Sunrise at Jonai Farms

Nov 14

Nov 14 Sunrise at Jonai

This is a little reflection I wrote for the Jonai Farms newsletter while I was living on the farm for 2 months as an intern, learning about butchery, raising pigs, agroecology and food sovereignty.

Sunrise over a paddock with a dark room window frame in foreground — A pretty good way to wake up

Waking up in the intern’s cottage is kind of a magical experience. The light outside slowly changes from hazy grey, to a sort of gentle yellow and pink glow until a golden sunburst breaks the horizon and reflects off the surface of the home paddock dam. It’s the kind of view that makes you stop and breathe in deeply. And the best part about it is that next to my bed there is a long thin window — thoughtfully built by Tammi and Stuart —that perfectly frames the rising sun, so I get to experience this magical moment just by opening my eyes every morning.

One small, skinny window may seem like minor thing, but it’s illustrative of one of the lessons I’ve learned here at Jonai: make time for the small stuff.

A few days ago the farm recovered 2 tonnes of food waste from a small, organic, muesli bar manufacturer. We spent an afternoon making space for it in the shipping container that is already choc-a-block with out-of-date or damaged food once destined to be landfill, now waiting to be pig food.

My home-composting efforts suddenly seemed laughably small and insignificant in the face of 2 tonnes of this sticky, oaty mess that was only one corner in a shipping container of discarded food which in itself represents just one tiny slice of food waste in one small area of what is a big country in a huge world and I felt so overwhelmed by my smallness against the BIGNESS of it all.

But.

Didn’t even get out of bed to take these photos

After only a week here on the farm I’m starting to see how the small things can impact the big. Sharing meals with the members of AFSA has been a masterclass in sustaining a radical movement, and conversations at the farm gate have shown me the importance of empowering people to be more informed about how they engage in the food system. Sharing food, and answering questions may seem small, but they have the potential to inform something much bigger, and it’s through those small moments that we create community and restore our own energy.

Yes, we have big problems and yes, we need big solutions. But it’s through engaging with the small things that we can affirm our commitment to tackle the big structural changes we need. So whether its appreciating the sunrise through a perfectly-placed window or sparking conversations about food waste over my own backyard compost bin, I’m going to make more time to cherish the small stuff.