I have a confession to make: I am a very bad gardener of annual vegetables. Horrible might be a better word. I am inconsistent in watering. I sometimes get behind in weeding. And periods of neglect lead to many plants just burning up in the summer. It is tragic.
But only recently, while thinking on a walk, did I realize that this fact does not disqualify me from teaching others about sustainability, or even gardening.
To develop a way of life that is sustainable, I think there are 3 keys:
1.) we need to develop perennial systems that do not rely on our inputs
2.) we need to realize how essentially right nature is. This is terms of speed and rhythm. We need to realize we are rhythmic, networked beings. We are NOT mechanical or computational, in spite of how often we try to distort others (and, for a few people, ourselves) into fitting that mold.
3.) we need to use the internal combustion engine significantly less (which means we will have to eschew travel, even though that completely goes against a key tenant of the "life-style blog" school of thought).
I think I can help new comers down any of these three paths. So even if I don't get as much lettuce or squash as some master gardeners, I can achieve my personal big hairy audacious goal of helping 100,000 people to live more sustainable lives.
