InterpNEWS - Summer 2019 Issue

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2 Volume 8, #2, Spring 2019

The International Heritage Interpretation e-Magazine.

Hi folks. Here is the “summer” issue of IN. I only had a few articles for the proposed Mar/April issue so had to wait till more contributions were available to make up an issue. So this issue represents what was available from March – June. I am hoping to have more articles for July/Aug with a deadline for that issue of 1 August. Otherwise I will do an Autumn Issue (July-October). As you know IN is developed as a donation to the Interpretive Profession, giving all interpreters a place to share their interpretive ideas, programs, research, or visitor studies. I view IN as “your” publications to learn and pass it on to others. Cheers, John Veverka – jvainterp@aol.com Our July/Aug (or Fall issue) now looking for articles.

- Call for Articles for the next issue – again deadline 1 Aug. e-mail me if you have any questions.

- Check out our Interpretive Bookstore on the last page for interpretive textbooks.

- My new book – 40 Years a Heritage Interpreter is also now available as an e-book, http://www.heritageinterp.com/40_years_a_heritage_interpreter.html

In this issue

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- Preserving Institutional Memory, Joseph Patrick Barry

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- Passion for the Resource - Brian C. Westfall

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- Preserving, Interpreting & Sharing the 1846 - 1854 History of Council Bluffs, Iowa – a Key Junction for the Westward Migration- Denny Henson

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- Engaging Material in the 2018 ACT - “My Life with a Field Guide” -Dr. Martha Macdonald

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- My Most Memorable Interpretive Experiences - John Veverka

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- Memorable Moments in Interpretation - Brian C. Westfall

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- “Does Setting Play a Role in Charlotte Bronte’s Villette? And What about Allusions? – Dr. Martha Benn Macdonald

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- If it Bugs you - eat it ! John Veverka

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- Why Interpretation? Brian C. Westfall

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- Interpretive Planning for "Exportable" Interpretation – ideas to go away with. John Veverka

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InterpNEWS is published six times a year as a FREE John Veverka & Associates publication and published as a service to the interpretive profession. If you would like to be added to our mailing list just send an e-mail to jvainterp@aol.com and we’ll add you to our growing mailing list. Contributions of articles are welcomed. It you would like to have an article published in InterpNEWS let me know what you have in mind. Cover photo: Tiger Salamander www.heritageinterp.com – jvainterp@aol.com – SKYPE: jvainterp

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Preserving Institutional Memory Joseph Patrick Barry The following article first appeared in the Proceedings of the National Association for Interpretation Conference in 2005 but it remains relevant today. The author, Joseph Patrick Barry, is an interpretive trainer, former visitor center manager and author of the book, Bonneville Lock and Dam: A Gift from the People of the Great Depression.

We have all heard the message, “In order to move up we need to move on!” But when people move on from your office, do they take knowledge with them? How can you prevent this loss of knowledge? You know that “baby boomers” are retiring. When they retire, do they take institutional knowledge with them?

Perhaps you’ve heard someone say, “We tried that before and it didn’t work…” with the implied message that we should never try it again. Perhaps conditions have changed so much that it could work now? Or, perhaps it really was an impractical idea that really won’t work now. If we don’t know why a decision was made how do we evaluate the decision?

Preserving institutional memory is related to each of these questions. You can think of it as passing on knowledge from one generation to the next. The focus of this paper and the accompanying presentation is preserving institutional knowledge in visitor centers. We’ll look at numerous ways to pass on long and shortterm memories.

As I write this, I sit in my office at work. Next to my desk is a box containing personal items such as photo negatives, CD’s, and a few papers that I need to keep but do not need to store in my safe deposit box. I decided to do this after a friend of mine lost everything in a house fire. The house literally burned to the ground. His family survived the fire but he was most upset about losing all of the photos and negatives of his children.

While storing some things in my office gives me some protection for a fire at home, what about things we can’t afford to lose at work? A quick search of the Internet turned up half a dozen visitor centers destroyed by fire, flood, hurricane and even a volcano! What if your visitor center burned to the ground tomorrow? What if your entire staff leaves after splitting the wining ticket to the lottery? What happens to everything they know? What if your computer system gets struck by lightning? How can you prepare for this?

