A discussion on Health inspired by the pee book

*This is a translation of a piece I wrote earlier in Japanese about health.
健康と人間関係のエントリーを英語に訳した物です。
（日本語はhttp://livingpermaculture.blogspot.com/2010/06/blog-post.html)

Here's a quote that struck me in the pee book I'm reading (I introduced it briefly before). Its primarily about drinking urine for health and Eastern medicine.

"When your family members are healthy, family-life becomes cheerful, and you deeply experience how amazing good health is. When those who criticize and irritate others become healthy, they start to only see positive things in others. Health is a very mysterious phenomenon. Of course you will feel negative if your body is always tired or if you are experiencing pain."

Totally!
Its hard for me to be positive when I don't get enough sleep, don't have a rhythm in my week, catch a cold, have itchy skin, or when my back hearts. I've been afflicted from a skin inflammation that itches and hurts and makes using my hands for anything extremely unpleasant. So, for a few weeks I've been particularly struggling with irritability and not feeling particularly motivated to do stuff.

I believe that good relationships start with Zone zero, your body and mind. If you aren't healthy then you will end up watering unwholesome seeds in the world. I saw that a lot when I was organizing against war and the military-industrial-academic complex at UC Santa Cruz. For me, living in nature and growing nourishing food is the ideal life-style. This place is unbelievably comfortable because I can live a healthy life-style with ease. When I think about my family's home in Osaka and Tokyo, I feel like I would not be able to live healthy in those environments. global mega centers of consumerism. This is a major personal struggle because there are graduate programs in sustainability science and permaculture in Tokyo province. More importantly, I want to live with my parents to support the, but I feel that I might spread anxiety and negative vibes if I live in a stressful environment. Because feelings and emotions ripple out into other people, especially those close to you. When I'm in a nurturing environment like here, I feel like I am able to nourish others and spread positive seeds.

On a related note, one of the people I respect the most, Thich Nhat Hanh (Vietnamese Zen master peace activist), might be going to Japan (probably the last time he will do that). The communities (sangha) that follow his tradition are extremely impressive. They live a very peaceful and simple lifestyle, all ordinary people (who chose to become monks and nuns). Real-estate agent, doctor, musician, composer, cook, architect, boat people, young people, old people, etc. I have learn a lot living in those communities. One of the monks, Phap Luu was into permaculture and implemented some permaculture design on their beautiful site in Escondido San Diego. Together with another monk from Germany, they helped to organize the monastery to go solar (connected to the grid, no batteries). They also cooked beans and grains in a parabolic solar cooker (gets super hot and you need sun glasses and gloves while using it), and were making berms and swales around the fruit trees they were planting. There is also a native plant restoration project there.

I think zen, permaculture, and shizeno (natural farming) are a great combination. Perhaps they are essentially the same thing.

Lets keep cultivating peace!

Natural Farming Experiment 5/24

Update on my natural farming experiment (from May 24th)
In Etsuko's book (see previous entry), she suggests digging trenches around garden beds (generally 90~120cm for most veggies) and using that soil to make raised beds for better drainage. This of course depends on the climate, water, and soil situation specific to your site (this is true for all the suggestions from her book and other gardening methods). The beds should be arranged north to south rather than east to west to allow for equal sun distribution on the plants. In heavy clay sites where water may not drain fast enough, you might want to design in a way to release water from the ditch/paths.

First, cut the weeds at soil level with a kama (Japanese hand sickle), or you can go the all-American route and use a weed-whacker. I used a kama because it made more sense to me and that is what Kawaguchi uses. Then lightly shave the top of the soil to remove the weed seed bank and running weeds. I spent a lot of time thinking about what "no weeding" in shizeno and how this act of shaving fits in. But, like Kawaguchi said, the goal of natural farming is not just to be "natural" but to cultivate food too. I also have a desire to "succeed" in this experiment for various reasons, and have some harvest. Anyways, to each his/her own, and I decided to follow her advice as I know it will make things easier for me later in the season.
I used a kuwa and shaved off the top of the future garden beds.
Then I trenched around the the perimeter. The trench was a way to raise the beds as this area is sandy loam soil near a pond, so it gets quite wet. It also acts as a barrier to keep quack grass (a vigorous running weed) from overwhelming the garden beds.

I also delineated the garden beds with (bamboo) sticks and string, which is something I learned from a professor of agroecology, Steve Gleissman, who taught a Biointensive gardening internship at UCSC. Etsuko also suggested doing this. I find it aesthetically pleasing and it probably legitimates "strange" or "hippie" gardening to the mainstream audience.

More stuff to come....

