The first foraging weekend

The first foraging group of the year met at Ecopolitan last Friday to drive over to Wisconsin for a weekend that deepened our relationship with nature and each other. Waiting together for all to arrive, we shared excitement of going on the trip, for all of us a completely new experience and out of all of our comfort zones. After arriving at the farm and setting up our tents, we got to know each other, each telling a bit about ourselves, our dreams, to the group. It is amazing to me in an environment like this how quickly and intimately you begin to know each one, and over the weekend our group felt so united to me.

Our herbalist hadn't arrived yet, and we were all ready to start eating. We were then instructed on simple methods of natural selection- eating only plants and flowers that looked and tasted good. As Dr. T explained 99% of plants are non-poisonous and edible, and we could find the right food by using our senses. I was so surprised how nice many of the plants tasted, and we found a lemon-tasting herb that became one of our favorites. After we had excitedly gone around tasting and sharing our "dinner," the herbalist, Carol, arrived and we climbed up into Dr. T's tree house for a short lecture. Carol told us about the four best edible plants in season, and to our amazement, they were exactly the same plants we had found best for dinner! That night an expert camper made a beautiful huge fire that we gathered around together, listening to beautiful Israeli melodies Dr. T played for us on the recorder until most of us sleepily went back to our tents late that night.

The next morning came very soon for me... it was summer solstice and my body seemed to be already tuning in with nature, waking just before sunrise. My tent mate and one of the community members at the farm celebrated the coming day with "sunrise yoga" in the fields. The morning came and many people individually foraged for breakfast, meditated, played basketball, saunaed, and socialized (some also took advantage of this "free" time for more sleeping!). At about noon we gathered together for the day's activities. Carol, the herbalist, met us outside and we ate and learned about many more edible and tasty wild plants. It was very interesting eating the weeds (most nutritious) we step on everyday, and discovering the pleasant, sweet, or bitter flavors of these plants we found ourselves pulling and eating straight from the ground! Many people were taking notes and drawing pictures, while others were simply experiencing this natural way of eating.

It was so nice and sunny, by mid afternoon we changed into swimsuits and walked about a 20 minutes through the meadows and forest, each with a tube, to the Hay River on River Haven's property. I have to say it is best to bring as little as possible as this is our "own" river and forest and nature will embrace you with her elements. Getting into the river I felt I was in the jungle, past my ankles deep in muddy waters. Everyone seemed to be having a great time relaxing in their tubes, playing in the water for over an hour, until we reached the sunny sandbar at the end. Walking back trough the forest we worked up an appetite, and after showering, we were ready to forage for some dinner. We had a relaxed night after our adventuresome day, some of us going to town to see a film, and others resting back at the farm.

The next morning we headed home, and ended our trip filling our stomachs with delicious meals we ate together at the Ecopolitan!

I feel after this trip I am very grateful for small ways in which my perspective has changed. Seeing plants you know about, can eat, you can connect so nicely and in a different and more intimate way with mother nature. Realizing the beauty, perfectness and abundance, the life and love that permeates everything and gives unconditionally, this gift of nature that God had given us.