"Kinship and Reciprocity"

Reciprocity Mandala: Credit & Link

The title of this post comes from Robin Wall Kimmerer's scholarship and advocacy. "Kinship and reciprocity" are central to Kimmerer's body of research and her writings.  An artist influenced by Kimmerer created the Reciprocity Mandala. The mandala shows how animals, plants, and all of nature are inextricably intertwined, connected and interdependent. Our relationships with plants, animals, and the earth are reciprocal (mutually beneficial) and not transactional or one way. 

 

Kimmerer, as some of you may know, is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants.  She is a Potawatomi botanist, noted story teller, gifted teacher, and directs the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. The April 2025 issue of Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people of 2025.

Here's how Chief Seattle, a mid 19th century leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes in the Puget Sound, expressed our relationships with the Earth. His words are another expression of "kinship and reciprocity." These are attributed to his 1854 speech.. 

This we know: All things are connected like the blood that unites us. We did not weave the web of life, We are merely a strand in it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves.

At our May 5th Chalice meeting we discussed Kimmerer's 2019 keynote address entitled "Reciprocal Healing: Fostering Kinship and Reciprocity." Here's a link to the 52 minute address. Chalice is a small group of fellow Unitarians Universalists who meet twice a month during the church year and less often during summer time. Tom concluded our meeting with Susan O'Connell's poem, Wild Reciprocity. 

Wild Reciprocity

Remember your youth,
did you hear
the voices of Earth
with your animal body?

Did your senses respond
to Earth’s creativity
bursting with honeycomb and clover,
her purple lupine color rising up
through fields of yellow mustard?

Did you hear green sea songs
running before white cresting waves,
salty mist whispers,
or a foghorn’s call?

Today, can you imagine
being deep in a lush forest
home of monarch butterflies, sap, and ants,
all dreaming of life?

Sensuality stretches her limbs
offering her vibrant palette,
nudging our hearts to open
like orange poppies in the sun.

Still, seasons pass away
and we walk with them.
Earth continues to bestow her gifts
despite our arrival at the twilight of life.

And today,
if we really listen, we might hear
the tremulous tattered voices
of forests just now razed
somewhere on earth.

Muddied water seeps and pools
on hard fallow ground
once carpeted with ferns,
white lilies and feathers.

When we witness wastelands
we have created or allowed
can we feel grief for wild ones
ripped from their homes?

If we allow ourselves
to feel the pain of these losses
we might find our hearts
beat red, responsive still.

Raven and Owl witness
our past and future deeds
what might they teach us?

What ripens within and around
when our healing words and deeds align
and become woven like tree roots
inside our hearts?

Perhaps seeds of compassion
will nourish a greening canopy
of inclusion, as we respond
to the call of Earth.

Hawk cry pierces sky
telling us the time is now.
Will we answer the call
of wild reciprocity?

The poem expresses some of Kimmerer's messages: humans are deeply connected to nature, Earth's health and welfare and ours are co-dependent and intertwined,  need to listen to nature, nature as a teacher, and notably grief's role in restoring nature and our relationships to the natural world. Kimmerer writes:

"Joanna Macy writes that until we can grieve for our planet we cannot love it – grieving is a sign of spiritual health. But it is not enough to weep for our lost landscapes; we have to put our hands in the earth to make ourselves whole again. Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair.”

Kimmerer often refers to "The Great Turning", popularized by Joanna Macy. "The Great Turning"  refers to a required paradigm shift from an industrial growth society based on ever-increasing corporate profits  to a life-sustaining civilization that prioritizes ecological and social well-being. Ninety-five year old Joanna Macy, now retired, describes herself as an eco-philosopher and is the author of 12 books. She is a scholar of Buddhism, systems theory, and ecology. Joanna is recognized for her active promotion of  peace, justice, and sustainability. Here's a link to her website.

Here's more messages that remain with me from Kimmerer's 2019 keynote address and from additional online research about her. Here's a link to her website 

• Time is circular rather than a linear progression. Seasons, life cycles, and historical narratives are parts of a continuous, interconnected whole. 
• Western science and indigenous knowledge are both valuable to understanding the climate change, our world and our lives. While Western science brings reasoning needed for problem solving, indigenous knowledge offers badly needed understanding of relationships and emotions.
• Reciprocity and kinship rejects the idea that human beings are supreme and put on earth to dominate and use all other resources. Kemmerer considers supremacy of humans as the "disease of human exceptionalism", and is a fundamental problem and challenge we face. In contrast, indigenous wisdom tell us that human beings are "the younger brothers of Creation." We say that humans have the least experience with how to live and thus the most to learn—we must look to our teachers among the other species for guidance. Their wisdom is apparent in the way that they live. They teach us by example. They've been on the earth far longer than we have been, and have had time to figure things out." We need to listen to this wisdom.
• Accompanying exceptionalism is "species loneliness.... a deep, unnamed sadness stemming from estrangement from the rest of Creation, from the loss of relationship. As our human dominance of the world has grown, we have become more isolated, more lonely when we can no longer call out to our neighbors." 
• A  profound cultural shift in our relationships to the world is needed. Kimmerer writes: "We need to restore honor to the way we live, so that when we walk through the world we don’t have to avert our eyes with shame, so that we can hold our heads up high and receive the respectful acknowledgment of the rest of the earth’s beings.”  

Kimmerer’s kinship and reciprocity aligns with Aldo Leopold’s (1887-1948) Land Ethic® . The Wisconsin conservationist, philosopher, scientist , ecologist, and forester is considered the father of the modern conservation movement. His 1948 The Sand County Almanac, published by his son a year after Leopold’s untimely death, is considered a landmark in the American Conservation movement. I purchased my copy in the early 1970s.

