The Serviceberry

By Robin Wall Kimmerer

☕︎☕︎☕︎

“This abundance of berries feels like a pure gift from the land. I have not earned, paid for, nor labored for them.”

Robin Wall Kimmerer’s The Serviceberry is a reflection on the nature of gifts—what it means to receive freely from the land and how we, in turn, can reciprocate that generosity. This was the quickest read I’ve had in a while, but it carried a depth that stayed with me long after I put it down.

Kimmerer’s words brought me back to my own relationship with the land, to the moments of quiet gratitude I’ve felt while gardening or simply walking through a place untouched by greed. The idea that nature gives without asking for payment feels both beautiful and fragile in a world that so often takes without giving back. The serviceberry, like so many of the earth’s offerings, exists in a web of reciprocity—feeding birds, animals, and humans alike. But what do we give in return?

I’ve been struggling with the ongoing degradation of public lands, the relentless push to carve, drill, and extract as if there are no consequences. The idea that we can take as much as we want, from wherever we want, without thought for the future—it weighs heavily. But Kimmerer’s writing, alongside other naturalist works I’ve read this month, has helped me think about these issues in a more solvable way. So often, the destruction feels overwhelming, too massive to fight. But reciprocity offers a path forward.

If we accept the gifts of the land, we must also recognize our responsibility to care for it. That care can take many forms—stewardship, advocacy, restoration, or simply teaching the next generation to see nature as kin rather than a resource. The serviceberry does not hoard its sweetness; it gives, over and over. And perhaps that is what we are called to do as well—to meet generosity with gratitude, to protect what remains, and to give back where we can.

This book was a gentle but powerful reminder: we are part of this web, and our role in it matters.