The lawn we adopted has bloomed rapidly into a wildflower sward. Various shades of grasses have been joined by oranges and lemons, pinks and purples, whites and reds - asters, bedstraw, buttercups, campions, chamomile, clovers, columbines, dandelions,daisies, devil's paintbrush, eyebright, forget-me-nots, irises, lady's thumbs, strawberries, violets, vipers bygloss, yarrow, to name but a few.... and that is just in the grass. Unmown, left to be, they are growing out in profusion, waiting for the sun to provide the spark for a riot of colour and texture. They have all blown in here on the wind, on their own terms; none were planted on a human whim from a packet or introduced from away. They have chosen this place in order to germinate; this place has chosen to birth them.
A new occupation here will be observing, cataloguing, and selectively harvesting, wildcrafting the abundantly diverse vegetation that only Nature curates. There is, after all, endless choice in the sea greens, berries, herbs, flowers, leaves, roots, barks, fungi that have taken up home all around us here. In their wildness lies the essence of strength and resilience; herein lies concentrated energy, flavour, and nutrition. Theirs is true essential living. Immersed in this vibrant environment, swept clean by the elemental rain and fog, sun and wind, I too find my true home, in a similar climate to that of my island forebears.
