“People are co-authors of this possible future story. We just have to decide which story we want to be part of.” - Manon Doran
In this chapter of Medicine Wheel for the Planet, Dr. Jennifer Grenz takes us to the west of the Medicine Wheel to “begin a new trajectory for healing ourselves and our planet.”
This chapter tells a bittersweet story of a devastating wildfire that ripped through two small towns through British Columbia in 2021. Jennifer was sent to the burn sites to assess the damage and recommend rehabilitation. When she got there, though, she was pleasantly surprised.
Rising up from the ashes were many plant friends (snowberry, nodding onion, fireweed) and also some familiar foes (mullein, thistle, lamb’s quarters). The sight of these plants lifted her spirits as they were a reminder of nature’s incredible resilience.
What we chat about in this episode:
The beauty that comes after a disaster - when the fire comes, look for the wildflowers
Why the land needs fire; and why we should rethink suppressing it.
Do we need grief to fully experience joy?
When things get stagnant (including us!) there is no room for growth.
How (and why!) you can make friends with plants in your area.
Cool things we reference:
📕Forêt. Identifier, cueillir, cuisiner by Ariane Paré-Le Gal et Gérald Le Gal
🎨Fire Swept Hills by Tom Thomson
Actions this chapter inspires us to take:
Katherine: To apply the symbolism of fire as cleansing to my life. I will soon face a big change in my life and I want to remove the stagnant stands of monocrops and deadfall so that my wildflower meadows can bloom.
Manon: To use Creator’s Garden (YouTube channel) to learn the Anishinaabemowin (the language of the central Algonquin people of south eastern Canada) words for the plants that live on my property.
Thank you so much for listening today! We really appreciate you being here. In our next episode we are revisiting a favourite book talk from last yearFinding the Mother Tree by Susanne Simard. Until then we hope you stay well and have many moments to Slow Read.
Your Friends,
Katherine and Manon
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