How will the people who follow you in your job know what happened and why it happened? Decisions are made for reasons. Will anyone know why you made the decisions you made?

Here are some of the things we do at our site to improve institutional memory. First, we will look at “Short Term Memory.”

Short Term Memory Short-term memory includes the ordinary day-to-day items we need to remember. Here are some ideas.

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The Visitor Center Blackboard Our staff has access to a shared Word file we call the blackboard. Since we are open 7 days a week and some of our staff members never see other staff members, we share information and communicate about minor issues on this file. Every month we print the notes for the previous month and put the pages into a binder. The binders are kept for a few years and are a great way for a new staff member to review what has happened during the past few years. Sometimes we need to look up something that happened last year. We can usually find something relevant like, “Why was that decision made?� We do not yet archive this file electronically or keep back up files.

The Trivia Book Topics in this Word file are listed in alphabetical order by subject and cross-referenced according to categories.

The Trivia Book is where we keep the answers to those frequently asked visitor questions, those hard-toremember facts, and all those things we cannot possibly retain in our brains. We update the Trivia Book annually by making corrections and additions. It is a reference for new employees. Since no one can remember everything I encourage people to know where to find information. Most information about our site can be found in the Trivia Book. We are in the process of putting some of this information on-line in our web site. We also store it electronically in several locations outside the visitor center.

E-mail Archives I encourage our staff to archive and back up their email files. I read about 100 emails a week and archive the ones I don’t delete according to topic. I back up files periodically onto zip disks for storage. We use these files for recalling communication about issues, performance accomplishments, storing feedback, contract correspondence, etc. I keep back ups of important documents at home or in an office in another building.

Exit Interviews Some people advocate using exit interviews when anyone leaves a position. The person leaving can explain the reasons why choices were made, provide background information or summaries about tasks they managed, and any other information that might be helpful to those who come later. I ask people when they first start working at our site and before they retire or leave for another job to give me recommendations about improvements to facilities, products and services. In many cases, those improvements are easily implemented. Employees also leave files about their unfinished business or work in progress.

Long Term Memory Long-term memory includes things a historian might need to write a history of your site. Here are some ideas.

Library In our library we store news articles, books, periodicals, journals, videos, and other useful items. This is a working library. All staff members have access to all materials on the honor system. One person is responsible for re-shelving and accessioning books and filing articles. Except for an electronic file of our books, we do not have any back-up system.

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Archives We do not have true archives on site. Official records and historical photos are stored off site by a records management staff member in our District Office.

Interviews We have some oral history interviews. Presently they are stored on video and audiotape. We will soon convert them to a more stable media format such as DVD. We still need to keep archive copies of these interviews off site.

Continuity Manager Some agencies assign the tasks related to preserving institutional memory to an individual. This person is responsible for storing information, archive management, exit interviews, etc. These tasks are included in their performance measures. The continuity manager might be the person to record what to do the same and what to do differently for annual events such as annual conferences.

Long Term Storage We have the luxury of off-site storage for our archives. Since we have two visitor centers on site, we still need to make use of the fact we can store backup files in another building. It is easy to procrastinate about preserving institutional memory but once it is gone, there is usually no way to get it back.

A good question to ask yourself is, “If someone wanted to write a history about your site a generation or two from now, would they have what they need?� If you can answer yes, and you can be reasonably sure you are storing the information safely, you are well on your way to preserving institutional memory.

The above information will be presented as a starting point at the National Interpreter’s Workshop of the National Association for Interpretation. It will form the basis for a discussion about other practical ways to Preserve Institutional Memory in a Visitor Center setting. At the end of the session, ideas generated in the session will be collected and distributed to those who attend the session.

----------------------------------------------------The following ideas were generated during the presentation. Some may work at your site; some may not. They are worth considering.

