With a strong sense of justice, the Lappés present their vision for the future of the planet. Here is a passage on the spiritual practice of hope.
"To free ourselves from the thought traps — to bridge the painful disconnect between our inner and outer worlds — my hunch at age 26 was that food is a perfect starting place. Because food is our most primal need and our common bond to the earth and one another, it can ground us as we stretch ourselves to draw in all the interlaced threads — so we can weave a whole, meaningful picture for ourselves.
"I still believe food has this unique power. With food as a starting point, we can choose to meet people and to encounter events so powerful that they jar us out of our ordinary way of seeing the world, and open us to new, uplifting, and empowering possibilities. They call us to travel 'hope's edge.'
"By hope's edge we mean many things.
"Yes, with global warming melting polar ice caps, with the obliteration of thousands of species each year, with the loss of one-third of our agricultural land over a single generation, our planet is nearing the point at which hope, honest hope, will no longer be possible. Yes, every day, we are pushing our little planet closer to hope's very edge.
"But, something else has been happening over these thirty years, too. The people we met on our journey are living this story. They are pushing forward the edge of hope with what they prove is possible. They are creating new space in which each of us can find hope.
"We must warn you, though: this kind of hope isn't clean or tidy. Honest hope has an edge. It's messy. It requires that we let go of all pat answers, all preconceived formulas, all confidence that our sailing will be smooth. It's not a resting point. Honest hope is movement."
