Jul

Crossing Cultures in an Urban Garden

by Meredith Mullins on July 20, 2020

A cultural exchange via the sweet potato
© Meredith Mullins

A Tribute to Satsuma-imo: The Mighty Japanese Sweet Potato

“In Japan, in autumn, it is customary to collect fallen leaves, put sweet potatoes wrapped in aluminum foil in the leaves, and light the fallen leaves to bake them,” remembers Chiharu. “When I was a child I did this at my grandparents’ home. It was a special time of cooking and eating together.”

“Instead of ice cream trucks circling the neighborhoods to offer treats, we had stone-roasted sweet potato trucks,” says Midori of her childhood in Japan.

Stone roasted sweet potatoes
© iStock/kendoNice

Manami remembers planting sweet potatoes in elementary school and being excited when it was time to harvest the tiny schoolroom crop. And Hisako looked forward to sweet potatoes at snack time. “They warmed my body and my spirit,” she recalls.

Memories of the traditional Japanese sweet potato snack
© iStock/LewisTsePuiLung

Sweet Memories

What unites these memories of sweet potatoes is more than just nostalgia for Japanese culture. This team of Paris-based Japanese garden-lovers are all working in “Le Nid de l’Ortolan” — crossing cultures in a community garden in the heart of Paris.

A team of community gardeners at the rooftop Le Nid de l’Ortolan garden
© Jean Auvray

And thanks to an innovative, cross-cultural idea from garden organizer Julien Chameroy, sweet potatoes are the focus of the moment (as well as a unique opportunity for a Japanese/French liaison project).

Patate douce/Sweet Potato/Satsuma-imo
© Julien Chameroy

Julien, too, had memories of sweet potatoes from his time living in Japan—hearing street vendors hawking grilled sweet potatoes and seeing people hurrying through the streets while taking bites of the warm, sweet treat.

Satsuma-imo: the delicious and nutritious Japanese sweet potato
© iStock/kuppa_rock

More than those memories, though, the Frenchman believes the sweet potato is a nutrient-rich vegetable that should have a place in the Paris community garden. And, he believes that learning about a plant—how it grows and what it needs in order to flourish—are all a part of the connection to nature.

Does food taste different when you grow it yourself?
© Meredith Mullins

His garden mantra: “The more you know about a vegetable, the better it tastes.”

Thus, the Satsuma-imo project was born, with a group of passionate Japanese amateur gardeners at the ready.

The team is ready for the life cycle of the sweet potato (satsuma-imo).
© Meredith Mullins

But First Some History: Le Nid de l’Ortolan

The site of the Satsuma-imo project, Le Nid de l’Ortolan, is a community garden born in 2017—a “nest” perched atop a gymnasium in the 5^tharrondissement of Paris (near rue Mouffetard).

The shared garden idea was seeded a few years earlier when founders Julien Chameroy and Joyce Sasse were working in a community garden in the 4^tharrondissement and realized there was no such jardin partagé in the 5^th.

The corn is as high as an elephant’s eye (well, a small elephant).
© Meredith Mullins

They found the unused plot of “roof” land and went through all the phases of joining the Charte Main Verte (literally translated to Green Hand, but, in English, think Green Thumb).

This city organization of now more than 70 neighborhood gardens in almost all the arrondissements was created to encourage urban gardening, to support education about nature and the environment, and to bring communities together in a more social way.

The “Nid” sits on a gym rooftop and is guarded by a retirement home,
whose residents also participate in the garden activities.
© Meredith Mullins

All of these goals also support Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo’s ever present plan for the “greening of Paris.”

The “Nid” has about 50 members divided into teams that rotate each year so everyone gets to know everyone. Since the “Nid” sits next to a retirement home, the members of that community are invited to participate also.

The teams decide in January what to plant, and the 240-square-meter space currently hosts beans, chard, squash, spinach, cucumbers, sunflowers strawberries, potatoes, artichokes, rhubarb, peppers, garlic, lettuce, broccoli, herbs of all kinds, and much more.

