"Coach me"

A friend and I sat at the counter of the Tilth kitchen yesterday afternoon. The wet and blustery Elementals had gone somewhere, a nice patch of blue sky greeted us as Pete hustled around on a stepladder reattaching the roofing paper on the lean-to.

Prescott and I were meeting so I could introduce her to Aurora Levins Morales. Until a few weeks ago I did not know of this longtime change agent, activist and author of Medicine Stories. All that changed when Angie Hart, Tilth's Farmers' Market Manager and 2016 Apprentice sent me an email asking "Do you know this woman? She writes medicine stories and has MCS."

So here we are, two Golden Pigs (both of us were born in the Chinese Year of the Golden Pig 1947) considering an opportunity of a lifetime: Aurora Levins Morales will be in Seattle doing a co-facilitation event at the end of December. I've been gleaning and scheming Morales' website to learn about her work, and the Vehicle for Change she and her community have built.

Before and after that Seattle event Aurora and her Casita need a place to be. I began emailing Aurora about the South Whidbey Tilth being a potential place. Prescott and I were meeting to discuss that potential to host Aurora and the vehicle. Yesterday's in-kitchen meeting was awesome, inspiring and tomorrow, Thursday, October 20th Prescott and Pete will propose that an invitation be extended to Aurora to come visit. That visit will be a very real move in the direction of change for the South Whidbey Tilth community. Expanding definitions, moving on plans that have been stalled.

The issues of disability, accessibility, fragrance free zones, and the issues of education came up as we were winding down.  Prescott said, "Coach me, Moki. Pete and I will be out doing things and he'll say 'Oh, I can't do that. Or, Moki will not be able to come if we ...'

So this post and the revitalization of this site Fragrance Free in '23 is my response to Prescott's desire to be coached. The site is freshly tweaked with a new color and Pages soon to be updated. In particular the "Accessibility Opened Up" Page will include take-aways, content to be copied, reprinted and shared.

The Fragrance Free in '23 Challenge is alive, change is slow to medium, but sometimes a fire gets lit at unexpected moments and then WOOP! Thanks, Prescott this is for you and all our our wayfarers making the way by walking it!