I am a mother, permaculture gardener, and ritual weaver living on the lands of the Dakota people near Kaposia. My ancestors have tended the Mississippi River for many generations, and I continue to steward this river in my day job as a biologist with the federal government. My ancestors came to this land primarily from Europe, and I am on a long journey of unearthing and reclaiming their earth-honoring practices, especially their seasonal rituals and holy days. My people were Polish, Finnish, German, Irish, Saulteaux, French, Wyandot, and possibly English. I am also healing from religious trauma from my upbringing in Evangelical Christianity. I seek to belong myself to the land and waters through devotion, ritual, and activism.