This is just what I needed to see today… my harvest was hawk feathers from the roadside. I’ve been thinking lately that I’ve been missing out by not reading Wendell Berry’s nonfiction yet.
Thank you so much for the kind and generous words. I am grateful and honored that you would share my writing on your substack Tereza. It makes my heart glad to know you are enjoying reading my (soon to be published) book.
I am also grateful we crossed paths as your clarity of perception, concise articulation, heartfelt way of expressing yourself and proclivity to ask meaningful questions has been like a balm for the heart and mind during my time on substack.
Also thank you very much for introducing me to Wendell Berry. I resonate with this part of his poem very deeply.
"Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millenium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years."
It brought a warmth to my heart to read his words about reciprocity, millennia-scale gift economics and re-defining wealth as being intrinsically tied to the wealth and health of Mother Earth. These are things that are very important to me and I strive to plant the seeds for in my own small way.
Well I am off for another long day of planting trees, and I will hold Wendell's words close to my heart as I am doing so, drawing strength from the hopeful and nourishing vision of future generations enjoying the shade, habitat and medicine they provide.
O Gavin, I feel like I've just introduced you to your ancestor! I believe he's still living, somewhere in Kentucky. I quote from his novel Jayber Crow and his essays in Home Economics in my book. I don't think there's anyone who understands as clearly the relationship between economics and the ways we should be living, if we were allowed.
And you're most welcome! Without my alerting him, Citizen Doctor read your whole post and saw my note at the bottom that introducing you was the impetus for my crosspost. Clearly meant to be!
Yes that was a great article, I share many of your views on the current status of how we produce our food (industrially) and how important it is to localize and decentralize our food and medicine production systems.
I am certified in permaculture design and strive to look through that lens of perception as I design my garden and help others do the same. Beyond just applying permaculture design techniques I have become interested in learning about ancient food production systems that were created by various indigenous peoples before the word "permaculture" existed which some describe as "food forests". Food forests are ancient horticultural systems that were utilized by some Native American and First Nation peoples (as well as others on different continents) and they are ways of cultivating which can offer us an effective method to create resilient, non-linear, fractally embedded, decentralized and self-sustaining food/medicine production systems. These “Food Forests” become permanent gardens that require very little (if any) work to keep alive and producing once they are established. These systems contain a wide spectrum of species suitable for harvesting food, medicine, building material and other important resources. Food forests embody the essence of nature's regenerative capacity and her fractally interwoven ecosystems in a format that persists for generations.
I will share links to a few examples below so you can see what I am talking about:
Thanks so much for introducing me to the Ringing Cedars series. I glanced at some of the core concepts and quotes from Anastasia (on her website) and found that many of the concepts and techniques she is talking about are things I have read about certain First Nation peoples engaging in historically as part of their traditional food cultivation practices and also things which modern science has confirmed to be beneficial.
For instance, I have been researching a growing body of evidence that indicates that there is in fact a (measurable) mechanism that allows for the experiences and environmental stimulus of one being (whether plant, animal, bacteria or fungi) to be interpreted and encoded into the genetic fabric of a completely separate organism which stimulates a shift in epigenetic expression (influencing what phenotype is expressed on the macro level) in real time.
What scientists are discovering is that each time we physically interact with another organism (whether it be through physical contact, saliva, breathing the same air or eating another organism or it's fruit/seeds) we are receiving a genetic update (via microRNA that are absorbed by our cells that silence messenger RNA resulting in a shift in the expression of the phenotype DNA).
This exchange of genetic information is a two way street, and so the practice that Anastasia describes with putting seeds in the mouth before planting could (according to the most recent data) result in a notable shift in epigenetic expression in the seed (and the resulting plant/fruits). I have always felt drawn to hold seeds in my hands and thank them before I plant them, but I will try the putting them in the mouth technique as well now :)
The study of Nutrimiromics also offers profound insight into the imperative for decentralizing our food production systems (and designing them using regenerative principles and an ethical compass). An example of why this is so important is that when we eat meat (that came from a factory farm, from an animal living in pain, misery and hopelessness or a stressed out plant grown in a monoculture hammered with all kinds of chemicals) the ‘experience’ (environmental pressures and other stimulus) of that animal/plant is transcribed on a molecular level into microRNA and our cells receive the message that they should initiate an inflammatory response, send stress hormones to our brain, begin to shut down and prepare for imminent death. That is because the way in which a plant, animal or fungi lives (and dies) is recorded on a molecular level and what ever consumes that organism receives an ‘upload’ which allows for adaptation in real time to possible environmental pressures. In nature this is a beautiful and eloquent evolutionary adaptation that facilitates symbiogenesis to take place on the scale of entire bioregions containing myriad species (all providing each other with real time updates on stimulus the other organisms are receiving in their environment via exosomic transfer of genetic information).
