am looking forward to making it aan for Christmas Dinner! YUM.

Connecting to the Life Cycle

It has been three years now that I was having lunch with an activist friend who's current fight was the battle over the proposed path of I-26 through our town. I had told him all about my garden project but after listening to his activist stories, I said that I wished that I had time to be more active like he was. His response pushed me into new ways of thinking about my garden. He said, "You are growing food in the city. You are already doing a radical and activist thing."

Up until that day, I hadn't thought that was I was up to could be considered "activism". But that day opened my mind to the bigger picture of the world and where I fit into it. And so began my Urban Plot to set an example for my neighbors and community on just what can be done with a city lot.

When I bought my house I was overwhelmed by the size of the front lawn. This photo, a great before shot, shows the lawn as it was when we first moved here. The lot is the better part of a half acre and the house is set back on the back third of the lot. It is in a little neighborhood just 4 miles from the middle of downtown. This neighborhood was farmland until the 1920's when the land started to be broken into lots with little houses.

The front of the house faces West, so I have great South and West sunlight all day long. I started small four years ago with a 20' X 20' area... it has grown! The areas planted in edibles now exceed 4000 square feet.... more than 4 times the size of the house.

I work with "Low Work" methods so that I still have time for other things in my life. No tilling, lots of mulch, minimal watering. It works for me and we are eating well.

Here is a photo that show the bones of the garden in early Spring this year. I love photos of the verdant, abundant summer growth, but in the winter and spring it is easier to see the skeletal structure of the garden.

 

I talk with lots of people who think that they cannot possibly grow food. I have the advantage of having grown up with parents who always had a garden and canned and put up food. I grew up thinking that this was the norm. But you too can grow food. Do you have houseplants? Add a vegetable plant to your menagerie of house plants, maybe a tomato plant or pepper plant, and some herbs. Start somewhere and see where it will take you. Every little bit helps and will help you see the big picture. I think that anything that connects us to the life cycle and adds a degree of self-reliance, affords us a fuller life experience.

My own Urban Plot has become a journey of awakening. A growing awareness of the food security issues that our country and the world are facing including the invasion of pesticide and drug residue in so much of our food supply, not to mention the consequences of modifying the genetics of seed and animals. The beginning impetus of my garden project was simply to find a way to feed my daughter healthy food that I could not afford at the grocery store and to teach her about where food comes from. It has become SO much more. 

The Story of a Meal

Last night we enjoyed a fabulous mostly local meal. IT was a pleasure! For me, the meals that mean the most come equipped with a story. Too much of our food is without story, just food. But when food has a history, some story that you connect with, I think that it has the ability to not only nourish our bodies, but our souls as well. And our souls could use all the nourishment that they can get these days.
So, how do you connect with your food and it's story? How do you find a way to make food more than "just food"?
I imagine that we each do this in our own way. For me, it begins with growing as much of our food as possible. Putting up the harvest by drying, canning, pickling and root cellaring as much as possible. It does not always last us all through the winter, but it is a start. It also means cooking from scratch with wholesome nutritious ingredients that are without artificial color, artificial flavor, food additives, pesticide residue, genetic modification, hormones or drugs. It is about being aware of where food comes from and what is in season.
The food we supplement our own produce with is bought, whenever possible, at the local farmer's market. At the Farmer's Market you get to talk with the farmer and ask questions about how the food was grown and where and even find out what variety of tomato it is. The varieties of produce available at the Farmer's Market are so diverse, especially when compared to what you can find in a conventional grocery store.
When we buy produce at the grocery store, we make sure to get organic. It does cost more and the regulations leave much to be desired.. but I know that I am NOT buying genetically modified produce and this is important to me. If I can talk to the farmer and find out how the food is grown, I don't need the certified organic label... but without the farmer, I want the certified label.
This fall we got a share in a cow that was raised locally and humanely. No feedlot meat for my family. Several folks went in on it and we have a great supply of wonderful beef. It has the flavor of life.
Another great source of local meat for us is Hickory Nut Gap Farms. It is the family farm of Amy and Jamie Ager. They raise wonderful meat. Last year we got a pork tenderloin from them at the Farmer's Market. The first bite brought memories flooding back to me, " This is what meat is supposed to taste like," I exclaimed. I had forgotten, I had actually forgotten what meat is supposed to taste like. As a child, we raised most of our own meat: each year a pig or two, a calf, and chickens. But it has been so long, that I had forgotten that taste of "Life" that is inherent in fresh meat. That one bite brought it all back to me and nothing else would ever be good enough again.
Now we get our meat from Hickory Nut Gap and have a great time going out to the country (all of a 15 minute drive) to do our shopping, talk with the farmer and see the baby animals. 
I will be honest with you, it does cost more. But the flavor is such that you don't need as much because it actually is satisfying on so many levels. Most of this country's food supply travels many, many miles to get to us, and average of 150o miles.  This food is breed to have long shelf-life and to look good. Taste is not even a consideration. No wonder so many of us simply eat to live...
Buying local should not cost more that food brought 1500 miles and imbibed with petroleum in so many ways. But for now, it does. The more we can support the local growers, the better it will be for all of us: economically, environmentally, nutritionally. In time, our support will make a big difference in so many lives!

