2024 Summer Solstice Tea Ceremony
Thursday June 20, 2024 | 6:30pm | Lowell State Game Area
You’re humbly invited to be a valuable contribution to a tea ceremony and conversation about the past, present and future of West Michigan’s relationship with nature.
In attendance will be conservation professionals, activists, community members and nature itself - all of which have valuable and important perspectives to share.
The intention of bringing you all together is to align ourselves on our hopes of what the future could look like as West Michigan continues to grow and discuss what balance could look like in the relationship between humanity and our natural landscapes in the future.
I believe that a restoration of balance to this relationship is possible, but we are stronger in this fight together.
Format
This will be an evening that prioritizes the opportunity for everyone to share their perspectives and to learn from everyone else’s experiences.
More than 20 individuals are expected to participate in this event and each person deserves to have their perspectives heard if they would like to share. You will only get one opportunity to answer one of the following questions to ensure that everyone who wants to share their perspectives has the opportunity to do so - please arrive with your answers in mind.
The 3 questions we will be hearing perspectives on are:
What has nature taught you that has made you a better member of society?
1.
What do you see working that is making a positive change in returning balance to our collective society’s relationship with nature?
2.
What vision do you have for the future of West Michigan’s relationship with nature?
3.
If time allows, we will have an open floor and you will be given another opportunity to share - but this will be an event of mutual respect for one another and provide a safe space for open discourse on a topic that has a wide variety of perspectives.
Each one of you are a person whose opinions I respect, and I know that this is a complex discussion - but without opportunities for conversations like this to be had, we operate individually. Community and cultural values are created by passionate people who step up to the plate when opportunity arises and I fully believe that within West Michigan - that opportunity is upon us. Through unified viewpoints and collective efforts, we can solidify respect and stewardship for our natural landscapes as a cultural pillar of West Michigan’s identity.
The Tea
Tea, whose ingredients have been foraged from the land where we will be having our conversation, provides an opportunity for the land to be a part of our conversation. We can’t advocate for balance and a future that benefits all biodiversity without allowing the land an opportunity to speak to each of us as well to share its stories and perspectives.
There will be 3 rounds of tea served, brewed using water taken from natural springs on this landscape. Each round’s flavor uses ingredients whose individual stories represent the theme of the question discussed during that round.
White Pine
The tree that built Michigan’s economy and was a primary driver of European settlement.
1.
Yellow Birch
A early successional tree species that grows quickly to help a landscape recover from disturbance and has become more common due to humanities impact on the land.
2.
Wild Bergamot & Yarrow
A blend created with two plant species valued for their important medicinal value to ancient societies of both the Americas and Europe.
3.
Schedule of Events
6:30 - Arrival & Chattin’
6:50 - Opening Statement
7:00 - First Cup of Tea - Eastern White Pine
7:05 - Question 1 Discussion
7:35 - Second Cup of Tea - Yellow Birch
7:40 - Question 2 Discussion
8:15 - Third Cup of Tea - Bergamot & Yarrow
8:20 - Question 3 Discussion
8:50 - Closing Remarks
9:25 - Sunset
Please Bring
• Something to Sit On
• A Cup For Tea
• An Open Heart
Note:
I will be arriving at the Lowell State Game Area at 1:00pm - feel free to arrive as early as your schedule allows to explore this place beforehand.
The Location
Coordinates: 42°59'36.7"N 85°18'56.7"W
The area we will be meeting is along the Flat River at the end of Montcalm Ave. From Fallasburg Park, take McPherson St. east. The first road on the north side of the road is a dirt road named Montcalm Ave. Halfway down this dirt road is a cul-de-sac with a two-track that continues further back into the northernmost portion of the Lowell State Game Area. If you have to leave promptly upon closing remarks, I suggest you park in this cul-de-sac to ensure ease of departure. It is approximately a 10-15 minute walk from this cul-de-sac to our meeting location.
If you continue north on Montcalm Ave. there is a small parking area for 4-5 cars on the west side of the two-track near the top of a hill. The two-track is washed out and getting a car further down to the meeting location is not possible. All other vehicles can park on the two-track.
To help minimize parking other vehicles in, please coordinate to carpool or leave other vehicles at the Fallasburg Park Disc Golf Course. If you intend on staying until sunset, please arrive early to allow others who need to leave earlier to park behind you.