Here in Asheville, we hear a lot of lip service about “sustainability” and living “green” and being kind to Mother Earth. I say “lip service” because to most people, that just means buying a NorthFace jacket or eating a fancy organic lunch at the Laughing Seed.
But the folks at the Firefly Gathering stand ready to teach you the real skills you need for sustainable living. Here’s the list of what you’ll learn during a late June weekend in the woods somewhere close to Asheville:
Archery Atl-atl making Bamboo utensils Basic car repair Beekeeping Bird calls and identification Blacksmithing Book making Breadmaking Brewing (meadmaking) Buckskin pouches Bullroarers Butchering Candle making Canning Composting toilets for your home Cordage Debris hut making Deer leg usage Diaper free parenting Drop spinning Drumming Felting Finger weaving Fire (bow drill, hand drill, flint and steel) Fire building Flintknapping Herb walk Hide tanning Kudzu basketry Moccasin making Net bags Pelt tanning Pigment paints Pine needle basketry Pottery Primitive cooking Primitive instruments Quillwork Rivercane flutes Salve making Scouting and camoflauge Soapmaking Solar Storytelling Tincture making Tracking Trapping (modern and primitive) Veggie oil conversions Wild woods walk Wilderness awareness Wilderness first aid Womens’ herb walk Wood carving
The more I look at this, the more I think I need to sign up for this. I was just thinking the other day that I need a buckskin pouch. I’ll report back.
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Now this is a list that makes people laugh and poke fun as they look down their nose on common folks. Many pretentious, uppity folks who didn’t grow up in these mountains, that is. Yes the ones wearing their northface and dining at Laughing Seed.
I know how to do alot of these things because my father taught me and his father taught him. I teach my child to know which roots help heal and which plants sting and which snakes are dangerous and which snakes to leave in the yard to keep the bad ones away. How to find north, make candles, beekeeping and can.
I also teach her to braid rugs, knit, cook and sew. My uncle teaches blacksmithing, Dad teaches all his grand kids about ginseng, making sassafras tea, poltices and which type tree to cut a branch from to find water.
I guess it is that folks from elsewhere do not understand our die hard independence and we don’t like big government doing things for us. We like doing it on our own and for our community.
Just rambling a few thoughts this evening.
Thanks Gordon! Fixed it!
Two of the things in that list kind of jumped out at me: Basic car repair and Veggie oil conversions. Where’s Bicycle repair in their list? At least they have Moccasin making.
Bad link to Firefly gathering, yo.