In these days of genetic engineering, tons of pesticides, and other offenses to the senses, we frequently say, “It ain’t natural.”
This song is dedicated to the spirit of FairPlay Farm and all of the unsung and unknown organic gardeners and farmers and conscious souls who work in harmony with Mother Earth and her multi-faceted web of Life, both in the country and in the city. Together, we are co-creating a new world for all to share in joy and abundance.
It Ain’t Natural?
Our good friend, Jeralynn Strong, created FairPlay Farm out of her vision of living in conscious community within a country setting. It was a community farm located up in the foothills outside of Placerville, CA. Dena and I have many happy memories of our time spent at FairPlay Farm.
We loved hanging out at the old swimming hole on the Consumnes River on a hot summer day. There was the magic of sitting around the fire pit with the full moon shining brightly upon us. We went on hikes in the hills surrounding the canyon. As Souls Journey, we guided community kiirtan in the circle of friends and family. My good friend, William Now, and I helped complete the building of the sacred labyrinth on the hillside with a special Father’s Day ceremony. We hosted the first ever Souls Journey in the Sierra gathering with Jeralynn. There was nothing more peaceful than resting in the Garden cabin after a full day of fun and adventure.
In the Spirit of Community…
In July 2010, I co-wrote this song with Dena and Jeralynn. On this particular occasion, we had just visited Farmer Ben’s organic garden down the road. As we were driving back to FairPlay Farm, we were all in a good mood and feeling gratitude for the natural abundance of summer. Our conversation took a turn towards the controversial topic of GMO tomatoes and one of us in a playful manner said, “It ain’t natural.” Then someone else said, “Yeah, it just ain’t right!” Right in that moment, the chorus of a new song was born. After we got back to the farm, the three of us sat down with pen and paper and wrote out the rest of the lyrics. I brought out my guitar and we worked out the melody.
I see this as a folksy protest song with a sense of humor that helps the message go down easy. It Ain’t Natural is a ‘problem-solution’ song, especially with the suggestions included in the last verse. Now, that’s what I call natural!
