Whole Food, Whole Self: My Tiny Garden Is a Quiet Rebellion

Hey Friend!

In this manifesto, I share how starting a balcony garden and reimagining what counts as waste helped me reconnect to something deeper. With food prices rising and the systems around us feeling increasingly unstable, I’ve been asking myself: What can I control? This post is about how I’m answering that question through tomatoes, pineapple skins, and ancestral memory. It’s also a gentle invitation to begin again—starting right where you are.

The First Seed Wasn’t a Tomato—It Was a Realization

I’ve never been the gardening type. But recently, something shifted. With the political and economic climate in the U.S. feeling more unpredictable than ever, I realized I needed to make some lifestyle changes. Not out of panic—but out of preparation, out of care, out of reclaiming what I can control.

I don’t receive SNAP or Medicaid, but I understand their importance. And the thought of not being able to access food in the future sparked a simple question: What can I do right now? The answer was this—grow what I can, where I can.

And so I started a balcony garden. Just a few pots on a small outdoor space. Cherry tomatoes, basil, cilantro, eggplant, and bell peppers. Nothing fancy. But each plant feels like a step toward something I didn’t even know I was missing.

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Whole Food Living as a Practice of Remembering

Not long after that, I was cutting up a pineapple and paused to ask: what can I do with the rest of this fruit? The skins, the top—was there any purpose for them beyond the trash?

I asked ChatGPT and discovered you can make detoxifying tea from pineapple skins. That moment lit something in me. A small act of turning “waste” into medicine.

I made the tea, and it was earthy, warm, and surprisingly soothing. It made me feel connected. The recipe I used will be in the August issue of the Sundana Magazine if you want to try it too.

Carrot Tops and Beet Greens: What We've Been Taught to Forget

Another day, I found a YouTube video by Shakla Felice, a plant-based cook I follow. She made a pesto using beet greens and carrot tops. Normally, I’d throw those parts away. But I gave it a try—with my own spin, of course.

I added tuna and Parmesan to her base recipe and ended up with the most nourishing little pasta bowl. That’s going in the August magazine too. Not just because it tasted good, but because it felt like I was reclaiming something. Like I was honoring a different rhythm of living.

Community Starts in the Kitchen

We’ve been conditioned to see community as something “out there.” But honestly, it starts at home. And I’ll admit, in my house, we tend to retreat to our rooms after a long day. We pass each other like ships.

But I’m starting to rethink that. Our ancestors didn’t live that way. They pooled resources. They stayed close. They cooked and gathered and tended to one another.

I want to bring that mindset back. To grow it alongside the herbs on my balcony.

Reclaiming the Whole Food, the Whole Life

When I say “whole food,” I’m not talking about the store. I mean: how do we use the whole of what we’re given? Not just in the kitchen—but in life. The beet greens. The pineapple skin. The moments of stillness. The family that’s still under one roof.

It’s ancestral. It’s spiritual. It’s practical. It’s revolutionary.

Start Small, But Start

You don’t need to overhaul your whole life. Just start. One pot of basil. One question about a strawberry stem. One moment of wondering what your great-grandmother would’ve done with the scraps.

Ask questions. Follow your curiosity. Relearn what’s been taken.

And if you’re looking for a place to begin, the August issue of Sundana Magazine will have the recipes, the reflections, and the quiet encouragement to help you get there.

Let me know if this resonated with you. I’d love to hear what you’re growing, what you’re reclaiming, and what you’re unlearning.

Live Pleasurably,

Manifestos You’ll Love!

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