by Kelly Knight, Marketing Manager for The Good Table

Flowers I planted in my garden for the pollinators

From the Garden

Climate change is consistently on my mind, and often makes me feel a little powerless. We’re in a big drought and approaching a heat dome heatwave and it’s all just a lot right now.

Since I cannot control the weather or climate change, I’ve decided to focus my attention on things I can do right here and now. As I’ve touched on a couple times, my garden is a source of joy, spirituality, and peace for me. A garden can also be a force for good in local populations, specifically very small populations — pollinators.

Pollinators are animals who move pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This allows the plant to reproduce, and creates, among other things, the edible fruits and vegetables we all enjoy. Nearly everyone knows about bees at this point, but pollinators can also be butterflies, hummingbirds, moths and bats.

Sunflowers, zinnias, and amaranth

Pollinators are also in trouble: insecticides; invasive species; parasites and diseases; and climate change all have put a dent in pollinator populations.

“A lot of these pollinators have evolved to emerge exactly when their plants are flowering,” says Deborah Landau, a conservation scientist for The Nature Conservancy in Maryland. But climate change messes up the timeline. “If a flower blooms too early or an insect hatches from its egg too early, they could completely miss each other.”

So what can we do to help pollinators? There are a couple things:
1. Plant native species in our gardens. When pollinators emerge, the plants that they rely on will be there, ready for them. Visit the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center at wildflower.org and choose the “Native Plants” tab to find flowers that will work for your area.

2. Support controlled burns on forestry land. Fire is a natural part of the ecosystem and when a landscape is burned, you often see a resurgence of native plants. This also helps with wildfire season, making sure the fires aren’t as devastating.

3. Plant a wide variety of flowering plants. Choose plants with various flowering seasons so that pollinators will have access to nectar and pollen the length of the flowering season.

4. Place flowering perennials and annual in drifts, groups of at least three plants, rather than dotting them individually around the garden. This makes it easier for pollinators to locate plants and they don’t have to work so hard to get what they need.

Drifts of pincushion flower, strawflower, daisies, and milkweed

5. Put a water source in your garden. Especially on hot days, having access to water will help sustain pollinators as they do their hard work. Put rocks in the bottom of a shallow fountain or water dish to allow insects to perch and drink without falling in.

6. Minimize your use of pesticides, even organic ones. These chemicals can hurt pollinators. Learn about different kinds of plants and companion planting to cut back on damage to your vegetables and showcase flowers.

Thank you for considering what to do to help our local pollinator populations. Our tiniest friends are grateful for your work.

Bee on a borage flower

by Rev. Dr. Melinda V. McLain

Spiritual Touchstone

“We plan, God laughs. ”

— Yiddish proverb (Psalm 33:10)


Maybe it is my Presbyterian upbringing, but I really like having a plan and a detailed schedule. I know some folks might be surprised by this given that I have been known in many circles for my improvisational skills and my delight for spontaneity, but it is true: even when improvising, I like to have a plan. And I always like to do unpleasant things first, so I can have more time to enjoy good things. As a teenager, I always did my homework first, so I would have the rest of the evening to spend freely. Not a bad habit to have developed and it has served me well in a number of ways!

This love of being organized has been with me as long as I can remember. When I was in my 20s, some friends found it so annoying that one of my classmates in college took my watch away from me and wouldn't let me wear it for two days. I thought I might die during those 48 hours. Now, with all my integrated gadgets, it would take WAY MORE than stealing my watch for me to let go of time and trying to stay on my plan: I have SIRI to defend me!

On the other hand, I have learned that having a plan and being prepared only helps with the small things in life like paying bills, doing projects, and meeting work deadlines. Truly, there is no way to actually prepare and plan for much of what really matters in life such as the grief of losing a beloved, a serious illness, wildfire season, or a global pandemic. Sure, we can make “go bags” and disaster kits, and  prepare financially with insurance and thoughtful estate planning, but that only handles the "business" of life, not the living of it.

Grief, in particular, even when you see it on the horizon through a diagnosis or the simple progression of aging, cannot be "done" in advance and you cannot plan for its effects. It sneaks up on you and takes hold of your heart and soul until you pay attention and confront the reality of the loss. Unfortunately for those of us who like plans, grief is a real plan wrecker. And whether or not COVID directly took the life of someone you love, we are all grieving in one way or another.

