the serviceberry: all flourishing is mutual

i went to Costco yesterday for the first time in over thirty years and was stunned by the sheer scale of human consumption.  granted, it was a fun to be sent on the errand of buying holiday pies for staff. 

we needed 40 and i needn't have wondered if there would be enough--there were palette upon palette of pies stacked by the hundreds--pecan, apple, pumpkin. the cart creaked with the weight of them and each person thought they were being funny and original by commenting, "wow, you must be hungry!?"

it made both the person i was running the errand with and me want to air-drop abundance on people who really needed it.  not only that but it made me want to bake the pies with apples from our own orchard and give them away, no barcode scanning or credit cards needed. walking the aisles was an eye-opening cultural experience (and i live here) that left me with a mix of feelings akin to sad, disgusted, and uneasy. i couldn't help wondering how someone visiting from another culture might experience the warehouse.

errands aside, it caused me to wonder, "when is enough Enough?"  Western culture is the only one i know of where people can stuff themselves and give thanks on a Thursday and then sometimes literally trample one another to buy more on Friday. inside an economy built upon an idea of scarcity it can be difficult to grapple with the meaning and responsibility of gift economy's true abundance.  how might we keep things moving and shared, rather than hoarded and stagnate?

i'm not alone in being a big fan of Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer and have already read her books Braidng Sweetgrass and Gathering Moss.  now i'm reading her latest writings, The Serviceberry:  Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World.  not only does it make so much inherent sense to me, but it creates a feeling of joy that i certainly didn't feel in Costco.

(i get to hear Dr. Kimmerer speak in person in a couple of weeks on this subject!)  here are the guidelines of the Honorable Harvest:

-know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so that you can take care of them

-introduce yourself.  be accountable as the one who comes asking for a life

-ask permission before taking.  abide by the answer 

-never take the first one.  never take the last

-take only what you need

-take only that which is given

-never take more than half.  leave some for others

-harvest in a way that minimizes harm

-use it respectfully.  never waste what you have taken

-share

-give thanks for what you have been given

-give a gift in reciprocity for what you have taken

-sustain the ones who sustain you and the earth will last forever

which tenet stands out to you the most and why?