
The warming sun and the gentle breezes of Spring always turn my thoughts to Geoffrey Chaucer. The opening lines of his beloved poem, The Canterbury Tales, the words and sound of the words, are music to me:
Whan that Aprille with his shoures soote,
The droghte of March hath perced to the roote,
And bathed every veyne in swich licóu
Of which vertú engendred is the flour;
Chaucer, who lived in the late 1300s, was the first significant poet of the English language. Chaucer’s language, known as Middle English, had gained an expressive power that surpassed the earlier forms of English (Old Norse and Old English) and Norman French. England was establishing its nationhood at the time after three centuries of French rule.
And when the poet turned his attention to the real people around London and the countryside, the language made the medieval world of England come alive. The Tales showcased the language’s ability to capture emotion, drama, humour, humanity and irony — things we take for granted today but were all shiny and new in the Middle Ages.
Caricatures of the common folk
The characters in The Canterbury Tales are primarily caricatures of the common folk. But with Chaucer’s poetic skill, they come alive. 2
So when April rolls around, the opening lines to The Canterbury Tales come readily to mind because the same things are true of Spring today as they were in the 1300s:
Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt and heeth
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,
And smale foweles maken melodye,
That slepen al the nyght with open ye,
I was enchanted by these words when I read them 50 years ago. They still sing to me! The warming sun and rains of April engender new life, and the world renews itself after the cold barrenness of winter. 4
Closer to home
But last year, I realized there are voices far closer to home speaking of Spring in a different context: the voices of the Coast Salish Peoples, particularly the W̱SÁNEĆ (Saanich) First Nation.
I’ve been fascinated by the poster on display in front of South Pender’s Church of the Good Shepherd. It’s called “The Thirteen Moons of the W̱SÁNEĆ Year.” It shows the “integration and flow of activities” the W̱SÁNEĆ people undertook over their year.
Looking at “The Thirteen Moons of the W̱SÁNEĆ Year” (see picture above), April (roughly speaking) is shown as the month of salmonberry, red rock crab and hummingbirds. It is also the month for red alders and the “moon of bullheads” (the fish).
July is the month of salal, octopus, oystercatcher and honeysuckle. And so on.
All was sacred to us
But the traditional W̱SÁNEĆ year, according to the illustration’s caption, did not differentiate between these seasonal markers the way Geoffrey Chaucer and his colleagues did. The caption reads:
“It was not our way to separate these activities when we lived a traditional life because all was sacred to us. Our art, language, spirituality and our everyday activities were all one. In our homes and in the privacy of our longhouses, we continue to observe the wisdom of the past.
“The moons are markers, not calendar months. Our “year” was more than 365 days. Some years would have thirteen moons, and some would have twelve. The land and marine ecosystems in this area were so rich that they supported the W̱SÁNEĆ culture year-round for thousands of years. Elders taught us that nature provided for food, medicine, clothing. tools. transport and building materials as well as beauty and cultural guidance.”
Nature is pre-eminent in this calendar, and we “visitors” don’t get any sense of the expressiveness of the language the W̱SÁNEĆ people spoke. Is this because the language was primarily unwritten? But through the pictures and words of the calendar, it’s clear that human life and nature were more integrated than in European culture.
And, in the calendar of the W̱SÁNEĆ year, beautifully expressed.
Spring is inseparable
According to the calendar, Spring is not a distinct entity the way Chaucer sees it, but part of a larger cycle, impossible to be pulled out and separated from all the other elements of the seasons.
The poster is haunting, remarkable to look at and wonderfully expressive in its own right. I welcome the language of the first people and the way they viewed the seasons and integrated their elements into everything they did and saw.
And as I experience the onset of Spring — the growing birdsong in the mornings, the chorus of frogs in the evenings, the gentler winds over the Salish Sea — I hear a distinctive voice that is every bit as clear as the words of the great Geoffrey Chaucer.
The two cultures/languages are worlds and ages apart, but I think there is a third language: that of the natural world. How ethno-European and North American aboriginal people describe Nature may be different in so many ways, but they are equally poetic. Equally compelling.
Happy Monk Tidings - September 20, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Garlic Levain Bread; BLOG: Harumph! Author Says Leave the Baking to the Professionals! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Sep 20
![Happy Monk Tidings - September 20, 2023 🍞 - BAKER'S CHOICE: Garlic Levain Bread; BLOG: Harumph! Author Says Leave the Baking to the Professionals! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Tidings - September 20, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Garlic Levain Bread; BLOG: Harumph! Author Says Leave the Baking to the Professionals! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
A hefty Country Miche, formula from Breadlines published by Bread Bakers Guild of America. Hefty in size, hefty in flavour. Four flours (Sifted Metchosin Wheat, Rye, Buckwheat, Spelt), a super-active levain and an intense crust colour. I think I’m addicted! It’s kind of finicky, though, and trying to work out a reasonable schedule to produce 40 loaves for Happy Monk customers.
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. #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderislands #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany #wholegrainbread #breadhead #michebread #realbread #rusticbread #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries
Sep 14

