An abandoned building
On a country byway
A man’s name
“I lived.
I was a businessman. ”
A gutted trailer home
With trash-strewn bare-dirt yard
Flowers bloom
“We loved.
We raised our children here. ”
Crumbling architecture
My hands spotted and veined
Fading signs.
See the
Beauty of brokenness.
My foraging yielded spiderwort stalks (see previous entry) and curly dock leaves.
After rinsing the dock, I chopped the leaves and boiled them in a little chicken broth for a few minutes until tender. Their bright green color fades to olive drab.
I added lemon juice, salt, and some Tajin seasoning for zing but any spicy condiment will do.
I read that the dock plants are especially good at pulling iron out of the soil and making it easy for our bodies to absorb the iron.
Eat green!
Spiderwort blooms brighten the landscape this time of year with their three purple petals and crown of golden stamens.
Beautiful, and edible.
Those pretty flowers and unopened buds make attractive salad garnishes.
The young tender leaves, finely chopped and added to soup, thicken the broth like okra or file’.
Spiderwort stalks are my preference: I cut stout stalks near the ground then peel off the tough green skin. The tender white interior is one of my favorite wild salad ingredients.
Bon appétit pour la nature!