Community and Reciprocity: Lessons from The Serviceberry

"For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Romans 12:4-5

“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:3

I recently read The Serviceberry: Abundance and reciprocity in the natural world by Robin Wall Kimmerer. Our theme for the stewardship season follows this popular slim book (you can read it in a day). “In The Serviceberry, Kimmerer wonders how this “model of Serviceberries and ancient gift economies could help us imagine our way out of the mutually assured destruction of cutthroat capitalism.” In a “serviceberry economy” we eat what’s in season, share what’s readily available, and measure the value of common spaces and birdsong alongside our GDPs.” (Quoted portion from the Presbyterian Outlook)

"If our first response to the receipt of gifts is gratitude, then our second is reciprocity: to give a gift in return.”  - Robin Wall Kimmerer, The Serviceberry. 

Some takeaways for me:

“Know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so that you can take care of them.

Never take the first one. Never take the last.

Take only what you need.

Take only that which is given.”

The cover art attracted me first, because cedar waxwings eating berries is a sight I see at a local park when I head out to take photos. I can’t say I see this sight often, because cedar waxwings are somewhat elusive, but these beautiful birds do live in the Lincoln area year-round. In the winter, I can find them hanging out with the robins, all travelling in a flock to better find food and water sources. To me, this tells us a bit about collaboration and community, hence the scripture shared above. It’s about working together, seeing the good in others and mutual generosity.

Prayer: Lord, we know we need each other. Help us to cultivate community and reciprocity where we live, be it church, school, neighborhoods. Amen.

Donna Gustafson (photos taken a Pioneers Park, winter 2021. These robins and cedar waxwings were within the same flock, enjoying the juniper berries.)