I recently read the book, "Kitchen Literacy" by Ann Vileisis. This book rocked my world. It tells the fascinating story of "How We Lost Knowledge of Where Food Comes From and Why We Need to Get It Back". Check it out. It will change your relationship to food and the stories we attach to our food.

I am fond of recounting our food's story as we sit down to eat. We hold hands around the table and Rebecca says thank you for the yummy food. I love that she is always so sure that it will indeed be yummy before the first bite! Then I tell the story of our meal.
Here was last night's story:

Yum! Hamburgers made from our cow with homegrown onions and home grown garlic and fresh picked arugula. Yum. Sweet Potato fries made from the sweet potatoes that we grew in our front yard this summer.   And my favorite, Tomato Jam made this summer from our tomatoes, basil and cayenne pepper instead of catsup. Yum. Maybe next time I will make the buns from scratch and someday maybe we'll get a goat and make our own cheese, but for now we know that the bread is organic and the cheese has no bovine growth hormone or antibiotics. Thank you for good food! Yum!

Does your meal tell a story? Is it telling the story that you want to hear?

A Zero Waste Goal

When Rebecca started the first grade at our local neighborhood public elementary school, I sent her to school with a home-made lunch, it seemed the right thing to do. She had her lunch box filled with wholesome, largely home-grown  and local food.   Out of 20 kids in the classroom, only 2 other kids occasionally brought their own lunch. Everyone else ate whatever processed food menu was presented by the cafeteria. Rebecca felt a bit out of place but seemed happy to have a good lunch!
By second grade, she managed to get a spot at Evergreen Community Charter School. What a difference. I remember when we were at the Information Night for potential new families that she was SO excited to find the EVERYONE at Evergreen brings their own lunch!
And not only does everyone bring their own lunches but the school, being an environmental ed based program, encourages everyone to have a "zero waste" lunch.
Have you ever seen the trash can in a regular cafeteria? Overflowing with trash.. uneaten food, cartons and wrappers and more! At a recent potluck at the school, I was amazed to see the lack of trash at the end of the meal! Each family brought their own utensils and cups and plates. Because "bring your own" is the school way, I have a picnic basket that has a set of dishes, utensils, cups and cloth napkins for our family. Each classroom has their own compost container that is emptied into the school compost bin at the end of the day. Recycle bins are in each room as well.
Rebecca has a lunch bag made out of a re-usable grocery bag that I re-purposed into a cool custom lunch bag. She has a series of re-usable plastic BFA-free containers that come home each day along with a cloth napkin and spoon or fork. Classy and NO Waste!
Today I got my weekly copy of Organic Consumers Association Newsletter. The article that really caught my attention is on Zero Waste for Zero Warming. It takes on the concerns that Evergreen Community Charter School addresses through all of their school functions in a big scale way.  And the only way for it to make a difference, is for all of us to participate in our own everyday lives!

Here is a quote from the article...

Zero Waste aims to close the loop on all material used in the economy. Under Zero Waste, each element of a source-separated waste stream is subjected to minimal treatment so that it can be reused. Clean, source-separated organics (including kitchen discards) are composted or subject to anaerobic digestion; usable goods are  repaired and re-used; other materials are recycled.

I want to encourage you to become aware of the stuff that we throw away and where it will go and how long it will take to decompose, if ever! For many of us, once our trash is picked up at the curb, we don't think about it anymore... Think about it!

Watch this video from Zero Waste to learn more.

