Wind

If I could pick out one card out of the Tarot deck to represent my life as of late it would be the Wheel of Fortune. I have been the victim of this force before. Perhaps you have been subjected to it's wheel-like actions, unexpected encounters, twists of fate, unpredictable surprises. Unfortunately sometimes it's energy can have adverse affects. You will start to feel your life speed up drastically, make you feel as if you were caught in a cyclone, depositing you somewhere unexpected, leaving you terrified, sick and disoriented. Only recently have I recovered from my storm; the clouds are clearing and I have found my way onto a path - but the winds haven't quite settled down yet...

I tallied it up. Since 2006 I have lived in 4 states and worked in 5. I have moved 8 times (9 come August) and have had 10 jobs. I look forward to the day where I only need to file one state tax return. It appears as if I am portraying myself as a restless nomad....

This time I'm not just going to ride the winds of change; I'm taking a more active approach. A little over a month ago I had to pack up my life (again) and move to the Hudson Valley in New York. I am working at a large private garden/estate there to bide my time before classes begin. There is very limited internet access here - which explains my long absence - I do apologize...

In keeping with the theme of this blog (though I am entitled to my non-sequiturs), let me discuss the importance of wind in the life of a moss.

Air movement is essential to the distribution of their progeny - an assurance of succession; at least of genetically variable offspring that can give their species an upper hand in colonization.

For the most part - and if you squint really hard - mosses overall have a similar morphology. You will see that they perch their spore-filled capsules on top of a (relatively) long seta. Why expel so much energy into producing such a long wirey stalk? I think to answer this question I should discuss the role of the boundary layer in the life of moss.


The Boundary Layer. Taken from Gathering Moss by Robin Kimmerer

Above is a diagram taken from Dr. Kimmerer's book, Gathering Moss (again, if you haven't already, go read this book!). The boundary layer is a phenomena that can be found on any surface - be it the surface of the earth, or the surface of a leaf. This diagram shows how air moves across a surface: the friction the air encounters as it brushes against the surface creates turbulence, the area just at the surface has very little air movement, and the area above the turbulence moves freely.

Mosses have created a perfect little niche living within this micro-boundary layer. Their lack of vascular tissue makes them tiny and perfectly adapted to living closer to a surface. What does living within the boundary layer provide? More heat, water and carbon dioxide can be trapped in this area and isn't easily blown away - especially after a moss has colonized it creating nice little pockets within its leaves to hold onto these precious elements.

But when it comes time to release the spores, they don't need heat, water or CO2, just the wind. So they poke their little capsules up through the turbulence into the free-flowing air to be whisked away to another suitable habitat. The wind can carry spores miles up into the atmosphere. It's no wonder they can be found on every continent; they certainly are perfectly adapted to go with the flow.