Short Term memory -

Yearly list of notable events Calendar of events Phone logs 3 Year active archive available via intranet to park district Outlines of Interpretive programs SOP Booklet Photos: Digital and hard copy

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Database backed up on network for tracking projects Policies / procedures written down and accessible to others Record oral histories of senior employees and take their photos Be aware of upcoming retirements and have people who can get info before they retire Email archives Desktop SOP’s. Standard format for continuity file (Separate operating procedure) allows someone to come in and take over project delivery Detailed listing of the steps needed to perform tasks assigned to a job or person (e.g. how to schedule volunteer staff or how to prepare and present local training Allows someone to come in and track an action or task or take over where an absent employee left off‌also serves as a job aide for the incumbent Helps with succession planning. A new employee can see how the job is currently being performed.

Share your documents, etc. with other institutions Monthly reports on your successes Brainstorming of ideas / community member Write down stepwise processes Keep a project binder of copies of paperwork, emails, contract, etc.

Boxing all materials and curricula outlines together Newsletters Literature by author and date, revisions, etc.

Duplicate files Program or tour outlines Project compliance procedures Bulletin board Trivia Book Exit interviews Co-workers from other sites Media records Keep archives of electronic communication Weekly staff reports Lesson plans Current course outlines

Long term memory -

Long term archives (3+years) on DVD off site as well as hard drive on site Photos of exhibits, art, architecture, furniture (store off site Write a book about your philosophy and principles of interpretation Photos: digital and hard copy Some brochures of annual events Look within the organization when filling positions rather than hiring newcomers to provide continuity Train staff in recognizing value of materials

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Train staff in recognizing value of materials Library Standard Operating Procedures (recorded) Computer file backups Personal calendars Media records Former employees Mentors Reference books and materials Write it down!

Interview long-term staff Transcribe videotapes Make sure knowledgeable people are present when transitions occur (when new people start so they realize the importance of documents, transitioning from city to non-profit run organization, etc.

Training sessions that pass on skills and contacts Job continuity files – standard format of tasks, contacts, processes needed by employees for a given position – amplified desk SOP (may include phone lists / contact lists for specific areas, task steps or lists, typical forms or letters used, etc.

Books and documentation about the creation of the site People in your site – staff volunteers and community members Building blueprints, photos, plans

Safe Off-Site Storage: -

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Safe off site (not in hazard area) Offsite redundancy Sharing mentality Filter and reduce (ask how important this material will be in 25 years or 50 years) Appropriate archiving of items that will likely be “historic” and significant to telling your story when it will be important to redo exhibits about your history Ask, “How will we know today what will be important in the future?”

Safe facility not below flood level Prioritize the information you need to store and decide on best format Money is an issue so balance capability, financial, human resources Before taking the materials off site risk assessments should be done on the facility. An analysis of use by staff and outside researchers should be conducted. The ability of the site to maintain the materials should be evaluated.

Archeology storage, off site, secure Offsite storage of duplicate documents Put the monks in charge!

Look at how Mormon’s keep genealogy records Catholics use old Latin Digital storage on network files Archived paper copies stored in central storage site at City Hall

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Passion for the Resource Brian C. Westfall Natural Resources Specialist, Retired Ouachita Project Management Office Interpretation – An educational activity which aims to reveal meanings and relationships through the use of original objects, by firsthand experience, by illustrative media, rather than simply to communicate factual information.

Freeman Tilden, widely known as the father of interpretation, created and detailed six principles of interpretation in his 1957 book, entitled Interpreting Our Heritage. These building blocks of interpretation, are still utilized today. The six principles of interpretation are: 1. All interpretive efforts must relate to a visitor’s personality, experience or interests. Talk to your visitors before a program or presentation and relate your program to them using information you may have gained from your conversation with them – their interests, beliefs in what the Corps does, etc. Take people’s recreation interests and make them interpretive (having an “interpretive” fishing clinic or boating and water safety program).

2. Information does not equal interpretation, but all interpretation contains information. The main difference between interpretation is not what the message or program contains - the information - but how the information is presented.

3. Interpretation is an art which combines many arts regardless of subject material. Any art is to some degree teachable. You might use acting, puppets, artwork, photos, props, storytelling or other artistic skills in developing your interpretive program or service.