Never Stop Fighting

To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting. ~e.e. cummings, 1955

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

Yesterday was the BIG day. The day we got our Christmas tree! My friend Richard has a tree farm out in Transylvania County and it has become our tradition to go out to Richard's and get one of his trees. He grows Frasier Firs and they are beautiful. We go out there before Thanksgiving and pick out our tree in the field and tag it. Then we go back to get it later-fresh cut and longlasting.
Last year was the first year that we did this.. we were so excited to get our tree. I think that Rebecca expected a big fanfare with lots of drama when the tree was cut. Much to her dismay, one slice of the chainsaw and it was done. Last year we brought the camera but didn't take a picture.. it was simply over too fast.. this year, prepared for the moment, I thought we'd get a picture.. but forgot the camera.. Three is a charm.. maybe next year we'll get an actual picture to document the event.
What I really like about this new family tradition is that we get to stay connected with where our tree comes from. We are so focused in our family about were our food comes from, and our clothes and other stuff... being more connected to our Christmas/Solstice Traditions is a good thing. It makes for a fuller experience all around.
As we gather around our tree though the holidays, we remember the hunt, walking through the field of trees, out in nature, chatting with Richard about how he plants and cares for these trees, listening to his stories of trees long forgotten and Indians who once camped on his land. We remember the excitement of discovering that perfect tree and staking our claim. Rebecca loves to be the one to tag the tree with that bright red tag with her name on it. We remember arriving to get that tree weeks later... will we be able to find it again.. where was it, and then awe when we realize how much the field has changed in the last few weeks as others have been chosen and taken away.
We gather that tree up and take it home and David works his magic with lights and ornaments from Christmases past. We are each of us filled with that child-like awe, inspired by the magic of the season once more.
And as in other things that we bring home, I wonder about what we will do with this tree when it has served it's high purpose as our Yule tree.
I have plans for that tree. The branches will be pruned off and placed around my blueberry bushes as the blueberries like acid soil and the pine boughs will add acid to the patch.
I plan to use the thick part of the trunk to create an edging at the downhill edge of the blueberries to establish a border and help to retain the mulch.
The remainder of the trunk, I will put into my compost fence where it will slowly decompose and eventually become part of the soil.
There are many great ideas of how to use your tree after the holidays. Start now to think about what you will do with your tree.

“The Christmas spirit that goes out with the dried-up Christmas tree is just as worthless”

I suggest that we find ways to keep the Spirit AND the tree!

Another Wendell Berry Quote

“Whether we and our politicians know it or not, Nature is party to all our deals and decisions, and she has more votes, a longer memory, and a sterner sense of justice than we do”.                    ~Wendell Berry

Using My Bounty of Homegrown Pumpkins

For our Thanksgiving Feast, I made a most wonderful Pumpkin Pie using my homegrown pumpkins. It was a big hit at both of our dinners! These pumpkins were volunteers this year. After removing the seeds and other "waste" from the pumpkins, I spread it on the garden bed destined for next year's Volunteer pumpkin patch. The seeds are covered with a layer of soil and mulched with straw. When the weather is right in the Spring, the process will begin again. I love the circular pattern of nature. When we allow it to, Nature provides all we need...
Here are the recipes for both the Coconut Almond Crust and the Coconut Pumpkin Pie Filling. Enjoy!

Coconut Almond Pie Crust

Makes 1 pie crust

3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
3/4 cup almond meal

~Dry mix coconut and almond meal together.

3 tablespoons butter

~Cut in the butter with a pastry blender.
~Press mixture into an 8 or 9-inch pie plate.
~Bake at 325*F (160*C) for 15 minutes or until golden.
~Allow to cool before adding filling.

Coconut Pumpkin Pie Filling

~Preheat oven to 425°F.


~Makes 1 pie. 

1 1/2-2 cups pumpkin puree
1 can  Coconut Milk

2 eggs beaten
1/4 cup sugar


1/2 tsp. salt


1 tsp. cinnamon


1/2 tsp. ground ginger


1/4 tsp. ground cloves

~In a large bowl, mix pumpkin puree, Coconut Milk 
and eggs.
~Add salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves and mix well.

~Pour mixture into unbaked regular pie shell or use Coconut Almond Pie Crust. YUM!
~Bake pie at 425°F for 15 minutes then reduce heat to 350°F and continue to bake for 30-40 minutes. Serve at room temperature.

