Can one person make a difference? Trying feels better than not trying. I spent a couple hours this weekend doing a volunteer trash pick-up for a river that is 35 million years old, give or take. The Willamette river is the 13th largest river in the U.S. It is 187 miles long. A key source… Continue reading Willamette river
Category: river
Habitat Restoration
It was beautiful. It was fun. It was hard work. We brought our love of beavers, nature, and our lunch to spend the day tackling a habitat restoration project under the care of Beaverworks. We worked very hard with hand tools for hours. You must have wit, grit, and a sense of wonderment to complete… Continue reading Habitat Restoration
Fan letters
I dried my bed sheets on a stool in front of my stove like it was 1850. It was not. It was 2022 and my dryer is broken. I’d pass them every few times an hour and rotate them on the stool, which turned out to be grounding and pleasant and much less energy use… Continue reading Fan letters
Remember to play
Flow
I wasn’t lost but I didn’t know exactly where I was. It was a beautiful place to be disoriented. I considered freaking out but decided to use my compass instead. I found my way back. “I know no one wants unsolicited advice”… she said to me, and then gave it. It reminds me of when… Continue reading Flow
Green Island
This is where two rivers meet: McKenzie and Willamette. Sometimes I think we ask too much of nature. We go forest bathing and swimming in it; walking and running through it; drinking, huffing, and gobbling it down, all the time. It gives all that we need. How do we give back? I thought this while… Continue reading Green Island
Beaver Balance
Why do beavers matter? It’s like asking why does water matter? We need one for the other. There is something magical about beavers. They know the secret of restoration. We had beavers for a long time, about 7 million years, and then we almost lost them due to trapping. Now we are trying to build… Continue reading Beaver Balance
Notifications
I bicycled over the river today in the morning fog. There were rows of spider webs catching the wind from the bridge railing, about 500 or so. Never saw them before. Saw them today because each strand carried moisture that illuminated their webs. At the arch of the bridge, there was a group of a… Continue reading Notifications
Swimming with herons
It’s true what Heraclitus said about getting into a river. Every time, it’s not the same river and you aren’t the same person. I went to the Willamette river to update the settings of both the river and of me. Get a feel for what is currently happening in our current. What is the flow… Continue reading Swimming with herons