Casey O’Neill is a farmer and owner of Happy Day Farms in Laytonville, Calif. The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of The Mendocino Voice. If you’d like to write your own column for The Mendocino Voice, send your idea to info@mendovoice.com.
Life is precious, infinite beauty in each moment, the joy of awareness in the spark of consciousness. In this moment, I am thankful. I’m thankful for family and friends, for the people I get to encounter each day. For the joys we share, and for the struggles we endure, for both are linked. The more we find joy in struggle, the better life is, and the more I am reminded that no matter how I interpret a situation, it is the only time I will live through it in my one wild and precious life.
The older I get, the harder the cliches hit; time does fly, life goes by faster and faster, they really do grow up quick. The seasons flash by, and as though no time has passed, we’re headed into winter again, the sun is low on the horizon, the days are short and I have time for reflection. As sunrise cracks the horizon, I revel in the moment, grateful.
And yet, there is a deep frustration boiling within me, rising with each headline about billionaires getting richer while everyone I know works harder and longer for less. We are being bled by leaches, and I think of Jesus flipping the tables of the money changers in Jerusalem. I think of the quote that appears in three of the four gospels in the Bible: “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”
Wealth inequality is rising, super yachts are proliferating, but trickle-down economics is bullshit. When regulatory capture occurs, the wealthy write the rules, and they write them to benefit themselves. Meanwhile, the costs of production are rising in direct proportion to increased corporate profits; everything I purchase for our business has increased in price, while the people who purchase our goods have less money to spend.
So what do we do? We look to each other. We support small businesses, we shop locally. We buy gifts for loved ones from makers and artisans; we let Amazon bleed out by not supporting it. The Economic Blackout begins this Wednesday, November 25 and goes through December 2. Let us take this time to support each other, to focus on community, to buy from small businesses with cash and avoid banks, big businesses and the commercialized circus of Black Friday.
It’s a good time for mushroom hunting and hiking, for enjoying the flowing of water in the creeks and streams, for gathering to share a home-cooked meal and good company. It’s a good time to reflect, to envision what we want for our shared future, for the type of world in which we want to live.
The capitalist market system is sensitive to shocks, and the big corporations expect to rake in a large chunk of earnings during holiday spending. Let’s shift the focus to small, to independent, to people we know or have a new chance to meet. I love the saying, “When you buy from a small business, a real person does a happy dance.”
Small businesses and community members showing up are the glue that holds us together, that make events possible. These are the folks who donate time and resources to support local sports and activities for the kids, the food banks and all the benefits and fundraisers.
In a time of shattering illusions about the corporatocracy, let us look to each other and find strength, let us celebrate the simple joys of gathering, of food, of fellowship.
Despite the difficulties of life in late-stage capitalism, there is much to be grateful for. Yet none of these feelings of gratitude come from big corporations. They come from the joy of seeing children grow, the camaraderie of family and friends, the beauty of connection. We deserve to live in a world where basic needs are met for everyone, where productivity comes back to support people and communities, where it is not extracted to buy extra houses that sit empty while people sleep on the streets.
In this time of reflection, with much of the farm put to bed under cover crops and most of the winter crops planted and underway, I look back on the years of effort to get to this point. I think about my labors, about the successes and strengths. I think about the money stress, the difficulties.
I am deeply grateful to feel supported by community members who purchase our goods, yet a huge part of me wishes I lived in a system where my needs were met without having to worry about selling, where I could work as a producer and make a reasonable living. I dream of a post-capitalist utopia, with greater equity and equality.
These are my thoughts as I reflect with gratitude on my life, my efforts, and the joys of the shared journey of family and community. As always, much love and great success to you on your journey!
Casey O’Neill owns and runs HappyDay Farms, a small vegetable and cannabis farm north of Laytonville. He is a long time cannabis policy advocate, and was born and raised in the Bell Springs area. The preceding has been an editorial column. The Mendocino Voice has not necessarily fact-checked or copyedited this work, and it should be interpreted as the words of the author, not necessarily reflecting the opinions of The Mendocino Voice.