The evening started off at Zingerman's Roadhouse, where Chef Alex cooked up a 4 course meal with all local meats, celebrating the farms and farmers who provided the food. About 80 of us, shared the meal together. 

Michigan Theater hosted us, about 280 people. The energy was strong, an enthusiasm for local food and farmers that runs deep in the community. There was no shortage of questions, or opinions, and the conversation following ranged from energy costs, to regulations, to the farm bill. 

The screening was co-sponsored by Slow Food Huron Valley, and by Real Time Farms. And it was a special screening for me personally because Ann Arbor is where I grew up. About twenty of my good friends were there, people known for more than half of my life, friends who've shared the seasons of life. 

And reflecting on the evening, I was struck by something Chef Alex said during our talk. That the reason he sources food from Kris at Old Pines Farm, is because she's someone he knows, personally. He knows the whole family.

And ultimately, that's what this movement, this unnamed starting thing is rooted in. The people we know, the land we know, the food we know. And these things are connected. It was my friend Dax who suggested a book- The Omnivore's Dilemma- that started this journey- and Luke and Andrea who housed me, and introduced me to farmers like Johnny Glosson and Sam Talley in North Carolina. And Karl and Cara who set this evening up, taking the time after full work days to build partnerships that brought people out. And it was so fitting, that they were all there tonight, people I've known for many wondrous years- Marvin, Mike, Lindsay, Nate, Julie, Melissa, Muki, Lauren, Dair, Ian, Alexa, Ryan, Davy- names of these good people I know. Of course, most of the people there tonight- are more recently met, or unknown. And yet we're all a part of something, something larger, and we're living it, and growing and something is taking shape. And there was a sense in the air tonight that we are all lucky to be part of it.