Growing Food- Good for the Mind and the Body
In nature, as with life, everything is connected. Symbiotic relationships are ever-present.
Grass is good for cows and cows are good for grass lands, bees need flowers just as the flowers need the bees, and fruits and vegetables need humans just as humans need fruits and vegetables.
Eating plant-based foods helps to fortify the human body and give it the fuel it needs to operate at its full capacity physically, mentally, and even spiritually. People need plants and it turns out plants need humans too.
The fruits and vegetables that we find in our daily diets are cultivated varieties, meaning they don’t grow abundantly in the wild, if at all. They need a human being to make a good spot in the ground for them, to put them there, and then to tend to them in order to be able to grow to be strong and healthy. In this relationship, the plants we need to survive also need us to be able to survive.
Another aspect of this plant-human relationship that people benefit from is the time outdoors, doing physical activity. This spring, as we plant our crops in the composted and plowed fields, I find myself being so very thankful for the necessity to spend time outside, in the fresh air, sweating and working my body.
Of course there is the obvious benefit of the physical activity (because we all want to look better in our bathing suits than we did last year), but it has also been proven that natural light and being exposed to nature have direct positive effects on mental health.
Mental health benefits of being outdoors includes increased serotonin (making you chemically happier), increased Vitamin D levels (giving you extra energy), and while no direct cause has been scientifically proven, studies suggest being in nature increases creativity and helps with focus.
Growing your own food is good for your mind and your body, and I would even argue that it’s goof for your soul.
But if you can’t do it yourself, we’ll do it for you.
Nashville and Cookeville CSA starting the first week of June, and RBS Farmers market opening Memorial Day weekend right across from City Hall. Now accepting EBT. See you there!