Sweet Orange

Forgiveness, a virtue that is fundamental to Christianity, is poignantly displayed in a true story that is told by a Muslim.

After 9/11, a white supremacist in Texas wanted revenge. He took his gun and shot three people he believed were Arab. One of the men he shot survived. That man, Rais Bhuiyan, worked to understand and forgive his shooter and then took a surprising step to prevent the man from being executed.-The Story

After completing a Muslim pilgrimage and talking with Dr. Rick Halprin, Director of the Human Rights Education Program at the Southern Methodist University, Rais Bhuiyan decided to do three things: try to save his shooter’s life, help the families of the deceased victims in the same shooting spree–both financially and emotionally, and help the daughter of his shooter.

Please listen to this poignant story that is so pertinent to the Christmas season.

Hate is going on in this world, and it has to stop. Hate causes a lifetime of pain.-statement by Mark Stroman, the shooter, while on death row

Photo “The Children’s Memorial at Lidice, Czech Republic commemorating the 82 children murdered by the Nazis in vans adapted to kill with exhaust gas and buried at Chelmno”–SMU Human Rights Education Program

Some background on Dr. Rick Halprin:

Since 1996, I have been visiting, photographing, and videotaping Holocaust and other World War II sites across Europe.  I am also conducting oral history interviews with Holocaust survivors, World War II participants, and the descendants of both groups. I bring this research and documentation into my classrooms as part of my on-going efforts to humanize, personalize, and raise awareness of that tragic era.”–Dr. Rick Halprin

According to Cindy McNatt, Orange County Register gardening columnist, December is a good time to plant the following vegetables in your Orange County garden.

• Lettuce
• Mustard
• Chervil
• Chives
• Cilantro
• Dill
• Parsley
• Peas
• Onions
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Strawberries

McNatt provides this information in her column titled December garden guide. The column also provides information on planting ornamentals, watering, and pruning in your December Orange County garden.

Note: You might also get some good information from Pat Welsh’s book Southern California Organic Gardening–Month by Month.

Photo courtesy Abundant Life Seeds

Ditch the word consumer and just get behind the people doing stuff….We are all still pioneers.–Britta Riley on TED TV

The following video offers a twofer: First, it explains a method for growing your own food garden in small spaces, even inside apartments. Building window farms is the method used to create these vertical gardens. (I wrote about vertical gardens from another angle in a previous post.) Second, the video redefines the word “consumer” as well as redefines how business should and could work.

When you watch the video, you might find a few more categories in which this video could be placed. So watch the video and get some food for thought. Pun intended.

Britta Riley describes herself as an innovation culture hacker, social entrepreneur and artist who is working “to open up new markets that I think people and nature need now…. [Her] current company, Windowfarms.org was named one of the top 100 businesses to watch in 2010 by Entrepreneur Magazine. Windowfarms makes vertical hydroponic platforms for food growing in city windows in conjunction with an online citizen science web platform with over 16,000 community members worldwide.”

Previously, I wrote about the Phytopod as an example of vertical gardening and an upcoming post will discuss another version, window farms. That post will be about how social media is playing a part in perfecting a particular type of vertical gardening as well as redefining the word “consumer.” In the meantime, you can learn more about vertical gardening at an upcoming talk at the next Laguna Beach Garden Club talk.

Even the narrowest of spots can host a lush garden with careful planning and adaptable plants. Find out how this is done at the next general meeting of the Laguna Beach Garden Club on Friday, December 09. Landscape Designer and “Horticulture” Magazine Contributing Editor Rebecca Sweet talks about ’skinny space’ solutions and the gardening techniques that can reduce the visual impact of unattractive landscape features. Ms. Sweet is the co-author of the best selling book “Garden Up! Smart Vertical Gardening for Large and Small Spaces“, blogs on www.gossipinthegarden.com, and contributes to many popular garden magazines such as “Horticulture“, “Women’s Day Gardening“, “Fine Gardening” and “The American Gardener“.–Laguna Beach Information Center

Here are the details in a nutshell:

What: Vertical Gardening for Large and Small Spaces

When: Friday, December 9, 2011; 9:30 am

Where: Presbyterian Church (Tankersley Fellowship Hall), 415 Forest Avenue. Laguna Beach (corner of Forest and 2nd Street)

Cost: Free to first-time visitors

Graphic courtesy Susan Morrison/Rebecca Sweet