The new science offers us the empowering realization that our food is not just a source of fuel for our cells but also functions as a vessel for biological information which modulates our epigenetic expression in real time. This means that we are not ‘prisoners to our DNA’ as the old paradigm thought but rather our DNA seems to serve more like an ‘architectural design’ which can be expressed in many ways depending on the materials, education and experience of the builder. The food we eat provides the building materials, education and experience (in the form of genetic software updates which provide our cells with the experience and education of our elder species via naturally occurring microRNA/exosomes in the food we eat).
This means that we can shift what phenotype (out of hundreds if not thousands of possible phenotypes) that our DNA is expressing via epigenetic modulation through providing our body with specific stimulus. Anastasia appears to be suggesting one possible method to achieve just that.
There are a few things which have been studied for their ability to positively influence epigenetic expression in real time, some of these forms of stimulus include, time spent in mature ecosystems (receiving ‘uploads’ from our elder species via microRNA in the living air, water, soil and on the plants we touch, eat and appreciate.), living probiotic rich foods (also providing a ‘biological uplink’ for our cells to tap into the ancient resilience of our elder species in the bacteria and fungi kingdoms), perspective (our thoughts, emotions and attitudes profoundly impact our cells all the way down to the geometry and charge of molecules that make up our cells and affect how our DNA is expressed) and food.
Food forests provide a medium to tap into many of these modes of receiving 'uploads' from our elder species and the living planet. Thus, in the future I aim to help co-create a number of these systems and I look forward to implementing those designs by combining the wisdom, understanding and techniques of people like Anastasia, the people who called this land home before I came here, permaculture design and modern science. The success of these visions and designs for the future of course begins with the choice to choose love over fear.
Tereza, I also "met" Gavin on a comment thread here on Substack, and I couldn't agree more about everything you write. Gavin is a gem with a huge heart and a wealth of knowledge for the plant world. I can't wait to get my hands on his book! I love Wendell Berry, too!🌿
Yes! I feel so fortunate to have crossed paths with Gavin in the neural-internetwork. He and Wendell are a match made in heaven, literally I suspect ;-) I just posted on his announcement with an enthusiastic congrats. And I LOVE the name of your sub.
So glad you asked! I couldn't find the link to post but when Gavin gets done with his tree-planting today, maybe he will. Thank you and isn't it though!
Whew! All done tree planting for the day :) We gave quite a few white pines, oaks and tulip trees a new home today (and created a pond habitat for some koi fish surrounded in granite river stone). The customer we put this landscape together for is someone that I get the feeling with hold onto the property and pass it onto their kids, so that is always a nice feeling knowing the work may be appreciated by multiple generations. :)
I shared the link to the pre-order option for my book in a comment to Leonora above.
Thanks again for the gracious post. Wishing you a restful evening and a weekend filled with heart warming moments, poetry for the senses and food for the soul.
All the leaves from my tulip magnolia dropped in the last storm, and my gardeners just filled the bin and two overstuffed trash bags (for later transition to the bin.) It's magnificent when blooming, people stop just to gasp. Already it's covered in buds. But it is a high-maintenance pet.
Sounds like you maybe have a 'Tulip' Magnolia x soulangeana tree? The Tulip Trees (Liriodendron) we were planting were actually the tallest trees in the Carolinian Forest of Canada (before most of them were logged generations ago). They would typically tower well above the maples (sometimes over a 100 feet tall). They have an interesting lobed leaf and yellow flowers that resemble tulips.
Is your bin for composting? I often have to collect leaves for customers of the landscape design company I work for and they want them gone, I try to convince them to compost them (as in nature's living economy leaves are a gift with immense value for the living soil) but most just want them taken away. I gather them up by the truckload and then mix with lawn clippings, wood chips, sheep manure, biochar and trimmings from shrubs and create the most fertile dark living soil (it often goes to our local school gardens so the kids have a good foundation to plant seeds in).
