This is a trip down memory lane. Thinking of mothers and grandmothers, growing up with gardens, camping in National Forests with few campers around us, watching my parents and neighbors being so careful with the resources they had, and experiencing the love of nature.
Being green was growing our own vegetables, sharing with neighbors, walking down the dirt road to pick black-eyed peas from Mrs. Miles. It meant canning tomatoes, green beans, and okra, working alongside my mother and sister. Raising chickens for eggs and meat; watching my dad kill the chickens (yuck). Picking and drying apricots; my mother’s homemade pies. All these memories are of an ordinary time, making use of what was around.
A friend of mine has memories of her grandmother, hanging her laundry on the line. But her bra needed to be hung out and that’s embarrassing, you know! So, she put it in a pillowcase (not realizing as the sun shines, it still ‘shines through’)! The modesty is touching too. The smell of sun-warmed, line-dried clothes makes me smile; line-drying is a practice I continue today. I recall that when my baby brother had diaper rash, the doctor told my mom it would help to hang his cotton diapers on the line in the sun to dry.
My grandmothers, both baked and canned all summer, sweating in the kitchen. Much of this was necessity, but they passed on a respect for the world around us, and the nurture of living things. We raised baby chicks and loved them. Insect control, when you’ve got chickens, is ultra natural, and entertaining as well. Watching a hen with a tomato hornworm being chased by the rest of the flock is hilarious, no pesticides needed.
My younger brother enjoyed Ranger Rick magazine, which provided another avenue for noticing and taking care of the world around us. We learned about conserving water; we noticed wildlife and their environmental needs. In Virginia where I grew up, water falls from the sky in the summer. What a luxury, but I know that my grandparents had to pump it out of the ground. That’ll make you conserve water!
Reusing and repurposing was part of normal life. We didn’t throw very much away. Reflecting on this, it had to do with much more limited resources. But there was no sense of deprivation. Growing up, I thought we had everything, a swing set in the backyard, camping trips with tents, good food, great desserts! And if I had to snap beans or peas, I had my sister to harass right next to me.
I read an article about a group of women meeting for lunch during work, sandwiches wrapped in wax paper. They carefully cleaned and refolded the paper for the next use. That qualifies as Super Green in my book! Today, I repurpose foil and plastic bags for our personal use, knowing that plastic is not good for the environment (however convenient it may be).
Some of this is nostalgia. But appreciating one another, working alongside one another, and loving our good, green earth, continues to be a worthwhile lifestyle!
Nancy Bliss is a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener of Tuolumne County.
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