Earth and its solar system are nearly 14 billion years old, and rocks are one of Earth’s oldest residents. Rocks are natural formations made up of one or more minerals—the same minerals that formed Earth, the stars, even us! Over millions of years, these minerals bonded together because of heat and pressure. They were shaped…
In the neighborhood where I grew up, there were so many lilac bushes you could get lost in them. Hollyhocks grew wild along the bases of tall limestone walls and bluffs. There was a secret patch of lilies-of-the-valley hidden between my grandfather’s box hedges and the neighbors’ garage. Moss roses grew out of the wall…
As we practice greater physical distancing and even isolation from people in these days of pandemic, we have the opportunity to embrace a closer relationship with the natural world. But how do we do that? One good way is to start a habit of nature conversations. As I say in the book I co-authored with…
Every morning I go outside, step into my little backyard, get down on my hands and knees and kiss Mother Earth. I push my forehead into her body, I smell her green, soil sweetness, I thank her for loving me and tell her how much I love her. These past few weeks I find myself taking…
“I hear the drizzle of the rain Like a memory, it falls Soft and warm, continuing Tapping on my roof and walls …” (Kathy’s Song by Paul Simon, 1965) When in the ’60s Paul Simon penned these lyrics for his British soulmate, Kathy Chitty, life was in turmoil. Upheaval was everywhere and themes of…
Dearest Prairiewoods Family, I am delighted to share about new research that I recently learned about at a Forest Bathing class that was held in January by Dr. Suzanne Bartlett Hackenmiller at Prairiewoods. She shared that just 5 minutes a day in Nature has health and wellness benefits! I was beyond excited to hear this and…
Every story has a beginning, even though there may be no exact moment we can point to and say, “Here is when the first seed was planted. This is where the story began.” This is true of Prairiewoods’ story. The beginning of Prairiewoods Franciscan Spirituality Center doesn’t rest in one specific moment in time; our…
Field of Monarchs After Mary Oliver Come with me into the field of monarchs, where all day their long thin legs hang on swaying flowers Come marvel at the edging on their wings, delicate as Tiffany glass, dots of white so precise they could be painted and the orange wings glowing in the sun like…
This morning I’m walking in the prairie just beyond the gardens, when suddenly, amazingly, around the bend I stumble into a village of monarchs. Hundreds of them, everywhere in this field of white flowers just opening—and you get the sense this is a Grand Opening—a big party, an orgy, monarchs fluttering from flower to flower,…
Tomorrow, Oct. 4, will mark a significant step in the story of Prairiewoods, when most of these 70 acres of woods and prairie will be placed in a conservation easement with the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation. Through the signing of this easement, the land will be forever protected from future development. This is a guarantee…