The Whole Field • Volume 4 • No. 22 • Full Moon • December 5, 2025
The Bevy of Euonymus Alatus • 11" x 15"
A Warren of Lythrum Salicaria • 11" x 15"
The Parliament of Securigera Varia • 11" x 13"
Silkscreen and etching featuring surface roll and spot wiping on Strathmore • From Her Inhabitants (2024) • Maxwell Briggs
Photo by Sebastian ko on Unsplash
Home, for my wife and me, used to be just north of Seattle. Ask if I miss it, and I’ll tell you I miss the mountains. I’ll likely also add that I miss the public transportation and bikeability. I miss the infrastructure that allows for straightforward single-car and even no-car existence. Vehicles are expensive. They entail a trade-off—convenience at the price of heavy costs. By costs, I’m referring to your pocketbook, and beyond—environmental effects, fuel-sourcing’s geopolitical debris, human and wildlife casualties. Here, home is just outside of a village of 1,000, and that vehicular trade-off doesn’t seem very negotiable. Zillow estimates walk and bike scores at our address respectively at two and thirteen out of one hundred. Nearly six years into living here, though, I’m wondering if I’ve got that right. December snows and slick roads, combined with general hesitations about bike travel along the buzzy lanes leading towards town, push two-wheeled transit off the table. But public transportation? Maybe there’s something here worth exploring.
I’ve known about the existence of the Antrim County dial-a-ride bus for years. I’ve been intrigued, but never intrigued enough to inconvenience myself with navigating its workings. Consider it serendipity, maybe, that just as recent winter storms arrived, our vehicle with the body clearance and transmission capable of mostly worry-free winter travel conked out. That was the breakdown I needed to push me over the edge. So, for you, reader, here’s what I encountered, beginning, first off, with a mistake...
The Warp — Ideas and Inspiration
|| 1 || A hearty thanks to all who responded to the survey in the last edition of the Whole Field. Reviewing those responses has been both helpful and encouraging. If you missed the call for feedback, you're not too late—submissions are still trickling in. Here's the link. We haven't randomly selected an entrant for a gift copy of the upcoming Woven publication yet, so if you share your thoughts, it might be you!
|| 2 || When I step outside, my spirits sink as I catch sight of all I've left out in the snow that definitely is not intended for outdoor over-wintering. An upcoming melt to deal with the littered snowscape would be nice, but until then, I only need to shift my gaze slightly to be uplifted. These snows also hold unique signs of life. The hoof prints under the apple trees are a given. The persistent prints of the wild turkey that wants to join our flock of chickens make me smile. Mice and vole tunnels chart systems underfoot that I wouldn't know of if it weren't for their little caverns. Feline tracks appear overnight, consistently following the paths of my own shoveling and footprints. It's a thing of wonder; needed when the to-dos have me down. I look forward to more visible signs of the very living more-than-human world—otters belly-sliding on Craven Pond ice, eagles that stick out more now that their tree-sits are leafless, and, as a friend mentioned recently, the magic blaze of the red fox through falling snow.
Want to learn more about identifying creaturely tracks in the winter? There's probably an in-between offering, in-person and informal, here in Northwest Michigan. If I had one in mind, it'd be below in the weft. Here are three options covering the two other far ends of the commitment spectrum:
1.) Here's a light write-up geared towards Northern Michigan.
2.) Here's a slightly deeper dive with photos, coming from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
3.) And here's where to go if you're willing to travel and are serious about honing your skills: East coast-bound? The Track and Sign Certification at the Vermont Wilderness School. Prefer to go west? The Wildlife Tracking Intensive at the Wilderness Awareness School (Duvall, WA).
The Weft — News and Events
We’re heartened by a wide-range of expressions of resilient communities and gatherings. Here’s a smattering of regional events and happenings that reflect that diversity, collected for your consideration. Choose your own adventure!
|| 1 || Upcoming Events at Crosshatch Meeting Place + Mercantile—There's plenty to finish before we’re fully open, but we have a few opportunities coming up for you to visit the space at 221 N. Bridge Street in Bellaire. Click through for more details.
December 6th, 4- 7pm: Artisan Pop-Up & Holiday Card Making at Light Up the Night
December 10th, 9-11 am: Drop-in Coffee Hour with Taylor
|| 2 || Good Hart Artist Residency (Harbor Springs, MI)—Open Call for Applications. "Visual artists, writers, and composers are invited to submit applications on Submittable to our open call between December 1, 2025 through January 13th, 2026 for residencies scheduled between June 2026 - May 2027." Click here for more details on applications, upcoming residency opportunities, and information sessions.
|| 3 || The World We Want Book Club. Monthly Thursday gatherings, 6:30-8pm at the Upper Carnegie Building in Petoskey. Upcoming discussions include Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler (December 18th) and more. Find more details here.
|| 4 || Beekeeping! Benzie Bee Guild - Christmas Party. Friday, December 12th, at 5:30pm at St. Ambrose Cellars. Rick Dimanin will offer a presentation about winter bees.
|| 5 || Michigan Organic Food & Farm Alliance (MOFFA) Organic Intensives 2026. Saturday, January 10th. Registration now open. Click here to learn more about the one-day learning experience offering tracks in medicinal herbs, home food gardening, and cut flowers.
|| 6 || "Are you taking care of yourself and those you care about? At Michigan State University Extension, we know farming can be tough. Whether you or a farmer you work with needs support, Michigan State University Extension is committed to helping. All services are free. Teletherapy • Educational Presentations • Farm Financial Analysis • Business Management Strategies • Other Farm Stress Resources • Free Online Courses • Mental Health First Aid. For more information, visit: extension.msu.edu/legacygrants or contact Remington Rice at riceremi@msu.edu."
|| 7 || Happenings at The Alluvion Between Now and the Next Whole Field include: The Claudettes & Stolen Silver, Funky Uncle, TC SOUP '25, Big Fun, and Here:Say Storytelling: “Let’s Dance”.
Find more information at thealluvion.org.
sponsored by:
Desmond Liggett Wealth Advisors is a mission-driven, fee-only wealth management company with a simple purpose: to generate exceptional value for the individuals, families, small business owners, and non-profit organizations they serve. Desmond Liggett Wealth Advisors believe in and adhere to triple-bottom-line analysis for portfolio investments, ensuring that they review how a company’s environmental and social values impact its long-term resilience and, consequently, value.
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