Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual matters. – Jane Goodall
Essence of the Earth (Monteverda, Costa Rica - Rebecca Harned 2005)
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Finding Eden
18 Apr
Bringing nature to our doorstep represented in planting this Oyster Fern. (Photo: Rebecca Harned - Washington DC - April 2011)
I’ve always found internal peace when in nature. I look at a walk in the woods as time to be with God, or mother earth, or pachamama, or whatever other way you characterize a higher power. Quite simply, I see God (or pachamama as I prefer to refer to her) in the fern heads popping-up from the earth, in the little brook trout, and in the bromeliad that coexists on the branch of a strangling fig in the rainforest. And when I feel any of these intricacies of nature a sense of peace comes over me. It is kind of hard to explain but I think many of you know this feeling.
Over the past few years I have come to see how important it is to help bring nature out in all of us and in our communities – even if we live in the concrete jungles that define our urban landscapes. I’ve been trying to find ways that I can spend more time with pachamama as I live each day in the bustling city of Washington, DC. I could take a day trip to the National Arboretum or bike up Rock Creek Park, all are just a few miles from my house. But finding the balance in my life is really about how to bring nature to my door step and make it a part of daily life – and a part of the daily life of the community I define as my neighborhood.
A small cement slab serves as my back patio area. No real potential for nature there until its time for major patio renovations. But I do have a small, postage stamp size, front yard that faces a busy artery leading to the downtown area. That is where the transformation occurred. It was nothing more than a wasteland of crab grass and a few sink holes. Now its exploding with life. Colors, flavors, aromas, and textures. I found Eden right here in Washington, DC – and right at my doorstep.
Today there are a variety of herbs growing among arugula, praying mantis, lettuce, eggplant, earth worms, daffodils, broccoli, sparrows, ferns, roses, bumble bees, and raspberries. Its kind of like an urban permaculture that serves many purposes: 1) it provides organic fresh clean foods, 2) it nurtures an ecosystem, 3) its my personal sanctuary, and most importantly 4) it inspires our community to nurture nature. The woman a couple of houses down, Gloria, planted cabbage and collard greens this spring. Another man on the block over planted two blackberry bushes for the first time after living here for over 25 years. We all plan to share our small little harvests with one another, and this has become the primary topic of our weekly conversations.
I’ve found Eden in my little patch of earth amid a sea of concrete, brick, and asphalt. We’ve nurtured a little sanctuary for pachamama that is a part of daily life. And we’ve started to inspire our neighbors to bring this urban ecosystem back to life. I hope our community finds gratification in the peace that comes from nurturing nature.
This baby broccoli plant is exploding with life from the nutrients in the earth, sun, and rain. It embodies the beauty of my urban Eden. (Photo: Rebecca Harned - Washington DC - April 2011)
Dicho del Domingo – Dia 107
17 AprQuote – Dia 107
Solitude is a silent storm that breaks down all our dead branches. Yet is sends our living roots deeper into the living heart of the living earth. Man struggles to find life outside himself, unaware that the life he is seeking is within him. Nature reaches out to us with welcome arms, and bids us enjoy her beauty; but we dread her silence and rush into the crowded cities, there to huddle like sheep fleeing from a ferocious wolf. – Kahlil Gibran
Photo – Dia 107
An older man admires vast sea before him. Patiently awaiting natures bounty. This is a typical Valenciano fisherman in the small Spanish town of Sagunto that sits along the Mediterranean sea. Its history began 219 BC when it was inhabited by an Iberian community that traded with the Greeks and Phoenicians. Today it is a living reflection of vive y deja vivir. Christians, Jews, and Muslims peacefully co-exist in this small town where an ancient Roman castle complex rests atop a hill largely untouched. Something tells me that the sense of solitude brought by the ocean is a secret to peace and harmony amidst deep history and diversity. (Photo: Rebecca Harned - Sagunto, Spain - January, 2011)
Power of Human Connection
9 Apr
The aura of this young Nicaraguan girl represents to me the power of human connection, across ages, cultures, economic divisions, and ethnicities. (March 2003)
Current Location: Washington, DC
The single greatest motivation behind my restlessness to experience all the world has to offer is quite simply the power of human connection. Something happens to the soul when we find connections among each other and other people living different lives in different lands, of different cultures and with different traditions. There is no better way to learn who you are than through the power to connect.
