The constraints of social media platforms force us into defined boxes in order to build a page profile. Predetermined categories are somehow the way that your online persona now presents you to the virtual world. When I started Grow More Beets I answered a series of questions leaving me with a profile on my screen that dictated I am: "Gardener, Foodie, Lovacore and Blogger." What gave me the right to really adorn myself with any of these descriptors? I spent the past week exploring that question and realized that these terms describe my natural progression.
Gardener: any person who gardens or is skillful at gardening. Anyone that read my last blog knows that I didn't wake up one day being a gardener. I thought that since I had some raised beds on my property and seeds in my hand that a garden oasis was inevitable. I wish it were that simple, but it isn't all that hard either. All you really need to become successful at growing your own food is a sense of curiosity. Ask those that know what they are doing how they do it, try some things out, fail at some trials and succeed at others. Eventually you'll find your groove and know what you can grow well in the space you have with your unique set of talents.
Foodie: a person keenly interested in food, especially in eating or cooking. One can't really be a gardener without eventually becoming a foodie. You have tremendous amounts of food coming out of your garden with only once place to go ~ your kitchen. Since you aren't a farmer selling your harvest you must logically become obsessed with how to turn your bounty into amazing meals that feel constantly different than the one before using the same five ingredients that are currently in season. You may wonder why kale seems to be in almost all of the recipes on my website, because it is literally in season all summer long.
Locavore: a person who makes an effort to eat food that is grown, raised, or produced locally, usually within 100 miles of home. Living in a land-locked state that is frozen a good part of the year makes meeting this definition to the letter a tall order. We do our best in Vermont to source local whenever possible, but that's just not happening with all of our proteins. I trust these guys that own a meat and seafood shop in town. They appease me weekly when I inquire about the origin of the food in the display case. "I visited the farm Melissa and the pigs were free to roam the fields and feel the sun on their backs." I've gotten so into the routine that I found myself asking where the Alaskan king crab legs were from. My husband was mortified, but my guys just smiled and simply replied 'Alaska.' So we eat local produce spring into fall, roots and squash from the cellar in the winter and do our best year-round to know where our protein came from and how it was treated before it hit our table.
Blogger: a website containing a writer's own experiences, observations, opinions, and often having images and links to other websites. I suppose I struggle with this one the most. I can count on one hand the number of blog posts I have read in my life and honestly never researched what the proper structure of a blog really is. My intention is to share my own experiences, observations and opinions so I believe I am true to the definition, but the real reason I write is in hopes of inspiring others to move along their trajectory. I didn't know what I was doing the first time I put a seed in the ground, but eventually I became a gardener. My initial harvest of kale left me stunned and confused, but research lead me to meal planning that used every last leaf. Understanding what free-range care for animals meant and choosing to get carrots from my local farm stand instead of my chain grocery store were all adjustments I chose to make. It seems that the logical evolution is to take what I have learned, put virtual pen to paper and hope inspiration will bring about some change in the lives of the people reading this. Will you make a new meal from scratch this week? Might you look closer at the label of the food you buy to understand it's origin? It could be as simple as talking about food with your friends, family and colleagues. It is the fuel that nourishes our bodies and we need to be empowered to make smart decisions about what we put into our physiological engine. Be curious, ask questions and feed your natural progression.