Healing Gardens

 Reflection 9

I have really enjoyed reading The Sweet Breathing of Plants over this quarter. When I first looked at this book, I have to admit that I thought the book wouldn’t be something that I would enjoy. But the first chapter we read titled “Orchid Fever” showed me that I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. The chapter was very interesting and engaging, which was the same response I felt with most of the other chapters we read. Every chapter was diverse and brought a new prospective to gardening. Although I had trouble connecting with a few of the author’s points, I felt entranced while reading other chapters. In particular, I really found the chapter on Witch Hunts to be fascinating. I had no idea how many women were truly affected by these Witch Hunts and how the emotions others were feeling would cross over all the way to this generation. When I went home for a weekend my dad and I talked for a long time about the Witch Hunts and he ended up reading the chapter in the book. I was happy that I could share the information I had learned in the book with my family.

I was very glad that the book was spaced out throughout the program and we read bits and pieces of it each week. This made the book even more enjoyable and I was able to connect more of it with what we were doing in class. I know that I appreciated the information and insight the book gave me more by spreading out the reading rather than reading it all in one week. I think this was a great way to connect more of my thoughts and emotions I was feeling with gardening and the class. The book was also a breath of fresh air. When I was done with my more heavy reading I was able to look forward to reading a few chapters in a more uplifting book.

Reflection 8

1. I know I have stated this before, but I really had a hard time reading Keeping It Living because I found it immensely dry and over my head. This book was written on a subject that I do not have as much knowledge and background in as the authors had presumed that I would. Reading the conclusion of the book did help me understand some portions of the text, however, and I’m glad that we had the opportunity to read it. The intentions of the book were to bring an understanding of the issues that the First Peoples of the Northwest have faced and are facing today. It continues to explain their motives for what they wish the land would be like and why it is so important to them. For example, the First Peoples worked hard at managing plants in the Northwest, but when the Europeans came in they domesticated the plants. By domesticating the plants a lot of managing was lost that the First Peoples had done. The book is a great first step in informing people of what has happened, but initially it is up to the reader as to what they will do with the knowledge they now have. 2. For my personal presentation next week I have decided to write a song about everything I have learned in class this quarter. I play guitar, and my boyfriend is quite well versed in several instruments as well as mixing songs on computers. So I think I am going to write the song and he is going to help me play guitar on it and record the song. We are then going to mix it and I will bring in a copy of the song to play for the class. I think this will be a fun way of representing what I have learned in class, and reflect a bit about my personality. I am looking forward to making this song, although I haven’t written anything, I think it will be a lot of fun.

Reflection 7

This has been an awaking week for me. I went back to my hometown to do some observations in the education field for another class I am in at Evergreen. The night before I left I was excited to go home and see my family and friends. I thought it would be a time to relax and not think much about my other schoolwork. When I got in the car Saturday morning for the drive over the passes, and was hoping that the car ride would go by fast so I could get there. I usually just keep my eyes on the road and try to get over the two passes as fast as I can so I have more time at home. This trip however, was an entirely different experience. Once I got out of Olympia I noticed that the clouds started to disappear and the sun came out. When I hit North Bend the sun dipped behind Mt. Si; emulating sun rings around the glorious peak. It was an amazing sight, one that almost got me in a car wreck! I then drove over Snoqualmie Pass and noticed that all the ice was melting off the mountains and starting water falls through out the 30 minute stretch. Then I hit the plateau of the pass where there is a water reservoir at the base of several mountains. This was by far, the most breathtaking moment of the trip. Fog rolled into the reservoir, covering the water slightly. The mountains looked like they came up from nowhere, peaking over the fog. This scene looked so perfect I thought it should have been in a movie. I wanted to share this experience with someone, but I was on a freeway with fast moving traffic. As I was on the pass I realized that this is truly the time of transformation for the earth. All the other seasons go through a transformation as well, but none as great as the change from winter to spring. I think this transformation from winter to spring is the most hopeful because it shows how the earth is so flexible and ready to bounce back from anything. There is something about spring that I find so inspiring every year. It’s like the earth is saying to me, “if I can turn my dark times into bright and sunny ones, you can too!” I love this time of year; there is so much hope in the air.