While a worldwide pandemic was certainly a possibility that public health professionals knew might happen, most, if not all of us were completely unprepared and had no plan for what unfolded in March 2020. I had thought about the possibility of “virtual church” while studying from my D.Min., but then suddenly we had to do it - next Sunday! And, of course, we did create a Zoom version of our service of music, prayer, and preaching that was different from our in-person gathering and yet, provided a genuine and life-giving connection to spiritual community during a time when we all felt more worried and isolated than usual. And our community has been blessed by participants from as far away as British Columbia and Texas - something that didn’t happen before that I do not want to lose when we go back to gathering in person on July 4th!

Our virtual sanctuary at home

It’s also humbling to begin construction on our new project and watch all of our planning shift and adjust to new realities such as skyrocketing materials prices while also becoming excited that someday, we might be able to actually open our cafe, nursery, and gathering space. And yet, we still don’t know when the renovation will be complete, but at least we’re moving forward after being stalled for many months.

Finally, as vaccination rates continue to rise and COVID cases fall, we are now beginning to meet again in person and resume activities in community that were unavailable during the pandemic. But I admit, I don’t have much of a plan yet for this new phase of living. I do know that it isn’t possible to just go back to the way things were. Too much has changed. And I want to find ways to integrate the lessons of the last fifteen months to make my life and our communities better. And because I’m a planner type, I want to be intentional about those changes, but I also recognize - another gift of the pandemic - that all of our plans need to be flexible because the only thing you can be certain about is that everything will change.

Do you like to plan? What do you do when your plans fall apart? What spiritual practices are helpful when things don't go the way you expected?

In the Community

The arts have always been important part of any community. Today, we’d like to spotlight two artists in our community that are doing amazing things.

Photo Credit: Susan Wilson

Carolyn North
A remarkable person, Carolyn has given birth to three children, been a midwife in India, sung in a Gospel choir, started a farm, taught her technique of dance healing as a dance therapist for many years, started a hunger organization, Daily Bread, built a strawbale house, written 11 books on matter and spirit and, stayed married to the same man for 58 years until his death in 2015, started the CommonSpace Community Land Trust in Sonoma County, and became a member of the Wild and Radish Community of Northern California (of which our partner org Planting Justice’s Gavin Raders and Haleh Zandi are members) where she is helping design a program for elders aging and dying in community.

As if that weren’t enough, Carolyn “recently donated her Berkeley home valued at approximately $1.3 million — residential property she and her husband purchased in 1966 for $28,500 — to the East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative. The Oakland-based organization permanently removes residential properties from the mass market through cooperatives and land trusts and creates affordable housing opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and other underserved minority groups. North’s former family home now offers affordable housing, primarily for artists who are people of color.”

Carolyn says:
”I feel I am here to help make the transition from a materialistic culture to a culture that recognizes that we are all connected with each other, with the earth and with the cosmos.

You can read my bi-monthly articles on Musings On The Passing Scene and can follow links to information about my books at About Carolyn’s Books. The latest books are From the Notebooks of Carolyn North: Musings on the Passing Scene (Vol. 1) and its sequel The Living Edge of Dying: Musings in an Era of Breakdown (Vol. 2). They both address the realities of our time with deep seriousness, humor, personal stories and suggestions of how to keep on keeping on.”

Read Carolyn’s interview in SF Classical Voice: Carolyn North

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Steve Zwetsch

Making musical instruments out of unexpected items is Steve Zwetsch’s particular genius. Five years ago, Zwetsch came across a YouTube video of a guitar made from cigar boxes and wondered if he could craft something similar.

Being a self-taught handyman, Zwetsch gave it a shot and created the instrument in his basement. Before the pandemic, he would make five cigar box guitars a year but after his bakery business was impacted by COVID-19, he created 14 guitars in six months.

“It’s fun to make these things and I’m making them more for the art value than anything else. Then, the fact that it created more art with the music that you can play with it, is just phenomenal.”