4. Interpretation does not equal instruction, but rather provocation. Ask provocative questions like “Why do you think we need to do prescribed burning of project lands to help understory plants live?” instead of just giving reasons managers use burns for forest management.

5. Interpretation should aim to present a whole rather than a part. In general, all interpretation for your project should illustrate one main interpretive theme and related sub-themes. Interpretation should be sure to interpret to visitors: a. who you are (who is the Corps of Engineers?) b. What you do (at this project – flood damage reduction, hydropower production, resource management etc.) and C. Why you do it (benefits to communities, people, the environment).

6. Interpretation for children must be designed specifically for children, and not simply a dilution of programs and information for adults. Interpretive programs for children need to have fun, hands- on, and edutainment (education with entertainment) with a clear theme or purpose in mind. Analogies and examples need to be geared for children as well.

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To make remembering Tilden’s principles easier, use the acronym, TIPS, a short hand version of the main principles. The Interpretive TIP’s (Tilden’s Interpretive Principals shorthand) are: Provoke - attention, curiosity and interest, Relate – to the everyday life of your visitors, Reveal – the main concept or theme through some creative or unusual viewpoint, Address the whole – make sure your program relates to your main project theme and Strive for message unity – use the correct supporting elements in your program to illustrate your theme or main concept. For decades, through Freeman Tilden’s passionate persuasion and delight, interpreters have tried their hand at adding interpretive principles. If I were asked to name and describe a 7th principle of interpretation, I would definitely choose passion! Without passion, the interpreter’s effort is often received as a generic and sterile rendition of a history book passage. To fully promote and sustain a public resource, the interpretive ranger must exude passion and enthusiasm. It must be the norm. If not, please make it the new normal!

John F. Kennedy’s famous quote “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country,” is the perfect passionate challenge for all Americans to stand for. Moreover, it should be the “Just Do it Card” for all public land stewards. Our story must be told with passion for customers to support, understand and join in.

To effectively promote, protect and to sustain the public resource, the interpreter must provoke, relate and reveal the reasons for stewardship. Without this commitment, the information share on behalf of the resource is not heartfelt. Passion is that feeling in your heart when you feel that you must make a difference. It would purely be shameful for an interpreter to promote stewardship for 30 plus years and not make a difference.

Passion is the difference maker, the interpreter’s legacy.

Intimacy for the resource grows over time. It is a learned behavior that is earned from boots-on-the-ground successes and failures. For example, as a beginning Corps of Engineers ranger, I didn’t fully understand the importance of water safety. It was not until I assisted with my first drowning victim recovery that I began to understand the reason why the Corps promotes wearing life jackets and learning to swim well. Conducting interviews with drowning victims’ families sealed the deal for me regarding the critical importance of being safe around the water. Now, as the Past President for the National Water Safety Congress, I fully and passionately understand the importance of boating and water safety and I have dedicated my career to continuing and improving water wise education.

After serving as the shoreline cleanup coordinator at DeGray Lake for many years, I understand the importance and power of environmental education. I’m very passionate about teaching children to care enough not to litter. We have worked with children who cleaned up the lake a generation ago, that are now bringing their children out to clean up their lake. Passion promotes ownership. Ownership is catalyst for action.

Mentoring is an extremely important ingredient in passing along the torch of passion and intimacy for public land resources. Good mentors utilize knowledge management and make every effort to explain “why?”

They are not afraid to share their knowledge. They are empowered by it!

Your audience also knows passion when they see it. Passion brings out your credibility and charm.

Enthusiasm for your subject, the resource, is solidified through the form of passionate persuasion. Your audience is more likely to support your efforts when they realize that you are truthful, a virtue of a passionate person.

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Passion is the glue that bonds the arts with the sciences and forms the building blocks for interpretation. I know that I have exceeded my customer’s expectations when they mention that I’m so passionate about resource stewardship. Respect is earned through passion for natural and cultural resources and humanity is bettered for it.

Using Tilden’s original principles, go forward and create your own principles of interpretation. The additional principles must interface and explain “why” to the next generation of recreation seekers. Freeman Tilden would be passionately proud!

