Get Into the Gift Economy This Holiday Season
Free gift ideas that value life forms in a circular loop
Welcome back to The Link, a bi-weekly circularity newsletter making the connection between regenerative farming and you, every other Tuesday.
Mariah Carey’s voice is the Pavlovian loop that signals it's December again. The minute the first few bars of “All I Want For Christmas Is You” float into the ether, you know you’re toast. Obviously there’s the amount of hours you’re going to fill up on binging Love Actually, The Great British Bake Off, and/or disturbing Hallmark holiday films with plots that seem like they were written by AI instead of humans. But it’s also capitalism’s favorite season to stress us out by urging us to BUY BUY BUY more things because it’s the secret to happiness and worthiness or social capital or something, and well, thinking about the amount of things that end up in landfills and rack up greenhouse gases, today’s newsletter is not about making Jeff Bezos wealthier.
Today, I wanna serve as your stress reliever. Later this month, I’m going to take us deeper into the concepts around the gift economy, so if you feel like doing a little homework in the meantime, check out Indian Givers: How the Indians of the Americas Transformed the World or Sacred Economics: Money, Gift & Society in the Age of Transition.
For now, here’s a teaser which is literally bananas: Bananas are so much more than their slippery Hollywood tropes or baking recipes (although this Bon Appétit banana bread recipe might change your life). They help prevent runners' cramps and their peels can purify drinking water. They serve as a reliable source of entertainment for bad improv and toddlers and by doubling as a pretend rotary phone or teething device. Bananas are one of the world’s most consumed fruits and are also on the way to extinction. The meat (fruit meat? lol) is delicious, but why do their peels always end up in the garbage?
Here’s two easy gifting ideas that will cost you literally nothing (well, I mean beyond the price of buying bananas) that honors every aspect of this incredible fruit through its entire life cycle by giving back to the land, plants, and ourselves in the process. The goal here in this exercise is to creatively dream into the infinite possibilities that exist when we value life forms beyond the take/make/waste world we’re living in right now.
Gift Idea One: Banana Tea Fertilizer
The first gift option is for the plant lovers in your life: For the friend who’s been using, say, fish fertilizer on their house plants to keep those green babies happy. Their intentions are good, but the rotting, cadaver-like scent of those plants because of said fertilizer is preventing you from quality hangs at their home this holiday season.
In the minute you’ve been potentially eating a banana while reading this, save the peel. We’re on the way to rescue your friend from social isolation and a house that smells like a crime scene. Take your banana peel(s) (ideally 2 or more) and place them into a mason jar with water. Cover the container and place it in a cool, dark place for 2-3 weeks to allow it to steep and infuse the water with its incredible properties like potassium and calcium. You’ll know it’s ready when the peels have turned black and the water has darkened. Strain it, jar the liquid in a Martha Stewart approved Mason jar or container of your choice, and put a bow on it for your friend. You can learn more about the benefits of banana water on plants here.
Gift Idea Two: Matt Orlando’s Salted Banana Skin Caramel
OK: the second gift idea is mouthwateringly delicious, courtesy of Matt Orlando, who I spoke with a few newsletters ago about his perspective on where the current sustainable food landscape has room for greater collaboration across the food industry. Matt is one of those chefs who could convince me to eat a dirty boot hamachi if he prepared it, because he can make just about anything taste incredible. The recipe below is pretty straightforward (ideally use organic bananas if you’re able to). You can also head over to Matt’s Instagram directly to follow along.
I like to drizzle it over vanilla ice cream, put a little dab in my coffee, or perhaps warmed over a Paul Hollywood approved dessert, although my loyalty is to Mary Berry—I’m still not over her leaving The Great British Bake Off.
Happy holidays!
Oh hey! You’re still reading this? If you have future topics, smart humans, or concepts you’d like to see featured, respond to this newsletter or drop me a line and say hey: Helen@HelenHollyman.com.
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