— Steve Zwetsch, in profile by ABC News

Read his profile by ABC News here: The Art of Imperfection

by Kelly Knight, Marketing Manager for The Good Table

In the Kitchen

For the first time in a very long time, I was able to have fully vaccinated friends over for brunch on my deck this weekend. Since we hadn’t hosted anyone in awhile, I was a little stumped on what to make but then I thought of quiche. Quiche feeds a crowd (we only had two other adults, but it felt like a crowd!) and combined with an easy fruit salad, muffins, and some mimosas, it was a really lovely spread.

My partner can’t have gluten or dairy, so I bought some gluten-free pie crust and then made this paleo quiche recipe from Paleo Running Momma. Most quiche recipes include cheese, which is delicious, but if you can’t have dairy, this recipe is very satisfying and you won’t feel like you’re missing out.

Image courtesy Paleo Running Momma

Bacon, Caramelized Onion, and Veggie Quiche
by Paleo Running Mama
Serves 8

INGREDIENTS

1 9 ” paleo pie crust recipe pressed into 9” pie dish and baked for 5-7 minutes at 375 degrees or until just barely set
6 slices bacon
3-4 Tbsp reserved bacon fat or other cooking fat
1 x 8 oz container white mushrooms, sliced
2 medium onions, sliced thin
1 small/medium zucchini, cut in quarters and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
Sea salt for sprinkling on veggies
7 large eggs
1/4 cup full fat coconut milk
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional - but it really does help with flavor)
Chopped parsley for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large skillet, cook the bacon over medium high heat, crumble, and set aside to drain on paper towels. Reserve bacon fat to caramelize the onions and cook the veggies.

2. Next, caramelize the onions. Heat a large skillet over med-low/low heat, and add the bacon fat (or other cooking fat if preferred)

3. Add sliced onions and stir to coat, sprinkle with sea salt. Cook and periodically stir, for 20-30 minutes, lowering heat or adding a bit more fat as needed to avoid burning. The onions are done when they are a deep golden brown color and very fragrant.

4. While the onions cook, heat a separate skillet over medium heat and add 1 tbsp cooking fat. Add the zucchini and mushrooms, sprinkle with sea salt.

5. Sautee the veggies for about 2 minutes, stirring as needed, until softened. Add garlic and continue to cook another 45 seconds until softened, then remove from heat.

6. In a large bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the eggs, coconut milk, salt, and nutritional yeast.

7. Drain excess fat from the onions and veggies, then place all the veggies and bacon evenly in the partially baked crust. Pour egg mixture evenly over the filling.

8. Bake in the 375 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until center is set. Cover the quiche with a foil tent for the last 10 mins if crust begins to brown too much. Allow quiche to rest st least 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Garnish with chopped parsley if desired.  Enjoy!

by Kelly Knight, Marketing Manager for The Good Table

In the Garden

I’ve had a garden for many years, but this was the year I decided to get serious about it. It both was and wasn’t because of the pandemic — I’ll admit, it’s nice to have something pleasant to focus on when the world is falling apart; but also, I come from a long lineage of green thumbs, and maintaining a garden feels grounding for me in a way that little else does.

Amaranth, sunflower, cucumber, squash, and zinnia bed - The Good Table At Home

Something new I’m trying this year is Companion Planting. Simply put, Companion Planting is putting different types of plants together in a way that maximizes their harvest in yield, flavor, or pest reduction.

The most often stated example is the Three Sisters Trio: corn, beans, and squash. The corn provides a strong base for the beans to climb, the beans make nitrogen for the soil that helps all three plants to grow, and the squash shades the soil at the base, helping the plants retain moisture and reducing weeds. Squash is also prickly, which keeps away raccoons and other pests.

In the bed in the above picture, I’ve put the taller plants in the back row — amaranth (purple), sunflower (tall), and a crookneck squash in the back right corner. There are cucumbers in the first row, which the taller plants will shade. I’ve also planted zinnias in this bed to attract pollinators. There were nasturtiums in here too, which attract pests away from the vegetables, but they got sun-stressed and didn’t like the denser soil, so they’re in a pot off to the side in a succulent blend soil.

