At first it was hard to take it all in, this close to nature living was all so new, and then I emerged and it became my way of being. And I carry forth crowned by the natural world, with her ritual convenings, her shared generosities.
This Wilderness in My Blood
"The idea of the contented hermit who lives close to nature, cultivates his garden and his bees, is trusted by animals and loves all of creation, is some kind of archetype. We think we could be like that ourselves if somehow things were different." —Isabell Colgate
And then along came Covid, and suddenly everything was different. Calling me in simple ways. Sunrise. Black coffee in my favorite mug. Making a pot of soup with late season vegetables. Searching the deep autumn garden and finding a few red serrano peppers clinging to spent vines. Sunset and moonlight with owl sounds pressing against the night. I begin watching an Orb-weaver spider, growing bigger each day, and I tuned to her rhythm.