Cultivating Life in the Spirit of Reciprocity

Note: This is the first in a series of interviews with Barbara Volk of West Virginia with a focus on the Wise Woman Tradition, the oldest healing tradition in the world.

WESTON, W.Va. — “The universe is chaos.”

With those few words, the wisdom of West Virginian Barbara Volk aptly closed out 2020 during an interview on Dec. 31.

Few who experienced 2020 would disagree with her. Beyond that similarity however, she knows that her worldview leaves her in the minority. Volk embraces the chaos as a daily life reality that is ever-present and enduring. That was true before the pandemic, she says, and will remain so after it passes. It is how one deals with this reality of chaos that is essential, says the Lewis County herbalist.

“Adaptability is crucial. And acceptance. There is a lot going on that we don’t…