Brian C. Westfall Natural Resources Specialist, Retired Ouachita Project Management Office

Brian delivering an interpretive program on water safety.

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Preserving, Interpreting & Sharing the 1846 - 1854 History of Council Bluffs, Iowa – a Key Junction for the Westward Migration Article by Denny Henson, Map-N-Tour www.mapntour.com Carl Scott, Historical Pioneer Research Group www.earlylds.com What do you do with 50 years of historic research - all of it tied to a significant heritage site of the nation’s westward migration? How do you preserve, interpret, and share the story so others can visualize it in context of its large geographic area and also be inspired by the history of those individuals who settled it? On top of that, how do you make it easy for thousands of family history enthusiasts to visit locations where their ancestors lived and died when modern society has re-drawn the landscape?

This was the challenge facing the Historical Pioneer Research Group (HPRG), a dedicated group of historians and family history researchers based in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. Carl Scott, the chairman of the group understood, “The HPRG needed a vehicle that allowed us to tell a living history story of the people and places from that era. To effectively tell this story we needed help and Map-N-Tour proved to be the right partner.

Their interpretive platform combined the visual context, perspective, and storytelling capabilities the HPRG was looking for.”

Council Bluffs, Iowa was a key “Crossroads” for many groups traveling west in the early 1800’s. Terry Latey, project administrator explained, “Our goal in the creation of the Crossroads to the West project is to share the story of the migration of the early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through Iowa to the Middle Missouri Valley.”

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Map-N-Tour’s interpretive platform let’s people “see” the past, present, and future for historical locations.

River and stream course changes, paintings and drawings that help tell the story of the Mormon Pioneer experience.

Water was critical for pioneer settlements!

Key: Light blue shows the streams and rivers in the 1800’s. Dark blue – modern flow.

Historic maps registered on satellite images confirm locations of pioneer settlements.

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Map pins are full of interesting commentary and media: video from the actual locations, audio clips, and links to additional resources. Crossroads immerses people in the story.

User Engagement is high: Analytics for the past six months show the average session time on the Crossroads map for web visitors is 13:12 minutes. This is more than triple the time spent on an average web page.

Crossroads project creators wanted to let people visualize the pioneer locations and get a sense of the pioneer experience. They incorporated sketches, paintings, and images portraying that time period. These images are placed directly on the map location oriented so you are visually looking from the perspective of the person who drew the sketch or painted the painting.

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Educational Interpretive Value: How did thousands of pioneers cross the Missouri River? View this YouTube video titled “Mormon Middle Missouri Ferry” created by Terry Latey and narrated by Gail Holmes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFmzLlRGCoE Crossroads is bringing benefits to Genealogy or “Roots” Tourism We found that descendants visiting the area wanted to see in person the locations where their ancestors lived and/or were buried, so the HPRG needed a vehicle that could make that experience possible. Being able to put our research on mobile phones we can now easily route descendants to significant places in the history of their family - and enable them to “walk in the footsteps of their forefathers.” Crossroads is available on the Map Map-N-Tour free mobile app or iPads and includes a Google map feature that provides turn by turn direction to each location in the Crossroads project. “We found that more people were actually visiting the historic places on the Crossroads tour because they could easily find them using the app. They didn’t have to worry about ge getting lost!” said Terry Latey. The HPRG’s extensive genealogy databases are now linked to the Crossroads project which helps visitors learn more about the early residents of this area.

Map-N-Tour’s fly-through through narrated tour feature assists HPRG in fundraising efforts The HPRG recently asked Map-N-Tour Tour to create a fly fly-through through narrated tour video of their Crossroads project map to share with others who may want to support their efforts. You can view this video on YouTube titled “Crossroads to the West: Introduction to Pioneer Research of Early Latter Latter-day day Saints at the Missouri https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J360vNn2dWE&t=324s

Objectives Met with Crossroads Project “The Map-N-Tour Tour interpretive platforms have achieved our objective of telling the story of the Mormon Pioneer experience, capturing Gail Holmes research in a format accessible to interested parties and exposing the Historical Pioneer Research Group to the public in a very positive light. Users are engaging with the content and we are seeing more people visit the hard hard-to-find find historic sights because of the mobile routing capabilities,” said Carl Scott. “We invite anyone who had pioneers that traveled thr through ough this area, or would like to know more about what immigrants saw when they reached this junction for the 1800’s westward migration to visit the “Crossroads to the West” interactive tour on our website www.earlylds.com. www.earlylds.

