Interdependence Is the Flow State

Isn’t it funny how often people say sunny days are nice, or rainy days are bad? The hydrological cycle is so important, and rainy days are actually wonderful if you remember that the planet and our bodies are mostly water, and water is the lifeblood of all terrestrial life. We need warm dry days and wet days. If we only had one it would be awful. “Good” weather is an interdependent relationship.

On with the story: One sunny, warm, comfortable, and alarmingly dry February afternoon I was sitting in a circle on a plush couch in Northern California at my weekly Kiwanis meeting. Next to me was my dear friend of 30 years, a guest at my club interested in joining. We met by giving away organic gardens to people in 1999 if they agreed to not use pesticides, used heirloom and native non-GMO seeds, and returned surplus to the collective. We called ourselves Planting Earth Activation, or PEA, and together we youngsters gave away hundreds of gardens, closing streets to work fast, and often planting ten in a weekend.

Back to the Kiwanis meeting: Near us were other guests for the day, a group who founded and run the nonprofit, Play it Forward Music Foundation They give away instruments to youth in need and teach them to play. One well-to-do board member shared how his family was too poor to afford a clarinet as a kid, so he earned his living, retired, and is now giving back as a driving force to raise $100k to support their programs.

In the Kiwanis Club of Sebastopol, we have a meeting tradition called Happy/Sads. It is where people put in a few bucks and say what they are happy, sad, (and sometimes ambivalent) about. It is a gem of an experience and why I ultimately decided to join. My first in-person meeting was during Covid, and we were meeting outside under a wonderful oak grove adjacent to Peacetown’s Peace Garden at the Sebastopol Community Cultural Center. On that day, I paid attention to the flow of emotions and experiences, and realized that, in a strange new way, it mirrored my own. I felt connected to this wonderful group expressing honest feelings. I had found one of my tribes.

Back to present: On this warm and sunny, disturbingly rain-lacking though hypnotically comfortable February day, our Happy/Sads start and our Co-President and Secretary first shared his happiness for “general ebullience.” Our President goes next, right into a deeply moving experience. Mind you, he is a most stalwart retired Coast Guard member, a commander with a heart of gold. He is the type of person who publicly acknowledges and brings out the best in others and challenges those around him to excel. He shared how happy he was to have found a recording of music, Pachelbel’s Canon in D, produced by his late wife and found after searching for ten years. It brought tears to him and his children’s eyes. He shared how a friend also just found a minute-long recording of her.

We heard from every other member, from sadness for a recently deceased member, gratitude for guests in attendance, and even about the Kami of a member’s refrigerator, who kept it working till the day before the new fridge was scheduled to arrive. There were jokes and laughter interspersed. One guest commented on the fun we were having and suggested they were moving to Sebastopol to join our rag-tag bunch. The reason I joined Kiwanis in the first place was on full display, as were the legs of so many wearing shorts in February when we would be fortunate if instead a full rain suit were required. My feeling of interdependence in my people was reinforced.

Right after the meeting ended, my feeling of connection to my club grew suddenly, more than I previously experienced. Do you ever get that deep visceral sense that you are doing the right thing? That you are where you need to be, doing what you need to do, in the moment? Some call it the flow-state; or being in the zone. It is like all things suddenly are very real and present, as if nothing else exists.

This is what happened to me. I turned to my friend, my guest, and asked what community work is important to him. He talks about a group he recently heard of, California Homemakers Association, that unites Sonoma County’s lowest-paid domestic workers and their allies to fight to end poverty conditions and the government policies that create them. I inform him that a long-time club member works day and night for that group, introduce them, and share how most of us are independently working on a project or two to make the community better, and we also come together to do the same on bigger projects as a group.

As I say this, all around are quick conversations by different members and guests, efficiently moving the needle forward on each of their projects. I catch words here and there, sensing enough to know that I am surrounded by an incredibly diverse group of individual leaders. It is a beautiful moment, a tapestry of community collaboration that feeds individual projects and collective efforts such as helping children of the world; Kiwanis’ mission.

