Time to Sprout!

Recently I attended a gathering celebrating the Spring Equinox.  A farming friend shared an update that inspired the following thoughts. 

Out in the fields, orchards, and gardens it's a time of rebirth, green sprouts, and new growth.  It's also a time of cold nights, final frosts, and hardening off.  In short it's a risky moment!  New growth is bursting forth yet without any guarantee that it will survive.  In fact there's a good chance some of it won't.  A call for vulnerability with very little security.  Apparently that's what being vulnerable is all about; choosing to sprout, jump in with both feet, launch out into the river without any attachment to what the outcome or ultimate destination will be.  Kind of like Easter eggs that  kids love to dye and decorate and then remain uneaten in the fridge for weeks.  Apparently being vulnerable is more about the process than the product. 

For you too the time for conserving your energy and hibernating is over.  This is a moment to get out there. Pursue something fabulous that has been calling to you.  Take action on that possibility that has been marinating over the winter.  Be emboldened by the germinating seeds and bright green buds to expand out regardless of what cold nights or set backs may come.  Trust in what the seeds know; while not all will survive, many will.  The important thing is to open up and allow life to flow.  Let go of knowing when, where, or how long.  And in the words of my friend, Anne Key, ". . get ready to be swept into the heady and glorious flood of new life!"

Karen

BALLE in the Gorge!

This week, Becky Brun, editor of Sustainable Industries magazine and Hood River resident, is presenting the possibility of establishing a BALLE Network in the Gorge to the Downtown Business Association! Becky, along with a group of local, independent business owners has been exploring the logistics of forming a local chapter of the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) for the past several months.

What the heck is BALLE, you ask?

BALLE has more than 80 chapters throughout the country (including 2 in Oregon and 6 in Washington), representing 21,000 independent business owners. Each chapter has its own unique characteristics and goals, but they are all focused on helping strengthen local economies while preserving the ecosystem on which they depend for raw materials, employees, clients and more.

As the co-owner of a local small business guided by principles of economic and ecological sustainability we've often felt like salmon swimming upstream - traversing the direction we must go but often wondering why it has to be so hard. BALLE aims to support small business on the journey to increased outreach, innovation, and local connection. We fully support the opportunity to create a BALLE chapter in the Gorge. Establishing a structure for collaborating with other independently run businesses on issues of sustainability, education and marketing, and long-term community vibrancy would be an amazing opportunity that would benefit all local residents!

Becky is currently forming a Steering Committee, which will help determine the geographic focus of the organization, its initial goals, its membership structure, and more. If you are interested in learning more, email Becky at becky@sustainableindustries.com.

Stay tuned for an update this Spring!

Karen