Hey friends. I’m popping in real quick to share the recipe for this simple savory breakfast bowl and some existential thoughts on climate change, responsibility and action. I hope you’re all hanging in there during these terrible times…

My childhood home is just under two miles from the Eagle Creek Fire. On Saturday, a teenage boy, unable or unwilling to consider that his actions might have consequences beyond himself, threw a firecracker into a ravine and started a fire that is now burning over 30,000 acres of  beloved scenic natural wonder. One article I recently read did a good job of explaining why this place is so special: “For many of us, the gorge is our temple, our sanctuary, our home. It’s a place we go to worship the land, to bask in the awe of nature – where the mightiest river in the west carves through the Cascade Mountains, water pouring toward it in towering falls.”

I’ve been oscillating between anger at the recklessness of humanity and compassion for a boy who’s life will be forever changed and burdened by guilt. It’s not just the threat this fire poses to my childhood home; a place of pastoral rolling hills, magical woodland trails, and awe inspiring views; a place that is inextricably tied to so many fond memories (games of make believe, forts in the woods, mud ball fights, foraging and wildcrafting, horseback riding through meadows, drinking from streams, community, song and imagination), it’s the fact that a single person can have such a devastating impact on the earth.

This natural disaster, and all the others currently ravaging the planet, are a wake up call. Our actions have consequences. Our choices matter. I know it all seems distant and intangible…until it hits close to home. Then you realize that we are all in this together and no one is immune. One boy’s actions have displaced thousands, destroyed natural treasures, and upset an entire ecosystem but my decisions, however small, also have consequences. Now more than ever, we all need to wake up and do our part to stop climate change. I’ve seen lots of collective prayer happening surrounding these natural disasters and that’s great at building solidarity and compassion, but I think we are all capable and obligated to do more than pray. We can all make better choices for the planet. Take the bus or bike to work tomorrow, forgo single use cups and plastic straws next time you get a coffee, give up meat, shop at goodwill, collect rainwater, buy organic… do whatever you can to change the course of things, because this shit is real, it is happening, and we are all responsible.

Savory Breakfast Bowl

INGREDIENTS

unsweetened coconut yogurt

ripe tomatoes, sliced into thick wedges

toasted sesame seeds

nigella seeds

fennel seeds

salt

pepper

cilantro leaves

chives, minced

nasturtium leaves

PROCEDURE

Spread a heaping spoonful of yogurt across a shallow bowl or plate. Arrange the tomato wedges on top of the yogurt. Sprinkle with the seeds, salt, pepper, and fresh herbs. Serve alone or with crusty bread.