The Wonder and Amazement of Nature Through a Child's Eyes

I'm an insomniac. No rhyme or reason to it. It happens and has been since I was a child. And I'm in a current bout with it. So when I woke up for the day I felt like a colorless blob of a being, which when this happens is normal. We've had a steady amount of rain recently, and I needed to catch up on weeding at my garden plot, and some touch ups that needed to be done that were driving me crazy, so I took this feeling of a colorless blob to the garden, and figured in some way it would work it's magic.

And it did.

On my way over, I had rescued some Gerbera Daisies. Some people rescue animals, I rescue plants off clearance shelves. While sunflowers are the happiest flowers to me, Gerberas are a close second. I found my color, now I just needed to add some life to my spirit. I was off to garden to hopefully find it there.

When I arrived, my neighbor's were there and they had their grandchild with them, who is about 5 years old. A motivated helper, and curious as children could be, I found myself having a memory played out in front in me in real time. Many years ago that child was me, and the grandparents were my parents, or the farmer friends of the family who taught me the value of caring for the earth, and the delicate balance that rewards us for bring the stewards of the land.

It was pure joy to hear this child's wonder and amazement as the soundtrack for my time there. No music could ever top the sound of amazement this child was expressing. Pumpkins from flowers! Tomatoes from buds! Flowers that keep the bad bugs away, all resonated in my heart and soul. I was watching a story write itself naturally about nature, and the traditions and knowledge that were being passed from one generation to the next as I worked the soil to save rescued plants.

An living example of a great story unfolding naturally as most stories do. And, the true essence of what Vanishing Feast is all about.

The Plot Twist of the Mark Twain Tomatoes

In this post, The Magic in This Story's Process, I wrote about a plot twist about Mark Twain tomatoes that presented itself: Mark Twain tomatoes - Never heard of them until I started seeking out rare tomato seeds for Vanishing Feast. I discovered them in the fedcoseed.com catalogue. When I went to order the seeds, they were out. I was faced with a choice, a classic example in building a narrative in a story. Do I just say "oh well I'll order earlier next year" or do I demonstrate my commitment to this project, and start a journey to find these seeds or plants. I chose to find seeds, plants or both. A little alchemy later for making the right choice, I found plants that will be available in northern Tennessee at Shy Valley Plant Farm. Living in southern New Jersey I can make this trip, document it as part of this story, and taste these rare tomatoes, that evidently bruise easily but taste really good. Perhaps the Mark Twain will become a rally point in this story.

I took that trip this past weekend. I stayed in Johnson City, TN, which I found out is right down the the road from Jonesborough, TN. Jonesborough hosts a National Storytelling Festival. At the Inetrnational Storytelling Center.  Imagine that? A plot twist in a story about tomatoes named after a great American writer, who wrote classic American stories, leads me to an area that hosts a storytelling festival and is home to an international storytelling center.

Pretty darn cool I will say. Had I shrugged my shoulders, and said I'll order earlier next year, the above would never happened. I would have gotten the seeds instead of finding the plants. I would've never met the nice owners of Shy Valley, and never discovered the storytelling festival or center.

Viewing my life as a story, and using this blog as a medium to focus my passion and attention towards expressing that concept, along with demonstrating the twists and turns that make a story great, the narrative that developed is so much better then anything I could've made up. There's the magic in the process.

The tomatoes Jeff? What about the tomatoes? I'll find out later in the season when they get ripe.The people at fedcoseed.com have good things to say about the flavor, so I will go on that for now. I can't seem to find much more information about Mark Twain tomatoes so far, but if its out there, I will.

The blurb from fedcoseed.com says they bruise easily, which disqualifies them the big box retailing model in existence today. According to that model, this tomato has no value. I call bull shit on that. The value in this tomato is that exclusive to people who grow it. It much more precious because of it's nature. And it fits in well the concept of heirloom plants as family heirlooms. I can see these tomatoes becoming a rally point for Vanishing Feast because of the process covered above that brought them to my attention, the magic in the process, and the value that disqualifies them from the big box retail model.

Here's a quote from Mark Twain's story, Hunting The Deciftful Turkey:

I was ashamed, and also lost; and it was while wandering the woods hunting for myself that I found a deserted log cabin and had one of the best meals there that in my life-days I have eaten. The weed-grown garden was full of ripe tomatoes, and I ate them ravenously, though I had never liked them before. Not more than two or three times since have I tasted anything that was so delicious as those tomatoes. I surfeited myself with them, and did not taste another one until I was in middle life. I can eat them now, but I do not like the look of them. I suppose we have all experienced a surfeit at one time or another. Once, in stress of circumstances, I ate part of a barrel of sardines, there being nothing else at hand, but since then I have always been able to get along without sardines.

I'll let you know if the Mark Twain's are as delicious as that quote. Que the cliffhanger.

The Magic in This Story's Process

When I started writing my other blog, Magic Hat Stories (MHS) I encouraged people to look at their lives as stories, and to remember the magic and impact that stories had on them growing up. I know for myself, as an adult, I get caught up in the stress of modern life, and at times, forgo the magic that living a life framed in stories offered. I got really lucky when I started writing MHS. It reconnected me to when I was a child living the adventures in my storybook pages. The incredible journeys that myths and folklore took me on in college, and at one point, when both of those times conspired to push me into being a storytelling milliner. That though, is another story for another time.

In the midst of living my life, and being open to the creating this story of Vanishing Feast, the magic appeared ten fold over the past 6 weeks or so. In any process, magic happens. One has to keep a keen eye or two open, and perhaps three if you consider the mythical third eye to your soul, to see what magic happens with the process. I feel the magic that existed in the storybooks of my youth is what I'm experiencing now with this project.

For example;

Mark Twain tomatoes- Never heard of them until I started seeking out rare tomato seeds for Vanishing Feast. I discovered them in the fedcoseed.com catalogue. When I went to order the seeds, they were out. I was faced with a choice, a classic example in building a narrative in a story. Do I just say "oh well I'll order earlier next year" or do I demonstrate my commitment to this project, and start a journey to find these seeds or plants. I chose to find seeds, plants or both. A little alchemy later for making the right choice, I found plants that will be available in northern Tennessee at Shy Valley Plant Farm. Living in southern New Jersey I can make this trip, document it as part of this story, and taste these rare tomatoes, that evidently bruise easily but taste really good. Perhaps the Mark Twain will become a rally point in this story.

Seed Collecting Stories - The charm of a lot heirloom plants for me obviously is the story behind them. In the course of a conversation with a friend, it seems like I am living a my own version of a seed saving or seed collecting story. I'm keeping this close to vest as I follow the path this story is taking me on. Once I get more details I will share them here. You gotta love the instructions "Plant the paper towel."

Hydroponics - It started innocently enough, I walked in the door of the local horticultural supply company. When I walked out, I had this potential hydroponic system in my head as way to keep the feast going year round. There's an odd shaped closet in my studio that has become a catch all of dead energy. What a great flip this would be to turn this dead space into a thriving area that could perpetuate the feast all year round. This presents a bit of challenge  since I would have to slightly modify a room and find the cash for this system though.

In the context of living my life as a story though, the plot twists above offer me the opportunity to take this story to the next level. And as true storyteller will tell you, these magical moments that so innocently appear, offer the best content to be told.

I've secured a double lot in the community garden program I participate in for this year, have a great variety of seeds, and will be plotting my garden this afternoon. That will be the next post up. I will be posting more frequently now, so thanks for your patience and stay tuned.