Reflection 5

Historically, people of their cultures have been defined by the way they eat and hunt their foods. The term hunter/gatherer came about when the early people went out in search of food and had to live solely on the land. Today, people hardly ever have to depend on themselves to gather their own food. When did this switch happen, and what became of the people during that initial switch? Theses are two of the questions that arose from the second chapter in the book, Keeping it Living. The first section of the chapter dealt with the main differences between agriculture and domestication. Domestication has been prevalent since hunter/gatherers began to relay on other means of food and living. On page 49 of the text, it states that, “Humans and their life cycle intervention and modification of the surrounding and environment of domesticates also reshape the world of domesticates in many ways. Inadvertently and indifferently, humans redefine what kinds of attributes or characteristics increase of decrease an individual plant or animal’s likelihood of producing successful offspring.” It has been hard to find a middle ground between hunter/gatherer and domestication. The second section of the book discussed the middle ground between the hunter/gatherer to agriculture. It was important to understand the correct terminology. The author tears apart the terms plant and animal husbandry, as well as cultivation, gardening, and horticulture. He basically states that these are taboo words that don’t define the appropriate subjects. The last three terms have a long history of usage and can mean an array of different meanings. I personally had a really tough time sitting down and reading this chapter. I found that the material was immensely dry and hard to understand. I constantly had to reread every sentence to fully understand what the author, Bruce D. Smith, was trying to say. The first time I read the chapter I was very confused as to what the authors point was, until I reread the chapter and understood his argument with domestication, and the terminology people use to describe their work in the gardens. I wish he had left out some of the examples that he used, like the one about Harris and domestication. I think that just confused me even more and I would have been better off had he not gave that extensive example. I did like the point he made about how certain words in the English language can give everyone a different connotation. The meanings of words can all be so different in each person’s opinions, and it was a good topic for the author to address. It’s something everyone should be aware of when they use those words. I also liked how Smith defined domestication and hunter/gatherer. He explained how both of them work and how it was unavoidable to domesticate our plants and animals, to a degree. He argues though that we have gone too far and something needs to be done. I didn’t think he put up a very good argument here because he did not mention what he hoped would happen with domestication in the future. Overall, I enjoyed the content of this chapter, but I found that actually reading it was a painstaking process. I think I could have gotten more out of a different reading, and felt like I had a better grasp on the author’s point and concepts. I do look forward to meeting in class and discussing the chapters, and I think that will help me a lot with the understanding of the content. Reflection 5 I don’t really know how to connect the reading that I did in Keeping It Living with the Longhouse garden. The book dealt with historical aspects to gardening and what domestication has done to the land and the mentality people have towards their food/living arrangements. Although the chapter brought out a lot of interesting concepts, which I stated on the last two pages, I just don’t feel like much of it pertains to what I am doing with the Longhouse garden. I do think it’s important to know the difference between domesticated plants and wild plants. But the chapter did not go into specifics as to how to tell the difference, other than comparing the two and looking at the difference in appearance. I think that is basically common sense and I didn’t need this chapter to tell me that. One thing I learned from this chapter was the be aware of the word choices I use and to always be specific when I am using words that can have several connotations to them. I hope to use the advice Smith had in the chapter when I work on more writing for the class, as well as outside of the class. I understand that my words can be taken in the complete opposite direction than the way I intended them to be, especially when my words are on paper and not coming out of my mouth. This is something I hope everyone can become more aware of. It would just be easer for everyone if we could all communicate better, it would eliminate so much frustration in the world.