Revisiting the Pearson Community Garden

This summer I checkout the the Pearson Community Garden. I had heard about it for years, but did not even know where it was.. knew it was on Pearson Drive.. but never found it... well I took a workshop there in August and was pleased and delighted to see what they were up to there!
Meander down Pearson Drive farther than you thought that it could possibly go until you are near the end of it.. and there on your left is the garden. It is like a well kept secret and the end of the road!

Rows and rows of all sorts of goodies. Tomatoes, pumpkins, herbs, greens and more. Interesting trellises and supports for plants, a hoop house, a lean-to greenhouse on the tool shed, and cob structures: a composting toilet and a bread oven.

The Pearson Community Garden is one of the gardens in the Bountiful Cities Project. Bountiful Cities Project is an amazing organization. Here is an excerpt from their website:

Our Mission

To create, on urban land, beautiful community spaces that produce food in abundance and foster a learning environment for social justice and sustainability.

Our Vision

The vision of Bountiful Cities Project is to enliven and empower self-reliance, cooperation, and a stronger sense of community through providing an opportunity
to grow, harvest and eat fresh, local produce. We envision community spaces that serve as models for sustainability through organic food production, water conservation, ecological building, community celebration, and cooperative economics.

This vision is becoming a reality at our two flagship gardens: a permaculture-based vegetable garden on Pearson Drive in Montford and the Dr. George Washington Carver Edible Park at Stevens Lee Community Center which is home to over 30 varieties of fruit trees and an under story of berries and medicinal herbs.

408 Pearson Drive, Asheville, NC

The Pearson Drive Garden is the Bountiful Cities Project's model garden. It is over an acre of land that produces edibles for the community. We grow a diverse selection of vegetables, including a wide range of greens and peas in the spring, tomatoes, squash, potatoes, and pumpkins in the summer. There is some vegetable production throughout the year, as we grow cold tolerant vegetables under row covers.In addition to the traditional garden vegetables, we grow wild greens, culinary and medicinal herbs, and some perennial vegetables, like the Jerusalem artichoke. Fruits grown at the Pearson Drive Garden include strawberries, raspberries, and apples.

When the Garden was first conceived, the garden beds were arranged in pie-shaped wedges around a central area devoted to medicinal herbs. In 2005, this circular layout was converted to a square layout with linear beds. The linear beds allow for a higher level of food production, and also make it easier for volunteer gardeners to move through the garden.

Community Gardens and organizations like the Bountiful Cities Project  are great ways for would-be gardeners to get started and learn from others in a safe and supportive manner. These gardens also offer gardeners a chance to see ideas at work. I am always inspired to see what other people are doing.
Winter is a great time to be thinking about what you want to do in your home garden, how you might re-organize beds to make them more efficient, what to plant, what seeds to get started, etc. Check out a community garden where you live and support organizations like Bountiful Cities Project, they are there to provide both a model for you and inspiration.

Lusting for this Garden Fence.. or one like it!

Traveling over the holiday we passed this most amazing suburban garden in Annapolis, MD in my sister's neighborhood. The entire front yard was taken up with the most wonderful rustic fence and garden...obviously a gardener after my own heart!  There are some winter crops covered with a low row cover, herbs, swiss chard and more.
But I was particularly taken by the rustic fence. I want one! It was beautiful and was so nicely integrated that it really looked like it grew there along with the garden.  My camera gave out and I only got this one shot.. I hope it will give you an idea of the magnificence of this garden container!

Today's Food for Thought

I love Wendell Berry. He has a way of geting right to the heart of things. Thank you to my friend Heather for reminding me of this piece by Wendell Berry that I will in turn share with you.

“Questionnaire” a poem by Wendell Berry

1. How much poison are you willing to eat for the success of the free market and global trade? Please name your preferred poisons.

2. For the sake of goodness, how much evil are you willing to do? Fill in the following blanks with the names of your favorite evils and acts of hatred.

3. What sacrifices are you prepared to make for culture and civilization? Please list the monuments, shrines, and works of art you would most willingly destroy.

4. In the name of patriotism and the flag, how much of our beloved land are you willing to desecrate? List in the following spaces the mountains, rivers, towns, farms you could most readily do without.

5. State briefly the ideas, ideals, or hopes, the energy sources, the kinds of security, for which you would kill a child. Name, please, the children whom you would be willing to kill.

----Wendell Berry