Dear Curiosity Journal,
As I prepare marigold petals for the upcoming natural dyes class, I contemplate how many times I’ve had these flowers in my hands since last summer. They are the crop that keeps on giving. Our first seeding last May kept the rabbits away. They bloomed throughout the summer and fall drawing visitors from near and far. They were used in art projects and ofrendas throughout the community, in schools, art galleries, and homes. We made atole and sweet tamales from them in November. They held on into the late fall until frost finally knocked them back. I saved a few boxes of the blossoms that adorned the marigold archway, which will be used during the Mexican Fiber Arts Weekend in April to dye wool and cotton for weaving and embroidery projects. Each time these flowers pass through my fingers, I feel connected to land, ancestors, and community, and I’m so grateful for my relationship with this plant. I just ordered seeds for 5,000 more! I’m also learning to work with brazil wood and grana cochineal for the natural dyes class and am gaining a fuller sense of the term “slow fashion”.
~Joy