The telltale signs of squash to come
© Meredith Mullins

The Satsuma-imo Japanese Team

Each member of the Japanese sweet potato team seems to share the overarching goals of the community garden. They all want to see more green spaces in urban areas, particularly in Paris. And they all want to spend more time close to nature.

In the process of the Satsuma-imo project, they are learning about the variety of plants grown in France and the different ways these plants are consumed in France and Japan.

The Paris garden is growing crosnes, also known as a Japanese artichoke.
It’s a forgotten root vegetable that some chefs call the homely tuber.
© Meredith Mullins

You could tell by watching them work that they love touching the earth and feeling a part of the growing cycle. As Chiharu says, “Just thinking about this garden brightens my heart.”

Feeling a connection to the earth
© Meredith Mullins

The Sweet Potato Project

The satsuma-imo project began at a challenging time. Just after the start of the project, France went into a two-month corona confinement period. However, the timing proved serendipitous, as sweet potato seedlings must grow for at least a month to become ready for planting.

Chiharu shows off her sweet potato seedling “children.”
© Meredith Mullins

The seedlings were closely watched in the homes of the gardeners, a small pleasure during a time of little external stimulus.

“They took care of those seedlings as if they were their own children,” Julien says proudly. “And, when it comes to a plant, that makes a difference.”

Midori’s “confinement” seedlings were finally ready.
© Meredith Mullins

The Garden After Lockdown

When lockdown was finally lifted, the garden needed serious tending. First, the battle of the weeds took place (the weeds lost).

The battle of the weeds (the weeds lost)
© Meredith Mullins

Then, it was time to ready the soil for the planting of the sweet potato seedlings.

Choosing the best spots for the satsuma-imo seedlings
© Meredith Mullins

All systems were go. “The team was exceptional, always positive and humble,” Julien said. “It was not a case of ‘me, myself, and I,’ it was ‘what can WE do together to make this work.’”

The plants are now settling in to the warmth of the summer sun and will be ready for a late September or early October harvest.

The sweet potatoes have been gently planted and are now settling in for summer sun.
© Meredith Mullins

The Next Chapter

Aside from having the chance to speak in Japanese for a few hours every week and have a sweet potato harvest party in September, the real raison d’etre of all the Japanese community gardeners is to be close to nature.

“We need to re-create the bond we lost with nature as a whole and between ourselves. Nature has an incredible power to heal.” Julien believes. “We must work with nature, not against it.”

Working with nature, not against it
© Meredith Mullins

And so, after the sweet potato harvest in September—and a celebration of Satsuma-imo memories past and present—the team will plant fava beans immediately—to give back to the soil what the sweet potatoes needed to take.

Oh, I see. Crossing cultures continues on many levels . . . for humans and nature. The cycle continues in this urban garden, and life goes on.

Part of the Satsuma-imo Team (Julien, Manami, Midori, Hisako, and Chiharu)
© Meredith Mullins

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

For more information about Le Nid de l’Ortolan, visit their Facebook page. For more information about the Paris urban gardens, visit Charte Main Verte/Jardins Partagé.

Meredith Mullins 2 Comments

Crossing Cultures/France/Japan/Nature Discovery

Jan

A New Year’s Resolution for Notre Dame

by Meredith Mullins on January 13, 2020

Savoring the moment (two days before the heartbreaking Notre Dame fire).
© Meredith Mullins

Restoration of an Iconic Paris Cultural Symbol

Renew. Restore. Revitalize. Renovate. Refresh. Rejuvenate. Rebuild.

The new year invites certain words into our sphere of action, as we concentrate on new beginnings and life-changing resolutions.

This focus is particularly timely for the monumental restoration project of the fire-damaged Notre Dame Cathedral—a masterpiece of Gothic architecture and a historic cultural symbol for Paris, France, and the world. No matter what religion or spiritual beliefs are personally held, Notre Dame touches people’s souls.

