We are well into berry season now

Here is some wonderful guidance for a world full of wonders.

Given to us by Adrienne Blatchford.



Alaska friends, some reminders for people that are picking berries and foraging plants on Indigenous land. I share these because First people have been great cultivators since time immemorial, leaving little to no footprint and have maintained a healthy eco-system while doing so. Please honor the lands where ever you are as if they were the lands your Ancestors have turned to dust and become a part of.



•Before you head out, never say I'm going to get....or catch...or pick lots....say I'm hopeful. I hope that we are blessed with a bountiful harvest or catch. We have a spiritual symbiotic relationship with the land, waters and what they provide, they hear your spirit. We are taught not to be boastful about the bounties from the land.



•be prepared. Bring a snack, water, bug repellent, your protection, whether it be a gun, knife or big animal spray, a big garbage bag just incase there is downpour.

•always let someone know where you are going. Alaska is a vast land of many different terrains. If you go missing, we need to know where to look for you.



•Dress for the weather.



•Say a quick prayer for guidance and protection. If you happen to run into a big animal, remind yourself not to be scared. They smell fear. Talk to it and let it know you're feeding your family. NEVER RUN! Slowly walk backwards. If it starts to approach you, offer your berries and show it your amaks, your breasts. Lots of stories behind it, sounds crazy, but it works.

•if you don't know what it is, don't pick it.

•leave the easily accessible berries and plants (close to the road, trail and bottom of the hill) for elders and folxs who are not as physically able as you.

•people are going to disagree and argue with me, but I was taught that berry combs are not for blueberries, but for cranberries and blackberries. Blueberries are perennials and have fragile branches while blackberries and cranberries are evergreen branches and much sturdier.

•dont pick all the berries or plants in one patch. We have been taught to leave some behind for the birds and animals who help us ensure the seeds are spread and plants and berries return.

•if there is only one flower, plant or just a few berries in a patch, leave them and move on to the next place.

•thank the berries and plants as you harvest them. Let them know you are nourishing your body or using them for medicine, feeding your family, helping elders. They hear you and will come back to offer themselves. That symbiotic relationship again. Permission and consent. They give themselves to you. Your good luck (weird word) will continue to also be bountiful when you respect the land and what is given to you.



•leave a small offering before or when finished with your harvest, different areas practice this. A bead, tobacco, a piece of candy, a rock. Something to let the others out there know you are thankful for their guidance, the land your appreciation for your offering from them. We stick it under the tundra or a rock, lots of stories around that too.

•if you bring in trash, haul it out. You wouldn't just leave trash laying around your yard or throw it out anywhere. Our Mother earth is hurting enough already. The places you go that have wild sustainable resources can only stay that way if we take care of them.

•watch your surrounding while you are out. Listen for the Anaqtiiyuuqs, the raven. They will alarm you before you see a big animal. If they start squawking, its time to go, NOW! If the swallow start flying high, the rain is coming. If you get lost, ask a raven where to go. It will guide you back to safety.



•watch where you're walking. When you break the branches of the berry bushes, they aren't coming back. When you disturb the tundra, you are changing the ecosystem. The moss and other plants also have that symbiotic relationship with each other, and your steps can interrupt the root systems.

•If you're on the bogs, make sure you stay on the tussocks (mounds of grass) You never know how deep the water is in between. Some are like black holes.

•never follow a person if you see someone in the distance that you don't know. They're calling for your spirit.

•if someone that is transparent and floating approaches you and asks for water, take off your shoe or boot and fill it with water and offer it to the person without making eye contact. If you're not wearing shoes, pretend you are, or use your bucket. It is someone who has succumbed to the elements and is wandering. They have the ability to take you with them to wander if you make eye contact. Take it how you want, but I honour our stories and instructions when we encounter these things.

•if you don't know how deep the water is, don't go into it, especially if you are alone.

•have fun. Make the best of your time on the land while you reset your internal clock.



•make sure you share a portion of your first harvest with an elder or single parent household or with someone who has a hard time getting on the land. When you help take care of our community, it will take care of you.