How A Collaboration Of Species and Cultures Regenerates This Farm

How A Collaboration Of Species and Cultures Regenerates This Farm

I’m standing on the road that runs past the Ozark Akerz Regenerative Farm farmhouse.  
 
This road has brought many visitors since our move here in 2014. Some are just passing through, some have stayed a night or two. Family, friends and what used to be strangers. Many have brought their appetites and their curiosity about what we are “regenerating”. Some have left knowledge and imparted ancient wisdom of their culture. That wisdom has made this farm more resilient, purposeful and helped reveal discoveries of the sacred.
 
What greets all visitors is a large, old pine tree by the road. A place of shady refuge for the few that walk this road in the height of summer. Its lower limbs are visible to the left of this picture.
 
What awaits visitors is an ecosystem of 775+ species of plants and animals. The endangered Pineywoods Cattle graze in forests they share with Bobcats, White-tailed deer, Beavers, Coyotes, Painted Turtles, Otters, Northern Cricket Frogs, Grey Foxes, Eastern Red Bats, Luna Moths, Monarch Butterflies, Lion’s Mane Mushrooms and Barred Owls to name a few.

Some visitors leave much more here than they take with them. They do their own work of regeneration, bringing back reverence to these quiet places. 

The ecosystem is in constant change. An old hay field is now regenerating native species of trees and shrubs that hold food and medicine that was once frequented in this landscape. The 2.5 acre hay field held a dozen species of plants, now that same area holds 140 species.

A Place Of Good Energy And The Sacred

A Place Of Good Energy And The Sacred

There is good energy here. A ley line runs from the western to the eastern boundaries of the farm drawing energy to ancient sacred sites and grandmother trees as old as 320 years. These sacred sites healed, brought ceremony and gathered community for many centuries. Then the reverence for them vanished, the people holding them dear forced off this land. 
 
Some visitors leave much more here than they take with them. They do their own work of regeneration, bringing back reverence to these quiet places.
 
A friend of ours brought his youngest daughter for a visit over the summer. Her bond with and reverence for nature was immediately evident. Her words evoked respect and kinship with the plants, animals, rocks, even unseen soil microbes. As we walked, she wove these individuals together with stories that created connections between them all.

Trends come and go, but the principles of regenerative farming are rooted in indigenous wisdom. They will not fade. They are carried deep into our soil, carried high by the trees and will be carried far into the future by the stones.

We stopped at one of the three the sacred sites our friend Chris, who is a member of Creek Nation, has discovered on the farm. This place, Chris says, was once one of ceremonial community. Out of the center of the boulders grows a large Hickory Tree.

Chris standing on top of another sacred place on the farm, one of healing

As we walked around the boulders our friends daughter told stories of what she saw including signs of the animals that lived there. She placed her hands on the boulders and felt the moss and lichen. When I asked her what name she would give this place she paused and said she’d name it Bridge, because it was a bridge where the trees and rocks speak to each other.
 
Out of respect for my friend and his daughter and their Native American culture, I cannot share all the ceremony and reverence that occurred around Bridge. Chris has always said that for this place to be revived, it must be a place of community again. He said there is someone nearby that will help that happen. The regeneration has begun.

The regeneration of this sacred site is a collaboration that bridges species and cultures, Pineywoods Cattle, and Human Native American and Immigrant cultures. 

I wrote this poem following our friend and his daughters visit:
 
“Their centuries long slumber creaked as an ancient familiarity pulsed around them.
 
Their eyes, crusted with lichen and moss opened slowly to greet who stood before them.
 
They smiled at their kin, honored by her reverence.
 
They felt her wisdom and her gem-like energy, sparkling, dancing, even in the fading light.
 
They breathed deeply into their new awakening, feeling their ancient lives renewed.”
 
When I shared the visit with Chris he said, “The stones are our grandmothers and grandfathers. They were here before us all and sacrificed everything to allow us to be here today. Mother earth honors them by surrounding them with all her beauty. For years she kept them hidden but with the arrival of both of your amazing energies, she has revealed them.”

The Pineywoods grazing in the forest

The Bridge To Discovery Began With Pineywoods Cattle

The Bridge To Discovery Began With Pineywoods Cattle

Our Pineywoods Cattle herd made these visits possible, they were the first step toward reviving community, or as Chris reminded me, Sue and I were the first step because we chose to bring the Pineywoods here in 2015. Before they were allowed to graze on greenbrier, brambles, privet, kudzu and other invasive plants, this forest was choked, impenetrable by sunlight. Pineywoods instinct to eat a wide what nature provides was an vital step in regenerating the site. Bridge was not visible let alone accessible before Pineywoods.

Some will soon forget their visit. Most will hear definitions of regenerative farming that are meant to obscure and rebrand the true principles of regenerative farming.

On reflection, the name Bridge is such a profound name for a place of community. It brings together Mother Earth, Pineywoods Cattle,  It represents a bridge between nature, between cultures, between species, between history and between spirits. The regeneration of this sacred site is a collaboration that bridges species and cultures, Pineywoods Cattle, and Human Native American and Immigrant cultures. 
 
I took this photo of Bridge around sunset a last fall. When we closed on the sale of the farm on November 25, 2013 this scene was not possible, sunlight could not reach the forest floor. The light reaching Bridge twelve years later is magic.

Bridge looking magical at sunset

There will be many more visitors to Ozark Akerz Regenerative Farm. The connections they feel with the land, plants and animals will vary dramatically. Some will soon forget their visit. Most will hear definitions of regenerative farming that are meant to obscure and rebrand the true principles of regenerative farming.

Trends come and go, but the principles of regenerative farming are rooted in indigenous wisdom. They will not fade. They are carried deep into our soil, carried high by the trees and will be carried far into the future by the stones.

Bridge in winter