We also have a magnolia and love its showy flowers. Did you know that the flowers are edible? :) Here is a fun video where a Chinese lady gathers flowers from the wild and creates some recipes with them https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8O3fRC4tSk&t
Oh my daughter introduced me to Liziqi's videos with her Chinese NY's one. Very fun!
My flowers look more like her pink ones but they're more fragile on sturdier branches. All of the buds will bloom, covering the tree, and then they'll all fall like a slippery blanket, making more of a mess than the leaves. But I remember your good opinion of messes, so I'm not complaining.
I used to put all the leaves into my 20'x20' Coop deVille (with a very cute sign on it). But after a multi-year battle and over $1K to make it impervious, I'm weary of fighting rats, which leaves attract. So my green bin now goes to the city's compost pile.
Like Liziqi's old-fashioned tableaus, I think we have a hunger and a nostalgia for making and not wasting. That's why my focus is on owning our time, labor, homes, creativity, and even land, although I know that's controversial between us.
Have you seen her video where she harvests bamboo by hand and builds furniture ? That one actually inspired me to get a couple books on temperate bamboo species cultivation and bamboo craftsmanship. I love how it can regenerate so quickly and provide not only building materials and clothing materials but also food.
I am so sorry to hear about your challenge with persistent scavengers and your composting efforts. Perhaps a re-enforced tumbler format composter would be more well suited for that situation. Also, you may be able to make use of some of the leaves if you were building raised beds and did an 'inverted hügelkultur' (aka dead wood swale) underneath. I added lots of leaves beneath my raised beds when I built them (along side all the other hügelkultur/lasagna mulching type materials) and I have been very happy with the long term soil fertility and drought tolerant crops it has provided.
Hi Leonora! :) Thank you very much for your kind words about my writing. Here is a link to where you can find an option for pre-ordering my book: https://recipesforreciprocity.com/shop/preorder/
I sent Tereza a digital proof copy (ahead of the book being published) as I admire her clarity of perception and adept writing ability (and so I value getting her feedback on what I put together before it goes to the presses). I hope to have the finished e-book ready for publishing and available to the public for downloading in the beginning of 2023 (going to the printing presses soon after for physical copies).
This is very beautiful, CD. Among many others, I particularly liked: Whereas oneness simply IS—a pure Act of Being—union is an experience, which opens within Being an experience of itself—the experience of "selfhood." This resonates with me as having truth in it, although I'm going to sit with it awhile without explaining to myself why.
In my creation story, we came into being because one is the loneliest number and God didn't want to be alone. If we were to think in terms of bodies, I think our collective identity is the female, equal to God in all things but being first. Isn't that what you'd create, if you didn't want to be alone--an equal? And I think God loved us so much he gave his creative power over to us--your third that makes the whole self-reflective--all of creation infinitely expanding, exists in our mind/ voice/ belly depending on the metaphor.
Love the Wendell Berry poem. There have been many matrilineal cultures. More successful in honouring the interdependent web we exist in.
Yes yes! I forget whether you subscribed after the episodes I posted on Davids Graeber and Wengrow's work in showing those matrilineal cultures that both preceded and paralleled the patriarchal one we think is how things always were, everywhere: https://thirdparadigm.substack.com/p/when-mothers-ran-the-world and https://thirdparadigm.substack.com/p/muskrat-love-and-anarchy.
This is just what I needed to see today… my harvest was hawk feathers from the roadside. I’ve been thinking lately that I’ve been missing out by not reading Wendell Berry’s nonfiction yet.
One more of his:
Sabbaths 1999 (IV.)
What a consolation it is, after
the explanations and the predictions
of further explanations still
to come, to return unpersuaded
to the woods, entering again
the presence of the blessed trees.
A tree forms itself in answer
to its place and to the light.
Explain it how you will, the only
thing explainable will be
your explanation. There is
in the woods on a summer’s
morning, birdsong all around
from guess where, nowhere
that rigid measure which predicts
only humankind’s demise.
Oh I love the Sabbaths series! Thank you for sharing this. He's such a treasure.
Thank you so much for the kind and generous words. I am grateful and honored that you would share my writing on your substack Tereza. It makes my heart glad to know you are enjoying reading my (soon to be published) book.
