documentary

Good times with friends

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JOYFUL GRATITUDE #162

I am grateful for the good times with my friends based here in the Netherlands.  As I don’t live in the same country as my close family,  I appreciate how vital it is to be surrounded by people who I can really connect with and be myself around:)  I hope these first weeks of 2020 set the tone for the rest of the decade.

We’ve had the chance to spend quality time exploring the Veluwe, inspiring each other, chatting about our hopes and intentions for the new year and making collage dream boards, having good laughs, watching a great documentary and sharing our thoughts about it afterwards until we got kicked out of the room, motivating one another to go for lunch walks together to refresh our minds amidst busy work meetings… I feel blessed to have such wonderful people by my side to make the days a little sweeter!

How nature bounces back

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If you are looking for an uplifting and beautifully made documentary, I highly recommend going to the cinema to see The Biggest Little Farm on a large screen.  The  story-telling is fantastic, taking spectators along on the journey and showing through stunning imagery how ecosystems work and how all of nature is interconnected.

Seeing the beauty of a deeply healthy farm made me wonder how we strayed so far away from a system that can regulate itself, and this film is an inspiring example of how nature can bounce back relatively quickly given the right conditions.  And if all that is not enough… there are adorable piglets!

Sometimes all it takes is a seed…

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Recently I came across two great documentaries and an episode from one of my favorite podcasts which revolve around plants. I find myself thinking back to these stories regularly, the ideas are like seeds that need to spread, so I thought I’d share some links.

Documentaries:
The Salt of the Earth – about the life of incredible photographer Sebastiao Salgado, and the foundation he and his wife set up to combat deforestation and erosion in Brazil by planting native trees and creating an education center (read more about Instituto Terra)

Seeds of permaculture – beautiful and inspiring documentary about permaculture, and what impact a holistic approach to growing our own food can have.

Podcast:
The surprising story about a writer who gets the dream job of taking care of a wonderful garden.  (Strangers is a podcast about true (and often incredibly moving) stories that link total strangers. It makes for amazing listening!)

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Any suggestions of other similar films or podcasts?