February/March 1982 RAIN Page 17 AGRICULTURE The Gift of Good Land, by Wendell Berry, 281 pp., $8.50,1981, from: North Point Press 850 Talbot Ave. Berkeley, CA 94706 . . .And that is why the place makes sense. All the patterns of the farm are finally gathered into an ecological pattern; it is the "household," its various parts joined to each other and the whole joined to nature, to the world, by liking, by delighted and affectionate understanding. The ecological pattern is a pattern of pleasure. The Gift of Good Land is a collection of essays, published within the last five years, mostly by Rodale Press. As in his earlier book. The Unsettling of America, Berry's commentary weaves in and through agriculture to create an opus on life. In simple yet eloquent language. Berry touches on topics as varied as nuclear power and gardening, the revolution of language (the rise of the machine metaphor), standards for "good solutions," and a Biblical argument for ecological and agricultural responsibility. Whether the subject be agriculture in the Peruvian Andes, the protection of native grasslands in his home state of Kentucky, or Amish farms in northeastern Indiana, the same themes emerge. To Berry, a sustainable agriculture is synonymous with small scale farming emphasizing values of care, thrift, and diversity. What is more. Berry adds, these values are indispensable to the survival of human beings. If you have ever been swayed by economic arguments for agricultural efficiency. The Gift of Good Land is an absolute must. Defenders of the small farm . . . must take care never to use the word 'economy' to mean only 'money economy'. We must use it to mean also—the word instructs—the order of households. And we must therefore judge economic health by the health of the households, both human and natural. —LS New Lands for Agriculture: The California State Water Project, by Don Villare- jo, $1.00,16 pp., 1981, from: California Institute for Rural Studies P.O. Box 530 Davis, CA 95817 Approved by California legislature in 1959, the California State Water Project has had a considerable impact on both the California and national agriculture system. Pumping massive amounts of water through the San Joaquin Valley, the State Water Project (SWP) enabled the Valley to achieve unparalleled productivity in an essentially desert climate. Yet this expanded production, mostly by large-scale producers, has indirectly lowered wholesale prices, threatened small farmers and ranchers, and compromised the longevity of California's fragile agriculture. With the possibility for expansion of the Project (proposed for the 1982 primaries), the California Institute for Rural Studies has compiled a concise expose of the long-term impacts of the SWP, and the politics behind it. The book is clearly written and interspersed with graphs and maps. Villarejo describes the function of the controversial irrigation project, its prime benefactors (over 50% of the land is owned by eight large companies, including Getty Oil Co. and Prudential Insurance Co.), and how California has unwittingly provided economic support for large-scale agricultural interests. ■Taking advantage of water supplies which are as yet in excess of urban demands, large- scale landowners have expanded their crop acreage, creating production gluts that undercut small-scale producers) although these lower costs never reach the consumer). By operating well beyond the natural carrying capacity of the land, these landowners are living not only on borrowed water but borrowed time, ensuring the eventual collapse of California's agriculture. It is precisely this reason that prompts Northern California to split off from Southern California in Callen- bach's Ecotopia Emerging (see review and excerpt this issue). Essential reading for Californians on both sides of the border. New Lands for Agriculture brings home to the rest of us the vulnerability of our current agricultural dependence on that state. The Institute has published other worthwhile books (see RAIN VIII: 2,3) and conducts workshops on a variety of subjects. Contact them for a publication list and further information. —LS LIFE & DEATH Living to Be 100:1,200 Who Did and How They Did It, by Osborn Segerberg, Jr., 1982,406 pp., $19.95 hardcover from: Charles Scribner's Sons 597 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10017 Their appearance is often surprisingly youthful. Their health tends to be good by the standards of people in their children's generation. More than 99% of them are mentally alert. When asked about unfulfilled ambitions, they typically respond that they have none; they have lived full and rewarding lives. This is the picture which emerges from the 1,200 interviews with American centenarians which form the basis of Living to Be 100. As author Osborn Segerberg quickly discovered when he began analyzing the interviews, these people are remarkable for more than reaching a particular significant birthday, and their longevity is clearly the result of more than good luck and good genes. They are people who can tell the rest of us something about what successful living really means. Segerberg emphasizes that centenarians are individuals, but a number of clear patterns do emerge in their lives and personalities: Order. A pattern of orderliness stands out in the lives of more than 96% of the centenarians. Sense of Place. 78% have spent most or all of their lives in a single location. Power. The centenarians have a notable absence of desire to exercise power over others. Ambition. Many of them seem to have deliberately disengaged themselves from striving toward hard-to-obtain goals. Emotions. Self-pity is non-existent and bereavement rarely expressed. Many seem to avoid strong emotions altogether. Work. Hard work is the reason most often given by the 100 year olds for their longevity. Many still work regularly! None of the group—even those who did arduous or mundane tasks for decades—express any work dissatisfaction. Health. Taking responsibility for one's own health characterizes many of them. Spirit. A strong daily concern with spiritual values is much in evidence. Family. Strong family connections throughout life are characteristic. The key for these people, the author concludes, is their unusual capacity for dealing with stress. What eastern mystics have long been aware of and what western science has taken massive amounts of research to uncover the centenarians know through intuition—or perhaps a special kind of genius. -JF Death and Dying, Special Issue (No. 50) of Communities, Oct./Nov. 1981, $2.00 from: Communities: Journal of Cooperative Living Box 426 Louisa, VA 23093 It's hard to think of a more awkward topic than death and dying, even though we all get to experience it sooner or later. The staff of Communities, with the help of people from Twin Oaks Community, took a courageous step in devoting a special issue of their excellent magazine to the subject, and how various cooperative groups are creating new metaphors for dealing with death. Written by people who have had experiences with death in community, it offers a rare glimpse of how the support base of cooperative life styles can facilitate more humane and conscious approaches to dying. Don't be afraid to read it. It could change your life. —MR
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