To Be Among Trees and At the Water (and Scout with her llama)
First off, I noticed that I forgot to include a Black History Month book recommendation in my last post, so let’s start with two of them.
Emergent Strategy by adrienne marie brown1 - a powerful and challenging read that isn’t necessarily about black history but instead described as “a guidebook for getting in right relationship with change, using our own nature and that of creatures beyond human as our teachers.”
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson - This is a book about the history of the Equal Justice Initiative and their work for trying to work towards a more just and equal justice system. Heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time.
To Be Among Trees and At the Water
Just going to make this short today - two simple photos and a simple story about Scout.
This morning, I saw a solitary green leaf and what looked like a hershey’s kiss made of ice. Here they are:
On my mind and heart as I walked was current legislation that is to be voted upon by the US Senate this week to open up areas around the Boundary Waters in Northern Minnesota to new mining permits that would likely have a destructive effect on that pristine wilderness area. (Action item - please take some time to call your senators today to stop this from passing as it is likely to be voted upon this week. Four descendants of President Theodore Roosevelt have shared a public letter to Congress asking them to stop this action and we would do well to heed their advice. The House of Representatives has already passed the bill and it needs only a simple majority in the Senate to pass. Here’s more information about it - 5 Calls’ Summary and HCR’s letter about it).
Back to this morning.
I was originally going to just do a walk with Scout around our neighborhood but I felt like I needed to be near trees and water. So we did a path near us that is unpaved and weaves through a lovely wooded area and then there’s a path down to another part of Winton Lake. As we were on the path, I saw this one green leaf still hanging on (or recently emerged) in the midst of the snowy cold of the morning. And then when we got to the water, I spoke aloud my apologies to the water about the ways that we have treated her and I saw this one tiny piece of ice holding on from the recent melting. At first I thought it looked like a hershey’s kiss but I can also see it as a mournful tear.
Earlier in the morning I had read this from Refugia Faith as Rienstra reflected on Walter Brueggeman’s exploration of the creation stories in Genesis 1-3. Deep wisdom that we need to heed.
To be my image, says God, be like me: God does not dominate with violence but makes space for other creatures, blesses them with the freedom to flourish, delights in them, rests in that delight, and remains in relationship with this creation.2
Scout and Her Llama
And then in the afternoon, I had been sitting with Scout on the couch doing some reading and sermon work. She was snoozing away with some gentle snores and some periodic twitches of her legs (dreams?). My watch reminded me it was time to get up to stand and so I walked into the kitchen and walked around a bit and then sat down at the kitchen counter to do a bit of writing (the above post actually). As I was starting to write, I heard Scout get up and go walking around and shortly thereafter I looked down and she had brought her plush llama out to me. I gave her a head scratch and then she walked back into the living room and I heard her get up on the couch. When I looked in, she had laid her head on the llama in the cutest possible way. So I wandered back in and sat back down and she then curled up and went back to sleep. Dogs know how to communicate what they want.
Grace, Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy,
Ed
Lower case intentional - this is how she writes her name
Rienstra, Debra. Refugia Faith: Seeking Hidden Shelters, Ordinary Wonders, and the Healing of the Earth (p. 99). Kindle Edition.
https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/updates/antofagasta-chilean-mining-giant-rushing-ruin-boundary-waters
Grace peace love and hope 🙏💞 thank you for mentioning the boundary waters also this has been close to my heart since his prior reversed the already settled anti mining of the waters something I believe would also set a precedent for doing in many other protected waterways also including the Great lakes and other. The only ones that will actually profit are these billionaires also not the people or the environment. This co already has a horrific mining and clean up record as it is let alone being another foreign conglomerate that will stick tax payers with any clean up bill as they flee, claim bankruptcy/other. The supply chain of such mining cos are even more incoherent it goes overseas first than back to our country which raises the prices on our country for our own minerals let alone all the subsided (our tax $'s the ones who actually pay them) $'s they receive for doing such. Beyond all that destroying the eco systems and environment of such places can never be repaired and will be handed down to all those that will never even get a chance to appreciate and enjoy them let alone even know or understand a time when these beautiful, restorative natural places even existed beyond the damage they've left.
The couple Jared and Ivanka rented the home for approximately $15,000 to $18,000 per month from Chilean billionaire Andrónico Luksic the prior admin when the no mining was reversed so again more grift or pay to play at the expense of we the people and our country.