The Free Radical

I’m a foraging heretic. Sometimes I just can’t resist trying something new, even though I don’t have a clue what it is I’m trying. I’ll start small, trying just a nibble or a bite… and then decide whether it tastes like proper food and finally wait to see if there’s any negative reaction in my body. I pretty much cleaned out this whole patch of berries over the course of a couple of weeks before I finally positively identified them.

To me they tasted exactly like wild sour cherries. The problem was, however, that there’s really no such thing as wild sour cherries. Their most distinctive feature is a single flat heart-shaped pit (seed). This is what mislead me into thinking they were some sort of cherry– that, and their cherry-like flavour. The leaves of the bush however, were definitely not cherry-like.

Well, it turns out that these delicious little berries are High Bush Cranberries, an early fruiting variety. It was listed in my field guide of edibles, but the distinctive heart-shaped pit is only mentioned briefly in a tiny blurb at the end of the entry. I guess it pays to read the whole way through the various descriptions.

“Many hidden treasures await those who have the eyes to see.” Indeed, I have walked by these cranberry bushes perhaps a thousand times over the years and never noticed them, let alone felt inspired to taste them. Other foragers agree that there is a strange phenomenon which occurs when one first sets out to look for a new untried specimen. You study a plant’s preferred habitat and set out in search of it… and for the longest time, can’t find it anywhere. Then once you finally locate a specimen, ingest its particular signature, making it a part of you– suddenly you notice that the damn thing is everywhere! And you wonder how you ever could have missed it. It happens all the time!

“So many treasures, like little time capsules have been hidden and laid up in the overwhelming bounty of Earth. You are currently developing the eyes with which to see. They have been here all along, but heretofore they did not suit your agenda. The human agenda is expanding immensely, and you will discover so many natural tools to aid in your new and ancient quest.

“Earth and her allies have all the bases covered. Your task is to simply enjoy the treasure hunt… and grow into your full power.”

Will do! With the delicious lingering taste of High Bush Cranberries on my palate…