A hefty Country Miche, formula from Breadlines published by Bread Bakers Guild of America. Hefty in size, hefty in flavour. Four flours (Sifted Metchosin Wheat, Rye, Buckwheat, Spelt), a super-active levain and an intense crust colour. I think I’m addicted! It’s kind of finicky, though, and trying to work out a reasonable schedule to produce 40 loaves for Happy Monk customers.
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. #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderislands #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany #wholegrainbread #breadhead #michebread #realbread #rusticbread #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries
REMINDER: Happy Monk is on Summer Break! We`re off on our annual late summer respite. Next bread day is Sept. 22. See you then! (photo by Davy Joel Rippner)
Sep 6

REMINDER: Happy Monk is on Summer Break! We`re off on our annual late summer respite. Next bread day is Sept. 22. See you then! (photo by Davy Joel Rippner)
Happy Monk Tidings - August 30, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Mountain Rye Bread; BLOG: Making Bread and Art With A Message; NOTE: Happy Monk is on Holiday for the Next Two Weeks - https://mailchi.mp/ae234548bd1a/happy_monk_tidings_aug30
Aug 30

Happy Monk Tidings - August 30, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Mountain Rye Bread; BLOG: Making Bread and Art With A Message; NOTE: Happy Monk is on Holiday for the Next Two Weeks - https://mailchi.mp/ae234548bd1a/happy_monk_tidings_aug30
Happy Monk Tidings - August 23, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Bold Beer Bread; BLOG: Cheese Karma; More Happy Monk holidays coming soon! https://mailchi.mp/783a72739071/happy_monk_tidings_aug23
Aug 23

Happy Monk Tidings - August 23, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Bold Beer Bread; BLOG: Cheese Karma; More Happy Monk holidays coming soon! https://mailchi.mp/783a72739071/happy_monk_tidings_aug23
TASTE TEST! I’ve admired @eds_bred of Whistler for some time, though never been there or tasted their bread. But a generous customer brought me a loaf yesterday, a beautiful-looking Sesame-Poppyseed loaf. Coincidentally, I’d made a Sesame Sourdough loaf as my Baker’s Choice this week. How did the two loaves stack up? The Ed’s Bred’s loaf was gorgeous with a dark, sesame-poppyseed crust, lovely colour, subtle flavour. The wood-fired Happy Monk entry had a little less colour, but packed a powerful sesame whoomph. Great flavour for sesame fans! What can we learn from this?
(Looking forward to Ed’s book, Bred, coming in November!)
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#sesame #sesamebread #breadhead #breadlove #wildyeast #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bread #sourdough #sourdoughbaking #sourdoughbread #bakersofinstagram #artisanbread #realbread #rusticbread #woodfired #woodfiredbread #woodfiredovenbread #whistler #whistlerbread #sesamepoppyseed #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany
Aug 12

TASTE TEST! I’ve admired @eds_bred of Whistler for some time, though never been there or tasted their bread. But a generous customer brought me a loaf yesterday, a beautiful-looking Sesame-Poppyseed loaf. Coincidentally, I’d made a Sesame Sourdough loaf as my Baker’s Choice this week. How did the two loaves stack up? The Ed’s Bred’s loaf was gorgeous with a dark, sesame-poppyseed crust, lovely colour, subtle flavour. The wood-fired Happy Monk entry had a little less colour, but packed a powerful sesame whoomph. Great flavour for sesame fans! What can we learn from this?
(Looking forward to Ed’s book, Bred, coming in November!)
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#sesame #sesamebread #breadhead #breadlove #wildyeast #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bread #sourdough #sourdoughbaking #sourdoughbread #bakersofinstagram #artisanbread #realbread #rusticbread #woodfired #woodfiredbread #woodfiredovenbread #whistler #whistlerbread #sesamepoppyseed #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany
Happy Monk Tidings - August 9, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Sesame Sourdough; BLOG: Say A Prayer For The Perfect Loaf; ANNOUNCEMENT: Happy Monk Summer Holiday Schedule https://mailchi.mp/99197a16b166/happy_monk_tidings_aug9
Aug 9

