Revolution Garden: How Growing Food and Flowers Can Uplift Us All

By Stephanie Hanlon

The Historic Mableton Trade Post is meant to be a point of connection and generosity among neighbors. A place where we can share notes of inspiration, hopes and dreams, trade books we enjoyed, share art we no longer have space for, some extra tea or vegetables, some seeds or other foods.

Our society has become so fragmented and virtual, we consume unnecessarily, our economy is in dramatic flux. This is my way of saying, let’s come together, we’re in this together, we can share, we can form connections, we can insulate our own community economically by becoming more self-sufficient.

Maybe we can’t change the world overnight, but we can change our community overnight, we can do things differently and foster more unity.

This is consistent with the Mayor’s exploration of circular economies and how we can work to create an economy that supports the people who live here and is regenerative instead of extractive. Plus, since I’ve been working toward becoming more self sufficient by growing my own food and collecting water, I’ve seen how significantly it has improved my own life and I hope to inspire others to think differently about how they use their land, what it really means to be in relationship with the land we live on, how we can better serve it and in turn it better serve us.

As I grow and harvest, I often have more seeds than I need, more veggies or fruit than I can eat - so I plan to share that excess as it happens. One day I hope to produce enough to sell bouquets of flowers, sweet potatoes, okra and lettuce, and the specialty teas I grow, harvest and dry.

The long term goal is to develop my whole half acre into a mini artist eco retreat where artists can come for long periods, stay with me, help with the land and create art in a peaceful environment. I will have donation links up at the trade post for anyone looking to support that vision.

My hope right now for the trade post is to bring a little joy back into everyone’s lives, to have a little fun finding something cool to take home, and also experience the pleasure of giving something back, even if that is simply a note of inspiration.

I would also like anyone experiencing hardship to feel comfortable taking whatever food they need without having anything material to trade. I ask that as their contribution, they leave a note of inspiration - as I believe we all have something to contribute to making the world a better place, regardless of where we are financially.

I believe love and gardening can solve all our problems in the world, so that’s where I’m starting my revolution.

Stephanie Hanlon

Stephanie Hanlon is a Mableton–based homeowner, mother, gardener, artist, and creative director dedicated to building stronger, more connected communities.

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