From the Editor: Housewarming

Bread that this house may never know hunger - Salt that life may always have flavor - Wine that joy and prosperity may reign forever

These words are from a heartwarming housewarming scene in the old movie It’s a Wonderful Life, in which blessings are offered—along with the bread and salt and wine—by the Baileys to the Martini family as they arrive on the doorstep of their new home. These simple gifts are given and received with great joy and merriment and are meant to represent all the bounty any household could wish for.

New homes might be had at any time of year, but I feel especially cozy musing on these warm thoughts during our colder winter months. Thoughts of hearths and home cooking nourishing us and heating our spaces. Of children growing up with good food to eat. Of company sharing our table and a bottle of wine. Of neighbors helping neighbors through the season’s cold and snowy spells.

The elements of housewarming are easy to find without looking very far. In the pages of this issue you’ll meet a young, independent winemaker who has found a place in Leelanau County to set down [grape] roots; a veteran baker building a following in a new neighborhood; a seasoned gardener sharing the successes of a public school garden and cooking club; a couple that runs their restaurant by day and puts family time first in the evening. There’s also a piece on Michigan salt—though it’s not what you think—and a reading list that considers the many paths toward, not housewarming, but planetary cooling.

Happiness need not be complicated; it is the simplest pleasures that provide life’s real blessings and, coincidentally, will keep us on a stable path toward the future. In this spirit we hope you enjoy the stories ahead. Here’s to spreading the warmth and prosperity this winter, and appreciating all the simple gifts.

Hang in there! Spring comes next.

Barb