Sugaring: Lessons from Maple Tree

Sugaring: Lessons from Maple Tree

I felt there were varying degrees of assent from each tree that I asked to tap. Big Sugar, the tree in our front yard who died violently in my dreams, was the most enthusiastic about allowing me to tap them. I asked permission from them with my 5 year old; an intentional event where I hoped to teach my son something of what Dr. Kimmerer taught me. I felt like Big Sugar was pleased by this, that they felt more comfortable giving to me, knowing that the lesson of trees having personhood in the eyes of humans had a chance to live beyond one generation of non-indigenous people who now lived here. By the end of the season, Big Sugar gave about 60% of the total sap we collected; the most by far.