Natural Farming book 2

自然農ガーデニングのガイドとして使っている本です。とても分かりやすく説明されています。でも、日本とここの風土は違うので、自分なりに工夫をするつもりです。特に夏が乾燥していて冬に雨が降るのは日本のほとんどの所との大きな違いだと思います。雑草の種類は勿論違うし、六月になっても寒い事も考慮しなければいけません。自分の中では今年が実験／研修期間で、来年から本番という様に考えています。この本は、イラスト満載で耕作を放棄した荒地を田畑に拓く方法から収穫・保存法まで具体的に説明してあります。お米、野菜、果樹全部をカバーされています。お勧めの本です。

Update on the shizeno (natural farming) experiment. The book above is what I am reading for specific advice on natural farming inspired by Kawaguchi's practice. The title is "Shizeno (natural farming)・a guide to cultivation" by Etsuko Kagamiyama. On Amazon her bio reads, "Born in 1955 in Miyazaki city. Then moves to Okayama after marriage. She encountered shizeno and Mr. Kawaguchi in 1992. Then begins to learn Chinese medicine [one of Kawaguchi's main practices, if I remember correctly]. This book was written after 15 years of shizeno experience. She lives a farming life with her husband and two daughters.

This would be an awesome book to translate for English speakers interested in shizeno. I might work on it when I have time, but I have to motivate myself since its more appealing to hang out in nature and garden myself. There are over 1000 illustrations and really simple and thorough directions about everything. There are explanations on starting a garden on an uncultivated site, dike building, cultivating grains, vegetables, and fruit trees. From planting to harvesting to storage. In the back of the book, there is an short exploration on what it means to live, descriptions and uses of various Japanese tools, a short natural farming dictionary, and advice on how to address bugs, birds, wild boars, rabbits, and raccoons. There is also two pieces by Mr. Kawaguchi, the editorial supervisor of the book. Pretty awesome resource to have, and considering that its in its 3rd printing since when it was published in October 2007, shizeno must be catching on again.

Building project

More pictures!
This was our first intern building project that allowed us to learn basic carpentry and have an opportunity to be creative and artistic. Some people finished in a day but others, like me, have been working on and off for about 2 weeks now. One of the main areas I wanted to learn here was carpentry and natural building. So far I've only made a cob oven and straw-bale demonstration wall that was suppose to be a tool shack both at the Program In Community and Agroecology spearheaded by a very wonderful professor, Steve Gleissman. It was one of the Action Research Teams (ARTs) in the Education for Sustainable Living Program (ESLP) that I went on to co-organize then chair, and have a life-transforming experience. I can talk on and on about that, so more on that later. The point was that I have pretty much no building experience.

研修生全員が取り組んだ大工（入門）のプロジェクトです。大工仕事の基本を学びながら、個性的かつ実用的で心地の良いボットン便所を二人一組で作りました。僕がここで学びたかった事の一つは、木造建築とグリーン建築（green building)です。大学でcob（粘度、藁、砂）でつくった亀の形のピザオーブンとstrawbale（藁の大きなブロックとcob)で作った壁しか建築関係の経験がありません。いずれは自分の家くらいは建てたいと思っています。医食住和を自給できる態勢で日本に帰国したいです。


Sam is giving us tips and doing a demonstration on how to saw with an American (push) saw and a Japanese (pull) saw. One thing I learned from him is the use of your thumb to guide the blade.
サムがのこぎりの使い方を説明しながら、見本を見せている所です。アメリカ式の押すのこぎりと日本式のひくのこぎりの上手な使い方を教えてくれました。新しく学んだコツは、サムの左手の親指の様に親指を使って刃の方向を調節する事。サムは何でも一から丁寧に教えてくれます。

Everybody busy working....except for Doug. He finished before we started.
みんな忙しく作業に取りかかっている様子。

Natures Beauty

Living in beauty


The Aloha lodge during the intro course.
I vote for more Aloha lodge classrooms in the world.




The salad bed. Just bring a knife and cut a mosaic of 4 different baby greens. Instantly a beautiful salad.

健康

この前紹介した尿療法の本を読んでいたらこんな事が書いてありました、

「家族のものが健康になると、家庭内が明るくなり、健康というものが、こんなにすばらしいものであったかという事を、しみじみと感じさせる。今までお互いに欠点ばかり突っつき合っていたものが健康になると、長所しか見えなくなってくる。健康というものは、本当に不思議なものである。いつも身体が疲れたり、痛みを感じていれば、気分が否定的になる事は当然だ。」

ごもっとも。寝不足だったり、不規則な生活をしたり、風邪をひいたり、皮膚がかゆかったり、腰が傷んだりすると元気でポジティブに振る舞うのは難しいですよね。僕は、ここ数週間指にアレルギー反応が出てイライラしたり、やる気がなくなったりしていました。