Reflection 4

1. I have always felt like such a hermit in the wintertime. It would start when I was off from school and finally had time to myself, where I would spend days just hanging around the house. I like to watch the world turn white while in the safety of my home. But sometimes I would get too anxious and would have to go out and play in the wonderland. I find that I am most a part of winter when I am strapped to my snowboard going down the mountain in my hometown. I love the feel of the snow underneath my feet and the feel of the crisp air as it whips past me. I love to stand at the top of the mountain and look down into the valley, seeing the blanket of white envelope the town. This is the time when I feel most in tune with winter; most accepting of what it does to our land. I also feel very in tune with the person I am and gain a confidence from being a part of nature unlike any other time. But after the time has past when I can no longer spend my days on the mountain and school has begun again, I feel angry and annoyed at winter for making the land so bleak and unattractive. So I do what most people tend to do; I ignore the earth and count the days until the sun shines and will make everything beautiful again. I have been trying to change though, and accept the world for what it looks like all the time. I think this program has helped me embrace something that I didn’t necessarily know how to embrace. 2. I am so scared to write in my nature journal! That is the one thing I dread about this class, and I think it’s because I am not confident in my drawing skills. I have written in a journal for years, but for some reason I have trouble writing in this one because I don’t like being told how many entries I need to make in a span of a week. I wish it could be more spontaneous, but I understand that some people would not write at all if there were not a standard to meet. I guess something that I need to do is to get myself out at the garden more with my journal and to sit for a longer period of time to write. Sometimes it is too cold and I stop writing sooner than I think I should. 3. Medicine, to me, is a combination of substances that mix together to help cure a part of the body that is in pain. A Garden, to me, is a place to grow plants and herbs for the benefit of land and the people who live off the land. I don’t really know how to connect my two definitions, but I do know that a garden can be very medicinal both physically and spiritually to a person. I hope to change my definitions as the quarter progresses, bringing both of the words closer together.

Reflection 3

This has been a week filled with new beginnings. As I look all around, the sun has come back to greet us with his presence, and in turn has helped all the plants and nature to rise up and sing to him. I have been taking a lot of walks with my roommate around our neighborhood, and last week she turned to me and said, “I wish the weather was like this all the time, there is nothing more beautiful than when green encompasses the earth”. We also commented about how the sun not only turns the earth into this wonderful palace of scenery, but that we become more in tune with our feelings toward nature and feel more of a connection with the land.

This last week was the first week I really was able to get my hands dirty in the garden and do some labor. Saturday’s class was spent working on our own sites, as well as helping two other groups weed and prune their site. Before Saturday, I didn’t realize how much disconnect I was feeling with nature. During our classroom time I was just going through the motions; not allowing myself to be fully aware of the learning around me. But after spending time in the garden with the class and working on the wetland site, I began to feel like a piece of that disconnect was fading away.

Gathering at the Liberal Arts Forum also helped me connect with the identity I have with the land. I was very impressed with Marja’s speech on our identity with nature, and it got me thinking about what my identity would look like to nature. By the end of the Forum I wasn’t quite sure of my nature identity, but later in the week I began to realize what it was. I love to go on hikes and walks in the woods, and I know that is the time when I feel the most a part of nature.

I enjoyed the lecture we had in Saturday’s class about the anatomy of plants. The lecture was helpful to have heard before I read Botany for Gardeners because it reinforced what I had learned. I felt like the book was a little dry, but it was nice to reread some of the information I received last week on plants. I think it was very important to have that lecture because it helped to understand the life of a plant. It brought me even closer to the plants that I am surrounded by each day, knowing more about their own identity.

The main message I received this week was about our identity with the earth, and to become connected with whom we are in nature. Before I saw my identity with nature as a separate portion to my identity in everyday life. But as I looked closer I noticed that they are the same identity. I was creating them as two separate identities, and that was a big reason why I was feeling so disconnected with nature. I thought this week had some powerful exercises to help me connect my life with nature, and I am so grateful for this realization.

Reflection 2

1. After reading the chapter titled “Fate of the Wise Woman”, by Jeanne Achterberg in The Sweet Breathing of Plants, I began to look at the whole “witch” hunt history in an entirely different light. I remember in high school reading The Crucible and learning about the ordeal, but I never realized the scale of fear men had in women during that time. I also was not aware at how big the “witch” hunt epidemic lasted. I had no idea how encompassing it was. And yet this event is still something public schools hardly shed any light on today. Reading this chapter, it is evident that these women are no crazier than any of the men, but that the men were scared of the wisdom and knowledge some women possessed. I think that fear in women’s powers are still present today, although to a much smaller degree. I am so thankful for the women of the 1300’s to take that step and show the world that they are just as capable as anyone to learn. This was a mighty step for women, and after reading another woman’s story in this book I feel more and more empowered to learn about the plants around me. Now that I know my knowledge won’t have me killed, I want to learn and teach to others so no one will have to sacrifice their life for learning.

