BEYOND WINTER: The Irrelevant Musings of An Old Man—
The serviceberry bush/tree is basically a northern plant, from Maine to Iowa. It has beautiful spring buds and bright red and orange leaves in the autumn. Its berries are important to plants and animals and can be used by humans to make jellies and jams.
Oh, and you can’t get married or baptized until it blooms.
Two hundred years ago, in many places even just a hundred, if you lived in Maine or Iowa or in-between, when roads were dirt tracks, or mud tracks, or snow-covered tracks, you were shut-in from the rest of the world from November to May.
Finally, though, after that long, hard, isolated winter, the serviceberry bloomed, and you were part of the world again. The serviceberry’s bloom meant that the preacher could get back in to your world, and hold services. That’s why the Amelanchier is called the serviceberry. When it bloomed, it was time for services, again.
Sunday morning worship services, yes, but also marriage services for those who sought warmth with another in the cold and lonely months of winter, and baptismal services for the babies born to warmth-seekers.
And not just the services. The bloom of the serviceberry meant that the preacher--the one with both spiritual and legal authority--could sign the documents that proved you were a part of society, getting married and having a family.
In these modern days of snowplows and SUVs, the preacher can get through at any time. But nobody cares if there are services. Nobody cares if the preacher signs the documents, even if there are documents to sign. No need to wait for the serviceberry to bloom.
Still, isn’t it nice when it does?
John Robert McFarland
Thanks to Phyllis Carlson, the Yooper flower lady, for
telling me about the serviceberry.
Have you read Robin Wall Kimmerer's recent book on the Serviceberry? A nice read.
ReplyDelete