The Land Wants Us to Live Differently here Jonathan Crane

Welcome to the last of five podcast interviews designed for the liturgical Season of Creation, recorded throughout the growing season of 2021. I am your host, the Rev. Jonathan Crane, a priest in the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton.

In this interview I speak with Rick Dobush a grain farmer near Warwick, Alberta. Rick grew up on the land he farms, and through his parents, remembers how much farming has changed in the last century. Rev. Chelsy Bowman and I traveled out to chat with him on a beautiful fall day not long after he had pulled in his harvest for the year. We talk about the realities of being in the modern grain business, the changes in his community, and Rick’s reflections of living on this land.

Thank you for listening in.

In this interview I speak Michelle Nieviadomy. She is an assistant director at the Edmonton native Healing center as she journeys alongside our urban Aboriginal population - reconnecting people to culture and ceremony. I know her from her work with the Inner City Pastoral Ministry at the Bissell center and through the diocesan social justice committee. This conversation was recorded as part of a trip out to Alexander first nation to gather sage for winter use.

https://e-nhc.org/

http://www.icpmedmonton.ca/wp/

Diocesan social justice committee: https://edmonton.anglican.ca/what-we-do/social-justice--2

We often forget that engaging land means engaging urban land too.  What piece of land do you love in your city?  What tree has become beloved to you and your family?  Have you planted anything that will outlast you by a hundred years, a thousand years?  How does planting trees change our perspective and renew the earth.  Dustin Bajer is an educator, master gardener, writer, beekeepers, and ecologically inspired designer, He lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  As a child playing in the forest, Dustin developed an appreciation for the natural world. As an adult, Dustin works to create a better world by partnering with nature.

Dustin's Websites:

https://www.dustinbajer.com/

https://www.shrubscriber.com/

https://forestcityplants.com/

Dorothy Marshall and her son farm along the battle river near Camrose.

Join us as we meander through the sheep pen, visit some brand-new born friends, and end up chatting near the cattle slough.  In the mean time we explore the urban-rural disconnect, organic farming practices, awe and mystery in the way of growth, and the history of Dorothy's area.  You might consider how much you love your current lifestyle.  What works for you?  What doesn't?  What do you really love about what you are doing now?  As well, how much do you know about where your food comes from, how it's grown, and who grows it?

Thanks for caring for the land you are on and listening in.

We begin our season of creation podcast journey in a familiar place to many in the Diocese of Edmonton - Camp Van Es (https://vanescamp.com/).  Rev. James Lavoy (https://www.rioterracechurch.org/) opens up a reflection on place as he expresses his sense of vision and mission for the camp land in its 80th year of church use.

Some questions you might consider as you listen:


What land do you love in the world?  How often do you get to spend time there?
How much of the history (settler/pre-settler) of that land do you know?
Do you encounter God more fully out in nature?  Why or why not do you think?

Host: Rev. Jonathan Crane

https://edmonton.anglican.ca/