2 min read
03 Dec

©    Written and Edited - May 21st, 2017 12:39 pm to 1:37 pm

Edited - May 22nd, 2017 - 2:20 pm to 2:30 pm

So after spending part of the summer with Jim R. on the farm, I didn't want to do that again.  There were 3 parts that stood out to me.

It was the first time that I was in Indiana, I've never worked on a farm let alone a garden before, and I didn't know Jim R. very well or at all.

So that was an experience that I didn't want to repeat.  During that experience, I found that for the most part I was by myself on the farm and I didn't know what I was doing.

At neutral or best it was somewhat awkward and at worst I was potentially creating or doing harm to the vegetables and other life forms on the farm because I didn't know what I was doing.

The typical routine was that I was working on the farm more closely or directly with the vegetables while Jim R. was on other parts of the farm working on fixing farm equipment and maybe other things.  Jim R. might have tried to explain the tasks to me, but I don't remember or didn't understand.

So when my mother tried to get me to come back the next year, I respectfully declined.  I think that she asked me why I didn't want to come back and I told her my concerns.  My main concern was that I found myself out there mostly by myself and I didn't know what I was doing.  I finally said that I would go back if she could promise me that there would always be someone there with me to explain things to me so that I knew what I was doing.  I told her that it didn't have to be her, but that there would always be at least one person that I could refer to for help in understanding what I was doing.  So she made a promise.  She said ok.  I'll do that.

Well, the season came and I was back working on the farm.  My mother kept her promise.  She was always there with me available if and when I had questions, concerns, etc.

Mother nature was also there as she always is.  That particular summer, brought extreme rain which resulted in flooding.

My mother and I wore galoshes because of the flooding.  At point, my mother and I were trying to harvest string beans.  Another aspect of the flooding was that the water brought out insects.  So, my mother and I were competing with the gnats or other insects as we were trying to harvest the string beans.

And as if that wasn't enough, both my mother and I found ourselves sinking in to the muddy places in between when we were harvesting the beans and moving down the rows.

So, my mother and I found ourselves harvesting the beans the best that we could.  And we took turns harvesting each other.  When one of us saw the other one sink into the ground, we'd help lift the other one up to the grounds surface.

I reflect on that experience in many ways, no particular order.  To the mother who kept her promise, I thank you.  Another example of taking care of me and meeting my needs.  And I see other perspectives.  I can see it for it's frustrating dynamics as well as funny ones.

I also see that experience as one of privilege or support.  Sometimes, I have access to people and situations that are helpful to my being.  In a way it feels like privilege, because I feel like alot of times people are put in situations in which they just have no or limited access to help and support.  And I think that comes from the dominant culture.  But, when people can come together on our own terms, we can form communities, get the support and help we need individually and/or collectively.

And that situation of lifting each other up out of the mud, gave me a literal image or picture.  I like the idea of lifting each other up in a way.  On the one hand, I like for things to be as natural and organic ad possible.  But, in the context of us being knocked down by dominant cultures, which dehumanizes and others us in ways when we're outside of the dominant cultures, then I think lifting each other up means lifting each other up from dehumanize and other to re humanizing each other.

I think that when we can just be ourselves with each other, we're fine and maybe there's a natural lifting up of each other.  But in the context of people getting knocked down, we might need to lift each other up more often.  But it's also the way we lift each other up that makes a difference.  I think that when we lift each other up in the context of dominant cultures, we're hurting the individual and helping the dominant cultures.  But when we receive each other authentically, we're better off individually and collectively.

So, ma, thanks for keeping your promise then and other times.  And thanks for helping me have that experience as a reference so that I can continually gain insight.

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