Blog 1

Zachary Branco

Professor Santos

English 102-042

Class Blog #1

In our first week of classes during the semester, I have increased my knowledge and respect to Mother Nature and her magnificent creations. Prior to this course, I already had a lot of respect for Mother Nature, especially with the ocean. As I come from a fishing family background, unfortunately I have witnessed the death of family members and very close people to our “fishing community”. In the chapter, “An Offering, author Robin Wall Kimmerer explains to the reader the level of respect that the father has for his environment and surroundings. Kimmerer explains that when they would go camping, the father pours some of the coffee into the stream as a sign of respect. He does this every morning so it becomes a tradition/routine for him. Now as fisherman, we also have a tradition/routine that we do before each fishing season starts. As we head out to sea, every member of the crew bites into the head of a raw fish. Then you spit it back into the ocean, it is a sign of respect and a tradition fisherman have been doing for years to have a safe but also successful year (business wise). In the chapter, “The Gift of Strawberries”, Kimmerer explains the story of the Skywoman burying her daughter and resulted in a field of strawberries. According to Kimmerer, the strawberry was a symbol of the daughter’s heart. Growing up as a kid, my grandmother would tell me a story of a young beautiful girl who died in a tragic way. She was full of pure happiness and brought joy to everyone. When she died it was said that the village rained everyday until her funeral service. After she was placed in a cemetery, the sun came out and today the location in which she died is currently a flower field. This just goes to show that life works in a crazy way and Mother Nature has control of everything.