The Field in May, 2010 – Les Premières Fraises

May 2, 2010 9:21 pm

Alain called us yesterday to say he had a barquette of strawberries for us – the first of the season. I took a picture of what was left of them after breakfast today.First Fraises, 1 mai 2010

My son, Jake, gave me a book for Christmas last year – Bringing It to the Table, a compilation of essays by Wendall Berry. Berry has been writing fiction, poetry, and essays – as well as farming a hillside in his native Kentucky with his wife – for over forty years. I had never read his work before, but his ideas about food, its production, and its consumption seem to encapsulate everything I’ve been thinking and learning about food, especially since moving to France nearly five years ago. As I ate the delicious utterly fresh little strawberries this morning in a dish of yoghurt that Kevin had made, I thought of these words by Berry, “A significant part of the pleasure of eating is in one’s accurate consciousness of the lives and the world from which food comes.”

Extolling the Virtues of the DandelionIt is so true. With each bite of these strawberries, we are fully conscious that they were planted by Anna and Alain in their nearby field, were grown with no pesticides, and that we even had the chance to help them along ourselves by weeding and cleaning up the row of little plants. And that consciousness has definitely deepened our appreciation, enjoyment, and confidence in this bounty.

Ruth

2 Responses to “The Field in May, 2010 – Les Premières Fraises”

Sammie wrote a comment on May 19, 2010

What a rich and amazing life you’re having!!! xoxoxo. S.

SurEsq wrote a comment on May 23, 2010

Ah, Sammie is right. And I so look forward to watching Anna and Alaim’s fields throughout the season.

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