The Beauty of our Ongoing story
By Christine rai and Peter Brooks
Montgomery County ’ s Ag Reserve has been the site of homes , hunting , fishing , foraging , farming , and final resting places for millennia . Those who treasure its abundant waterways , fields , and forests stretch back across cultures and peoples , forming a chain of appreciation for its beauty and benefits . The communities here are not just human constructions — whether we call it home or enjoy it as visitors , we are part of a greater community — our local ecosystem , shared with the land , plants , animals , and watersheds .
Enormous gratitude is deserved by those who came before for preserving and protecting this special place with all its resources , beauty , and history and those who continue to . As a local or a guest , we should all be learning more about it and showing gratitude for its gifts ; and indeed , as the book Braiding Sweetgrass : Indigenous Wisdom , Scientific Knowledge , and the Teachings of Plants urges , nurturing a culture of reciprocity that nourishes the earth . Author Robin Wall Kimmerer asks her readers , “ What can we give to Mother Earth ?” as part of an ethos that treasures the bounty of the world around us . An excellent guide for these efforts are the original peoples of these lands and waters , who still call this land and these waters home .
If we are to look forward and consider how we can take action to move beyond simple gratitude for the Reserve ’ s gifts , we must first take a look backward . Traditionally , much of the Ag Reserve history focus has been the Civil War era , especially from a military and infrastructure standpoint . More recently , the rich history of African-American communities has been receiving long overdue attention and support , expanding the existing narrative of
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experiences here . However , little has been shared that is easily publicly accessible about the past indigenous peoples of the area until the last couple years in which some innovative programs have been offered in the Poolesville area as part of Riverworks
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