良い人間関係は、まず自分の心と体の健康から始まるのだと思います。自然の中で暮らし、健康な食べ物を育てて生きるのは僕にとっての理想的な生活です。ここは不思議なくらい心地よく、健康的生活が実践できるからだと感じます。実家の大阪や東京を考えると、果たして健康的な生活ができない気がしてしまいます。まさに消費社会の中心地。家族と一緒に住みたい反面、ストレスがたまる環境で家族と過ごすのはみんなに迷惑になる感じもします。イライラしたり、気が抜けたりすればそれは周りの人に伝染するからです。しかし、逆に今のように健康な環境に居る事により、幸せのエネルギーがみんなに広まっている事が実感できます。

そういえば、僕の最も尊敬している先生の一人、ティク・ナット・ハーンさん (ベトナム出身の禅僧・平和運動家・詩人)が日本に来年来日するかもしれません。健康とか生き方とかで連想してしまいました。彼のコミュニティー(フランスのプラムビレッジやサンジエゴのディアパークなど）は本当に凄いと思います。とても平和でシンプルな生き方を実践していると感じました。そこであったあるお坊さんの一人、アメリカ人のファップ・ルーさんはパーマカルチャーを勉強していて色々サンディエゴのディアパーク僧院でプロジェクトをしていました。ドイツ人のファップ・タンさんも環境やサステナビリティーにとても関心と知識があって、僧院にソーラーパネルを設置したり、パラボラ式のソーラークッカーで豆や穀物を調理したり、僧院のあらゆる所に果樹をうえて周りにバーム（berm)とスエール(swale)を作ったり、コンポストを担当してたりしていました。

禅、パーマカルチャー、自然農はとても良いコンビだと思います。

平和を育んで行こう！

Food Market Weirdness

Some funny but actually not funny political cartoons related to news the last few years. Its pretty crazy what kinds of food we pay for and eat.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26890040/ns/health-political_cartoons/displaymode/1107/s/2/

But, if you grow your own food or buy from someone/some place that you trust (ideally actually see and participate in the production process like a CSA*), then you can eat in health and happiness.

*Community Supported Agriculture

Thoughts on natural farming/gardening 1

WHAT IS NATURAL FARMING?　自然農とは。。。
It depends (the answer to most questions here at the Bullocks).

A simple summary of what I understand shizen no (shizen-nature/natural and no-farming/gardening) is growing food without tilling, fertilizing, or weeding. Those are the 3 elements that both Fukuoka (One Straw Revolution) and Kawaguchi (the one I met) use as the foundation of their gardening method.

But to reduce shizen no to only the above would be misleading and disrespectful. There is a deep spiritual dimension to our relationship to the web of life, and shizenno is an intentional relationship with nature, to grow food in harmony with all life. It is an art, a spiritual practice, and a path that will help us look deeper into how everything is connected. Similar to permaculture, its not another farming method or style, it is not just about growing food, it is a way of life. Well, at least that is how I receive it. I'll share more as I learn on my first adventure actually doing it. My intention is to share in a nourishing way without becoming dogmatic, which is a common criticism about Fukuoka. And please let me know how I can support your interest in shizen no.

Kawaguchi, who has been doing shizen no since the 70s, says "growing food in a way where we do not till, we do not fertilize, we do not spray pesticides, and we do not treat weeds and bugs as our enemy." His main principles are, "no tilling, no importing materials, and no exporting materials." Respecting all life by not straining our environment.

This is an invitation to try it out with me and enjoy a new way of growing food, a new understanding of life. There may not be any epiphanies, much "production", and you might struggle with the pureness of your experiment, but until you do it natural farming will only be an idea.

The picture on the top is the site of my experiment before any of my interventions. Looks quite lush with volunteers. The bottom is after I cut all the grass with the kama, Kawaguchi's tool of choice. I also staked it with bamboo to help envision the dimension of the garden beds.

Deep Quotes

Hello friends,
I'm working on my write up of the intro course but its really hard to sit and face a computer when I can hang out with cool people, feast, and garden. But, I'll quit whining and get my act together (5/28 finished it! Its actually below this entry). In the mean time, I want to share a few quotes that really resonate with me from those I call my teachers. Some of you might recognize these.

When you understand, you love. And when you love, you naturally act in a way that can relieve the suffering of people. -Thich Nhat Hanh　ティク・ナット・ハン（禅の先生）

Farming is a way of life in which one constantly reaffirms the source of life. - Fukuoka Masanobu　福岡正信（自然農法）

Work is energy. Two crises of our times are intimately connected — the climate crisis and the unemployment crisis.....To make the energy transition beyond oil, we need to bring people back into the economy, bring human energy back into production, respect physical work, and give it dignity. - Vandana Shiva　ヴァンダナ・シヴァ（食料システム活動家／エコフェミニスト）