Smokies First Salmon Run

 Day 12, Take 2 

September 25 , 2022

It was a day of rest and reflections. Tucked up on the couch Bandit, one of our 10 month old tabby kittens, kept me on the couch and made sure I rested. 

I thought about priorities and how often I forget to put myself on that list. Thinking only of what I need to get done to make myself happy with my accomplishments. 

Without a strong and healthy body however I won’t be able to keep up with the challenges of keeping my mind happy.

Day 13, Take 2 

September 26, 2022 

The morning started off feeling like I needed a lot more time in bed.

Packing the horses buckets out to their shelters my arms grew weaker and began the familiar burn of what I’ve been calling my “muscle reaction” for lack of a better word. 

How does one go from so strong to so weak overnight?! 

Then I remembered I had been experimenting with plant proteins again and that also seems to land me in this position. Maybe one day I’ll learn…. 

The fish people came today and left us with 15, ten pound coho salmon. There went my nice easy evening. 

The fish came fresh from the Yakoun River, a few kilometers from the house. 

Salmon is a staple in the pantry, the culture and the life cycle or many parts of the Pacific NorthWest. The ritual of the salmon spawn feels so incredibly natural and right here on Haida Gwaii with it’s rugged wild nature. It just is a part of life, it brings life to the shores of our communities and through the death of the salmon everyone is fed. The bears, the eagle, the sea lions, the orca (killer whales) the crab, the soil and yes the humans too. 

Today was Smokies best day ever. She watched in complete amazement as Brent and I processed our years worth of fish. The whole 2 hours of butchering she watched, hypnotized by the process of us processing food. Food she thought was extra special. 

I cleaned up the kitchen and she was right there helping. Watching every jar get packed, every bag marinated for the smoker and every vacuum sealed filet go into the freezer.

*****

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