Tricycle | Awake in the World

The Safe Seed Pledge

"Agriculture and seeds provide the basis upon which our lives depend. We must protect this foundation as a safe and genetically stable source for future generations. For the benefit of all farmers, gardeners and consumers who want an alternative, we pledge that we do not knowingly buy or sell genetically engineered seeds or plants. The mechanical transfer of genetic material outside of natural reproductive methods and between genera, families or kingdoms poses great biological risks, as well as economic, political and cultural threats. We feel that genetically engineered varieties have been insufficiently tested prior to public release. More research and testing is necessary to further assess the potential risks of genetically engineered seeds. Further, we wish to support agricultural progress that leads to healthier soils, genetically diverse agricultural ecosystems and ultimately healthy people and communities."

Here is the full text of sarajane's seed poem (Sarajane Snyder)

all life moves from seed to seed

10,000 years ago the first farmer ancestors were born.
and they were born of seed.

think of a seed:
—a spark, speck, a dash, a peck, a pip—

a living plant being!
10,000 years ago, a wild kernel foraged

still & silent, coiled in masterful casing
oily, dense & rich

yet foraged not for eating,
but for burying in the earth.

foraged not for roaming,
but for settling.

the ripe kernel, now buried,
awaits the perfect balance of elements

fire heats, wind moves
water wets, earth is solid

and it springs forth! no longer still,
life energy shoots up & out, roots down & in

creation is unleashed

green stalks thrust upward, buds unfurl into flower, fruits swell with seed;
seed drops, is buried, awaits, and springs forth!

stalks thrust,  flowers unfurl, fruit swells,
seed drops, is buried, awaits, and springs forth!

thrust unfurl swell
drop bury await spring forth!

again and again and again
the earth inhales winter and exhales spring,

cultivation of plants and culture of man become inseparable,
we bring in our gods, our dead, our poetic sensibilities,
we bring in our keen senses, our powerful minds, our clever tools.
 
we bring in our greed, our wars, our impatience,

and now, on this day of seed sowing,
we bring in our deep memory, our  oldest urge for wild abundance,
and we sow seeds in the name of life
in the name of interconnectedness
and in the name of all beings.