Little Druid on the Prairie

From Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary:

Fertility: The quality or state of being fertile.

Fertile:1  a : producing or bearing fruit in great quantities : productive
b : characterized by great resourcefulness of thought or imagination : inventive <a fertile mind>
2  a (1) : capable of sustaining abundant plant growth <fertile soil> (2) : affording abundant possibilities for growth or development <damp bathrooms are fertile ground for fungi — Consumer Reports> <a fertile area for research>
b : capable of growing or developing <a fertile egg>
c (1) : capable of producing fruit (2) of an anther : containing pollen (3) : developing spores or spore-bearing organs
d : capable of breeding or reproducing

From Our Own Druidry (83)

Bounty of mind, body, and spirit, involving creativity, production of objects, food, works of art, etc., an appreciation of the physical, sensual, nurturing

(Note: As with Hospitality, I used the dictionary definition of Fertile, as Fertility was self-defining.)

I really like the first part of the ADF definition of Fertility: “Bounty of mind, body, and spirit.” Fertility is the act of creation, whether that be to create things, art, ideas, food, or babies. While babies are certainly a part of fertility, this virtue is so much more than just procreation (which is, of course, not something all Druids will be interested in!). Bringing an idea from germination to fruition is as fertile an act as planting a seed and growing it into a vegetable plant from which you harvest tomatoes. Much like with the creation of babies, fertility also includes caring for those ideas as they grow and change, as they influence and are influenced by others. This is a virtue that anyone can value and nourish, regardless of their desire (or lack thereof) to have children.

This virtue also has an element of appreciating our connection to the Earth herself. We are physical beings, and fertility is an aspect of that physicality that is valuable and desirable. Our spirits are not disembodied things, nurtured only by thoughts – we have bodies too, and are fully of the Earth. We are to appreciate our physical forms, and the world that we perceive through our senses.

Fertility, as a virtue, keeps us constantly moving forward into new things. If we value fertility, and fertile minds, we will nurture that in each other, and ADF will be richer for the community of creators that it contains. Of course, nobody can be constantly fertile all the time; moderation applies even here, and fallow periods are normal in between periods of great productivity. But fertility is the path forward. If vision is what lights and shows us the path forward, fertility is the virtue that will get us there.

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