Traditionally, communities have grown up around a set of crossroads. a memo someone obviously missed here in Fairview. Instead, Fairviewians live along a nine-mile stretch of scenic highway by which early settlers could reach Asheville from the East and by which farmers drove their livestock to market. Such a straight shot has its advantages but creating a town center isn’t one of them. We have no intersection designating such a place, or do we?
At the heart of The Lord’s Acre Garden is a crossroads of sorts. Two dirt paths intersect right under the nose of the garden’s main scarecrow. As folks have pointed out, that humble crossing and the garden around it could very well become the heart of town for Fairview. That started us thinking. What is it that the heart or hub of any community provides?
A place to know our neighbor: We tend to know those we work, worship and play with yet that’s only a small slice of what constitutes any given community. We travel in different circles but every one of us has this in common, we need to eat.
A place to play and socialize: Groups, families and individuals bring their play ethics as well as their work ethics to the garden. We have close to a 100%. leave-here-smiling rate, among volunteers. Who wouldn’t want to burn calories, help others, learn new skills, meet friends old and new and laugh while doing it?
A place to learn: Since we all need to eat, what can we learn as a community, about food? How to grow, identify, cook and store healthy foods, who is hungry among us and why, how secure our current food system is, and what fresh food tastes like, for starters. All these things spring from a garden.
A way to understand the needs in our community: Exactly who is it that’s hungry, lonely, without heat, or abandoned? Such things come to light while working for and sharing something as intimate as food.
A place to use our strengths and gifts: Some of us are good listeners, musicians, artists, teachers, cooks, financial experts, soccer players, horse people trust us. There is no talent that can’t be used in the garden whether directly or for fundraising. Oh, and that dead oak tree (someone needs firewood), scrap lumber (for raised beds), old wheelbarrow (we can fix it), or odd jobs (income) that need doing can also be put to use.
Our new year’s resolution is to grow more food, more minds and more hearts in 2011. We hope you join us. To learn more about The Lord’s Acre Garden in Fairview, email us at: thelordsacre@gmail.com and check out our website: www.thelordsacre.org where you’ll see our latest news and video.
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