Of Dirt and Worms

by Chamie Delkeskamp

Our yard stinks. 

The scent is wafting in right now as I sit at my desk and type these words. Our office happens to be a converted garden shed.  My stepfather built a lean-to on the side of the converted shed for our gardening items.  The lean-to holds the shovels, rakes, hoes, clippers, gloves, wide-brimmed hats, kneepads, organic fertilizer, seedling pots, seeds, wires, stakes, and an      array of other necessary (and not so necessary) supplies.  Our office which we lovingly call the “writing shack” holds over a thousand books, a desk, a small filing cabinet, two small chairs, a myriad of crosses, and barely enough space to turn a small circle and breath. 

As I take a deep breath right now, I smell manure.  It is strong, but now over-powering.  There is something rather pleasant about it.  I’m serious.

This past week, we as a family have been working out in the garden.  We pulled out the remaining winter vegetables – celery, snap peas, lettuce.  We pulled a large number of weeds.  The children filled a garden cart with the stones from our “wailing wall”*  which we decided to relocate to the side of the garden instead of the center.  In our grubbiest clothes, we amended the soil with steer manure, compost, and gypsum.  Tim tilled – with a little help from Jude.  Considering that Jude is the smallest in his kindergarten class and has yet to reach forty pounds, there was only so much manpower he could give a large rotor tiller.  But the sight of Jude trying in earnest was a delight.  He was very proud of himself.

One of the beauties of “farming” is that it brings a family together in meaningful, healthy, glorious - albeit smelly - work.  We have found that it is something that builds family unity and sense of purpose and accomplishment in this world. 

The “step one” of spring planting, however, is not my most favorite time of working on our suburban backyard homestead.  I sometimes consider soil boring.  I much prefer the excitement of seeing seeds sprout and pulling that first lush tomato off the vine and eating it like an apple right then and there. 

Without good soil, though, there will be no sprouting seeds, nor juicy tomatoes.  As Frank Tozer writes in The Organic Gardener’s Handbook,

Soil is not dirt.  It is the source of human life, it is where our bodies come from and where they eventually return to.  It is no coincidence that the words humus and human have the same root.  Our agricultural ancestors treated the soil with reverence, as their well being so obviously depended directly upon it.  We are just as dependent upon the soil as they were, though many of us live so far removed from it that we forget.  There is a direct relationship between the health of the soil and the health of the people who depend upon it.  When you build up the soil you not only improve your plants health, but you can also improve your own.

This strikes me as rather theologically profound.  Just a few weeks ago, we began the season of Lent (the forty days prior to Easter) by having ashes placed on our forehead at Ash Wednesday worship.  The pastor says, “From dust you have come and to dust you will return.”  Yes, we have come from the earth and to the earth we will return.  How we live on the earth in the middle time is of significant importance.

Our planet is in trouble because we have treated soil as dirt, with too little reverence and respect. In the September 2008 issue of National Geographic Magazine, the front-page feature was all about soil.  In a story called “Dirt Poor,” writer Joel K. Bourne talked to Haitians.  “’Tè a fatige,’ said 70 percent of Haitian farmers in a recent survey when asked about the major agricultural problems they faced.  ‘The earth is tired.’”  Long before the devastating earthquake hit Haiti, the country was already in trouble due to deforestation, topsoil erosion, and poor farming practices.  “As a nation’s soil goes, so goes a nation,” wrote Bourne.

Might it be that Haiti doesn’t need our “stuff” so much as they need to be educated, equipped, and empowered to bring their soil back to life?  Might that be a foundation to rebuild upon?

Might that be the foundation that our planet and its nearly one billion hungry people need?  Maybe this Earth Day – April 22 – we can put our hands in some soil and say a prayer.

Jesus cared about foundations.  He told the parable of a man who built his house on the sand.  When the rains came, the man’s house was washed away.  Another man built his house upon the rock.  When the rains came, his house stood strong.  I wouldn’t be surprised to hear Jesus say today that those who build food production on one crop, big machinery, and pesticides are building their future on “sand.”  Those, however, who build food supply on crop rotation, simple technology, and compost are building their future on “rock.”

As we come and return from soil in full circle, the “waste” of our lives can also come full circle.  Maybe I’m odd, but I find it quite fascinating that when done properly, waste can become life.  Manure can become fertilizer.  Kitchen scraps can become food for the soil.

This month, we are beginning a worm compost bin.  When asked if he has pets, Jude has excitedly said, “We have a bunny and about a thousand worms.”  Worm composting is a way to turn kitchen waste into rich compost.  It can be done indoors or outdoors – whether you have a “backyard homestead” or an apartment patio. 

It has been estimated that 30% of our trash could be composted.  Imagine how that might change our environment.  Imagine how composting might change our soil.

An organization called SOIL, www.oursoil.org, is attempting to help people turn waste into life.  In Haiti, they have composting toilets.  These toilets address the issues of sanitation and disease in this poor country while also providing a way to enrich the soil.  Yes, this means that human waste becomes compost.  Before you hurl at the idea, you may want to watch a short, intriguing, inspiring video on the homepage of their website.  Also, you may take solace in knowing that in God’s divine wisdom, many laws and instructions are set forth in the Old Testament books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus.  My confirmation students found such reading to invoke giggles and tantalize the “gross factor.”  Junior high boys seemed to be interested in reading the Law of Moses states where it explained where to place your “poop hole” and how to cover it and how far away it should be from others.  What I find intriguing is that in this “old scripture” which we too often ignore or deem boring is magnificently wise about waste and life. 

In this season of Easter, we celebrate how Jesus’ death on the cross brought new life for God’s people.  As you celebrate the fifty days of Easter (in the Christian calendar, Easter is a fifty day season), may you discover how kitchen waste can become life to your soil.  May you discover how composting toilets can become life to Haitians.  May you discover how God can take the muck of your life and transform it into something new and beautiful and full of breath. 

Breath deep, smell the manure, and be thankful.

* We made our own tiny "wailing wall" (or mound of rock) in our gaden out of small to medium-sized stones from our yard. My husband, Tim, lived in Israel for a stint and loved to eat breakfast by the Wailing Wall in Jersusalem. I, myself, was inspired by the character from The Secret Life of Bees who would go out and wail at her own personal wall. In our home, we write or draw our prayers of hurt and sadness on paper, roll them up, and then stick them in the cracks between the stones. You could say it is sort of like taking the "muck" and offering it to God and "composting" it, knowing that goodness and new life will spring forth.

Of Dirt and Worms Mulling Questions

1. What is your relationship to soil?

2.    Do you let your children play in dirt?  Why or why not?  Do you think “getting dirty” is or isn’t important?

3. Do you compost? Why or why not?

4.    What do you think of the idea of turning waste into life?  How do you feel when you hear about “composting toilets”?

5.    What “muck” in your life would you like to “compost” and see it become new life?  Are their fears you wish to be released from, hurts to be healed, relationships that needed to be mended?  Might you be able to “live the resurrection” by offering the waste to Jesus and seeing what He can do with it?

Of Dirt and Worms Action Opportunities

1.    Visit a farm.  Learn how they prepare the soil and use compost.

2.    Start your own composting bin (or worm bin) if you do not already have one.

3. Spend time digging in soil. Plant a flower, fruit, or vegetable.  

4. Learn about the work of SOIL or other organizations that are properly turning waste into life.