Where We Flourish
Place is calling our name
A Community of Voices
The Edelweiss flower is one that exists in the most hostile of environments. It blooms in the cold and snow and reminds us that we can and must flourish in the darkest of times. It's a song of hope, of peace, a healing prayer for a country in time of crisis. - Billy Porter
We're all here. - Ella Fitzgerald as recounted by Tony Bennett
Our obligation to survive and flourish is owed not just to ourselves, but also to the cosmos, ancient and vast, from which we spring - Carl Sagan
Edelweiss
I love a good walk and have as long as I can remember. The warmth of the starshine on my skin, rays playing between the shady green leaves of the trees. Lizards, dragonflies, frogs, and even a snake killing a fish to eat (true story) are reminders of life and being beyond my human context.
That's a summertime walk. For a long time, that was the time I would walk. Ain't no way you were gonna catch me layered up in January strolling through air that could also produce snow at any moment.
There is a large family of flowers called the Asterceae. Aster is Greek for star (ok, how many of y'all saw that coming?), so their family name is Star Flower (!). Among the many relatives of the Star Flowers are daisies, dandelions, sunflowers, and the edelweiss.
This is of interest to me. Our daisies, dandelions, and sunflowers signal sun and warmth, the colorful blooming of summer. But the edelweiss is particularly different.
The French and Italian name this flower the star of the Alps1, which blooms on the snowy mountainsides in the dead of winter.
A star of Stars, edelweiss is scarce against her ubiquitous siblings. Edelweiss is heaven on earth, the cosmic reflected in the terrestrial. And this Star Flower doesn't just bloom when it's cold. The conditions that it flourishes in are snowy, rocky, and cold. Like, French Alps cold. Like Imma go pick that flower and try not to die cold.
Summer's lovely, and… there is are offerings from the winter. In the last couple of years, I have relished a walk among bare trees, quiet air, and the crunch of dead leaves underfoot. Notice I did not say snow. Baby steps. I do enjoy the practice of pulling on my layers, going for a long walk, and getting to know the place of my flourishing in its winter. I know the bugs and flowers, the trees and birds of the warmer seasons, but I want to be familiar with my place on her cold and rocky days. I want to know her when the trees are bare and the activity is low.
What does the air feel like? What sounds accompany me on my journey? What do my eyes see that is otherwise hidden under bright green and warm blooms of summer? This place is still itself, and I desire familiarity in all seasons.
There is wisdom and gift in the Star Flower that blooms on the snowy, rocky mountainside. A reminder that life does exist in the winter, even if it’s scarce or rare. The rareness calls us to songs about its very existence, baffling us into musings of life and beauty springing forth from the bitter cold.
Edelweiss is evidence that flourishing speaks more to quality than quantity, and that tied up in flourishing is the wonder of existing at all, and the beauty of being a living wonder, a Star Flower, a celestial earth-being.
Ritual of Connection
Do you have a favorite flower or plant? If you don’t, go on a walk or watch a nature show or video. What flower or plant calls your attention?
Once you have one of interest, research it. Start with Wikipedia and go down the rabbit hole. Talk to a neighborhood gardener or botanist if you know one.
Let this non-human being speak to you and learn about the wonder that draws you to them.
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3. Ritual of Connectedness
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5. Decentering Hierarchy: A Visualization
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