Now Playing on CBC Gem
Many Red Seal chefs are well aware of wanting to bring out the flavour of the land from the ingredients in the culinary meals they prepare. While not everyone at home thinks the same way, apparently the indigenous people who work at Tea Creek Farm (located near Kitwanga, BC) do, and they want to educate the world in more ways than one. There’s also how to grow as an individual.
One such person is Ryan Dickle, who no doubt worked here, and his desire to make a documentary, simply titled Tea Creek, is excellent at examining the life and times of Jacob Beaton. He transformed his family farm into a place of learning, to become a centre of community, and to reconnect with nature. This individual got serious with this endeavour about three years ago, and since then, lots of things have changed. Some are for the better, and others, just as worse.
To fight the system is tough, and while some conflict does not differ from before, the system can be reformed. It’s a matter of rewriting outdated ideals to something that’s more favourable to not only those living on those lands, but also feasible to growing a local economy.
As some food sources are not renewable, what’s important overall concerns sustainability. This concern is one of many themes explored in this well-meaning film and as for helping locals and indigenous people be a better person, I’m sure a follow-up work is planned. I like to see it rather than be concerned because of the ending offered. One gaping plot hole concerns our role as hunter-gatherers rather than farmers. The human species evolved because of the former and as societies evolved, become agrarian much later. The only hints of hunting comes from the fact nearby fishing is possible.
And there’s also the hint that Tea Creek is more than just a farm. It’s unique place on the British Columbia landscape says this place is also a spiritual retreat. Just what Dickle wonderfully conveys is the sense this place is a sacred space. People come here to escape the harsh reality of life, and quite often find themselves refreshed, and sometimes have new skills they can use in the every day. The amount of land that makes up this farm suggests the woods located may well have some beautiful groves to behold and idyllic ponds to whittle some time away during work breaks.
As for what else can be achieved while toiling the land here, I’m sure there’s plenty of moments where one can simply sip their favourite cup of herbal liquid while watching the sun go down.
4 Stars out of 5
Tea Creek Documentary Trailer
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