Wednesday, May 16, 2012

The Extraordinary in the Ordinary

Who thought milking a goat could be such an eye opening experience?! Seriously, we drink milk since we are kids, we eat cheese every day, and dairy in general has such a strong presence in our diets. Yet, when we are in front of the animal that produces the raw material for it, we panic. Let me get that clear, some of us panicked, some of us were excited, but almost everyone felt very uncomfortable. Why is that?! I certainly do not panic in front of a slice of cheese!

The reason is because we are so far disconnected from nature that we fail to recognize that the milk and cheese we consume, come from another living being. Sure, everybody knows that milk comes from a cow, but how many of the people on this earth has ever had the luck of seeing, or milking, the animal that provides the good? Not many, and it was certainly a first for me.

Our current ways teach us, is that food is a mere commodity, it teaches us that we should not worry of the steps that brought the cheese on our tables, it doesn’t teaches us the ways the animal has been treated, and it certainly doesn’t teaches us how that slice of cheese is made (Bacteria). Why?! Because the consumer does not want to see what goes on behind the scenes. The consumer does not want to see how the animal is treated (and especially the producer doesn’t either). The consumer only knows one fact: that slice of American cheese sounds good on my burger. We are disconnected from what we put in our stomachs, and yet we know every specifics of the latest Apple products.

What we need is going back to the basics. What we need is to be better connected to the daily consumptions in our lives. We need to see the extraordinary in the ordinary.


  1. I agree; it is utterly fascinating to see that people are disgusted by cheese when they see the entire process. It really makes me wonder if more people would eat less meat if they know the process behind making the meat.

    Hands-on experience has really helped me start to form an increased awareness of where food really comes from.

  2. OH Goats! I would have to agree with all of the above. I even had milked a goat before and still I was thinking "now how do get out of touching the udder..?" It is interesting that when one goes to the store few make the conntection of the foods there back to where they came from. Maybe that is not only because so few of us are in the process but also because most food is made in factories that have little to no connection back to the natural foods.