Hold a big, beautiful, ripe beefsteak tomato. Feel its heft, nearly a pound. See the shades of red, from true red to orange, its smooth, thin skin, still warm from the sun. Sniff the rich, fresh aroma.
No pesticides, so just brush off a little native dust before biting into its juicy goodness. Some might rinse it in cold water, slice it into thick slabs topped with dollops of mayo, but it’s best when munched whole.
Feel, see, sniff and taste such a marvel of nature, and you’ll forget your troubles and remember good times. I think back to the Great Depression, visiting my uncle’s farm, running around with cousins on hot, humid days in the Connecticut Valley. There were few luxuries — no car, no phones, air conditioners or TV — but wonderful breaks in games eating those luscious, lumpy globes, unaware of the high vitamin C content, high energy potential, or low fat/high protein ratio. These tomatoes are only distant relatives of the commercial varieties in stores year-round, chilled, uniform in size and shape, with stickers from foreign countries — totally tasteless. We also had the sweetest corn, picked while the cooking water was boiling, before the sugar was converted to starch, slathered in butter. The butter slathering was curtailed during the War but fresh produce was available, not from a jolly green giant, but from the hard work of farmers, who managed to feed families in tough times.
It’s not just about our senses and sentiments, but environmental, sustainable and political concepts, and the nagging statistic from Iowa State University that our food travels 1,500 to 3,000 miles from farm to plate, enough to inspire authors like Barbara Kingsolver, Alisa Smith and J. B. Mackinnon to eat locally for a year.
Could we enjoy farmers’ produce here in Mill Creek? Farmers markets are successful in many communities, though farmers and farm land are scarcer. Would they be encouraged if we welcomed them? Do we have a good location? What city or county resources would be needed? What do the farmers need? Do we have willing volunteers?
Come to City Hall at 7 p.m. June 3 for a Mill Creek Conversation. We’ll listen to experienced neighbors, ask questions and consider the possibilities for building a better, greener, sustainable community. And we’ll think about holding a big, beautiful, ripe beefsteak tomato …
Selma Bonham is a member of the Friends of the Mill Creek Library.
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