 

Like Kimmerer, Leopold’s views of  “community”  include not only humans, but all other parts of the Earth: soils, waters, plants, and animals. To Kimmerer and Leopold the relationships between people and land are intertwined and care for people cannot be separated from care for the land. Furthermore, both Kimmerer and Leopold  call us to act based on a moral code that recognizes our interconnected caring relationships with the land and all that is Earth.

I am fortunate to live across the street from Lake Wingra and the UW-Arboretum. The Arboretum’s mission embraces Leopold’s Land Ethic and carries on his legacy. The Sandhill Cranes have returned and once again grace my life and our neighborhood. Here's the colt and one of the adults. I'm surprised at how close I can get to the family as they calmly feed or stroll across Wingra Park.

 

 Robin Wall Kemmerer highly regards gardening.  She writes:

 “A garden is a nursery for nurturing connection, the soil for cultivation of practical reverence. And its power goes far beyond the garden gate – once you develop a relationship with a little patch of earth, it becomes a seed itself.”

Volunteers continued to care for the little patch of Earth known as Prospect Gardens. Work sessions were held on May 26th and June 3rd. On the 26th the remaining prairie plants were planted plus some weeding. 

Here's Crew Chief Becky approaching the Gardens. She walked from her home and figured out how to transport the plants. Now that's creative problem solving! 

Four other volunteers plus me joined Becky. Thank you Becky, Percy, Meg, Peggy, and Laura for once again tending Prospect Gardens. Your support of Prospect Gardens benefits nature, neighborhood residents and users of the Southwest Path. Kemmerer reminds us that the power of gardening "..... goes far beyond the garden gate." 

On June 3rd Operation Fresh Start (OFS) crews returned to tend the Gardens. OFS is a non-profit that supports young adults on the path towards self-sufficiency through education, employments training and  mentoring. Here's a link to OFS website

Isaiah is straddled on the left railing and Jay on the right one. Niyah and Kaya (with a hat) are in the middle. In front of Niyah is Ollie. Taylor and Ian,  Crew Leaders (staff members) are on the lower right. 

We formed a circle before working and following Taylor's instructions, shared our names, made a brief statement about our emotional state, and did a physical movement. I shared "tree in spring", a Qigong movement. Then, everybody, except me, did 10 pushups. 

Cutting back Bishops Weed was the major task. I also cut back one of the overgrown Forsythia and pruned one of the Elderberry bushes.  

Here's Kaya pausing from pulling Bishops Weed. She was well prepared for working outdoors: net attached to her hat that protected her face, gloves, and two little portable fans that provided some close body breezes. Way to go Kaya! 

Ollie and Niyah teaming to remove Bishops Weed from the Fox side of the Gardens. Whatever they were listening to on their headsets did not interfere with the task at hand.

Isaiah and Jay (on the right side of the picture) working on the Regent Side of the Gardens. Jay's face has a hint of his expansive smile and how his face lights up when he smiles. 

Thank you Niyah, Kaya, Ollie, Isaiah, and Jay. I enjoyed our short time together, your youthful energy, and appreciated how diligently you worked. May all your efforts toward being self-sufficient adults, with the support of OFS, be fruitful. Thank you Taylor and Ian for your good work and for being role models for the young adults. 

Thank you Maddie Dumas, Stormwater Vegetation Coordinator, Madison Engineering Division, for providing access to OFS crews. Last but not least, thank you John Toso, also from City Engineering, for the crew that picked up the two large piles of plant material from the two work sessions.

I end with this Alberto Rios poem, another expression of kinship and reciprocity. 

      We Are of a Tribe

We plant seeds in the ground

And dreams in the sky,

 

Hoping that, someday, the roots of one

Will meet the upstretched limbs of the other.

 

It has not happened yet.

We share the sky, all of us, the whole world:

 

Together, we are a tribe of eyes that look upward,

Even as we stand on uncertain ground.

 

The earth beneath us moves, quiet and wild,

Its boundaries shifting, its muscles wavering.

 

The dream of sky is indifferent to all this,

Impervious to borders, fences, reservations.

 

The sky is our common home, the place we all live.

There we are in the world together.

 

The dream of sky requires no passport.

Blue will not be fenced. Blue will not be a crime.

 

Look up. Stay awhile. Let your breathing slow.

Know that you always have a home here.

  

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Dancing With Fear

The Dancer

Many of us, including me, are learning how to dance with fear that is now permeating our lives and rampart in many sectors of our society. Stoking fear for some us are the current Republican Administration policies (more than Presidential actions), the climate crisis, concerns about our democracy, and individual situations. In my case, it's the challenge of managing a chronic medical condition that is, thankfully, not life threatening. Nevertheless, treatment is accompanied by fear that the outcome will be unsuccessful. 

The free spirited dancer on our deck reminds me to let go and dance with life as it flows through me and through all of us. Admittedly, not always easy to do and in my case when fear arises about my medical situation. 

Recently, I watched a YouTube conversation involving Tara Brach, Buddhist  meditation teacher, author, and psychologist, and the poet, Rosemerry Wahola Tromer. Fear was one of the topics. Hearing Rosemerry read selected poems was a joy. The hour long conversation, ("The Courage to Say Yes" ) is available here YouTube link ,  

Afterwards I wrote the following poem. 

