Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Introduction 1
4. Poem: Unsigned Letter to a Human in the 21st Century 6
5. I . Embedded. Our ancestral responsibility is deeply rooted in a multigenerational relationship to place
6. A. Poem: Great Granddaddy 13
7. B. Essays
8. Essay Ancestor of Fire 16
9. Essay Grounded 20
10. Essay My Home / It’s Called the Darkest Wild 25
11. C. Interview: Wendell Berry 33
12. D. Poem: To the Children of the 21st Century 44
13. II. Reckoning. Reckoning with ancestors causing and ancestors enduring historical trauma
14. A. Poem: Forgiveness? 49
15. B. Essays
16. Essay. Sister’s Stories 51
17. Essay. Of Land and Legacy 56
18. Essay. Cheddar Man 61
19. Essay. Formidable 68
20. C. Interview: Caleen Sisk 73
21. D. Poem: Promises, Promises, Frances 84
22. III. Healing Enhancing some ancestral cycles while breaking others
23. A. Poem: To Future Kin 89
24. B. Essays
25. Essay. Moving with the Rhythm of Life 90
26. Essay. (A Korowai) For When You Are Lost 95
27. Essay. To Hope of Becoming Ancestors 100
28. C. Interview: Camille T. Dungy and Crystal Williams 110
29. D. Poem: Yes I Will 117
30. IV. Interwoven. Our descendants will know the kind of ancestor we are by reading the lands and waters where we lived
31. A. Poem: Alive in This Century 121
32. B. Essays
33. Essays. What Is Your Rice? 124
34. Essays. Restoring Indigenous Mindfulness within the Commons of Human Consciousness 130
35. Essays. Reading Records with Estella Leopold 138
36. Essays. How to Be Better Ancestors 142
37. C. Interview: Wes Jackson 145
38. D. Poem: Omoiyare 154
39. V. Earthly Other-than- human beings are our ancestors, too
40. A. Poem: LEAF 157
41. B. Essays
42. Essay. The City Bleeds Out (Reflections on Lake Michigan) 159
43. Essay. I Want the Earth to Know Me as a Friend 166
44. Essay. The Apple Tree 172
45. Essay. Humus 177
46. Essay. Building Good Soil 182
47. C. Interview: Vandana Shiva 185
48. D. Poem: Your Inheritance 194
49. VI. Seventh Fire
50. A. Poem: Time Traveler 197
51. B. Essays
52. Essay. Seeds 200
53. Essay. Onëö (Word for Corn in Seneca) 210
54. Essay. Landing 214
55. Essay. Regenerative 219
56. Essay. Nourishing 225
57. Essay. Light 232
58. C. Interview: Ilarion Merculieff 240
59. D. Poem: Lost in the Milky Way 252
60. Acknowledgments 255
61. Notes 257
62. About the Contributors 263
63. Index 273