“Together their stems inscribe what looks to me like a blueprint for the world, a map of balance and harmony. The corn stands eight feet tall; rippling green ribbons of leaf curl away from the stem in every direction to catch the sun. No leaf sits directly over the next, so that each can gather light without shading the others. The bean twines around the corn stalk, weaving itself between the leaves of corn, never interfering with their work. In the spaces where corn leaves are not, buds appear on the vining bean and expand into outstretched leaves and clusters of fragrant flowers. The bean leaves droop and are held close to the stem of the corn. Spread around the feet of the corn and beans is a carpet of big broad squash leaves that intercept the light that falls among the pillars of corn. Their layered spacing uses the light, a gift from the sun, efficiently, with no waste. The organic symmetry of forms belongs together; the placement of every leaf, the harmony of shapes speak their message. Respect one another, support one another, bring your gift to the world and receive the gifts of others, and there will be enough for all…
It’s tempting to imagine that these three are deliberate in working together, and perhaps they are. But the beauty of the partnership is that each plant does what it does in order to increase its own growth. But as it happens, when the individuals flourish, so does the whole.”
— Braiding sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
I spent the day traveling across the northern parts of the United States, listening to plant podcasts, my favorite music& an audio book of Braiding Sweetgrass.
This quote resonated with me and provoked thoughts about how many life lessons plants teach us if we look and listen to them. If I have given you advice or if I do in the future, a lot of my understanding of the world stems from plants. Like travel, they have been some of my greatest teachers. Subtle things such as slowing down and appreciating what’s around me to learning how to let go of the old to bring a new & how to admire and appreciate change no matter what it may look like at any given moment.
This example of plant symbiosis curated thoughts about how beautiful it is to grow together. When we try to compete with one another we may get far, but not nearly as far as when we cooperate together. I daydreamed about how much we are all going to grow together to become the best that we can be. Climbing higher than we could reach on our own. This moment is a beautiful moment, but I’m excited to see what the future has in store for us all.
Miigwech to my lovely friend Christian for recommending this amazing book, it’s now one of my favorites & I highly recommend it to you all.
19 hours & 1,072 miles
–> Butte, MT
Love & Light & Goodnight
-Gemma
knottynomadic.com 