Pondering Fear

Is fear a gift?
Evolutionary history says
aided our survival
warning us of threats.
Now fear still buried in the brain stem
waiting for the metaphorical tiger to pounce.

Tara Brach, Buddhist influenced teacher
Says love your fear.
Gently recognize fear has arisen.
Feel the fear in the body.
Mine is a tight pulsating mind.
Tightness and heat in the forehead.
Shallow breathing.
Don’t take it personally.
Watch fear pass away like mist in the morning or
the movement of clouds across a blue sky.

But what about fear as a gift?

Now yes to fear creates
space for the gifts of aging.
Gift of gratitude.
Gift of self-compassion.
Gift of wisdom.
Being an elder.
May it be so. 

Rosemerry learned to deeply love her fear while mourning the suicide of her sixteen year old son, Fin. He died three years ago. Daily she wrote a poem before Fin's death, overcome with grief she stopped for several months, started again and now continues writing a daily poem. Her motive for writing is to express what is true at that particular moment rather than crafting the perfect poem. Her book "The Unfolding" is on my reading list. Here's her website link . If you wish sign up to receive her daily poems. Here's one of  Rosemerry's poems that vividly exemplifies dancing with strong emotions .

 Toward Peace

Perhaps some part of me still believes
peace is a destination,
a place we arrive, ideally together.

I notice how shiny it is, this belief,
like a flower made of crystal,
beautiful, but lifeless,

devoid of the dust and scuff
that come from living a real day.
Meanwhile, there is this invitation

to grow into peace the way real flowers grow
in the dirt. With blight and drought,
beetles and hail.

Meanwhile this invitation
to live in the tangle of fear and failure,
to be humbled by my own inner wars

and wonder how to find a living peace
right here, the peace that arrives
when we take just one step through the mess

toward compassion and notice
as our foot rises our heart also rises
and in that lifted moment

still scraping along in the dirt,
there is a peace so real we become light,
become the momentum that is the change.

Danna Faulds, another favorite poet, shows how to dance with potentially strong negative emotions. Readers of the blog may recognize this poem since I shared it in a past post. It's worth repeating because the poem provides cues about dancing with fear.

Allow

There is no controlling life.
Try corralling a lightning bolt,
containing a tornado. Dam a
stream and it will create a new
channel. Resist, and the tide
will sweep you off your feet.
Allow, and grace will carry
you to higher ground. The only
safety lies in letting it all in –
the wild and the weak; fear,
fantasies, failures and success.
When loss rips off the doors of
the heart, or sadness veils your
vision with despair, practice
becomes simply bearing the truth.
In the choice to let go of your
known way of being, the whole
world is revealed to your new eyes.

Danna Faulds' poem challenges us to experience the negative emotions that arise in our consciousness. Tara Brach and James Baraz, another Buddhist meditation teacher, suggests an approach for being with strong emotions, known by the acronym RAIN: recognize, acknowledge, investigate, and non-identification. Here's James Baraz's instructions from his book Awakening Joy, 10 Steps That Will Put You on the Road to Real Happiness.

“RAIN When you are in the midst of a strong emotion, take a few moments to try this approach: Recognize what you are feeling and name it. Anger, fear, sadness, confusion? Allow the feelings to be present, without pushing them away and without getting lost in them. Investigate the feelings in your body and mind. Explore the landscape of the emotion with curiosity and interest. Where in your body do you feel it? How does it feel in your mind—heavy, tight, open, agitated? Non-identification is the key to freeing yourself from the emotion’s grip. Don’t take it personally. What you are feeling is a human emotion that arises and passes away. It does not define who you are.” 

Tara Brach is often credited with conceptualizing RAIN. During the "non-identification"  phase she invites us to  "nurture self-compassion."  Tara has available guided meditations for practicing RAIN plus written information about RAIN at .https://www.tarabrach.com/rain/

Dr. Kristen Niff, an educational psychologist, is widely recognized for her study of self-compassion and for providing guidance. She writes "With self-compassion, we give ourselves the same kindness and support we’d give to a good friend."  See her book "Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself" or her website at https://self-compassion.org/

John O'Donohue's poem, published on December 22, 2017, provides more cues for those of  us experiencing the exhaustion of these fearful times. 

 Exhausted, a Blessing 

When the rhythm of the heart becomes hectic,
Time takes on the strain until it breaks;
Then all the unattended stress falls in
On the mind like an endless, increasing weight.

The light in the mind becomes dim.
Things you could take in your stride before
Now become laborsome events of will.

Weariness invades your spirit.
Gravity begins falling inside you,
Dragging down every bone.

The tide you never valued has gone out.
And you are marooned on unsure ground.
Something within you has closed down;
And you cannot push yourself back to life.

You have been forced to enter empty time.
The desire that drove you has relinquished.
There is nothing else to do now but rest
And patiently learn to receive the self
You have forsaken in the race of days.

At first your thinking will darken
And sadness take over like listless weather.
The flow of unwept tears will frighten you.

You have traveled too fast over false ground;
Now your soul has come to take you back.

Take refuge in your senses, open up
To all the small miracles you rushed through.

Become inclined to watch the way of rain
When it falls slow and free.

Imitate the habit of twilight,
Taking time to open the well of color
That fostered the brightness of day.

Draw alongside the silence of stone
Until its calmness can claim you.
Be excessively gentle with yourself.

Stay clear of those vexed in spirit.
Learn to linger around someone of ease
Who feels they have all the time in the world.

Gradually, you will return to yourself,
Having learned a new respect for your heart
And the joy that dwells far within slow time.

