Larissa Hannan and Jess Breithaupt from Healthy Lincoln County show off their gleaned squash from Goranson Farm. (Photo courtesy Healthy Lincoln County)
Being two weeks into the new year, I’m sure we’ve all been buzzing with opportunity. Whether you are a believer of New Year’s resolutions or not, the first of the year naturally provides a breath of fresh air and perhaps a bit more room to seek new opportunities and try new things.
Personally, my partner Brian and I were gifted a box of “angel cards” and have taken the new year to pick a new card each day. The cards have one word assigned to them and encourage you to seek that thing while walking through your day. It’s a fun way to start and end each day (I hope we stick to it)!
In honor of the new year, I thought of dedicating this week’s column to opportunities to take advantage of this year. I hope we all seek more of seemed fitting, albeit a bit self-serving at times, but still some great ideas, nonetheless.
First, let’s make it a goal of ours to volunteer more (see I told you, coming right out of the gate asking for help at Healthy Lincoln County). My colleague Jess sends out weekly emails, and sometimes more often than that in the summer months, with many volunteer opportunities across Lincoln County. Lincoln County is filled with incredible organizations that thrive with volunteer assistance, and I’d argue that there is a role that almost every one of us would enjoy. A shameless plug to hold you accountable to this goal, email jbreithaupt@healthylincolncounty.org to get on our volunteer email list to stay in the loop as opportunities come up!
Next, let’s make it a priority to get outside in our backyard more. Whether that looks like taking advantage of local trails by Coastal Rivers or Midcoast Conservancy, or literally spending more time outside in our yards, I bet we could all learn something new about the place we call home, no matter the season. Bonus points if you journal or talk to your friends and family about it, but hey, no one is keeping score.
Last, I hope we all take advantage of meeting the face behind our food this year. This might look like visiting a farm stand or farmers market and getting to know the person who grew your food, or growing it yourself, I hope we challenge ourselves to develop a deeper relationship with the food we eat! We get so much from our food: enjoyment, nourishment, perhaps calories and energy, so why not add a new friendship into the mix as well!
I can’t help but feel a bit of light with 2023. We’ve experienced so much heaviness and are still trudging through that weight in many ways, over the past few years. But I have a hunch that something big and great is on the horizon. I can’t wait to see what that will look like for all of us in Lincoln County!
