In Place 46

 46

In spring, dandelion and nettle tea,
in summer, mint and blackberry tea,
in fall, chicory and mulberry tea,
in winter, fir needle and dried vegetable tea

She sees that around her, with the cultivation of a little knowledge, the earth is inclined toward generosity. She reciprocates by treading lightly -- has gardened without chemicals for fifty years, and, to the extent possible for her, used hand tools. She knows she has not been as faithful to these principles as she could have, and that this has not dented the world's problems, but when she goes from garden to zazen, seldom feels that nagging sense of something left unaddressed. It is in the present moment, and only there, that there can be this simplicity.

Sacred refers to that which helps take us (not only human beings) out of our little selves into the whole mountains-and-rivers mandala universe.
--Gary Snyder, The Practice of the Wild 94