Happy Monk Tidings - August 9, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Sesame Sourdough; BLOG: Say A Prayer For The Perfect Loaf; ANNOUNCEMENT: Happy Monk Summer Holiday Schedule https://mailchi.mp/99197a16b166/happy_monk_tidings_aug9
Happy Monk Blog - July 26, 2023 🍞 - Swimming the Neighbourhoods; how John Cheever`s short story, The Swimmer, made more sense to kids in the summertime. [See LinkTree in Profile ]
Jul 26
![Happy Monk Blog - July 26, 2023 🍞 - Swimming the Neighbourhoods; how John Cheever's short story, The Swimmer, made more sense to kids in the summertime. [See LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Blog - July 26, 2023 🍞 - Swimming the Neighbourhoods; how John Cheever`s short story, The Swimmer, made more sense to kids in the summertime. [See LinkTree in Profile ]
Lay your head on this pillow soft Potato-Rosemary Loaf, breathe in the aromatic rosemary leaves plucked straight from the garden. And when you wake, a glorious wood-fired loaf awaits … you might spread a little butter, drizzle some honey and your dreams may come true!
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#potatobread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #woodfired #woodfiredoven #coboven #woodfiredovenbread #woodfiredbread #coboven #bread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #breadhead #breadlove #baker #happymonkbaker #happymonkbaking #artisanbread #rusticbread #penderisland #southpenderisland
Jul 16

Lay your head on this pillow soft Potato-Rosemary Loaf, breathe in the aromatic rosemary leaves plucked straight from the garden. And when you wake, a glorious wood-fired loaf awaits … you might spread a little butter, drizzle some honey and your dreams may come true!
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#potatobread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #woodfired #woodfiredoven #coboven #woodfiredovenbread #woodfiredbread #coboven #bread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #breadhead #breadlove #baker #happymonkbaker #happymonkbaking #artisanbread #rusticbread #penderisland #southpenderisland
Happy Monk Blog - July 12, 2023 🍞 - "Nothing I Cared in the Lamb White Days" - Climate change and watching the moon rise over the Salish Sea. [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Jul 12
![Happy Monk Blog - July 12, 2023 🍞 - "Nothing I Cared in the Lamb White Days" - Climate change and watching the moon rise over the Salish Sea. [ See LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Blog - July 12, 2023 🍞 - "Nothing I Cared in the Lamb White Days" - Climate change and watching the moon rise over the Salish Sea. [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - July 5, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Olive Sourdough; ReBLOG: Salvador Dalí and the Art of Bread [ Click LinkTree in Profile ]
Jul 5
![Happy Monk Tidings - July 5, 2023 🍞 - BAKER'S CHOICE: Olive Sourdough; ReBLOG: Salvador Dalí and the Art of Bread [ Click LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Tidings - July 5, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Olive Sourdough; ReBLOG: Salvador Dalí and the Art of Bread [ Click LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - June 28, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Spelt and Honey Sourdough; BLOG: Black Robe and Rise of the Machine [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Jun 28
![Happy Monk Tidings - June 28, 2023 🍞 - BAKER'S CHOICE: Spelt and Honey Sourdough; BLOG: Black Robe and Rise of the Machine [ See LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Tidings - June 28, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Spelt and Honey Sourdough; BLOG: Black Robe and Rise of the Machine [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Long bake bake Friday … one problem after another. But all turned out well, including the proud and mighty Seed Feast loaves. Thanks as always to @leathersmithe for assistance and encouragement!
Jun 24

Long bake bake Friday … one problem after another. But all turned out well, including the proud and mighty Seed Feast loaves. Thanks as always to @leathersmithe for assistance and encouragement!
Happy Monk Tidings - June 14, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: German Rye (Volkornbrot) with Sunflower Seeds; BLOG: Happy Bloomsday! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Jun 14
![Happy Monk Tidings - June 14, 2023 🍞 - BAKER'S CHOICE: German Rye (Volkornbrot) with Sunflower Seeds; BLOG: Happy Bloomsday! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Tidings - June 14, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: German Rye (Volkornbrot) with Sunflower Seeds; BLOG: Happy Bloomsday! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - May 31, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Fig and Fennel Sourdough; BLOG: The Saving Grace of Siegel`s Bagels [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
May 31
![Happy Monk Tidings - May 31, 2023 🍞 - BAKER'S CHOICE: Fig and Fennel Sourdough; BLOG: The Saving Grace of Siegel's Bagels [ See LinkTree in Profile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Tidings - May 31, 2023 🍞 - BAKER`S CHOICE: Fig and Fennel Sourdough; BLOG: The Saving Grace of Siegel`s Bagels [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
HAPPY MONK BLOG: An Approachable Manifesto: A loaf designed for the grocery shelf, but with honest-to-goodness artisan credentials. (May 24, 2023) [ See LinkTree in Proifile ]
May 24
![HAPPY MONK BLOG: An Approachable Manifesto: A loaf designed for the grocery shelf, but with honest-to-goodness artisan credentials. (May 24, 2023) [ See LinkTree in Proifile ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
HAPPY MONK BLOG: An Approachable Manifesto: A loaf designed for the grocery shelf, but with honest-to-goodness artisan credentials. (May 24, 2023) [ See LinkTree in Proifile ]
Morning coffee ritual, Saturday morning. Drinking Moving Coffee, eating Happy Monk Sprouted Einkorn Sourdough bread, and spending a lot of time setting up this photo. Thanks for the coffee tip, @jomosenpai, it’s really good!
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#coffeelover #coffee #pourovercoffee #pourover #coffeetime #coffeelover #coffeecoffeecoffee #ceramiccoffeecup #ceramiccoffeemug #coffeeaddict #einkornsourdough #einkornbread #einkornsourdoughbread #einkornbaking
May 20