As I tell my friend this observation about how we are all leaders, I simultaneously sense all of the other local service clubs and organizations doing similar work for “community interdependence”, such as: the Sebastopol Grange #306, Lions Club of Sebastopol, Rotary Club of Sebastopol, Rotary Club of Sebastopol Sunrise, Sebastopol Masons, Order of the Eastern Star, St Stephens Episcopal Church, Sebastopol Christian Church, Community Church of Sebastopol, and numerous others. Many of these groups already meet quarterly as part of the Sebastopol Service and Action Coalition.

For a sweet moment, I feel that it will all work out, grateful that so many give of themselves daily to make the world a better place, one project at a time. I sink into a contentment so deep and wondrous. This moment even took the alarming edge off of a bright and pleasant February day though it most seriously and deleteriously lacks the rain we desperately need.

Reprinted with permission from Craig’s Substack
https://craignlitwin.substack.com/p/relocalization-in-action

What a fun and festive celebration we enjoyed at our 2025 Holiday Party!
Members Christine Covington and Amy Crawford (Heritage Farm Florals) created lovely floral table decorations. The Kiwanis Club provided the funny Charlie Brown Tree. We enjoyed a scrumptious potluck feast along with music by StriderFactor with Robin Factor and Jon Strider and comedians John Lehre and Steve Bruner. (Thanks to Meryl Azar for organizing the entertainment.)
Thanks to Amy and Hrieth Pezzi for the photos and to Sevita Wilder for her notes for Deborah, who was sick at home and had to miss the party!
And thanks to all the Grangers and friends who came to celebrate together!

Grangers and friends enjoyed a great potluck meal and friendly company among old friends and new.

Our Grange musicians performed Jerusalem, from Steve Earl’s 2002 album

President Lawrence shared a Thanksgiving address:
“United by the strong and faithful tie of agriculture, we mutually resolve to labor for the good of our Order, our country, and humankind”
Lawrence recounted a story about the first Thanksgiving and its journey to becoming a holiday.
“…our responsibility is to create those things that we have to be thankful for and to cherish the ones that were given to us.”

Our guest Ceylon Crow led a demonstration of Tai Chi movements.

The day before our October General Meeting, volunteers gathered in our Grange Hall kitchen to prepare a special Harvest Meal from produce grown and donated by members of the Grange Virtual Farm. The menu included a hearty fall pumpkin-white bean stew (V, GF), crusty bread, and homemade apple crisps for dessert.

The hall was filled with happy Grangers and guests, who enjoyed the fabulous meal and a good time with old friends and new ones! Our Grange musicians moved some of us to our feet for some dancing. Craig Litwin, Hall Lecturer, talked about the 2026 lecture series, demonstrations, and other Grange activities.

Wednesday, October 8 –  Sunday, October 12

The state convention is an annual gathering that encompasses workshops, awards, the Grange Expo and more. Sebastopol Grange Vice President Meryl Azar was our delegate to this year’s event, hosted at the Van Duzen River Grange in Carlotta, CA.
Delegates attended educational tours, including those of Humboldt Exotics and and Lotta Farms, licensed cannabis cultivation companies in Humboldt County.
Meryl also toured the mill of the Mendocino-Humboldt Redwood Company in Scotia, one of the largest wood mills in California, and hiked among the redwoods on the roughly 700 square miles of land that make up the mill property. She also joined others to visit a fish hatchery and the Metropolitan Rock and Mineral Museum.
National Grange President Christine Hamp spoke to the assembled delegates about the Power of Unity.
“The voting delegates at the Convention discussed many important issues,” Meryl said. “We dealt with many pertinent resolutions and agenda items that will be presented to the CA legislation.”

Grangers and friends enjoyed our September General Meeting and Potluck in the setting autumn sunlight that streamed with an ethereal glow across our spacious hall.

The Grange served an assortment of Thai dishes and the tables were laden with delicious side dishes and desserts (including lots of apple pies, apple crisps, and more apple-goodnesss!) brought from home by attendees. As always, it was great to enjoy conversation with old friends and new ones!

President Lawrence shared his observations about the impacts of AI. Our chaplain Barton Stone inspired us with a poem. Our Grange musicians, led by Peter Schurch, entertained us.