The tour is also available on the free Map-N-Tour Tour mobile application.”

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InterpNEWS Engaging Material in the 2018 ACT “My Life with a Field Guide” Dr. Martha Macdonald College English instructor (Ret) author, and performer. doctorbenn@gmail.com

Trout Lily

Tutoring students who use the ACT Prep Guide (2018), I discovered an essay which truly engaged me, “My Life with a Field Guide,” by Diana Kappel-Smith” (2002). The book which delighted Kappel-Smith was A Field Guide to Wild Flowers—Peterson & McKenny. Like Kappel-Smith, I was thrilled because the book related details about plants. Ever since I was a child, I have been interested in flowers: I watched my mother’s gardener plant azaleas, roses, camellias, gardenias, and I enjoyed creating flower arrangements for our family, friends, and the church and, later, for homes during Garden Week and Christmas when I lived in Williamsburg, Virginia When I returned to Rock Hill, South Carolina, years later to take care of my mother, I enhanced her garden with herbs and a variety of perennials. As I am listening to a lovely concert on WDAV.89.9 from Davidson College portraying music for the Winter-Solstice, I am writing this piece. For some reason, they go together, at least in my mind, even though not necessarily in yours. But “pray thee, dear reader,” allow the difference. Perhaps I see a relationship because I am using herbs and evergreens from my garden for my Advent wreath (fourth Sunday) at the Episcopal Church of Our Savior in Rock Hill, S.C. ***picture here, explain, I find the essay enthralling (that’s a good word, isn’t it)?

I would like to consider the various uses----culinary, decorative, and medicinal----of the flowers and herbs which Kappel-Smith alludes to in her essay, in particular, the Astor, Buttercup, Cinque-foil, St. John’s wort, Loose-strifes, Puccoons, and Solidago hispada.

To begin, let’s look at the Aster, a flower known about 4,000 years ago and the birth flower for September.

Surrounded by a wide variety of pastel colors, its center is yellow, which is, quite actually, a work of little flowerets. Allegedly, its sweet perfume drives away evil spirits, and its flowers and leaves are known for their medicinal and culinary uses. Imagine eating the flowers for salad?

What about the Buttercup? I will never forget my mother’s visit to me in Williamsburg when I was teaching at the College of William and Mary. When I was setting the table for dinner that April afternoon, she said, “Martha, don’t you have a centerpiece?” regretted that I didn’t and had to remember that my mother always had fresh flowers on our table in South Carolina. “No,” I replied. So we foraged in the backyard and found buttercups which I fashioned into a centerpiece, along with boxwood. My mother approved, and we had a delightful dinner featuring Cornish hens, her favorite.

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I have learned more about buttercups in my research over the years. Unless the plant is boiled, according to the editor of Magic and Medicine of Plants (245), it may be poisonous. The buds of these pretty little May flowers known as American Cowslip and May Blob may be pickled. How yummy! How pretty!

Now what about cinque-foil? What does that lovely French word suggest? What are its assets for you as a gardener? A member of the rose family, Cinque-foil, with its yellow flowers, is known for stopping bleeding, for reducing fevers, and for eliminating diarrhea. Supposedly cinque-foil creeps like a strawberry, according to the editor of Magic and Medicine of Plants (141) and is desired by knights because of its self-mastery.

Fishermen thought it brought heavier catches and chased away witches. Do what you will. It is a lovely plant which serves as a gargle to chase away mouth sores. Theophrastus, one of Aristotle’s students, swore by it.

Plant, and try. You will not have regrets.

Now, I think we all know about the virtues of St. John’s Wort which I’ve planted for a number of years.

