I am a member of FCNL, the Friends Committee on National Legislation. They have been trying for 100 years to help us get to a more just and more peaceful society and government. This month’s newsletter has an interesting article on what is a Solidarity Economy. This is sharing, not forced, ways to build sustainable economic practices. Examples are cooperatives, land trusts, credit unions, peer lending, mutual aid, community-led economic development, barter, commmunity-supported agriculture, and fair trade products. They give several examples, including in Atlanta a community land trust which aims to build affordable housing. They say that sometimes because this is not a power-grab, even in an authoritarian state, these practices can work to buffer the community needs.

In our town, we have Second Harvest food bank, which does a tremendous job of getting fresh produce to the less fortunate. We have the Grey Bears, who do a fantastic job of repurposing and recycling, and helping others, especially the elderly, find less expensive options.

The idea is to prioritize people and the planet over endless profit and growth. Some of you saw my posts about Prop 1, and how much hope I have had, that it would pass. It passed by 1%, and it is going to provide mental health clinics and acute care mental health beds for psychotic patients, in California. It will not solve all the homeless’ needs, but it is a good start, for the hardest things to help, which are the mental health needs, which have been underserved and in crisis for over 50 years. My next big hope came when I read about a big project which is happening in central Los Angeles, which is a huge building project, part of which is to help increase housing for the homeless. But also, it is going to be aesthetically pleasing, and make what is currently a maniacal eyesore and nightmare to drive through, into what looks like the center of a city which cares about building community. I want to again recommend that people read the book by Victoria Sweet MD, “God’s Hotel”. It is about the planning and building of the last big charity hospital, in San Francisco. What Dr. Sweet shows is that people who have had no place to be, and who “don’t fit in” can learn to fit in if the community makes it possible for them to find a niche. This is about widening the circle.

Some mentally ill people will never be able to hold a job; it is too difficult for some people to sustain the daily energy and task-oriented focus. Some cannot easily communicate and cooperate in a team of workers. But they can do SOME thing, and we can help find out what it is. Some people can work sometimes, and take time off when they are not able to focus or do a job. People are not machines, and we have to make it possible for many different skills to be offered for the good of the whole community. If we are thinking in terms of a Solidarity Economy, this becomes more clear. We can try to find ways to build healthy and stable communities, if we are not focusing only on the governmental support and budget. As you know, I believe we need universal healthcare, and that will mean using taxpayers’ money, but I want it to be spent efficiently, with the 3% overhead of Medicare, not the insurance industry’s 15%. There are ways we can expand our reach, if we widen the lens with which we “see” the problems we need to solve.

I love my garden. Over the years I have had to see what can stand the summer heat, the winter wet and cold, and also the deer and other plant-eating animals. I have worked at it, and it is now doing great, especially with the succulents, and the Solanum, and the main flowering plants in pots. The cala lilies and coral geraniums are the mainstay of the garden, but I have to put things in pots to protect the roots and keep them up on the deck away from rabbits, and gophers. So today I came home so happy with a bunch of new additions for refurbishing my pots!