In 'Perennial Ceremony,' a Minnesota garden as meditation

CATHY WURZER: While we're talking about trees and leaves, how is your garden looking? Possibly a little ratty, given the dry conditions and the growing season that's slowly coming to a close. Those of us who love to garden know it can be a meditative space. And there's a new book, Perennial Ceremony by Teresa Peterson, that finds the southwestern Minnesota-based author reconciling her spirituality through her relationship with her garden. Teresa is a citizen of the Upper Sioux Community and writes about the intersections of cultural identity, food, place, and belonging, and she is on the line. Teresa, this is a beautiful book. Thanks for taking the time to talk about it.

TERESA PETERSON: Gosh, Thank you for having me. I'm just delighted to be in conversation with you.

CATHY WURZER: I love the title of the book, Perennial Ceremony. How did you think about that as a concept?

TERESA PETERSON: It actually started out, Gardening Ceremony. But then I started thinking about the spaces that I get to be in beyond the garden that we tend to, including the Hillside, the River Valley, other spaces. In fact, we were just up-- Talking about fall colors, we were just up north for our annual fishing trip. And the colors were happening there. So it just reminded me of all the spaces that we have, the abundant spaces that we can be in, that can really be ceremonial.

CATHY WURZER: And you can find-- at least I'm going to speak for myself here. You can find the sacred, I think, in those spaces, too. And I was struck by what you wrote in the beginning of the book. You check on your peppers in your garden, and you tell yourself, all living things have a strong desire to live. And I think that's beautiful. What does that mean to you?

TERESA PETERSON: There's a concept in our Dakota way, Mitakuye Oyasin. And it's used pretty frequently. It's kind of said at the end of prayers. And what it means is, all my relations, all my relatives. So it's really about that interconnection and understanding that we are all interrelated, whether that's with the land, the water the plants, all of that. We're all in a relationship, whether we're aware of that or not. And so that's what really resonates with me there.

CATHY WURZER: You write about tradition. You mentioned your relatives. You learned a lot from your mom, and she, of course, from the relatives that came before her. Are there some traditions that you uphold when it comes to recipes? Because there are great recipes in this book, by the way. I like the apple butter-- that looked really, really good-- and the stuffed peppers. I'm just going to say that out loud here. So when you're talking about recipes, what other traditions do you uphold? What's your thinking?

TERESA PETERSON: Yeah, there's so much. I mean, it's throughout the whole year that we continue to pass on these traditions. I have a pickle recipe in there that's from my mom that's super easy. My dad always grew the cucumbers, so those came from him. We have this exchange.

From the Dakota side, we have our corn soup, our traditional soup called pasdayapi. That is done with our Indian corn. That's a really old tradition that is passed on. And I'm happy to know that my kids also relish in growing and starting to grow and make that soup. There's a recipe in there from my German side using green beans that we do every year.

Yeah, it just goes on and on. And so right now, we're finishing gathering tomatoes and peppers. We're going to make cider here pretty soon. And all of these things are really about spending time with family and passing along those traditions and sharing those memories, just like the fishing trip I just came from. That was something that we did with my parents every year. And my dad passed away this last May. But it was important for me to continue that tradition. And I'm so grateful to him that he taught me how to fillet fish.

CATHY WURZER: Yes. It's a good skill to have. It really is. I'm wondering, I was thinking back, I used to take in the garden, when I was living at home. That was my job. My mom would plant it. And I would take it in, in the fall. I would clean it up, harvest what needed to be harvest, and then cleaned it up. And I would always just rail against this. I hated to do it because everything's dying. And then winter's going to come. And she said, you really should look at this in a different way because, yeah, we're entering fall and things are dying, but there's spring. So her point was, there is renewal coming down the road here. And so when you are cleaning up your garden, what are you keeping in mind?

TERESA PETERSON: Well, the big thing is, planning and thinking about actually next year. So as your mom shared, so one of the things that we do is seed saving. So I select the best seed from everything. We're going to plant garlic here pretty soon. And that's going to be for next spring. So we choose the best bulbs to replant those. So it is kind of in that anticipation, as well as really celebrating in the abundance of the harvest and sharing that with friends and family and nourishing ourselves throughout the whole year. We're going to eat really well all through the winter.

CATHY WURZER: I love that. Say, you journal, I think, right? And I'm curious, as you've been writing the book, and putting it all together, and putting your words on the page, what has your garden taught you about living, life and living?

TERESA PETERSON: Wow. We'd have to have a lot of time to talk about that.

CATHY WURZER: Yeah, sorry.

TERESA PETERSON: Let's see. No, here's a couple things. One, I think, is-- it's becoming really important, I think, in this era of technology and fast paced everything. And we're recognizing, there's benefits to that. But then there's also the stress and the anxiety that our people, especially our young people, are experiencing.

So when we're out in the garden, I go out there in silence. I listen to the birds, I reground myself, touching the earth. It just does so much in that way and then also just noticing the passing of seasons and the change and that there's different roles and responsibilities through those seasons. Yeah, there's just so much. And I think the biggest thing is, for me, is gratitude and that idea of reciprocity.

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CATHY WURZER: You're right. We really do need to take time on this one and talk about it. I love hearing what you're talking about and your thoughts on that. Teresa Peterson, it's been a real pleasure. Thank you so much. We'll have to have you back.

TERESA PETERSON: Thanks for having me.

CATHY WURZER: Theresa Peterson is the author of Perennial Ceremony, Lessons and Gifts From a Dakota Garden, available wherever you get your books. Thanks for listening.