It’s a big week, the week of the Solstice, and here in the US the week of Juneteenth and National Pollinator Week. In our ongoing exploration of who gardeners are, where are gardeners are, and how they are growing our world, I am so pleased to be back in conversation this week with Day Schildkret. Day is an artist, an author, a teacher, and a place maker. He is the founder, and the ongoing creator and re-creator of the movement and practice known as Morning Altars, bringing together nature, art, and ritual.
Day and his work-in daily practice, in workshops, in community ritual building, in teaching, and in his two books, Morning Altars, and most recently Hello, Goodbye : 75 Rituals for Times of Loss, Celebration, and Change-are devoted to the pursuit of impermanent beauty and how that can become nourishment for life to continue. That sounds like being a gardener to me, and the week of the Summer Solstice is the perfect time to reflect on this.
How do you mark and make meaning in your garden practice?
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Images courtesy of Day Schildkret, Morning Altars. All rights reserved.
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HERE IS THIS WEEK'S TRANSCRIPT by Doulos Transcription Service:
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JOIN US again next week, when in honor of the Fourth of July, we are in conversation with the Redbud Resource Group. The Group improve the public health outcomes for Native American communities through education, research, and community partnership, specifically by getting native developed curriculum into schools and teaching non-native individuals, organizations, and communities how to authentically go beyond Land Acknowledgements.
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Speaking of Plants and Place back soon!
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The Conservancy's inaugural Garden Futures Summit is a two-day event that aims to sustain the remarkable passion in gardening today by presenting a selection of the most exciting ideas shaping the future of gardens. The Summit will focus on three essential topics within contemporary gardening: environment, community, and culture. Taking place on Saturday, September 29 at the New York Botanical Garden and Sunday the 30th in gardens around the city, Tickets go on sale soon. Go to GardenConservancy.org for more information.
Thinking out loud this week:
I love Day's reference in our conversation to the ancient concept of going outside to look inside – don’t we as gardeners know that is a true story!
Research is verifying more and more that experiencing wonder and experiencing awe is beneficial for us, recalibrating for us.
And of course, we know this as gardeners, but just because we know it doesn’t mean we always remember it.
In this solstice season, I am inviting you, I am asking you to please remember this is one of the greatest reasons we return to the garden over and over again: the wonder of the light, all of the other lives around us, the feeling that we are beneficial contributors in this ecosystem of our places.
Just like the sun, gardeners: keep returning.
Maybe that’s what garden tours are actually about at the very best it is not about showing off it is not about collecting good ideas or at least not just about these things it is also about simply witnessing one another, and the way we ritualize and make meaning in the world.
This is a big week, here in the US this week we recognized Juneteenth, around the world countries are marking National Pollinator Week, and globally no matter who you - it is the solstice. There’s so much we need to learn, relearn or continue recognizing in our world, may be as part of your summer fun add “slow down” and take the time to do exactly that.
May be this a joyful recognition and remembering of the what summer vacation is all about.
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The CP team includes producer and engineer Matt Fidler, with weekly tech and web support from Angel Huracha, and this summer we're joined by communications intern Sheila Stern. We’re based on the traditional and present homelands of the Mechoopda Indian Tribe of the Chico Rancheria. Original theme music is by Ma Muse, accompanied by Joe Craven and Sam Bevan.
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