Seasonal Eating - Connecting with the Cycles of the Earth

The magnificent change of the seasons across the face of the Earth brings incredible diversity to the growth of different plants throughout the year. Seasonal eating allows us to tune into this cycle and to eat in harmony with it, which is a powerful way to align one’s being with the rhythms of the living, breathing planet.

This ever-unfolding rhythmical cycle can be witnessed by anyone no matter where you live: city or countryside. However, an opportunity exists to deepen the awareness of the seasons beyond just witnessing them, and that is to actually participate in them. One way to do this is to eat your local produce and superfoods that have grown during a particular season.

Reconnecting with Place

Getting in touch with the foods that grow in your area during different seasons directly connects you to the more than human world and gives an ecological sense to the place in which you exist.

Normally, humans identify where they live only in relation to human centered creations, such as artificial city or state boundaries: “I live in Seattle”, “I live in California.”

This obviously has practical and useful applications, but there is also an incredible shift in perception that can occur if we also identify where we live by things like the natural geological features of that area, what types of animals usually roam the region, and what type of plants grow throughout the year.

This additional way of describing where you live is one of the main ideas in bio-regionalism. Its purpose is to affirm to oneself that I don’t just live in a human world but that I also live in an ecological world, rich with local uniqueness.

Seasonal Varieties

Here in Northern California I have a wonderful opportunity to practice seasonal eating and align with the seasons through food. During the year the local farmers market, as well as most of the grocery stores, present to the community the foods that were harvested in each season.

In the winter we have an abundance of different kinds or root foods like squash, jerusalem artichokes, and the superfood yacon. These root foods often have a warming effect that balances the coolness of winter. The Earth’s incredible evolutionary wisdom has laid out foods for beings in a way that helps balance them to the shifting seasons.

In the spring, many different kinds of green leafy vegetables become available. Summer time brings various delectable fruits like peaches and berries. Fruits often have a cooling effect on the body so making sure to eat plenty of fruits in the summer can balance the heat of this season. And in the fall, the major harvest time, I can choose from an array of different local nuts, seeds, vegetables and some fruits.

Connecting with our Past

Seasonal eating has been the predominant mode of eating for humans throughout time. To once again connect with our evolutionary history in this way is to honor both the rhythms of the Earth as well as the rhythms that pour forth from our genetic memory.

Many of our genetic memories of living and eating close to the land have been suppressed by the modern style of living. To balance ourselves from going to far into isolation from the natural world, it is imperative that we seek methods to reconnect our body and mind with our home: the Earth. Seasonal eating is yet another way to do this.

Return from Seasonal Eating to Superfoods Nutrition