Through rain and snow and gloom of night . . . Notre Dame has survived more than 850 years of challenges. There is hope for the future.
© Meredith Mullins

Living Near An Icon

I live a few minutes from this revered icon and pass it at least once a day. It has never—ever—been just part of the scenery. I always pause—to look. The “Oh, I see” moments are too many to count.

I am inspired by its grandeur—the articulated carvings, the ingenuity of the flying buttresses, and the reflections on the night-time Seine.

Reflections on the Seine
© Meredith Mullins

I marvel at the rose windows, beautiful from inside and out. I pay humble tribute to the wild and weird gargoyles and chimeras, keeping evil at bay. I am in sync with the melodies of the bells.

One of the guardian chimeras, protecting the cathedral against evil
© Meredith Mullins

Sadly, the view and the sounds have now changed dramatically.

This most visited monument in Europe was devoured by fire on April 15, 2019, as Parisians and the world watched in horror.

The devastating fire of April 15, 2019
© Mervyn Rothstein

First, there were plumes of smoke. Then, skyward flames as the medieval dry oak beams, called “the forest,” ignited like kindling. And when the classic spire wobbled and then crashed into the nave below, there was universal heartbreak.

The pompiers (firefighters) were fearless in controlling the spread of the fire, a task that at times seemed hopeless, but in the end saved the rose windows, the grand organ, and the tower bells.

Firefighters battled the blaze through the night.
© Mervyn Rothstein

The first responders and city and church officials were also quick in their rescue of art objects and priceless treasures, such as the Crown of Thorns and the 13^th century tunic worn by St Louis (Louis IX, King of France).

Now, nine months later, a renaissance is in progress. French President Macron vowed immediately after the fire, “We will rebuild.” And, almost as quickly, donations totalling more than $1 billion came pouring in, from more than 350,000 donors—French billionaires as well as people from around the world who made small contributions, just wanting to help.

Progress on the restoration
© Meredith Mullins

Macron committed to a restoration timetable of five years that some believe was too ambitious given Notre Dame’s history.

After all, its initial construction took nearly 200 years, and it has undergone various complex multi-year renovations since its origin, including a massive restoration of the western façade and the addition of the (now toppled) lead and wood spire in the mid-1800s by the 30-something architect Viollet-le-Duc and his work partner Lassus.

The debate continues about how the replacement for Viollet-le-Duc’s 1850s
spire should be designed.
© Meredith Mullins

What Can We See?

As you walk around the cathedral now, you can still feel its mass and magnitude, as well as its fragility. The church is blocked by fences and barricades. Several cranes rise high in the sky.

There is exterior work that shows some of the steps that have been taken. However, most of the activity is hidden from view.

New scaffolding and netting reinforce the structural weaknesses
and prevent damage by falling limestone.
© Meredith Mullins

Inside, robots work tirelessly to clean debris from the center of the cathedral. The structure is too fragile and dangerous for human movement.

The debris is moved to the tents set up in the courtyard in front of Notre Dame where each piece is catalogued by scientists before it is transferred to laboratories for further analysis of the materials.

A break in the barricade allows for photos of the western facade.
© Meredith Mullins

Critical Next Steps

The work to date has been careful and well-researched. Progress has been made in the cleaning process (especially addressing the lead contamination that occurred in and around the cathedral).

The rose windows will be cleaned and restored to their original positions.
© Meredith Mullins

Efforts have also focused on the removal of items for restoration (such as the windows and statues), the cataloguing and analysis of materials, the reinforcement of parts of the exterior structure (such as the flying buttresses), and the preparation for work in the coming months that will analyze the strength of the remaining structure.

The flying buttresses and Apse area of the cathedral have been reinforced.
© Meredith Mullins

The most critical step is the removal of the metal scaffolding that surrounded the spire at the time of the fire. (A spire restoration project was in process.)

This now-tangled, melted mass must be removed piece by piece, without jeopardizing the incredibly fragile underlying structure. This phase will begin early in 2020.

