Sustainability!

We almost reached sustainability.  My son and I worked to prepare a batch of black beans for dinner. We followed the traditional method of soaking before cooking. Actually, we boiled them for 2 minutes first, and then soaked them for about six hours. And if we hadn’t been so excited about cooking our first batch of beans, we would have realized our mistake.“We need one cup of beans,” I told him, to which he vigorously responded by dumping the entire container of beans into the measuring cup. “No!” I exclaimed as beans scattered across the floor. “Make a funnel with your hands, like this–” whereby I demonstrated how to guide the beans into the awaiting cup.

He dipped his head into the container with the remaining beans, peering at them closely. “What do we do with these?”

Spying the small amount, I decided, “Aw…go ahead and add them.  We can put more water in the pot later, no problem!”

Wouldn’t you know that we were so excited by the prospect of preparing our own harvest of beans, we thought of nothing else as we turned up the heat and watched our babies come to a boil.

“Do we have to have chicken with them, Mom?”

Black Bean Recipe

I gazed into my teenager’s eyes, eyes flowing with disappointment. “But you love chicken and yellow rice with black beans,” I replied. (It really is delicious — see for yourself — Chicken and Yellow Rice Recipe) “It’s one of your favorites.”

“No,” he shook his head. “I don’t like chicken anymore. Or yellow rice.” He made a so-so gesture with his hand. “I kinda prefer white.”

“Anymore? Since when? Thursday?” (I swear, my kids are more finnicky than cats.)

“Since whenever,” he said, as though I were unable to comprehend this simple concept.

Suddenly, caught between his changing appetite and the likelihood of whether or not I had white rice in the pantry, it dawned on me as I stared at the pot of boiling beans. “Oh no…”

Alarmed, he asked, “What happened, Mom?”

I turned to him and couldn’t help but laugh. “We forgot to save some beans!”

“So? It’s okay. We can eat them all tonight.” (Sweet love child that he is, he doesn’t like it when I’m upset.  Unless of course, he’s the cause.)

“No.”  I shook my head and smiled.  “We forgot to save some for re-planting in the garden.”

Realization lit up his eyes. His gaze flashed to the hot pot of beans.  “What will we do?”

He understands the significance of sustainable gardening. We are striving for self-reliance. Local food sourcing. Like our ancestors, we would be forlorn at the prospect. No beans to plant? What ever will we do?

Nowadays?  We go online and order more beans!  That’s what we do when we flub up our sustainability plan. And be grateful for the ability.  A mistake like this on the prairie could have jeopardized the family’s survival, but not today.

How to Grow Beans for Sustainability Gardening

If you’re like me and LOVE black beans, make sure you grow a bushel of them, saving a few for planting next season. Black beans are easy to grow, easy to harvest, and easy to shell. Why, even a kid could do it!  (And does, in our family.)

Beans are one of the easiest plants to sustain in your garden, so long as you remember your goal of sustainability and save a few for next time!