No matter which side of the evolution debate we believe in, we all probably agree that thousands of years ago, or maybe fifty years ago in backwards New England, there were whole civilizations that relied on hunters and gatherers to put food on the table. The hunters were strong, focused individuals who could follow the scent and signs of an animal for many miles, never deviating or becoming distracted, until their stones or arrows or clubs met their marks.
Gatherers, on the other hand, were less-than-focused on the path ahead. They were more naturally inclined to peer off into the woods and look under bushes for stray berries or a squirrel's stash of nuts.
I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. The hunter is the teenage girl on her way to the record store to get the latest Lady GaGa CD. The gatherer is the three year old brother being dragged along and possibly sworn at as he bends down to examine every bug and blob of gum on the sidewalk. At the grocery store, the hunter is the man who goes to the grocery store with milk and eggs on his list and leaves with milk and eggs. The gatherer is the woman who goes into the grocery store with milk and eggs on her list and leaves $100 poorer but with milk, eggs, and a score of other things she can also probably use.
I am definately a gatherer. "Focused" is not a word that I would ever use to describe myself. I am more creative and even distractable. I thought an entire day about what I might say in a Blog, and about who might want to read it. I am a teacher, a parent, a step-parent, a daughter, sister, friend, and lover. I love to take photographs and to write, to look things up and to learn about everything.
That's why this blog is called Scatterings. On any given day, I may write about any of these things or about something else entirely. The one thing that will always be true, though, is the fact that I am a gatherer. When something is interesting to me, I have to check it out. Sometimes I will photograph it, sometimes I buy it or try it out, and here in Scatterings, I will write about it. Some days you might agree that what I have written is worth your time and sometimes you won't, but I hope you will wander down my road often and take a look.