The critical next step is to remove the damaged central scaffolding
that surrounded the now fallen spire.
© Meredith Mullins

Once the scaffolding is removed, workers will be able to access the stone vaulted ceilings to complete the full diagnosis of the structural integrity and plan the next steps of restoration.

Should Notre Dame be rebuilt exactly as it was . . . or should it be “reimagined”
with a more contemporary look?
© Meredith Mullins

Looking To the Future

How will the restored and revitalized Notre Dame look? The debate lingers. Should it be rebuilt just as it was, or should a contemporary innovation be added, using modern materials and building techniques? Should the roof and spire be reconstructed . . . or reimagined?

The politics have yet to be sorted out, with legislation differing between the Senate and the National Assembly.

In the interim, architectural firms and designers are submitting ideas, from a rooftop swimming pool, to a stained glass roof and spire, to a greenhouse sanctuary, to an all-crystal approach.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxfjNfhBEpM/?hl=en

If Instagram does not display, see it here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxfTQrrAjcP/

If Instagram does not display, see it here.

Some architects have proposed a spire that is similar to the Senate’s desire to maintain the look of “its last known visual state” but have been creative in their suggestion of materials (stained glass, recycled ocean plastic, copper, stainless steel, or crystal).

If video does not display, watch it here.

The French Prime Minister proposed an architectural competition shortly after the fire, but this idea may be over-ruled by legislation.

However, one unofficial competition, organized by GoArchitect, has been completed, with an elegant design by two Chinese architects. The design features a mirrored roof and spire that reflect the surroundings in a kaleidoscopic effect.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B0r2QZhIwk0/?hl=en

If Instagram does not display, see it here.

Whatever the outcome of the politics and of the project administration by a general, an architect, and an archbishop, who, no doubt, will sometimes have differing views, the restored Notre Dame Cathedral will be a confirmation of history’s will to survive and will be a tribute to the preservation of the past integrated with a vision of the future.

A cultural symbol of the past, present, and future
© Meredith Mullins

Hopefully, this iconic Paris cultural symbol will continue to inspire the admiration of the world and to elicit poetic descriptions like that of Victor Hugo—“Notre Dame—a symphony in stone.”

Tributes to Notre Dame Cathedral in many forms
© Meredith Mullins

Thank you to the city of Paris and Patrick Zachmann of Magnum Photos for the exhibit presented on the north side of the cathedral.

Instagrams courtesy of The Guardian and Go Architect.

Additional resources from Smithsonian Magazine and Global Times.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins 2 Comments

Cultural Symbols/France/France (Paris)

Sep

French Idioms Pay Tribute to the Animal Kingdom

by Meredith Mullins on September 23, 2019

Becoming Bilingual: Don’t Give Your Tongue to a Cat

In the picturesque and poetic world of French idioms, the animal kingdom is well represented. Noah—and his ark—would be proud. Animals are key players in the proverbs and sayings of French culture.

Cats, lambs, sheep, ducks, dogs, elephants, wolves, chickens, cows, cockroaches, spiders, fish, rabbits, horses, rats, and giraffes all make an appearance.

Idioms can come from various parts of a culture—food, history, social traditions, sports, values—but many languages use animals as a basis for their idioms.

Animals have universal appeal. We are familiar with basic animal characteristics no matter what our culture of origin. For centuries, we humans have observed how animals act.

We know that busy bees could do the lion’s share of the work and be so dog tired that they’d have to take a cat nap.

Why Idioms?

Learning a second language is never easy. But you know you are developing a bilingual brain when you can introduce idioms into casual conversation. And understanding this omnipresent figurative language will also give you insight into how a culture thinks.

Idioms can, of course, drive you crazy—making you feel like you have bats in the belfry. Or, as the French would say, “to have a spider on the ceiling” (avoir une araignée au plafond).

The words—the metaphors— often don’t make sense at all, even to the native speakers.

The Cat’s Meow

Our feline friends win the idiom popularity competition in French. Cat references are everywhere.

