spring ephemerals

on nettle, flower essences, birth work and winter knits

hello from the fulcrum between winter and spring, from a city cradled in a valley at the crossing of two rivers, where the tips of the dogwood are just beginning to send off their small pink flares, and the magnolia are falling heavy in lush, gingery piles on the sidewalk.

winter never fully arrived this year—not in any way my body could recognize. no snow, barely even a hard frost. I feel in many ways like a seed that needs a deep cold to germinate come springtime, waiting for a direction from the land and nature’s rhythms that never came.

we’ve had a few exceptionally warm and sunny days, and so my seedlings are in the ground and lining my windowsill. in march I practiced devotion to a favorite spring ephemeral of mine, nettle. I spent many days processing the spiny, fibrous fronds into pesto and sesame gomasio and emerald green infusions. I’ve learned to handle them so gently that I hardly ever get stung, and when I do, I welcome the medicine as an invitation to work more slowly, intentionally.

now that april has arrived I feel I’m orienting towards flowers— the flamboyant and the reserved, the intoxicatingly fragrant and the more gentle, subtle varieties. I’m starting my beloved love lies bleeding amaranth, marigold and calendula in my window, and just planted sweet pea starts out in the yard.

last week I held a flower essence making circle at the inaugural session of earth school, a one day workshop of land-based practices for seasonal living born from the mind of the magical, multi-hyphenate angie barrios, who portland is so blessed to have.

the day included making bread over an open fire, fermentation, a beautiful bread breaking ceremony, a potluck and my flower essence hour, all on the beautiful fiachra farm, stewarded by jade novarino (another portland gem.) I got sunburned and served tulsi and licorice tea and caught many glimpses of clicking hummingbirds and went home smelling of campfire, feeling a bit born again after a daylong baptism of sun and wood smoke.

it’s been a while since I wrote, and honestly I feel I’ve dropped the ball a bit. I spent september through november traveling between the mendocino coast, upstate new york and england, for a funny mix of family responsibility, work and creative pursuits.

I fulfilled a heap of longtime dreams in one fell swoop, visiting the hancock shaker village, romancing myself with a candelit meal at stissing house and then continuing on to an artist residency at world’s end farm, where I spent a week making a pine needle basket, dyeing and spinning wool with willow and tansy, drying mugwort and mullein and taking long walks with the farm’s resident border collie, tess.

I’m headed back to the east coast next week for a birth doula training, and then will head back upstate to world’s end to integrate and sow some seeds for my expanding practice as a birthworker. hoping I’ll feel inspired to write & share more about those experiences (I’m almost certain I will).

until then,

sending love to you in this beautiful and broken world

emma

~ ~ ~ BLUE HOUR RADIO ~ ~ ~

everyone around me dancing by gia margaret

even god gets stuck in devotion by dagmar zuniga

honey by ora cogan

the way love goes by wednesday

locket by villagerrr

keeper by courtney marie andrews

ripple by grateful dead

love vape by friendship

I thought love meant by natalie jane hill

climbing high mountains by sam amidon

revelator by gillian welch

this morning I am born again by haley heynderickx and max garcia conover

I was the dancer by way dynamic

love takes miles by cameron winter

javelin by kevin morby

~ listen here ~ listen here ~ listen here ~

{{ a few winter knitting projects }}

march shawl - the perfect scrap buster project I finished around the holidays, turned out to be the perfect layering piece for a mild portland winter

o’flaherty cardigan - finished last october just in time to sew on abalone buttons and take it to mendocino! easily my most worn knit ever, adopted seamlessly into my closet

both patterns by the wonderful knitwear designer imogene denton, more info on each project on my ravelry

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« currently enjoying »

the glorians by terry tempest williams - bonafide required continued reading for fans of robin wall kimmerer’s braiding sweetgrass, currently devouring via audiobook

the flower prophecies podcast — I love hearing the genesis of how folks find their way to herbalism and essence-making, and I especially loved the episode with liz migliorelli of sister spinster! if anyone’s taking her flower essence course, turning towards the flower, I am oh so envious

caveman wakes up (LP) by friendship - my favorite record of last year, spacious and visceral indie rock that cleverly alchemises the prosaic and mundane into something quite catchy and cathartic…for fans of wilco, adrianne lenker, mj lenderman, etc.

prodigal summer by barbara kingsolver - a gorgeous braided novel following three stories rooted in the foothills of appalachia, this book made me laugh, cry, fall asleep and everything in between…highly recommend the audiobook!

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BLUE HOUR is shared from the ancestral lands of the cowlitz, multnomah, clackamas, tualatin, and wasco people