I am also grateful we crossed paths as your clarity of perception, concise articulation, heartfelt way of expressing yourself and proclivity to ask meaningful questions has been like a balm for the heart and mind during my time on substack.
Also thank you very much for introducing me to Wendell Berry. I resonate with this part of his poem very deeply.
"Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millenium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years."
It brought a warmth to my heart to read his words about reciprocity, millennia-scale gift economics and re-defining wealth as being intrinsically tied to the wealth and health of Mother Earth. These are things that are very important to me and I strive to plant the seeds for in my own small way.
Well I am off for another long day of planting trees, and I will hold Wendell's words close to my heart as I am doing so, drawing strength from the hopeful and nourishing vision of future generations enjoying the shade, habitat and medicine they provide.
O Gavin, I feel like I've just introduced you to your ancestor! I believe he's still living, somewhere in Kentucky. I quote from his novel Jayber Crow and his essays in Home Economics in my book. I don't think there's anyone who understands as clearly the relationship between economics and the ways we should be living, if we were allowed.
And you're most welcome! Without my alerting him, Citizen Doctor read your whole post and saw my note at the bottom that introducing you was the impetus for my crosspost. Clearly meant to be!
The feeling is mutual! :)
Yes that was a great article, I share many of your views on the current status of how we produce our food (industrially) and how important it is to localize and decentralize our food and medicine production systems.
I am certified in permaculture design and strive to look through that lens of perception as I design my garden and help others do the same. Beyond just applying permaculture design techniques I have become interested in learning about ancient food production systems that were created by various indigenous peoples before the word "permaculture" existed which some describe as "food forests". Food forests are ancient horticultural systems that were utilized by some Native American and First Nation peoples (as well as others on different continents) and they are ways of cultivating which can offer us an effective method to create resilient, non-linear, fractally embedded, decentralized and self-sustaining food/medicine production systems. These “Food Forests” become permanent gardens that require very little (if any) work to keep alive and producing once they are established. These systems contain a wide spectrum of species suitable for harvesting food, medicine, building material and other important resources. Food forests embody the essence of nature's regenerative capacity and her fractally interwoven ecosystems in a format that persists for generations.
I will share links to a few examples below so you can see what I am talking about:
– https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ancient-indigenous-forest-gardens-still-yield-bounty-150-years-later-study
– http://www.daviesand.com/Papers/Tree_Crops/Indian_Agroforestry/index.html
– https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/what-is-permaculture-food-forests?fbclid=IwAR0xQQGjfgvRgpI8BFw5YcYzJfRbiX1Ao7mv9z0KgQAQ2mK4J8gamh5C05A
– https://returntonow.net/2018/08/01/the-amazon-is-a-man-made-food-forest-researchers-discover/?fbclid=IwAR0-XsOZCldwRzlMG_mkBxxqqYAeZ90TAVEsO4nB-noboHGqX1TZS_nn0xo
– https://www.sdvforest.com/agroforestry/the-fascinating-story-of-human-made-forests?fbclid=IwAR3OVHhCywwzOiCSBMWyk6_Bdy_q-GRRN2N7-525iqdnYmc_BqtKeyu6Wz4
– https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol26/iss2/art6/
– https://canadianfeedthechildren.ca/what/food-security-projects/indigenous-food-forests/
Thanks so much for introducing me to the Ringing Cedars series. I glanced at some of the core concepts and quotes from Anastasia (on her website) and found that many of the concepts and techniques she is talking about are things I have read about certain First Nation peoples engaging in historically as part of their traditional food cultivation practices and also things which modern science has confirmed to be beneficial.
For instance, I have been researching a growing body of evidence that indicates that there is in fact a (measurable) mechanism that allows for the experiences and environmental stimulus of one being (whether plant, animal, bacteria or fungi) to be interpreted and encoded into the genetic fabric of a completely separate organism which stimulates a shift in epigenetic expression (influencing what phenotype is expressed on the macro level) in real time.
What scientists are discovering is that each time we physically interact with another organism (whether it be through physical contact, saliva, breathing the same air or eating another organism or it's fruit/seeds) we are receiving a genetic update (via microRNA that are absorbed by our cells that silence messenger RNA resulting in a shift in the expression of the phenotype DNA).