In every step across a new culture, and new people, I’ve had many moments that proved to me that we do transfer our energy (or prana) from one to another, in even the smallest of interactions. Every time we make eye contact with a stranger, we are making a powerful human connection and a transfer of energy occurs. Human connections are not just these small instances with strangers. Its also about the human connection that occurs when befriending a stranger. One of the reasons I love being a Washingtonian is that this city is a microcosm of everything the world has to offer. I don’t need to get on a plane and cross an ocean to experience the power of human connection.
Everyday I make sure to “travel” to some place new. So how do I travel in this city that is little more than 63 square miles? Two of my favorite past times, that are naturally a part of my daily life, are 1) doing my grocery, and 2) taking a taxi cab at least once a week. I know what you are wondering… what am I thinking? Let me tell you a story from my trip to the grocery store last week, since it really reflects a similar “travel” opportunity I find in my daily routine. It was Saturday morning and I made my weekly rounds running errands around town. Next stop was grocery shopping I went through the store as I do every couple of weeks, selecting the freshest in-season veggies and fruits along with all the staples. Then at check-out (this is often the fun part) I went through the line and then it was my turn to ring-up my groceries. I had a lot of groceries this time, which meant a good 15 minutes with the clerk. What better way to spend the 15 minutes at the grocery store check-out than engaged in good conversation? His name was Vlad (short for Vladimir), he was lean young man of African decent, and certainly not Russian as his name may have suggested. Vlad had some stories to tell and I was listening. He was a hard working young man, studying electrical engineering at a near-by community college, working part time at the grocery store, and living with his Father and a few other people in an apartment. And he was also very committed to environmental sustainability. His first change making endeavor was trying to get his Father and roommates to recycle. And a struggle it was for him to change the way they all live. But he was committed and wasn’t going to give it up. His dreams didn’t stop there. He was hoping to use his education in electrical engineering on wind energy development. Getting to know Vlad was a refreshing moment in life. He reminded me how much we can have in common with people all around us from different walks of life. It was a simple every day, yet powerful, connection. And I hope that our exchange somehow gave him an extra drop of inspiration or planted a new idea.
Hopefully now you can see what I mean about these moments of interaction with strangers and how the power of human connection can be found in daily life, through trips across this 63 square mile area I call home. When venturing across borders these simple moments of human connection bring us closer to knowing what it really means in that there is only one race, the human race. And no matter how different we see the world, and how we live our lives, we are still so deeply connected to one another in the humblest of ways. As for the weekly taxi cabs… I’ll leave it up to your imagination and share more in a future blog.
Want to go on a journey?
2 AprI’m not always going to take you to paradise, but sometimes I will! I welcome you to join in my personal journey through life vis-a-vis this blog.
Together we will – Go to gritty little niches in the world. To blissful paradises. To Pandora-like lands. We will face bitter realities of inequality and injustice. We will try heavenly new foods. Endure vast new lands. And reflect on personal moments of fortitude, desperation, hope and triumph.
It’s a candid and honest reflection of the daily life and dreams of one woman – a global citizen, social entrepreneur, wife, daughter, Washingtonian, artist, companion to 3 cats & 1 dog – and someday a mother.
Learning at each step… how to be a better person, make the world a better place, simply striving to live more gracefully. I will stumble along the way, trip over my own feet, gets bumps & bruises, pick myself back-up and live another day.
The essence of this journey – Vive y Deja Vivir – Live and to Let Live – The single most important lesson I’ve learned in the thirty years of my life so far. I am still trying to figure out exactly what it means for you, for me, and for the greater humanity.
I hope you will share with me your reactions, thoughts, convictions, and insights on life throughout this journey. I want to learn about your perspective – no matter how different from my own. It’s through your contributions to this blog, that you will help shape the journey, determine the places we go & the things we will do for years to come. Lets get ready for liftoff!
Dicho del Domingo – Dia 93
2 AprOn Sundays (Domingos) I am going to highlight a quote (dicho) of the day. I think of it as “food for thought” on the day of rest and reflection as we head into a new week – and take another step in the journey for life. I won’t always post a dicho on Domingos, but I’ll try to be consistent. Sometimes I’ll also post a photo from one of my past or present travels. So if the quote doesn’t resonate with you, well, hopefully the photo will inspire some good thinking on life. I always look forward to your comments and reflections on “Dicho del Domingo” posts. Disfrutalo!
Quote – Dia 93
Años de ineducación apendejan a la gente – Molotov
Years without education breeds ignorance and fear in the people – Molotov
Photo – Dia 93
Children playing outside of a school in the high mountain region of Lares Valley in Peru. This small subsistent community carry on many of the Ancient Incan traditional farming practices and spirituality. (August 2008)
Vive Vivir Project 