Prospect Park United Methodist Church
Bird by Bird

NOTES FROM CATHY:

BIRD BY BIRD
And Bite by Bite
(You are what you eat)
 
How can we incorporate a safe, nutritious diet into our busy lives?   We might even ask, “What would Jesus eat?”  Maybe we can answer these questions.  Dr. Roxanne Lockhart (member of PPUMC) attended a weeklong conference on food as medicine and is willing to share information with PPUMC and our community on helping us eat better. Cathy Eberhart and others in the Bird by Bird Group would like to include this information and our shared knowledge to support sustainable agriculture and help the environment.

On Wednesday, August 6th from 7-8:00 we will meet at church to discuss how to share this information about healthy eating and sustainable food sources as well as other possible Bird by Bird topics (like plastics or energy conservation, etc.) during this coming year.  Some ideas are lectures and discussions for Sunday adult ed. and/or on Wednesday night, Wednesday night sustainable suppers and reaching out to the community and other churches with the ideas and the Whole Farm Coop.  Come August 6th or give your ideas to Roxanne, Cathy or Joy DeHarpporte.

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The Bird-by-Bird group on sustainable living gathered on Sunday, February 3rd for a lively conversation about our consumer economy and an invitation to consider a "Nothing New Lent."

Nancy V-V shared an idea to Buy Nothing New during Lent that came through her Gateways Group from Rev Ken Ehrman at Minnetonka UMC. [Since our discussion I've learned via my mom that this is actually an
international movement of sorts called "The Compact." There was a Star Tribune article about it in January which you can read at http://www.startribune.com/business/13513951.html. Or do a Google search on The Compact and lots of interesting stuff comes up.]

During our discussion, we explored how a "Buy Nothing New in Lent" might look for each of us, difficulties or challenges we might anticipate, ways that we as a community could support each other in helping take a
step like this, and more generally how we might be part of creating an alternative economy through our faith community.

As each of us decide how we might take on this challenge, we might choose to buy nothing (or very few things) new. We might purchase things used when needed, or wait and do without. We might pay attention to those things that we did decide after all to buy and why. Or in general to just pay more attention to where our money goes during these weeks of Lent. We would like to come back together after Lent (date to be determined) to reflect with each other on what the experience was like and what we learned.

BUYING USED: Some of the challenges that we face about buying things used are related to class. We might have preconceptions about which "class" shops in a Good Will or a Thrift Store. Or perhaps those lower cost options should be most available to those who need it most? But in general, the bird by bird group included many people who already frequently buy at thrift stores and rummage sales. Or who buy a high quality item only occasionally and use it until it is completely worn out (and then it becomes a rag!). We like the idea of reusing something. We also like the idea that we are "outside" the regular consumer economy. Thrift stores and Goodwill usually use the money raised from the sale of their items to help certain groups of people (eg. veterans, disabled, those needing job training, etc.) so our purchases (and donations) of used items help twice by keeping something out of the garbage while also contributing to a good cause.

SHARING THINGS: Another option to reduce our need to buy more things is to share or swap with others. A number of ideas were mentioned:

• magazine subscription sharing (perhaps a new section to the used book "store" when it finds a new home in the church)
• clothing swaps
• tool sharing
• a list of camping supplies people have that they are willing to share
• kitchen gadgets or appliances that aren't used regularly that could be shared (e.g., canning equipment, specialty baking items, etc.)

SHARING SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE: We also remarked that when sharing tools, you often also get the experience and skills of the person who has the tools. We have a history of auctioning off a work team each year at the auction. But this kind of swapping of services could be expanded. We might also share our knowledge of local businesses and local service providers that we would recommend.

CREATING A MORE JUST ECONOMY: Many of these things also build community and contribute to peace making. The original idea of a market place was also a social event where people gathered to meet and to trade goods. The economic transactions that feel closest to this original idea of the market are perhaps those that get closest to the idea of a just and fair economy, eg., buying at a farmer's market, buying from someone you know, picking up food from the Whole Farm Coop at church, buying a craft at an
art fair, etc.

NEXT STEPS AT PPUMC: Sometime after Easter look for a follow-up discussion to reflect on our "Buy Nothing New Lent" experiences.

There was also significant interest in creating some kind of a web-based tool to facilitate sharing within our community. There are web-based resources that could be used for us to share with each other needs we might have as well as items or skills that we already have that we might be willing to share. The capacity already exists within our existing Google list-serve to have a "private" password protected area where information like this could be shared safely within our community. A "working group" of folks interested in this web based sharing tool will be convened in the near future. Talk with Cathy Eberhart or Steve Ozanne if you are interested in participating in this "technology" visioning and implementation group.

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The "Bird-by-Bird" gathering on Wednesday, October 24 met for a special hands on workshop to learn how to mix our own household cleaners. Cathy picked up a list of "recipes" distributed by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency of at the State Fair Eco-Experience this summer that includes:

• All-purpose cleaner
• Floor cleaner
• Wood floor cleaner
• Wood cleaner
• Furniture polish
• Carpet spot remover
• Window cleaner
• Oven cleaner
• Soft scrubber: Basin tub & tile
• Rust remover for sinks and tubs
• Unclog and deodorize drains
• Toilet bowl cleaner
• Bacteria, mold & germs

Download a PDF copy of the Non-Toxic Cleaning Recipes.

Contacting PPUMC: