LIFE WHIPS BY . . . 

at such a rapid rate these days. On any given day, one can find at least a dozen useful ways to spend their time, but in truth, we often defer to the 1,000 useless ways to waste it. 

This past Sunday, I attended a talk honoring the late, great Edna Lewis, in conjunction with the publication of a book commemorating her life and legacy. There were many special parts about the experience, but I wanted to share a few of the ways that it felt especially valuable: 

• the event took place at a small neighborhood book shop - the type of place where you want to spend your time, bumping into folks that you know, and exploring hard copies of books on a variety of subjects. Do you have the urge to seek out (or create) this type of resource in your own community? If so, what's stopping you? 
   
• The author, Sara B. Franklin, raised an incredible point: our culture - on the whole - puts an inordinate value on authority and being a know-it-all. While there is merit to gaining expertise, it's also humbling to consider the fact that we are all much richer when we work together. It's worth pointing out that Franklin created this book as an anthology; rather than tell Miss Edna's story solely from her own point of you, she opens it up to the wealth of many voices.  
   
• While we appreciate many of the tenants Miss Edna's work - the cadence of farm-to-table that she introduced decades before the term was coined and popularized, or the way that she valued and passed on the food culture of a region and a people - we think that her life and legacy show the value of doing impactful work. Let her be an inspiration to us all

• The advent of modern media has helped to re-popularize Miss Edna's cookbook, The Taste of Country Cooking, but it's incredible to observe how the impact of this seminal work slowly continues to unfold. That particular book came out in 1976 when Miss Edna was 60 years old. Forty years later, it hopped to the top 5 cookbooks of all time on Amazon.
   

Our words can't do her justice. We hope that you'll crack open the pages and share the stories with others. And we'll give you a kickstart: the chance to get your hands on a copy. We'll be giving out a dozen at random, so complete this quick survey by Monday April 23rd at 4PM (EDT) for a chance to win. 
 
Tay + Dor
Co-Founders, Good Food Jobs

tidbits...

what we’re reading / listening to / watching / noticing / thinking about / captivated by this Tuesday…

"there’s something we can all do to shift cookbook publishing in a more equitable direction." This article is important enough to feature again, just in case you missed it: Julia Turshen's look at racial disparity in the cookbook industry.

On the topic of being a know-it-all, Ta-Nehisi Coates has some amazing things to say in this interview for On Being with Krista Tippett. 

And don't miss the opportunity to fill your bookshelves with a plethora of more food histories, memoirs, and appreciations, all coming out this Spring.

''We are drowning in information, while starving for wisdom. The world henceforth will be run by synthesizers, people able to put together the right information at the right time, think critically about it, and make important choices wisely." - E.O.Wilson

got a tidbit? drop it here for us, and you just might see it in next week's newsletter.