My fifteen year tenure as the Prospect Gardens Crew Chief was filled with positive emotions. No need for  practicing RAIN. Echoing one of O'Donohue's messages: tending a lush green space with like minded people was a refuge from the stresses of life. I am happy to report that Becky and Ryan, the new Crew Chiefs, had a successful April 12th work session which I was unable to attend.  

Some of the Crew on a Break

Pictured are some of the 15 volunteers. West High School's Leo Club was well represented. Four are seated in the front row from left to right: Megan, Irene, Anna, and Madeleine. In the next row are Carolyn, Crew Chief Becky, and Leo Club President, Rajeev. In the back row are Joyce, Laura, Astrid, and Eric. Not pictured is Crew Chief Ryan, Hazel, Alice and Jim. 

April 12th, to me, is a historical day because the Gardens transitioned into the future. With a grateful heart I thank Crew Chiefs Becky and Ryan and the 13 other April 12th volunteers. I feel confident that all of you and other future volunteers with continue caring for a precious neighborhood green space that benefits humans, migratory Monarchs, small animals, birds, and users of the Southwest Path. 

Becky and Ryan welcome volunteers. The need is continuous. If you are not listed in the established Google Group and want to volunteer please join at https://groups.google.com/g/madisonprospectgardens.

The Energy and Agility of Youth

Madeleine and Rajeev weeding  the steep slopes while Hazel weeds nearby. This section is on the North side of the Gardens which is in the Regent Neighborhood. No, Rajeev is not doing push-ups. 

Joyce in the Blue and Others 

 

Crew members  removing sprouting Bishops Weed from this rocky section on the Fox side. It's in the Dudgeon Monroe Neighborhood.

 

I close with the voice of Sri Anandamayi Ma. She was born in 1896 in the small village of Kheora, which is now in Bangladesh. 

Followers considered her the bliss-bestowing mother. Her words below underscore that all of us are interconnected, unique, and worthy of praise as we inhabit this precious Earth. I hope Sri Anadamayi's words provide some comfort to those, like me, feeling fear during these trying times.

   One Vast Garden

“I find one vast garden spread out all over the universe.

All plants, all human beings, all higher mind bodies

are about in this garden in various ways ,

each has his own uniqueness and beauty.

Their presence and variety give me great delight

Every one of you adds with his special feature to the glory of the garden.”

New Beginnings & Letting Go

Each December holiday season Peg, a friend, gives Ann and I an Amaryllis. Now resting on my desk, this native plant originates from the Western Cape region of South Africa.  An Amaryllis symbolizes strength, beauty, pride, love, resilience, and determination. The inevitable fading blooms remind me of the unfolding life cycles of beginning and endings intermingled with letting go. Once again I am in the midst of one of  these cycles as my Prospect Garden's Crew Chief  role ends. 

The geode next to the Amaryllis reminds me of the Pacific Ocean and the many cycles of new beginnings and endings in my life. Besides Wisconsin, these cycles have unfolded in several different states. Ann and I lived in Portland, Oregon (1976-1980); in Bloomington, Indiana (1980-1983) where I earned an educational doctorate in 1983 from Indiana University; and in Andover, Massachusetts (1983-1986). I joined a non-profit educational consultation firm in Andover and Ann was a social worker serving adults with developmental disabilities for the state.      

Our daughter Emily was born in nearby Lawrence, MA in 1984. In 1986, we returned home to Wisconsin and lived on Keyes Avenue, near Prospect Gardens, for 30 years. Without going into details, during those 30 years life continued unfolding for Ann, Emily and me. In 2016 we sold our home and moved into our current apartment. 

John O' Donahue's poem aptly describes these cycles of beginning and ending, along with letting go. 

For a New Beginning

In out of the way places of the heart
Where your thoughts never think to wander
This beginning has been quietly forming
Waiting until you were ready to emerge.

For a long time it has watched your desire
Feeling the emptiness grow inside you
Noticing how you willed yourself on
Still unable to leave what you had outgrown.

It watched you play with the seduction of safety
And the grey promises that sameness whispered
Heard the waves of turmoil rise and relent
Wondered would you always live like this.

Then the delight, when your courage kindled,
And out you stepped onto new ground,
Your eyes young again with energy and dream
A path of plenitude opening before you.

Though your destination is not clear
You can trust the promise of this opening;
Unfurl yourself into the grace of beginning
That is one with your life’s desire.

Awaken your spirit to adventure
Hold nothing back, learn to find ease in risk
Soon you will be home in a new rhythm
For your soul senses the world that awaits you.

Now once again I am aware of John O' Donahue's message as I retire from being the Prospect Garden's Crew Chief. Ryan Burbach and Becky Andresen are the new Crew Chiefs. Thank you Ryan and Becky. Both are current volunteers. They already met and laid out plans for 2025. I will be a consultant this season and am now helping with the transition.  

Here's Ryan pulling bindweed during a recent work session. He lives a few blocks from the Gardens. Ryan is committed to doing his part in maintaining the Gardens which he considers to be an important neighborhood asset. His career in public health that included several years in South Sudan makes him skilled in supporting human relationships and managing relationships among organizations. 

Ryan returned from abroad earlier in July 2024. He was born and grew up in Fond Du Lac. Ryan and his wife are expecting their first child this month.

Here's Becky removing Jerusalem Artichokes. This imperialist plant has  spread throughout the Regent side of the Gardens and needs to be periodically removed. The artichokes (seeds) are edible but not too tasty. Visit the Gardens in the autumn if you wish to pick and try them. Bon Appetit! 

