"Fruit of the Earth and Work of Human Hands"

Part 2: Why a Community Garden?

Why is a Congregation of Dominican Sisters sponsoring a project to raise vegetables? Isn’t our charism to study and preach Truth, to tell the whole world the Good News? So why have the folks at Shepherd’s Corner had this dream of one day starting a community garden where families can grow food for themselves and their neighbors? People growing their own food is not a novel idea, it’s just not the norm anymore.

But now, is our food normal? Are our meals normal? Have we lost something essential when we become disconnected from tending and reaping our food, preparing and sharing it with others? Is ‘grabbing a bite’ the emotional equivalent of ‘breaking bread with friends’? What is the spiritual or theological dimension of considering our food as ‘fruit of the earth and work of human hands’ – our hands! Do we reverence the seed and soil from which it sprouts, the sun and rain which nurture it? Does direct experience of these things make us feel more ‘rooted,’ better ‘fed’ spiritually?

With an apprentice and 5 volunteer participants who will be chosen from refugees or recent immigrants, Chris will plant tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, corn, squash, cabbage and broccoli, carrots, onions and herbs for this season. The growers may choose to include other foods used in preparing their traditional dishes. As the foods ripen, those who raised them will take what they need and decide where any surplus will go: to be frozen, canned or dried; to be sold at a vegetable stand, to be donated to a food bank, etc.

Chris envisions a garden which is inspiring, playful and diverse. There will be raised beds for those who must sit to work, trellises for vines, and flowers to attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies. It will be designed to witness to our mission: “seeking to recreate the land’s wholeness by rediscovering the life-giving harmony between people and the land. Here people of all backgrounds can learn to become reconnected to the natural environment, themselves, one another, and the Creator who made them all.”