This exchange of genetic information is a two way street, and so the practice that Anastasia describes with putting seeds in the mouth before planting could (according to the most recent data) result in a notable shift in epigenetic expression in the seed (and the resulting plant/fruits). I have always felt drawn to hold seeds in my hands and thank them before I plant them, but I will try the putting them in the mouth technique as well now :)
The study of Nutrimiromics also offers profound insight into the imperative for decentralizing our food production systems (and designing them using regenerative principles and an ethical compass). An example of why this is so important is that when we eat meat (that came from a factory farm, from an animal living in pain, misery and hopelessness or a stressed out plant grown in a monoculture hammered with all kinds of chemicals) the ‘experience’ (environmental pressures and other stimulus) of that animal/plant is transcribed on a molecular level into microRNA and our cells receive the message that they should initiate an inflammatory response, send stress hormones to our brain, begin to shut down and prepare for imminent death. That is because the way in which a plant, animal or fungi lives (and dies) is recorded on a molecular level and what ever consumes that organism receives an ‘upload’ which allows for adaptation in real time to possible environmental pressures. In nature this is a beautiful and eloquent evolutionary adaptation that facilitates symbiogenesis to take place on the scale of entire bioregions containing myriad species (all providing each other with real time updates on stimulus the other organisms are receiving in their environment via exosomic transfer of genetic information).
For more info:
- https://charleseisenstein.org/podcasts/new-ancient-story-podcast/dr-zach-bush-life-is-a-community-e49/?fbclid=IwAR2t3f0XvKvsyul0G15bz7ERlXEFc7soeZQ1ABsHx2qkvE7MjSBXLDCiZAk
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzO7cPNzrMU
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5707640/
The new science offers us the empowering realization that our food is not just a source of fuel for our cells but also functions as a vessel for biological information which modulates our epigenetic expression in real time. This means that we are not ‘prisoners to our DNA’ as the old paradigm thought but rather our DNA seems to serve more like an ‘architectural design’ which can be expressed in many ways depending on the materials, education and experience of the builder. The food we eat provides the building materials, education and experience (in the form of genetic software updates which provide our cells with the experience and education of our elder species via naturally occurring microRNA/exosomes in the food we eat).
This means that we can shift what phenotype (out of hundreds if not thousands of possible phenotypes) that our DNA is expressing via epigenetic modulation through providing our body with specific stimulus. Anastasia appears to be suggesting one possible method to achieve just that.
There are a few things which have been studied for their ability to positively influence epigenetic expression in real time, some of these forms of stimulus include, time spent in mature ecosystems (receiving ‘uploads’ from our elder species via microRNA in the living air, water, soil and on the plants we touch, eat and appreciate.), living probiotic rich foods (also providing a ‘biological uplink’ for our cells to tap into the ancient resilience of our elder species in the bacteria and fungi kingdoms), perspective (our thoughts, emotions and attitudes profoundly impact our cells all the way down to the geometry and charge of molecules that make up our cells and affect how our DNA is expressed) and food.
Food forests provide a medium to tap into many of these modes of receiving 'uploads' from our elder species and the living planet. Thus, in the future I aim to help co-create a number of these systems and I look forward to implementing those designs by combining the wisdom, understanding and techniques of people like Anastasia, the people who called this land home before I came here, permaculture design and modern science. The success of these visions and designs for the future of course begins with the choice to choose love over fear.
Thanks for the comment :)
Tereza, I also "met" Gavin on a comment thread here on Substack, and I couldn't agree more about everything you write. Gavin is a gem with a huge heart and a wealth of knowledge for the plant world. I can't wait to get my hands on his book! I love Wendell Berry, too!🌿
Yes! I feel so fortunate to have crossed paths with Gavin in the neural-internetwork. He and Wendell are a match made in heaven, literally I suspect ;-) I just posted on his announcement with an enthusiastic congrats. And I LOVE the name of your sub.
Tereza, how/where did you pre-order Gavin's book? His work is magnificent!
So glad you asked! I couldn't find the link to post but when Gavin gets done with his tree-planting today, maybe he will. Thank you and isn't it though!
Whew! All done tree planting for the day :) We gave quite a few white pines, oaks and tulip trees a new home today (and created a pond habitat for some koi fish surrounded in granite river stone). The customer we put this landscape together for is someone that I get the feeling with hold onto the property and pass it onto their kids, so that is always a nice feeling knowing the work may be appreciated by multiple generations. :)
I shared the link to the pre-order option for my book in a comment to Leonora above.