Becky is a frequent user of the Southwest Path and often passed through Prospect Gardens before she began volunteering in 2023. Becky completed the Wisconsin Master Naturalist program sponsored by the UW-Madison Division of Extension. She also has recruited and supported volunteers in one of her jobs.  

Ryan and Becky, working as a team, usher in a new Prospect Gardens cycle. The Gardens are in good hands with Becky and Ryan taking the lead, while still depending on the continued involvement of other volunteers. I am now updating lists of potential volunteers. If you are in the Madison area and have not received my recent email, please contact me if you want to volunteer. I will be happy to add you to the lists being forwarded to Becky and Ryan.

Here are pictures depicting historical points in the transformation of a once weed infested space into a community asset that benefits humans, birds, butterflies, and small mammals. 

Prospect Gardens originated with Ernie, a neighbor, and I haphazardly spreading seeds. I recommended a plan but Ernie didn't want one. Little did I know that I joined the worldwide movement of Guerrilla Gardening, as I learned from reading a book. Some true Guerrilla Gardeners, but not Ernie and I, toss Christmas tree ornaments filled with seeds into abandoned lots. Ornaments shatter and seeds are dispersed. 

The planned phase began on a faithful day in early summer 2009. Sandy Stark, the Crew Chief of Glenway Prairie, where I was volunteering, told me that I should meet Steve Arnold because he wanted to do something at the Prospect site.   

As I descended the steps to the Path, on my way to work, I noticed a couple walking towards me. I overheard the man commenting how the site was such an eyesore and that something should be done. I called out in response saying that I agreed and what did he think could be done. 

We met at the bottom of the steps. After Steve introduced himself and his wife, Peg, I joyfully exclaimed that the stars were in alignment because we finally met as Sandy recommended. We agreed to meet again.

We met at the then Macha Tea House on Monroe Street (now physical therapy offices) to discuss ideas and exchange information about the Neighbor Grant Program, a possible funding source. In the Spring of 2010 Steve, with my input , wrote and submitted a grant through the Regent Neighborhood Association and with the Dudgeon Monroe Neighborhood Association's support. The city required a plan which was developed by Peter Nause, Landscape Architect, (Second Nature Landscapes) who then lived in the neighborhood. 

In May 2010 herbicide was applied to remove thick vegetation on some of the sections along the Fox side of the Gardens. Peter's plan called for shrubs as the backbone of the Gardens and lots of  native plants. Peter purchased the shrubs and seeds with grant funds. 

With Peter's guidance planting began during early August 2010, on the Fox side of the Gardens and in a section east of the steps on the Regent Side. The difficult task first required removing rocks and creating beds filled with new top soil. Here's two of the many volunteers on that faithful August 28th planting the shrubs. 

As May 11, 2011 unfolded Dorrie, a neighbor, started painting the mural: a bike on the concrete slab and silhouettes of path users along the tops of the ramp walls. A West High School art student created the silhouettes depicting Path users. 

The mural has held up quite well. Dorrie touched up the mural before she moved to Sacramento in 2021. Could be time for another touch up or if anybody comes forward, a new design? I gladly leave this matter to the new Crew Chiefs, Becky and Ryan.

On June 7th, 2011 areas west of the steps into the Regent Neighborhood began development. The stimulus was Graham's Boy Scout project to earn Eagle Scout status. I assisted Graham in developing a plan for the section. 

Graham, his Boy Scout Troop, and several fathers arrived in pickup trucks. Along with other volunteers this Regent side section was cleared and planted. A father with a chain saw was disappointed that there were no trees for removal.

Also in the summer of 2011, the area in front of the arborvitaes on the Regent side was cleared and first planted with rye oats to enrich the soil. The following summer native plants were planted. 

Several years later Laura, a long time volunteer, and I expanded the Gardens, covering the west area between the arborvitaes and the utility pole. We really never intended to expand the Gardens to the utility pole. As we worked and talked one of us said let's go a little further. As a result the Gardens reached its current size, about 1600 square feet.  

During late summer of 2011 the Hosta Garden began, starting with hosta that I saved from a neighbor's curb. The plants were removed from the front yard garden. I just could not allow them to go to the land fill. Over the years, Regent and Dudgeon Monroe neighbors donated the remaining hosta plants. None were purchased. 

Here's Joyce applying mulch in 2012. Joyce was one of the first volunteers and still continues. The summer of 2012 was a critical year for the Gardens because of the drought. Daily temperatures in July hit 100 degrees. Daily watering saved the Gardens with water provided by two neighbors.  As July unfolded, we decided to cut back on watering.  Heavy and healing rain soaked the Gardens in the middle of July.  Hallelujah!

Here's Steve and I mulching the raspberry patch before the healing rains. I had shingles. The drugs I took made the pain manageable. The mulch felt soothing to my body and the smell was so pleasant. Perhaps another therapy for shingles? 

A year later, July 14, 2013, the area to the left of the stairs to Fox Avenue, was cleared and sedges planted. My idea was to replicate a flowing river similar to the sedge created river at Allen Centennial Gardens, 620 Babcock Drive. This UW Madison garden is a favorite and worth a visit. I often ate my bag lunch in this garden when I worked on campus, a short walk from my office on Henry Mall.  

Claudia, a then frequent volunteer, helped me plant the sedges. We dug into a patch of  black, gooey soil. I thought that maybe  it was coal dust deposited by a neighbor before the Path  existed and when trains rumbled through the neighborhood. So far, digging into the unknown soil seems not to have harmed Claudia and me or the sedges.

