Sharon English, author of Night in the World, writes about the world around us for All Lit Up:
The other day a stranger visited our rural home and walked some hours on the land. He returned with stories. The area under the old white ash, he said, has been claimed by Bear. We’ve rarely seen a bear here, but by the tree’s thick trunk lay fresh-enough scat bumpy with choke-cherry seeds. The stranger also drew our attention to the St. John’s Wort and yarrow flanking animal trails near the house, plants that grow nowhere else on the property. They’re arriving in response to your presence, he said. Consider who in the household might require their medicines.