Connection: Food and Beyond

By Sarah Weisfeld

Do you know where that apple came from that you had for lunch? What about that burger you ate for dinner last night, or those eggs you ate this morning for breakfast? Knowing where our food comes from has evolved to be a far away connection, a lost relationship that our grandparents held closely. Our ancestors lived in communities that relied on each other, and they relied on the land too. Where breaking bread was a joyful and slow experience. Everything was homemade and there was no food delivery. There was no urgency to get on to the next activity, answer the next email or rush off to a workout class.

We’ve come to a point in time where we rush to eat looking at what’s to come, getting the kids to activities, working late, meeting life’s demands and leaving many with the feeling that there’s no time to cook so we grab food out or order delivery to have it conveniently arrive right when we are ready to nourish ourselves. And for many, if they are eating at home there’s often a disconnect from where the food is coming from. But is this true nourishment? The rushed experience? Have we lost the art of enjoying food? Or as a society are we losing the skills of cooking? Where are we heading as a group if we continue these habits?

For those who do cook or eat at home, it seems like recall after recall, people are looking for smaller farms and local ranchers to purchase their food from because they want cleaner and safer solutions and having a relationship with your producer is truly a gateway to knowing where your food comes from. Unlike your local producer who shows up to the farmers market, industrialized food systems prioritize efficiency and distance over relationships. Honoring the farm-to-plate journey transforms eating from a mindless routine into an act of mindfulness and community connection. Farmers market vendors value relationships, they value the face to face connection, knowing that what they are producing is benefiting the community, there is joy and satisfaction in that. Understanding the labor behind a harvest fosters profound respect and mindful consumption. Supporting sustainable agriculture ensures that the land remains fertile and capable of feeding future generations.

When was the last time you shared a slow meal with someone, where you left feeling a sense of ease and connection with that person? While we examine our relationship to food as disconnected, we can surely parallel this detachment to society at large too. Living in one of the most disconnected, yet falsely connected eras of time, people are lonely, starving for connection, starving to be in community and many, unsure where to find it. We turn to social media while we eat lunch alone, scrolling, completely unaware of the food we are eating without a natural pause as we eat, because we aren’t sharing any words with a real human at the table. What if instead we used food as a point for connection? In the book, Never Eat Alone, by Keith Ferrazzi and Tahl Raz, the authors suggest that we should turn meals into social and professional opportunities to build deep rapport instead of isolating ourselves. Think about this. How many times in the last thirty days did you eat alone? Now don’t get me wrong, eating alone is completely acceptable when we bring awareness and presence. But for many, this is not how they are eating alone. Instead, they can be found in front of their computer or sitting on their phone scrolling through social media as they chew their food, and this leads to mindless eating and mental fatigue. As a society we must do better, for ourselves, for each other and for the land. We must care for our minds and sharing a meal with another person is such a simple way to do this. Offer a topic, ask a question, anything that can create the spark of humanness, together. Humans are deeply social creatures wired for group belonging.

So, let’s eat more meals together! Let’s cook together, let’s cook for each other. Let’s support our local farmers and producers. Let’s share food from our gardens and share yummy recipes. And if you don’t have a garden, that’s totally fine, you still have a seat at our table. Restoring the connection between people, food, and farming heals both communities and ecosystems. It’s all connected, and it starts with you