2. New plants that I read about in Keeping It Living were mostly the same ones that I identified in the first part of the chapter last week. One crop that was discussed in detail in the first chapter was tobacco and the history and origin of the crop. I didn’t know that tobacco crops were planted seed by seed when the indigenous people worked on the land. This had to have been a much harder farming task, since now farmers are so reliant on machinery to plant their crops. In Sweet Breathing of Plants I could identify lavender, honeysuckle, and the various assortment of berries the author mentions, like blueberries and huckleberries. The Natural History of Puget Sound Country still talks about the same plants and trees that were identified in the first section of the chapter last week. Some more that stand out are Douglas fir, cedar, and Oregon pine.

3. An idea I got from Keep It Living would be to prune some of the plants in my area. Pruning now will be most beneficial because when spring comes the plants will be able to grow much more than if they were not pruned. Although I do know how to prune certain plants, it’s something I think would be good to look into. Another idea I got when I went to check out my site was that the area needed a lot of maintenance and there won’t be much we can do with the land until we get rid of the leaves that have fallen everywhere, as well as the logs that have broken during the storm.

Reflection 1

1. All the passages we were to read over the week dealt with the different ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest. In Keeping it Living the author talks about the diverse landscape along the coastline and how this affects the people and animals that inhabit the certain areas. On page 9 the authors state, “The region’s organisms, including the diverse plants, fish, shellfish, mammals, and birds that provide the Northwest Coast people’s staple foods and materials, will be abundant in one location but entirely absent in many others. Thus, culturally important plants and animals were distributed unevenly, both spatially and temporally.” This is a very true and obvious statement to someone who lives along the coastline and can witness the difference in the ecosystem in only a short drive. Natural History of the Puget Sound Country also talked about the different zones through out the Northwest. This author described the different plants and trees that flourish in certain elevation points. Sweet Breathing of Plants did not talk about the ecosystems in the manner that the other books did, but there were more historical aspects involved with the understanding of the plants and flowers that were discussed. Each of the authors explained the origin of the flower and told a bit of history and what the flower is best known for.

2. I’m not really sure what “natural” and “cultural” systems are, but my understanding was to discuss the relationship nature has on people’s lives. Some people are able to live their lives in a more natural environment, one that allows them to live off the land without harming its ecosystem. Organic gardening is a good example of this because this form of gardening is a very natural way without polluting the earth with chemicals from pesticides and other growing materials. Cultural systems seem to be when people bring the cultural part of nature into their lives. A great example of this would be the Native Americans have been raised to understand the value of the earth and were in tune with nature.

3. In Keeping It Living, I was able to identify most of the trees in the book, such as western red cedar, and Sitka spruce. I was around several of these trees when I worked at a summer camp in central Washington. But I did not know many of the plants discussed in the introduction. Sweet Breathing of Plants is designed a little different since the book is comprised of short stories, but I did know several of the plants and flowers discussed, such as orchids, roses, lilies, wild daisies, poppies, and skunk cabbage. The Natural History of the Puget Sound Country talked a lot about various different trees that I could identify easily. To name a few there was the Western Hemlock, Douglass Fir, and the Big Leaf Maple. This section focused mainly on different trees and how each did in certain climates.

4. I really enjoyed reading the poem titled “Mulch” in Sweet Breathing of Plants and how the author shows that with mulching, nothing is wasted. Mulching is a great idea and I think that would be a necessary element I want to use when working on my section of land at the Longhouse. From the Saturday class I realized that since I will be out in the cold working on the garden I really need to come more prepared in warming clothes. This last Saturday I thought I was going to freeze! Next time I plant to wear a lot more layers. And finally, something I want to bring to the garden this quarter is something I learned from the film we watched on Brice Miller. While watching the film I came to realize the true message Bruce wanted to convey to his audience before he left this earth. To me, it was apparent that he wanted everyone to be appreciative to the land around us. I hope that I can do him justice while I work at the Longhouse this quarter.