The 357th recipient is Gabriel Sumayan Garcia of Family Harvest Farm @familyharvestfarm in Pittsburg, CA. Gabriel writes:
What self-care and well-being mean to me as a farmer: “Working in a regenerative agricultural farm has a lot of benefits that fulfill my self-care needs and overall well-being. Being with the soil, the crops, and the immense biodiversity not only heals my mind from the stressors of the world, but it also makes me feel loved and cared for. One of the ways self-care manifests for me in the farm is my love for seeds especially everything around saving, collecting, and organizing. I have always loved organizing and cleaning, and this is one of the ways I can re-connect my brain wires. Additionally, seeds in general are just so adorable and so fun to touch, smell, organize, and most of all, each seeds hold so much knowledge that I could go on a rabbit hole just reading the origin of a plant name. Although there are so many perks with being with the land, it does take a toll on my body, and so I try to infuse yoga, meditation, and good food into our farm programming. Even with all of this, I wished that I had more time outside the farm to take care of my body.”
How I might use this $100 self-care award: “I want to use this award to possibly get regenerative and healing body work, especially ones that are focused on healing my headaches and back pain. This type of body work therapy is not as financially accessible, and so I hope to use this award to do so. If not, a nice hot springs trip to cure my body ailments also sounds restorative. I also have ankle and shoulder issues, and so any of these modalities of body work could really be useful to my body.”
Most important self-care needs that contribute to my well-being as a farmer: “Having a psychotherapist - being a farmer can be lonely sometimes, and also hopeless when crops don't grow and you don't have a good season. Additionally, you cannot have control, and only have patience, and so sometimes it is nice for someone to hear you out when you feel like things are not going well. Also, getting body work to treat my body ailments such as migraines, back pain, and ankle issues. Plus, new farmer gear, especially rugged pants and shoes that provide support, comfort, and protection. And finally, skincare and haircare - I have curls, and they get easily damaged by the sun, and good haircare and skincare is very expensive.”
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