Strawberries in January

This piece, created out of a common love for music and art, is an exposition of our reflections from the past month.  Witnessing life on a sustainable farm and living in a rural community in Thailand have brought to life many of the issues surrounding food and sustainability that we have studied in our curriculum reading, such as “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” by Michael Pollan.  Becoming involved in an agrarian lifestyle, in which we were exposed to the realities of food production, made us more aware of both the local and global implications of our choices as well as the ways in which we want to change.  
   
The idea that we had of a romanticized rural life shattered alongside our culture’s belief that food is not a hard-earned privilege, but a right.  Emily’s host mother, despite a physical disability, wakes up every morning before the sun has risen to juggle simultaneously the various careers of cook, farmer and artisan all the while caring for her two young children.  Similarly, Alexis’ host father balances the community roles of village pastor, musician, lumberjack, construction worker, architect, farmer and basket weaver.   Even Emily’s host grandparents work on the family farm from sunup to sundown.  The fact that these labors are not performed for personal gain but out of a community-based need to survive was a driving force in the composition of this piece.  
   
Our media piece consists of a song written and composed by Alexis and a series of photographs taken by Emily.  Both the song and photographs were recorded and taken, respectively, in the community of Ban Huai Hee, where we lived for three weeks.  Our hope is that the song lyrics and images portrayed in this piece will provide you with an accurate depiction of what we saw as well as how it has shaped our beliefs.  

Alexis Kidd
Emily Ausubel

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