“After”

Acrylic and pencil on MDF in artist’s frame • 13 1/8" x 16" • Matt Voight

In This Issue: The Amish, Ramps and Foraging, and the Indigenous Food Sovereignty Symposium.

Fairly Assessing the World Outside (Without Forgetting the World Inside)

An exploration—what brought about a writing on the Amish, a brief background on their presence in the United States, and eleven reminders from Amish culture.

An excerpt—

“The Amish aren’t perfect. Nor am I, or you. Show me a wholly perfect and consistent person, or a wholly perfect and consistent society. Call me jaded, but I say it’s impossible. That gives us all the more reason to seek to recognize and embrace what’s beneficial in others, whether we’re considering individuals or cultures. There’s room to call out what isn’t helpful, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of clear-eyed assessment and spade identification.

Yes, this makes for a more complicated world. But if you, frankly speaking, want a better world more closely attuned to reality, one that’s compassionate and honest, this is the path. It’s a path trodden by seeking to understand others. And that work best functions from a posture of respect, dignity, and — this is a big one — graciousness. Language sputters in attempts to transfer nuance, experience, and meaning precisely, especially when bridging different cultures and contexts. Be gracious.”

Read the Whole Essay (2039 Words, 8 Minute Read)

Listen to this Edition’s Essay in Audio Form

The Warp — Ideas and Inspiration

|| 1 || “Everybody Please Shut Up About Ramps” is the title of a recent Eater article. It’s a humorous take on the fanfare offered to ramps and their status as a token of luxury consumption amongst those who don’t live in regions where they thrive each spring. There are also barbs included on our slower-to-arrive, first-to-leave growing seasons. Well, we love it here, and we love wild garlic.

Here’s Tasting the Land, a two-year old voice note on foraging from David Benjamin Blower. I love the foray on the transformative nature of foraging. Responsible foraging connects you to a place—you’re tasting a place, you’re growing in understanding of place—and further, that place becomes you through the process. If that’s inspiring, here’s an easy one to replicate—DBB making dandelion coffee.

|| 2 || The reminders in this edition’s essay paint a picture of a culture meeting needs by working together. They aren’t the only ones doing so. I’ve been keeping tabs on Window Dressers, a New England organization with numerous chapters aiming to keep homes warmer in frigid winters with a simple tool—interior storm inserts built in community workshops.

In their model, folks are trained to build the inserts by hand, cutting costs and time. Those inserts are offered to community members cheaply, or if needed, free, and those who receive them are asked to volunteer some of their time to build inserts for others.

Picture a school gymnasium with learning stations for a step in the process, complete with relevant jigs and tools, and then a potluck lunch, resulting in hundreds of custom window inserts that cut down on thermal leaks and heating needs significantly. It saves money, it saves energy, it builds hands-on skills through learning together, and builds community through the very best way—working together to address real-world needs.

|| 3 || A year ago, I was in the Upper Peninsula for the Indigenous Food Sovereignty Symposium. It’s hard to believe it’s been a year. That weekend has had staying power, and those experiences and conversations come to mind frequently. If you missed the write-up, you can read it here, or listen here.

Kevin Finney and Frank Sprague, members of the Great Lakes Lifeways Institute team, presented at the symposium. Along with hosting workshops on maple sugaring and canoe building, they provided and constructed key physical infrastructure for the event. And they haven’t slowed down. You can keep up with their doings at the website linked above, or the GLLI Facebook page here.

The Weft — News and Events

|| 1 || Beekeeper Guilds. The Grand Traverse Beekeeping Club meets regularly on the first Thursday of the month at the Traverse City Senior Center at 6:30pm. Their May meeting is being rescheduled, and includes discussion on bee pests, testing and treatment, so keep your eyes peeled for further information and updates on their Facebook group here.

The Little Traverse Bay Beekeepers Guild has apiary-hosted events tomorrow, May 20th, and June 1st. Tomorrow’s event features a demonstration on making splits and is hosted by James Anglewicz at Forest Apiary in Alanson, from 1-3pm (please bring bee suits and a chair.)

June’s monthly meeting, “Things I Wish I Knew When I First Started Keeping Bees”, will be hosted by Jay and Jan Kendall in Indian River, 6-8pm. Discussion will also cover pollinator plots, Russian bees and horizontal hives. Bring your own bee suit and chair.

Find more details on both, and future, LT Beekeepers events here.

If you don’t have bee protective equipment, but are interested to attend and get involved with beekeeping learning, please contact ltbeekeepers@gmail.com.

|| 2 || May Happenings at The Alluvion. Balance (Jazz Duo), Saturday, May 20th, and Full Cord (Bluegrass) Friday, May 26th. This is in addition to the Jeff Haas Quartet, Funky Fun Mondays with Big Fun and Funky Uncle, and all the other Alluvion events listed here.

|| 3 || Go find Taylor at the Bellaire Farmer’s Market and Community Yard Sale Today! The Bellaire Summer Farmer’s Market season begins anew Friday, May 19th, from 8am-1pm (8am-12pm, the rest of the season). The grand opening also coincides with the community yard sale, both of which are located at the ASI Pavilion.

||4 || Tip of the Mitt Fiber Fair. June 3rd and 4th, with workshops beginning June 2nd, at the Emmet County Fairgrounds in Petoskey. Click here for workshop details and a list of forty vendors participating in the Fiber Fair.

|| 5 || Thank you to all who supported the Pierce family. Tim, Stephanie and Hazel experienced a tragedy: Their shop—a place of craft, care, and creativity—was destroyed by fire. Find an update and note of gratitude from Tim here.

|| 6 || You might be wondering what’s happening with the Northern Michigan Small Farm Conference. There’s too much to detail here, but we’ll share this snippet—August, Antrim County, ten to fourteen farms and other facilities, hands-on and classroom workshops, travel from farm to farm, and social time. We’re excited. Click here to follow along, and watch for more news in upcoming months.

|| 7 || Veterans Inspiring Veterans Art Show ‘23. The Veterans Inspiring Veterans Art Show will be held on June 24th, at the Flintfields Horse Park in Williamsburg. Applications from veterans to show artwork are being accepted through May 11th. All proceeds from artwork sold go directly to the artists. Find more information on applying, or attending the show, here.

|| 8 || Inland Seas Pier Party. Welcome the ISEA’s newly acquired schooner Alliance to Suttons Bay on Saturday, June 24th, from 11am-3pm, as it sails in with Inland Seas. Enjoy an afternoon of deck tours, music, and food while celebrating the schooners that inspire people of all ages to be curious and passionate about protecting the Great Lakes. Find more information here.

|| 9 || Farming is a highly unpredictable, hazardous, and stressful occupation, and this is why Michigan State University (MSU) Extension is committed to supporting agricultural professionals. These professionals face tough decisions that affect their families, livelihoods, operations, and farms.

MSU Extension has a team of over 20 dedicated professionals who combine expertise in farm business management with mental and behavioral health. They provide innovative resources and support, such as teletherapy, financial services, free online education, and community presentations. These tools are not limited to farmers but are also available to farm workers, local farm organization chapters, veterinarians, Farm Bureau members, county commissioners, and other key stakeholders in agriculture and agribusiness. To learn more, click here.