Little Gem Lettuce, Tomato, Parsley, Borage, and Cosmos

In this bed above, I’ve planted tomatoes next to borage, a flowering plant that attracts bees and tiny pest-eating wasps. Parsley also attracts insects away from tomatoes, so I’ve put these plants in between each tomato plant. I’m also going to transplant some dill in here in order to detract aphids and mites. The cosmos attract pollinators.

More parsley and tomatoes, onions, swiss chard, daisies

In the last bed, we planted onions by taking sprouting onions from the grocery store and plunking them in the soil. It’s an experiment. But onions “are thought to protect against borers, mites, slugs, and cutworms, as well as maggots of all types.” We’re planting them with Swiss Chard, which they like, and more parsley and tomatoes. There’s also a watermelon in there. It’s kind of a grab bag because I got a little overzealous with my seed starts this year.

If you’d like to learn more about Companion Planting, here are the two resources I used:
Companion Planting Guide by Farmer’s Almanac
Companion Planting Chart by Live Love Fruit - this one has a map of how you can lay out your beds as well!

by Kelly Knight, Marketing Manager for The Good Table

In the Kitchen

When spring rolls around, I always look forward to asparagus season. There’s something so nice about the green, fresh quality of asparagus, and I love adding it to frittatas, soups, stir-frys, and other dishes. The one we’re sharing today was inspired by Colleen, Melinda’s wife, who made it without a recipe the other night for dinner. I am not nearly as adept a cook, so I’m adapting this recipe from The Healthy Foodie.

A note on the salmon: Colleen sourced hers from local purveyor Pinoli Farmhouse Kitchen. Check them out if you’d like.

Image courtesy of The Healthy Foodie

Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Risotto
by The Healthy Foodie

INGREDIENTS
2-3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
1-1/2 cup Arborio rice
3 cups chicken broth
3 cups water
1/2 cup dry white wine or vermouth
1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
5.3 oz smoked salmon, chopped, (plus more to garnish)
8.8 oz asparagus, cut into 1-1/2" pieces

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a medium saucepan, warm the chicken broth and water over medium heat.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or saute pan set over medium heat; add the shallots and cook to soften, about 1 minute. Add the rice, stir to coat with oil and toast slightly, about 2 minutes. When the rice has taken on a pale, golden color, add about 1/2 cup of broth to the rice and stir constantly until the broth is absorbed. Continue adding broth, about 1/2 cup at a time, stirring continuously until the liquid is completely absorbed between each addition. Repeat until the rice is soft and creamy, which will take about 45 minutes.

3. Once the rice is cooked to your liking, stir in asparagus, add white wine or vermouth and cook, stirring constantly, until the asparagus is cooked to your liking.

4. Stir in Parmesan and smoked salmon; season with salt and pepper to taste and serve without delay.

5. Garnish with more smoked salmon, asparagus tips and grated Parmesan cheese, if desired.

by Rev. Dr. Melinda V. McLain

Good Table News

Great news for our site! It has been a LONG and winding road, but we finally have a building permit to begin the renovation of the Adachi site!

Deep thanks to all of you who have worked so hard to get us to this moment - especially our Project Manager, Colleen Rodger and Architect, Darrel DeBoer, plus all the folks from Planting Justice, the Good Table UCC, and all our wonderful community volunteers who have helped us reach this milestone! We are so grateful for all of you!

Come out for our next Community Work + Fun Day on Saturday, April 24th, 12p - 3p. Wear a mask, sturdy shoes, and bring gloves and gardening gear. 

In the Community

Last week got me thinking about neighborliness and community.

We live along a creek, and several trees have fallen, necessitating their removal. These are BIG trees: 40-50 feet and the creek is “private”, so it is a collective responsibility. The laws around this are pretty complicated as well.

Colleen with a log from one of the trees

One of our trees fell across the creek on the land of one of our neighbors and they also had one come down onto our side. We have the best access, so they found us via NextDoor and we decided to hire the same person to do the work via coming through our yard. This meant we had to sell and move out an old trailer, which was a multi-step, difficult process.