Morning coffee ritual, Saturday morning. Drinking Moving Coffee, eating Happy Monk Sprouted Einkorn Sourdough bread, and spending a lot of time setting up this photo. Thanks for the coffee tip, @jomosenpai, it’s really good!
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#coffeelover #coffee #pourovercoffee #pourover #coffeetime #coffeelover #coffeecoffeecoffee #ceramiccoffeecup #ceramiccoffeemug #coffeeaddict #einkornsourdough #einkornbread #einkornsourdoughbread #einkornbaking
It’s been a long time since I baked with Einkorn flour, the most ancient of the ancient grains. It’s called “Farro Piccolo” in Italian, or ‘little farro’. A later variety of Einkorn is called “Farro Grande” (large farro)… otherwise known as Spelt. (Einkorn left, Spelt right) Here endeth the lesson.
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#einkorn #einkorngrain #einkornbread #einkornbaking #tasteofeinkorn #spelt #speltgrain #speltflour #ancientgrain #ancientgrains #ancientgrainbaking #ancientgrainflours
May 16

It’s been a long time since I baked with Einkorn flour, the most ancient of the ancient grains. It’s called “Farro Piccolo” in Italian, or ‘little farro’. A later variety of Einkorn is called “Farro Grande” (large farro)… otherwise known as Spelt. (Einkorn left, Spelt right) Here endeth the lesson.
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#einkorn #einkorngrain #einkornbread #einkornbaking #tasteofeinkorn #spelt #speltgrain #speltflour #ancientgrain #ancientgrains #ancientgrainbaking #ancientgrainflours
Happy Monk Tidings - April 26, 2023 🍞: Baker`s Choice: Polenta-Rosemary Sourdough; Blog: A Baker`s Summit in the Loire Valley - [See LinkTree in Bio ]
Apr 26
![Happy Monk Tidings - April 26, 2023 🍞: Baker's Choice: Polenta-Rosemary Sourdough; Blog: A Baker's Summit in the Loire Valley - [See LinkTree in Bio ]](https://i0.wp.com/happymonkbaking.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png?w=980&ssl=1)
Happy Monk Tidings - April 26, 2023 🍞: Baker`s Choice: Polenta-Rosemary Sourdough; Blog: A Baker`s Summit in the Loire Valley - [See LinkTree in Bio ]
Such a sunny, cheerful thing to hold freshly milled dried corn for polenta-rosemary bread — this week’s baker’s choice! On a sunny spring day, too, with our out-of-control cherry tree in fine fettle. In two days, those blossoms will be little more than litter on the grass and driveway
#polenta #polentabread #driedcorn #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #breadmaking #breadmaking🍞 #sourdough #sourdoughbread #coboven #earthoven #earthenoven #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries
Apr 25

Such a sunny, cheerful thing to hold freshly milled dried corn for polenta-rosemary bread — this week’s baker’s choice! On a sunny spring day, too, with our out-of-control cherry tree in fine fettle. In two days, those blossoms will be little more than litter on the grass and driveway
#polenta #polentabread #driedcorn #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #breadmaking #breadmaking🍞 #sourdough #sourdoughbread #coboven #earthoven #earthenoven #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries
Translation:
When April, with its sweet-smelling flowers
↩
has pierced the drought of March to the root,
And bathed every vein (of the plants) in such liquid
By which power the flower is created;The Wife of Bath is one of the most vivid characters in English literature. And the poem’s narrator, who is mostly a bumbling fool, makes some of the most intelligent commentaries on medieval society.↩
Translation
When the west wind also, with its sweet breath,
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In every wood and field has breathed life into
The tender new leaves, and the young sun
Has run half its course in Aries,
And small fowls make melody,
Those that sleep all the night with open eyesTo hear a partial reading of the General Prologue to The Canterbury Tales in authentic Middle English, watch this excerpt the 1970s film, The Last Waltz. The reading was performed during the last concert by The Band and read by the poet Michael McLure.↩