Granger Carol Henderson, also a member of The Community Seed Exchange, shared a presentation about that valuable community resource. The Community Seed Exchange is an all-volunteer group of local gardeners and seed savers. They maintain a grassroots community seed library that supports Sonoma County gardeners with free, locally grown, open-pollinated, pesticide- and GMO-free seeds! In their seed garden, they grow many of the seeds available in the library. All gardeners, with or without seeds to share, are welcome. Gardeners are encouraged to grow out and donate back to the Community Seed Exchange. The goals of The Community Seed Exchange are to cultivate a network of seed savers in the region, support each other and the seed library as a resource for the expanding community of gardeners, and strengthen our local food system.
Carol and Dena Allen are the long-time organizers of the Grange’s popular Produce Exchange program.

At our Sept. 14th Community Free First-Aid & CPR class, 16 Grangers and 3 prospective members reviewed and practiced first aid and CPR skills with the instructor provided free of cost by the county program, Sonoma Ready. For those interested, the Sonoma Ready program will present a free Emergency Preparedness talk Oct 12 (2-3:30pm) at the Sebastopol Library.

Grangers and friends had a great time at our August General Meeting and Potluck on Aug. 26th.

Our Chaplain Barton Stone presented an inspiring benediction (See below.)

Our Grange band entertained us with a performance of the song, “Day-O” by Harry Belafonte, representing the struggle and strife of the banana pickers of the United Fruit Company.

President Lawrence shared a story about a man who, during the Nixon administration, burned a candle outside the White House every night, not to change policies, but in hopes that he would not be changed.
Lawrence also informed us that stress can temporarily lower IQ and diminish empathy by disrupting the brain’s ability to focus and process information. Gathering as a community, he explained, directly counteracts the effects of stress by reducing cortisol levels and releasing oxytocin, the “bonding hormone.” This social support frees up cognitive resources, improving focus and problem-solving, while also fostering a sense of shared experiences that enhances empathy and connection. Stress relief is real when people gather. We gather so that WE do not change. We gather for US. Go home and light a candle tonight.

Peter S. awarded Grange scholarships to Libby Jaffe, attending Western Washington University; Sakiko Pizzorno, attending Cal Poly SLO; Miako Pizzorno, attending Cal Poly SLO; Jimena Santos, attending Roseland University Prep.
Jim and Janet from the Bodega Bay Grange told us about that Grange’s effort to create a commercial kitchn at the hall, and Janet’s Coastal Garden Group, created to help the Bodega Bay community learn how to grow vegetables along the coast.

Shawn Patterson, from Good to Grow Garden Teas shared his methods for ‘farming worms’. Worm castings, aka worm poop, are the key to a healthy, productive garden. The nutrients and micronutrients are made bioavailable for the plants. Good bacteria! Castings will not burn your plants. He demonstrated how we can turn kitchen scraps into “black gold”.

We welcomed new Grange members Chris Harnish, Mary Ely, Joan Birch, Adele Diehl, Caroline Jenkins, Kent Jenkins, Clayton Creager, Beth Acosta, Penny Bellus, and Richard Murphy.

Dear Human:

You’ve got it all wrong.
You didn’t come here to master unconditional love. This is where you came from and where you’ll return.
You came here to learn personal love.
Universal love.
Messy love.
Sweaty Love.
Crazy love.
Broken love.
Whole love.
Infused with divinity.
Lived through the grace of stumbling.
Demonstrated through the beauty of… messing up.
Often.
You didn’t come here to be perfect, you already are.
You came here to be gorgeously human. Flawed and fabulous.
And rising again into remembering.
But unconditional love? Stop telling that story.
Love in truth doesn’t need any adjectives.
It doesn’t require modifiers.
It doesn’t require the condition of perfection.
It only asks you to show up.
And do your best.
That you stay present and feel fully.
That you shine and fly and laugh and cry and hurt and heal and fall and get back up and play and work and live and die as YOU.
It’s enough.
It’s Plenty …

—Courtney A. Walsh

Grangers and friends had a great time at our June General Meeting. Following our Produce Exchange, we enjoyed a delicious potluck dinner and music by our talented Grange musicians. Longtime Grange member and officer Gary Abreim shared a presentation about his recent trip to the American South where he was inspired by the courage of those who suffered through slavery and led the Civil Rights Movement.
We welcomed seven new members: Robin Factor, Jon Strider, Barbara Harris, Sandra Degan, Amy Sparrow, Ken Crittenden, and Lauren Darges!

We’re skipping July, but join us for our August General Meeting on Aug. 26, 6-8pm. Watch our website and our newsletter for details.