Since 2013 other changes in the Gardens have been made. In 2014 a small garden honoring the life of Steve's wife was installed on the Regent side. Friends provided funds and helped plant the purple poopy mallow (winecups) and a cherry tree. The purple poppy mallows continue to thrive. The cherry tree despite a damaged trunk continues to produce fruit. 

During August 2016 the four colorful bird houses were installed. Nick, a nearby neighbor, and his son, Soren, built them. During the first season a wren considered moving in. Now sparrows are the occupants.

In 2018 Bob, then a frequent volunteer and crowned "mulch king" (he loved mulching), and I transplanted grasses from what was the site of Associated Bank on Monroe Street and now an apartment building. As we were digging up these "free for the taking" plants, the demolition crew arrived and told us to hurry up. 

We planted the grasses on the steep slope just east of the stairs to the Regent Neighborhood. Before planting, we created small beds and filled them with new top soil. Our efforts helped stabilize the area during heavy downpours. 

During the height of the Pandemic for nearly two months in 2020, I kept a daily journal for the Wisconsin Historical Society which included some references to Prospect Gardens. No group work sessions were held. Instead, I created a Google Group of potential volunteers and posted pictures or videos of tasks. Individuals completed tasks and reported the results. Weeding and some mulching were the primary tasks. Prospect Gardens survived the Pandemic. 

In April 2021, Hanna who lives next to the Gardens surprised us with this shed to house garden tools. A wonderful gift that keeps on giving. 

Shortly after the shed's installation, I transplanted hosta that Hanna didn't want and that bordered her garage They are now along the tree line bordering Hanna's property and the existing hosta garden.  

Recent projects included replacing yellow Ditch Lilies with native plants, starting on the Fox side. Last season, with the help of Percy, another long time volunteer and Master Gardener, native plants replaced some Lilies on the Garden's Regent side.  

The hard work of volunteers is a major reason why the Gardens have thrived during these fifteen years. For several years, Edgewood College students and students from UW Madison pitched in. 

More recently (including the 2024 season) West High School students from the Leo Club have been faithful volunteers. Their youthful energy and work ethic are always appreciated. Here's Rajeev(yellow shirt), Club President, and his friend, Gaon, another Leo Club member, are putting up the orange snow fences. Thank you Rajeev for being my contact and for encouraging club members to volunteer.  

A special thank you to all volunteers throughout the 15 years. I am especially grateful to the following who in the last two years volunteered more than once and are not already mentioned in this post:  Gregory, Shelia, Marcel, Alice, Jim, Astrid, Nick U., and Meg. 

Over the years close neighbors, besides Ernie, have lend a hand. Dianne and Ken have been big supporters of Prospect Gardens with their work in the Gardens, lending their wheelbarrows, water, and overall just keeping an eye on things for us. Thank you Dianne and Ken.

Jim and Patricia, from the Regent Neighborhood and live next to the Gardens, are also very strong supporters. I always enjoy talking to both. The couple provided access to their water, as they did during the 2012 drought. Their wheelbarrow comes in handy too. Patricia and Jim donated a forsythia and two Rose of Sharon. Thank you, Jim and Patricia.

Hanns from the Regent Neighborhood volunteered for several years before leaving Madison. I so enjoyed his sense of humor. He loved my wife Ann's homemade lemon bars and maintained that's why people volunteered. 

 Marcia and Jim, former Regent residents living near the Gardens, were likewise strong supporters. They tended a section on the Regent side, weeding and mulching. Thank you. They moved to Appleton a couple years ago to be near their son. I miss them. 

Also missed is Loren. Loren volunteered for several seasons before dying of cancer in 2020. He courageously returned to help after several complex treatments, including stem cell infusion. I enjoyed our chats and stories about his long distance trips in his mini-car.    

Friends over the years have also volunteered. Thank you Jody for helping out for several seasons. She is now busy doing final edits of her book. Many individuals have volunteered once. These one-timers are always welcome.

Twice a year Maddie Dumas, Division of Engineering's Green Space Coordinator, provides crews from Operation Fresh Start (OFS).  More helping hands from young adults to tend the Gardens. OFS has programs that  supports young adults "on a path to self-sufficiency through education, mentoring, and employment training." Thank you Maddie and thank you, OFS crews. See https://www.operationfreshstart.org/  for more information about OFS. 

Another thank you is to John Toso from City Engineering and his crews. After each work session I contact John. A crew promptly picks up plant material from a designated area on the Fox Avenue side. The crew always does a thorough job leaving nothing behind.    

The two neighborhood associations that the Gardens straddles provide support and funding. Thank you board members of the Dudgeon Monroe and Regent Neighborhood Associations. Special shout outs to Ron Rosner, Regent Board Member-at-Large, for facilitating communications with the Board and Sandy Stark, Dudgeon Monroe Board Member and co-chair, with me, of the Southwest Path Committee. Sandy has, throughout the 15 years, provided support and advice to me and others caring for prairie gardens along the Southwest Path. She is now a neighborhood friend. 

During the work sessions at Prospect Gardens, usually held once a month, we always have some fun talking with one another. We especially enjoy a break with treats provided by Ann B., my wife. I refer to Ann as our Union Steward who always ensures we take a timely break. Ann also is a valuable work crew member; plus keeps me from working too long. Thank you Ann, for being at my side during my fifteen year tenure as Crew Chief.   

Here's Ann N.(on the right) and Laura (both are long time volunteers) during a break. Ann N. has donated columbines and peonies from her backyard. Another neighbor, Giri, has also donated columbines in an effort to replace many that have disappeared from the Gardens. Thank you for these gifts.

