Letter from the editor.

What is organic? The meaning of the term has been changing rapidly over the past few years: "certified organic" has become ever more technical and complex. In some ways, the strict guidelines have made it safer, but with a cost to the farmers. The expense of official certification has caused many formerly "organic" farmers to give up that title.

Not too long ago, organic growing much simpler; in fact, it was the only option. Chemicals that now douse acres of fruits and vegetables were not even conceived of back then. Native farmers learned how to plant with the seasons and with the moon, how to encourage their plants to sprout full and lush from the ground with love, care, and the gifts of the world all around them. In our land, natives grew corn, beans, and squash--staple foods that grew together in synchrony.

In some places in the world, including certain farms in our own neck of the woods, farmers still listen to the subtle and magical voices of the land teaching them how to encourage their vegetables, fruits, and herbs to grow with abundance. Farmers with this connection find joy in the fact that they need to use fewer pesticides and effort, that their plants grow with unmatched vigor. As I was driving down my road in Weaverville, NC, I stopped on a whim to buy some tomatoes at a house that always had gorgeous bushels of produce outside for sale. I met the elderly farmer and his wife, and I asked them, "How is it that your produce always looks so big and beautiful?" The farmer squinted at me for a moment. "Well, I don't tell many people this, but I talk to 'em. That's what does it."

As "going organic" becomes more commercialized, where does that leave us? We wonder, since Wal-Mart is becoming a big buyer of organically grown food, will the spirit of our food, of small farms that keep the land alive and well, be lost to us? On one hand, it's wonderful that the larger population around us is beginning to find value in food grown in a healthier way, but on the other hand, does mass production, by its nature, lose some of the important intangible benefits of connection to the Earth? Does progress and technology allow room for reconnection and honoring of past traditions?

Fortunately, other trends are quietly forging their way through our culture, like biodynamic farming, rooted in an intention to follow the rules of the soil to grow food that's teeming with aliveness. So, sit outside in the sun or the rain and soak in this issue; let it help you grow in understanding of the real meaning of healthy food. Let it inspire you to shop at a local farmer's market tomorrow, visit a pick-your-own berry farm, or plant some vegetables outside your door for fall harvest. And when you prepare your next meal and sit down to eat, thank the seeds, the soil, the rain, the sun, and the farmers that grew all those good ingredients.