Everything is cyclical in nature. The acorn falls from the Oak. The acorn sprouts into a sapling. The sapling grows into a mature Oak. The Oak dies, falls, and feeds the entire system from it's decomposition. The acorns it dropped sprout into saplings. So it goes with every thing. In life there is death and in death, life.
Earlier this week, Eli planted some ferns around the bases of the Elder trees to mimic their natural forest surroundings and help them thrive together. When we make the choice to dig, we know we will injure some thing. Whether it is an insect, a root, mycelium, or a worm, we are aware that our one small action affects a long list of organisms. In our effort to build the system we are in relationship with, we sometimes do harm. In this case, Eli's shovel injured an Earthworm- one of our dearest companions. We noticed it suffering, so she and Quehanna gently buried it's body back into the soil, along with a freshly planted fern.
Who knows what will come of the worm? It may die and feed the soil from it's body or it may repair itself and go on serving the system through irrigation and decomposition. Either way, it remains a part of the cycle, the system from which it came. Our actions are simple, yet profound, and the lessons of life and death are no stranger to a three year old growing up on a farm.
~Shauna