Being Crew Chief of Prospect Gardens has brought me much joy and now it's time to move forward. Speaking of new beginnings here's a  second grade picture of me in my bib overalls. My wife, Ann, suggested I include it in this post because she thinks I look cute. Marilyn (in the picture), along with Nora, were my only grade level classmates for six years. Polandi, the rural one room school that I attended, had a total of 23 students when I was in the second grade.

Bib overalls were common and when nostalgia arises, I would like to have a pair.  But not so much that I really would get a pair! I look back on this picture well aware of all the beginnings and endings I have experienced and look forward to more. I end with this Danna Faulds message about life. 

Allow

There is no controlling life.

Try corralling a lightning bolt,

containing a tornado. Dam a

stream and it will create a new

channel. Resist, and the tide

will sweep you off your feet.

Allow, and grace will carry

you to higher ground. The only

safety lies in letting it all in –

the wild and the weak; fear,

fantasies, failures and success.

When loss rips off the doors of

the heart, or sadness veils your

vision with despair, practice

becomes simply bearing the truth.

In the choice to let go of your

known way of being, the whole

world is revealed to your new eyes.

Presence: Balancing Joy and Sorrow

 We Madisonians continue to process another school shooting,  potentially shattering the hopes of this Holiday Season.  As with other school shootings, once again, I feel powerless, sadness, and compassion for all those impacted by what unfolded within Abundant Life Christian School, while I was strolling along Monroe Street enjoying the many inflatable Santas. This one is the tallest, towering over the small ranch  home. There are at least 75 inflatable Santas, including one on the deck of our apartment installed by the owners of our building. 

Processing my emotions lands me in this virtual space where I reflect on presence while balancing joy and sorrow.  Again I turn to poems for solace and this one by Jack Gilbert is helpful.

 A Brief for the Defense

Sorrow everywhere. Slaughter everywhere. If babies

are not starving someplace, they are starving

somewhere else. With flies in their nostrils.

But we enjoy our lives because that's what God wants.

Otherwise the mornings before summer dawn would not

be made so fine. The Bengal tiger would not

be fashioned so miraculously well. The poor women

at the fountain are laughing together between

the suffering they have known and the awfulness

in their future, smiling and laughing while somebody

in the village is very sick. There is laughter

every day in the terrible streets of Calcutta,

and the women laugh in the cages of Bombay.

If we deny our happiness, resist our satisfaction,

we lessen the importance of their deprivation.

We must risk delight. We can do without pleasure,

but not delight. Not enjoyment. We must have

the stubbornness to accept our gladness in the ruthless

furnace of this world. To make injustice the only

measure of our attention is to praise the Devil.

If the locomotive of the Lord runs us down,

we should give thanks that the end had magnitude.

We must admit there will be music despite everything.

We stand at the prow again of a small ship

anchored late at night in the tiny port

looking over to the sleeping island: the waterfront

is three shuttered cafés and one naked light burning.

To hear the faint sound of oars in the silence as a rowboat

comes slowly out and then goes back is truly worth

all the years of sorrow that are to come. 

Gilbert's poem exemplifies practicing presence, meaning that you are keenly aware of what you are thinking, experiencing and feeling in any particular moment. Gilbert acknowledges the suffering inherent in the human condition while encouraging us to "accept our gladness in the ruthless furnace of this world." Gladness may be as ordinary as the faint sound of oars of a rowboat gliding across a bay. Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931), Lebanese poet, philosopher, and artist, also teaches us that joy and sorrow are inextricably connected. In the poem On Joy and Sorrow. He writes:

Some of you say, "Joy is greater than sorrow," and other say, "Nay, sorrow is the greater." But I say unto you , they are inseparable. Together they come, and when one sits alone with you with you at your board, remember that the other is asleep upon your bed.

During the December 15th service at our church (First Unitarian Society of Madison) Rev. Kelly Crocker, one of our Senior Ministers, spoke about presence. Here's access to the service. Kelly's message starts at 42 minutes into the service.  Kelly was at her authentic best; speaking from the heart, telling stories from her own life, and referring to several sources. Here's a few of my salient takeaways from her message entitled The Present of Presence .Text in quotes are Kelly's words.

• Being present to the here and now is the wisdom of every spiritual teacher and "every wise one throughout time." 
•  Dogs know how to "be filled with presence, to not be consumed with dread about the future, and as far as we can understand, they don’t seem fixated on what happened yesterday."  Human beings on the other hand "struggle with cultivating an awareness of presence."  We are easily distracted by our phones, jobs, worries, emails, social media, and the incessant flow of news. 
• Being aware of our internal selves changes our relationship with the world. For example, when we walk mindfully in nature the experience changes how we see nature.
•  Learning to be present also sensitizes us to how others are perceiving the world or as Kelly stated:  "Becoming aware of our own selves, we are able to notice the subtle expressions on the faces of those we love. We notice when a dear friend says she is okay, but something else is stirring beneath the surface."
• Presence requiring deep listening. Kelly told the story of how her son Sam as a young child  taught her the importance of deep listening. Kelly was distracted while Sam was trying to tell her something important. Sam eventually told Kelly she was not listening. Quoting Kelly: ... his tiny hands were on either side of my face, staring into my eyes and saying “listen, I want you to listen. Listen with your eyes, mommy." 

Kelly's point about listening reminds me of John Fox's poem, When Someone Deeply Listens to You.

