This is the time of the year that the Michigan farm boy in me kicks into high gear. The vegetable garden is taking hold and the fruit trees in the yard are producing. Yesterday saw me up the tree, picking cherries for my family and our friends. Like my quest to follow my passions as a way to feed my family (and my soul) both literally and figuratively; this act of growing and sharing food is a very literal example of what makes me happy in life. I believe we should all attempt to live our lives in as happy a way as possible; in as fullfilling a way as possible.

That may be a loaded statement, we all have a different perspective on such things, but it is an important idea. Without it what is life worth?

So, in this case I climb the cherry tree which gives me both the joy of eating fresh, organic, local cherries but more than that it also gives me an excuse to climb a tree and get a new perspective on the neighborhood. A birds eye view can be good for the soul and the mind. Beyond that I get the joy of sharing with my neighbors, making new friends through the act of kindness and reconnected with old friends.

In return, in this case, my neighbors baked us a cherry pie that has been delicious.

Thinking of this example, in your life’s work, are you giving away cherries and getting cherry pie in return? If not, how might you get to that point?

Commentary by Andrew Miller

The other night my wife and I hosted friends for dinner. They live a couple miles from us and arrived via bicycles. My family and most of my friends are avid cyclists, not just for environmental or economic reasons but because it is a very social form of transportation and a bit romantic.

During dinner Dan made an observation about a recent trip to a craft store. Why do so many people purchase model villages, complete with pedestrians and quaint shops but not an SUV or Wal-Mart in site? There is some sort of desire in them to reminisce about a time when we were much more social and community focused; when we lived locally.

As we face the energy and banking crisis – not to mention poisonous vegetables from our broken food system – isn’t it time that we stop fantasizing about those days?

My family spends a lot of time bicycling and walking around our community, taking advantage of everything it offers. The exercise hasn’t hurt us any either.

We don’t worry much about the bacteria in our food because we grow much of it and buy the rest from local farmers. At one time we had to justify the local organic produce; remind ourselves how it is cheaper in the bigger picture. Now, thanks to the current economy, the local organic farmer is actually dollar for dollar cheaper than the salmonella roulette megastore bio-food.

Getting around by foot, bike and bus allows us to stop and talk to neighbors and explore things we might otherwise have just driven right by. When you slow down like this you have a chance to appreciate what is available to you right outside your door. We also don’t worry much about the gas prices.

So what do we do with all of the extra money we’re saving? Well like most American’s we don’t actually save enough of it, but we do invest it. When it was time to get my daughter a new life jacket for canoeing we went to the local outfitter instead of Target; it may have cost a few more dollars but having local businesses stay in business is a bargain to us. Local merchants generally invest 50% back into the local economy while national chains barely scratch 15%.

For entertainment we find that there is no lack of community activities to take part in. When there isn’t an activity then we have been known to take it upon ourselves to create one. This has allowed us to get to know more of our fellow residents – at least the ones who are also taking advantage of living locally.

The silver lining of the economy and energy crisis is the way it is forcing more people to stay close to home. The more people that participate in living locally the better your locale will become. Put away your miniature village and take advantage of what living local can do for your wallet, your waist-line and your social life.