Memorial Day is fast approaching, and so are my contradictory thoughts about said day. Its that balance between realizing who has fought and sacrificed and died so that I/we can live in a place that is, relatively, more "free" than most other places. And on the other side of the scale is the utter abhorrence of war in general, especially with my countries preemptive hall pass/rationale. Either way, what I realize more and more is that I do not understand. A lot. And knowing that, perhaps I should let go of old ideas and make a clearing for new ones. Pull out the dusty mindhedge trimmers and get to work. I prefer to do it by hand but electric or gas (or hydrogen or solar or ???) may be necessary for some. Whatever metaphorical method one may choose, it may help to think on this while doing such work:
"a little unlearning goes a long way." - Richard Kehl
But hey, the sun is in Gemini and the time is ripe to wrassle with the myriad contradictions that stir us up so much. In mine ears it has been thoughts like "pieces of one" and "constant impermanence" (Go Mountain Sangha!). Despite the maddening flip-flop hypocrisy of it all....it is somehow....true? To quote Blaise Pascal:
"Contradiction is not a sign of falsity, nor the lack of contradiction a sign of truth."
As the much needed rain ruins most outside work, another little project has jumped into view. I am going to try to make sweet potato slips, which means that I am going to take a sweet potato and grow little vines from it. Those slips will be planted in the ground...and if the deer don't get to them, they will create one of the sweetest things you can dig out of the ground. Yum yum yum! I found a nice clear video here for those interested in starting there own slips. But the video below is like THE Sweet Potato biography or something. Go Louisiana!
My operation is so miniscule that no spraying, no chain diggers (wow!) and no fork lifts are needed. I am in awe of how productive and mechanical the entire process is on a large scale.
The soundtrack on this informative video from LSU is sick.*
*Sarcasm alert. 2009 wasn't long ago, but the music seems a bit 20th century. This doesn't mean I don't love it in that snarky sort of way that is so (too?) common.
Next up: the bees are coming to their new hivey homey homes!
