Health Care Reform: Crop Shares


Crop Shares: my solution to soaring health care costs. This is what I found when I opened my box today. Look at these colors!


And this is what I made from it.


And this...

Our friends, Mark and Carolyn, are on vacation this week. As they had signed up for a Crop Share (of course it is organic) for the summer, they offered it to me (Lee is away) for the week. My only responsibility was to show up between 4 and 6 at the Deli in Kenwood with a couple of bags and look for a box with their name on it. From there, I opened the box, feeling like a five-year-old on Christmas morning. I had no idea what would be inside. And with the way I've been feeling so strongly about good, beautiful and healthful food lately, it did not disappoint!

I am eating alone tonight (sadly, Isabelle would have loved this) and as I finish the last of my salad with the most delicate lettuce topped with fresh tomato and parmesan shavings and a side of just picked this morning green beans and broccoli blanched in water, oil and salt, I don't know whether to be joyous or depressed. If we all ate like this most of the time (not even all of the time) we would not be a country where 1/2 of the adults and 1/3 of the children are obese. We would not be as sick as we are. And our health care would be the better for it. Has anyone thought of this to control health costs? This is a no-brainer. It is good for people, good for the soil and the planet and good for our health care costs. Why are they jumping through congressional hoops to fix this?

I don't want to hear that it is expensive to eat this way. (Besides, this food would be a lot cheaper if more people ate it. And you wouldn't need to eat so much because it is so satisfying.) Health insurance is expensive. My 23-year old perfectly healthy son left his job for three months - to go train for Teach for America. He had no insurance during that time. (Could the government maybe cover kids doing service work for the country?) His COBRA payment (the price of keeping his existing health plan) was $464 per month! For a 23-year old! For a healthy kid! How many 23-year olds have that kind of money that you know? Especially when they are making NOTHING because they are "in training" for something that helps the country!

I swear...what we call food in this country is really sad. It comes in boxes and bottles and plastic. For a long time, as a mom, especially - my rule has been - eat as close to god (or the earth) as you can. If god made it, it is probably okay to eat. If humans messed with it, beware.

Blah, blah, blah. Now back to my gin and tonic and to find a piece of chocolate. I am so depressed.

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