Thanks again for the gracious post. Wishing you a restful evening and a weekend filled with heart warming moments, poetry for the senses and food for the soul.
All the leaves from my tulip magnolia dropped in the last storm, and my gardeners just filled the bin and two overstuffed trash bags (for later transition to the bin.) It's magnificent when blooming, people stop just to gasp. Already it's covered in buds. But it is a high-maintenance pet.
Sounds like you maybe have a 'Tulip' Magnolia x soulangeana tree? The Tulip Trees (Liriodendron) we were planting were actually the tallest trees in the Carolinian Forest of Canada (before most of them were logged generations ago). They would typically tower well above the maples (sometimes over a 100 feet tall). They have an interesting lobed leaf and yellow flowers that resemble tulips.
Is your bin for composting? I often have to collect leaves for customers of the landscape design company I work for and they want them gone, I try to convince them to compost them (as in nature's living economy leaves are a gift with immense value for the living soil) but most just want them taken away. I gather them up by the truckload and then mix with lawn clippings, wood chips, sheep manure, biochar and trimmings from shrubs and create the most fertile dark living soil (it often goes to our local school gardens so the kids have a good foundation to plant seeds in).
We also have a magnolia and love its showy flowers. Did you know that the flowers are edible? :) Here is a fun video where a Chinese lady gathers flowers from the wild and creates some recipes with them https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8O3fRC4tSk&t
Oh my daughter introduced me to Liziqi's videos with her Chinese NY's one. Very fun!
My flowers look more like her pink ones but they're more fragile on sturdier branches. All of the buds will bloom, covering the tree, and then they'll all fall like a slippery blanket, making more of a mess than the leaves. But I remember your good opinion of messes, so I'm not complaining.
I used to put all the leaves into my 20'x20' Coop deVille (with a very cute sign on it). But after a multi-year battle and over $1K to make it impervious, I'm weary of fighting rats, which leaves attract. So my green bin now goes to the city's compost pile.
Like Liziqi's old-fashioned tableaus, I think we have a hunger and a nostalgia for making and not wasting. That's why my focus is on owning our time, labor, homes, creativity, and even land, although I know that's controversial between us.
Have you seen her video where she harvests bamboo by hand and builds furniture ? That one actually inspired me to get a couple books on temperate bamboo species cultivation and bamboo craftsmanship. I love how it can regenerate so quickly and provide not only building materials and clothing materials but also food.
I am so sorry to hear about your challenge with persistent scavengers and your composting efforts. Perhaps a re-enforced tumbler format composter would be more well suited for that situation. Also, you may be able to make use of some of the leaves if you were building raised beds and did an 'inverted hügelkultur' (aka dead wood swale) underneath. I added lots of leaves beneath my raised beds when I built them (along side all the other hügelkultur/lasagna mulching type materials) and I have been very happy with the long term soil fertility and drought tolerant crops it has provided.
Hi Leonora! :) Thank you very much for your kind words about my writing. Here is a link to where you can find an option for pre-ordering my book: https://recipesforreciprocity.com/shop/preorder/
I sent Tereza a digital proof copy (ahead of the book being published) as I admire her clarity of perception and adept writing ability (and so I value getting her feedback on what I put together before it goes to the presses). I hope to have the finished e-book ready for publishing and available to the public for downloading in the beginning of 2023 (going to the printing presses soon after for physical copies).
Thank you for your interest in my work. :)
This is very beautiful, CD. Among many others, I particularly liked: Whereas oneness simply IS—a pure Act of Being—union is an experience, which opens within Being an experience of itself—the experience of "selfhood." This resonates with me as having truth in it, although I'm going to sit with it awhile without explaining to myself why.
In my creation story, we came into being because one is the loneliest number and God didn't want to be alone. If we were to think in terms of bodies, I think our collective identity is the female, equal to God in all things but being first. Isn't that what you'd create, if you didn't want to be alone--an equal? And I think God loved us so much he gave his creative power over to us--your third that makes the whole self-reflective--all of creation infinitely expanding, exists in our mind/ voice/ belly depending on the metaphor.
Thanks for sharing this.