For the Love of Planting

And then there are some days that I meet people like Lugwuii. When I went to visit her to take her portrait, she was in her home garden. Although she does not roam into the nearby forest anymore, she has a wealth of medicinal plants (pictured) and wild orchids in her garden. This image was made on my fourth visit to her house. During the other times it wasn’t appropriate to make her portrait, or she had visitors. But, on this day, with ruddy hands and a smile that can change the world, she explained locally important plants and their uses to me. Although I have yet to be able to understand everything she tells me, one thing is clear. She loves planting, gathering, and this entire act that some of us call gardening. Others might call this process healing and since she is part healer, this might be an appropriate label. And, I’ve never met an unhappy healer.