When things are going well, English speakers say, “Let sleeping dogs lie,” while French speakers advise, “Don’t wake the sleeping cat” (ne réveillez pas le chat qui dort).

When you arrive at a place where you’re supposed to meet someone and there’s no one around, you say “there is no cat” (il n’y a pas un chat).

You don’t have a “frog in your throat,” you have a “cat in your throat” (avoir un chat dans la gorge).

When you have better things to do, it’s not that you “have other fish to fry,” it’s that you have other cats to flog (avoir d’autres chats à fouetter).

And, if you want to “give up” and just quit (perhaps because there are too many cat idioms?), you “give your tongue to a cat” (donner sa langue au chat).

A Medley of Animal Visuals

Many of the French idioms are similar to English idioms. Someone can be as sly as a fox (rusé comme un renard), stubborn as a mule (têtu comme une mule), or they can take the bull by the horns (prendre le taureau par les cornes).

Someone can be talkative as a magpie (bavard comme une pie), slow as a tortoise (lent comme une tortue), soft as a lamb (doux comme un agneau), or dumb as a donkey (bête comme un âne).

But several of the French idioms tell a poetic and mysterious story.

“Entre chien et loop” literally means “between the dog and the wolf.” However, the picture this paints is more enchanted than the literal translation.

The phrase refers to dusk, when the light is growing dim and the world is becoming more mystical. Your mind can play tricks about what you see. Are you looking at a dog or a wolf?

This time between the spectrum of light and darkness would be called “the witching hour” in English.

The French idiom “peigner la girafe” (to comb the giraffe) also presents a rich visual. It tells a story of a difficult task—a job that will be challenging and time consuming and will perhaps not yield any fruitful results.

And, if we find we are wasting time combing the giraffe—that is to say, our focus is wandering and we are straying from important work—the French would say “revenons à nos moutons.” Let’s get back to our sheep. In other words, let’s get back to business. Let’s stay on topic.

In France, folks can sometimes be as bored as a dead rat (s’ennuyer comme un rat mort). And when people feel blue, they say “j’ai le cafard,” which literally means “I have the cockroach”— now that’s a depressing thought.

Idioms are a good way to describe emotions or to give advice in any language; but, as the French say—Une hirondelle ne fait pas le printemps (One swallow does not mean it’s spring.) That is to say, don’t make generalizations about a people or a culture without further research.

Now, let’s get back to our sheep. (Nous revenons à nos moutons). How to master idiomatic language and continue to build a bilingual brain.

Oh, I See. Mastering Idioms Is Challenging

I have never actually been told out loud that I speak French like a Spanish cow (parler français comme une vache espagnole), but I’m sure some of my French friends have thought it.

This insulting phrase is the French idiom for implying that a stumbling French language learner is still, well, stumbling, especially when it comes to idiomatic expressions, proverbs, and sayings.

Will I ever build a bilingual brain with a full range of French idioms? I would have to answer “When pigs fly,” which is the English idiom for “not a chance.” In French, I would say “when hens have teeth” (quand les poules auront des dents).

I am, however, secretly optimistic about my idiomatic progress. There are, in fact, rare species of hens that DO have teeth.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins 8 Comments

Becoming Bilingual/France/Language & Culture/Proverbs & Sayings

World Views:

Topics

Category Archives: France

Crossing Cultures in an Urban Garden

A Tribute to Satsuma-imo: The Mighty Japanese Sweet Potato

Sweet Memories

But First Some History: Le Nid de l’Ortolan

The Satsuma-imo Japanese Team

The Sweet Potato Project

The Garden After Lockdown

The Next Chapter

A New Year’s Resolution for Notre Dame

Restoration of an Iconic Paris Cultural Symbol

Living Near An Icon

What Can We See?

Critical Next Steps

Looking To the Future

French Idioms Pay Tribute to the Animal Kingdom

Becoming Bilingual: Don’t Give Your Tongue to a Cat

Why Idioms?

The Cat’s Meow

A Medley of Animal Visuals

Oh, I See. Mastering Idioms Is Challenging