When someone deeply listens to you

it is like holding out a dented cup

you’ve had since childhood

and watching it fill up with

cold, fresh water.

When it balances on top of the brim,

you are understood.

When it overflows and touches your skin,

You are loved.

 

When someone deeply listens to you,

the room where you stay

starts a new life

and the place where you wrote

your first poem

begins to glow in your mind’s eye.

It is as if gold has been discovered!

 

When someone deeply listens to you,

your bare feet are on the earth

and a beloved land that seemed distant
is now at home within you

Kelly near the end of her message pivoted to a column by Perry Bacon entitled Don’t Doomscroll About Trump, Do These Five Things Instead. The second recommendation was to join a Unitarian-Universalists congregation. Bacon attended a UU congregation in Louisville, KY.  He was impressed how people engaged in politics in practical ways and created a space for sharing and actively discussing their values and ideals that they felt had been rejected by their fellow Americans. Congregants were canvassing in opposition to a proposed state constitutional amendment to create a school vouchers program, The amendment failed. Here's access to the column

Our UU values include inclusion, equity, working for justice, and honoring and protecting the marginalized. Kelly expanded Bacon's recommendation by encouraging the congregation to be aware of our Unitarian values and to let the world know of our presence. Our UU presence is now very important . Quoting Kelly: Can we agree right now, the world needs our presence and our loving attention? That so many in the world are counting on us? And they need us to yell “keep going! Keep going!"

Kelly suggested that a simple way for UUs to remind themselves of our values and the UU presence is to wear a chalice pin. This one is just one of many designs. Wearing a pin is a helpful reminder of the UU values, offers opportunities to share these with others, and broadcasts our presence. So, if you are a UU, wear a chalice pin.  Another option is to select or create and wear a symbol that represents your core values. 

Cultivating presence can be challenging. My daily meditation and Qi Gong offer opportunities to be present with what is unfolding in the moment.  Influenced by Buddhism, I pay attention to bodily feelings, another pathway into presence. Anne D. LeClaire in her book Listening Below the Noise writes about how her life has been transformed by being total silent while doing her tasks on the first and third Mondays of each month. How to practice presence is popular on the Web. A quick search lead me to Calm.com and an article which provides 9 tips for cultivating presence. Click here for access to the article 

Here are three pictures associated with when I was present. Sometimes further reflection happened while writing this entry.

I saw this inflatable menorah, a block from our apartment, while on my daily walk. I felt happy that the menorah was present, representing a different story from that of the jolly plump Santas along Monroe Street. Seeing it also reminded me that there are other Holidays besides Christmas. Hanukkah starts on December 25 and ends on January 2nd, 2025. A Jewish temple is a half block from our apartment. Kwanza is from December 26th through January 1, 2025. 

Our modern day Santas represents a different story from that of St. Nicholas, the distant ancestor of today's highly commercialized Santa. It is believed that St. Nicholas was born sometime around A.D. 280 in Patara, now in modern-day Turkey. He was a thin man with a trimmed beard. 

St. Nickolas was admired for his piety and kindness. He gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. Supposedly St. Nicholas saved three poor sisters from being sold into slavery or prostitution by their father.  He provided them with a dowry so that they could be married. 

In 1881, political cartoonist Thomas Nast created the first likeness that matches today's image of Santa Claus. His cartoon, which appeared in Harper’s Weekly, depicted Santa as a rotund, cheerful man with a full, white beard, holding a sack laden full of toys for lucky and well behaved children. He gave Santa his bright red suit trimmed with white fur, North Pole workshop, elves and his wife, Mrs. Claus. Here's access to a detailed history of Santa Claus

While walking near the west end of  Edgewood Drive behind Edgewood college, I noticed the sun sitting over Lake Wingra. My attention turned towards two ice boat sailors immersed within golden hues that shimmered across the ice  One sailor was up and glided across the newly frozen lake; the other down trying to get up. The Lake groaned as I silently watched with awe the beauty of this moment. I felt connected to the Lake and the sailors, while feeling grateful for living in my neighborhood with its close access to nature.

About a week ago I was walking home on the Southwest path on a cold, calm, and sunny day. I felt grateful for the warm sun on my face and the lack of any wind. 

Another walker alerted me before I sighted this regal and calm  hawk. For a few moments I watched and then fetched my phone with its magic camera. After taking the picture, I looked at the image and turned my gaze up at the pole. The hawk was gone. I continued walking feeling peaceful and connected to a space bigger than me.

Prospect Gardens always offers opportunities to cultivate presence, even during winter. Here's three pictures of plant remnants I saw on my walk through the Gardens during our first recent significant snowfall. Included are Eckhart Tolle's observations about presence. Eckhart Tolle is a popular spiritual teacher and author of the New York Times bestseller, The Power of Now.

I sometimes ask people, 'Can you be aware of your own presence? Not the thoughts that you're having, not the emotions that you're having, but the very presence of your very being?' You become aware of your own presence by sensing the entire energy field in your body that is alive. And that is the totality of your presence.

 

  

When you take your attention into the present moment, a certain alertness arises. You become more conscious of what's around you, but also, strangely, a sense of presence that is both within and without.

When you wash your hands, when you make a cup of coffee, when you're waiting for the elevator - instead of indulging in thinking, these are all opportunities for being there as a still, alert presence. 

 I close with this picture of our Christmas tree and a quote from Rumi, a 13th-century poet, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic. He was born in what is now Iran. 

 If everything around you seems dark, look again, you may be the light.

May we all be the light during these Holidays in the midst of joy and sorrow.