Meanwhile, there was another big tree blocking the creek that two other neighbors on the other side couldn’t decide as to whose responsibility, so the neighbors who originally contacted us had the crew pull it out at their expense. Doing this necessary tree work is difficult and expensive. We were so fortunate to have generous and kind neighbors to work with, but I worry about other neighbors who may not have the wherewithal to hire tree folks to come do this work well. And I’m concerned about neighbors who have a hard time getting along. This spirit of neighborliness made this process so much easier than it could have been. It showed me, once again, how vital community is, especially after the year we’ve all had.

Also, the tree guys pointed out a wild bee hive along the creek so now we know where all our bees come from! Sadly, we also now know that one of our huge stands of bay laurels has a fungus that is hollowing them out. All of this is likely is a result of the long drought. It’s sad, magnificent, and some folks are in danger of having a big tree land on their house. Doesn’t that just epitomize the times: tragic, beautiful, deeply sad, with moments of great joy and working together. That’s a broader metaphor for life, I think, written in the trees.

A wild bee hive is living in the crevice in the tree trunk on the left

If you’d like to learn more about our local creeks and want to help, check out: SPAWNERS, a great local group working to restore our watersheds.

By Rev. Dr. Melinda V. McLain

Spiritual Touchstone

“Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live.”

— Dorothy Thompson, legendary American journalist, (1893-1961)

Reverend Melinda in an amazing Easter ensemble

One of my more crusty professors in seminary once said, “I can cope with Santa Claus, but the Easter Bunny ought to be obliterated”. He was correct that Santa is at least based somewhat upon the life of St. Nicholas who was known for giving gifts in secret. But the origin of a bunny (or perhaps a hermaphroditic hare) bringing eggs as gifts to children is fuzzier and contains quite a few odd elements that would appear to have very little to do with the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ. Also, I am pretty certain that no one in first century Palestine had access to chocolate of any kind.

Personally, I love the rabbits, peeps, and eggs associated with Easter. As a child, I wasn’t too fond of the Easter “outfits”, but I did like coloring eggs and then finding them. Also, I still enjoy singing the loud “alleluia” songs. And there have been times when I was singing in a church that had a big pipe organ that Easter meant singing ear-splitting anthems accompanied by brass - another fun thing to do! Easter for many folks really is a lot of fun and festive hoopla!

But I also understand my professor’s problem with all this Easter hullabaloo. Such celebrations don’t quite connect with the high drama of the story of Jesus. Nor does it resemble the saga of the horribly frightened disciples who spent much of the first year following the crucifixion of Jesus in hiding or facing various forms of gruesome persecution by the Roman empire. Their well-documented travails with Roman imperial power make it clear that their movement was explicitly designed to resist the religion of empire even if - just like Jesus - it cost them their lives.

Next week is Holy Week, when those of us on the Jesus path will retell the stories of that ragtag movement of folks determined to proclaim good news to the poor, the oppressed, and those suffering injustice. But beyond telling those stories, many of us will seek ways to embody their fearlessness - even in the face of a culture that thinks it foolish to live our lives in service to others.

When Easter Sunday comes this year on April 4th, I plan to sing a few “alleluias”, but if the real power of resurrection happens for me, it will be in the form of a recommitment to the prophet Micah’s call to “seek justice, love mercy, and to walk humbly (like Jesus) with God” even when I’m afraid, confused, or just simply don’t feel like it.

My UCC colleague and dear friend the Rev. Donna Schaper, in her wonderful “gardening” book Calmly Plotting the Resurrection has written, “resurrection is rarely complete. We are still on our way. Easter week will come and go, and some of us will rise all the way to our forgiven selves, and all the way up to our capacity to forgive others. Some of us won’t. God help us to rise.”

Let us rise!

In Our Community

The rollout for COVID-19 vaccines hasn’t been super smooth or transparent, and if you haven’t been vaccinated already, you may be wondering how to get your shots. Here’s a very quick rundown of the potential paths to vaccination.

1. Check your eligibility here: myturn.ca.gov

2. This will also enroll you in the state’s program and notify you when you may be eligible. So stay tuned via email and text to see when it might be your turn.

3. Also, if you are eligible, check with your healthcare provider/health network. Several folks got their shots via the Stanford, UCSF, Sutter Health, or Kaiser Permanente websites. Note: we are linking to the main hubs for vaccines for these websites, but you’ll need an account to be eligible to sign up.

4. If there are no appointments close by, consider searching further out. The vaccine has been unequally distributed, with urban areas often getting fewer than they need. Please don’t do the “refresh refresh refresh” to nab an appointment in these areas (you could be taking the turn of someone who it’s meant for there) — it’s more that if they have a surplus due to over-distribution and an appointment is easy to get, take advantage of that if you are able to drive there. In this case, you’d be freeing up a shot closer to home for someone who can’t travel as far.

President Joe Biden assures us that there will be a vaccine for every adult by May 1, and that the goal is for all adults who want a vaccine to be vaccinated by July 4. So if it’s not happening for you now, don’t worry — we’ll all get there together soon.

Stay strong and we’ll see you on the other side of this.

REMINDER
We invite you to come to our next community work day on Saturday March 27th from 12p - 3p. We have a variety of gardening and cleaning projects that can be done safely while wearing masks and maintaining physical distance outside. Be sure to wear sturdy shoes, bring work gloves, and of course, wear a mask.

Taken at our last work day before the pandemic, February 2020

Tender seedlings poking through the soil

From the Garden

Around this time, my thoughts invariably turn to my garden and the promise of spring. Thankfully, we’re getting some rainy weather as I write this, but all the more reason to start your seeds indoors and plant them outside later.

I was cowed by my lack of knowledge at first. Every time I’ve tried to start seeds, I’ve only gotten good results from the hardiest of plants. But as it turns out, it’s pretty straightforward.

You need:

• Seed starting trays of some kind (I’m using peat for now)

• Good soil, preferably a seed starting mix but generic potting soil will do

• Seeds

• A sunny, warm spot — I’m using my greenhouse window

First off, read the instructions on each packet of seeds. For most of them, you just make a small hole, gently cover them, and water. But some, like my Strawflower seeds, only germinate with light. It’s like reading the recipe all the way through before you start cooking; know what you’ll need before you start.

I filled up my trays most all the way with potting soil, made a hole with my finger, and put 3 seeds into each hole. It’s good practice to put multiple seeds in so that if one is a lemon, you still have the chance for the other two. Some seeds are super teeny and I got a bunch in there, but I did the best I could. Then I very gently covered them with soil, basically brushing the dirt gently back into place, and watered just a bit. You want the soil moist, not drowned.

For the Strawflower seeds, I sprinkled them on the top and then put their tray on a non-draining tray and bottom watered. Bottom watering is where you put water in the tray and let it soak into the soil up from the bottom. Watering from the top can displace the seeds when you’re trying to light germinate them.

Is there anything more hopeful than sprouts?

Oh, and don’t forget to label them! Very important — you don’t want to forget what each thing is, unless you like a mystery garden.

Keep your soil moist. Depending on your light and heat situation, that could mean watering gently every day or every couple days. I ended up getting trays for all and bottom watering mostly, because I found it pretty effective. I also used a spray bottle for misting for the more delicate seedlings.

I planted a mix of flowers and vegetables. I like to mix up my raised beds to attract good pollinators and keep pests away.

The seed packets should tell you how much time each seed takes to germinate. My flowers came up pretty quick. The vegetables are taking longer, but that’s totally okay. Because I’m in California, I can really start at any time and transplant when they get big enough because we rarely get a frost here. If you’re in a place where you get below freezing, the seed packets should tell you when to start and when to transplant.

Once you have several seedlings coming up in each section, it’s time for the sad part: trimming. In order to have the strongest plants possible for transplanting, you’ll need to find the strongest looking seedling in each pot, and then lop off the heads of the ones sharing its pot with sharp scissors. It’s very depressing, and I hate doing it, but if you don’t, the plants will crowd each other and become scraggly and weak. Trimming the tops off the others allows the strong seedling to grow without competing for resources with its pot-mates.

This is my basic set-up, complete with cat enjoying the sun. Once your seedlings are a couple inches tall and seem sturdy, it’s time to transplant them out into your garden. Rather than paying for starts, which are more expensive and limited in selection, you can grow nearly anything this way.

I have to admit, I’m a little addicted to seed starting and watching my plant babies grow. Is there anything more hopeful than a seed sprout?

I wish you success in anything hopeful you start this spring.