Have you tried this beautiful herb, with its yellow center, known for chasing away evil spirits, particularly witches, and known for relieving melancholia, bruises, skin irritations, and much, much more? The Indians used it as a tea for tuberculosis. This lovely plant always blooms in late June, on St. John’s Day---June 24--physicians used this plant which grew along road sides and in dry places for treating sprains, burns, and wounds (Natural Remedies Handbook, 128). The yellow flowers are beautiful in floral arrangements.

Now what is “Loose-strife,” and why might it be referenced in this essay? According to the editor of Magic and Medicine of Plants, this perennial herb is a member of the primrose family.

Growing along beside roads and in marshes, it stops minor bleeding, including nose bleeds, and serves as a gargle. Some people use the yellow flowers for hair bleach. Dioscorides, a Greek writer, said that a drink or an enema by persons who’d experienced dysentery, might find this member of the primrose family helpful (193).

This might be interesting to consider planting in your garden.

And what about Puccoons? What an adorable name for a plant which the American Indians used to stop bleeding and to help inflammation in the eye, although the editor of Magic and Medicine of Plants cautions readers and gardeners against taking too much of this herb (199). The herb, a member of the buttercup family, has a variety of names and grows in woodlands in much of North America. Judith Boice, however, of Mother Earth News: Herb Companion Series writes that this herb boosts one’s immunity and is helpful for people who suffer from psoriasis and eczema (45).

Finally, what might we say about the allusion to Solidago hispida? I was a little perplexed by that one, and after additional research, discovered that it stood for golden rod which is, most unfortunately, blamed for causing allergies when, in fact, the culprit is ragweed. Both bloom in the late summer/early fall. The writers of Newsweek’s Natural Remedies Handbook suggest that goldenrod blended with plantain and yarrow makes a healing salve (79). Moreover, goldenrod tea helps people get over colds, and this perennial is beautiful in fall arrangements, especially with sage. Finally, the editors of Magic and Medicine of Plants relate that when British tea was dumped into the Boston Harbor, patriots had nothing to drink. Alas! They made their own tea “from the leaves of the native American goldenrod” (198).

Gardener and decorator that I am, I would like to expand this piece (my whimsy) to include other favorite plants with yellow blossoms, e.g., daffodils which seem to herald the birth of spring. As William Wordsworth wrote, “I wandered lonely as a cloud/That floats on high o’er vales and hills,/When all at once I saw a crowd,/A host of golden daffodils;/Beside the lake, beneath the trees,/Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.”

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A member of the Amaryllis family, the daffodil, also known as the Lent lily, delights gardeners, despite the poisonous bulb. The daffodil blooms in meadows and woods, and it is a favorite for decorators, even though the stem is a little awkward. Depending on where you live and when you planted the bulbs, daffodils may dance on your lawn as early as January.

What other yellow blooms, perhaps even orange, come to your mind when you plan your garden, imagine a salad, seek natural healing, and something decorative, something to catch the eye? Dandelions which are absolutely free and grace lawns in the early spring offer pretty yellow flowers which my grandmother used to make dandelion wine and leaves which, if picked when they first appear, make up a nutritious salad. These leaves may also be cooked and seasoned. The beauty of these yellow flowers is that they last, like the daffodil, for a number of days. Try floating the dandelion blooms in a low bowl of water on your table. Experiment.

Flowers from fennel are equally lovely. According to the writers of The Edible Flower Garden, fennel is a must for its culinary uses: “Both the root, leaves, seeds, and flowers are edible. The flowers may be kept for winter use preserved in oil, vinegar or butter or use the flowers and semi-ripe seeds to pickle cucumber or when making sauerkraut” (147). Fennel is also used medicinally: as an eyewash, stomachache, and flatulence.

The stems may be eaten raw, and the flowers are pretty in an arrangement. This herb blooms from June through September (Magic and Medicine of Plants 180).

Because I’m also a folklorist, I believe in the magic of numbers, seven being especially appealing.

What do you think, dear readers? Hence, I’ll consider four other plants, in particular, mullein, yarrow, nasturtiums, and marigolds.

In the past, Mullein, the beautiful member of the snapdragon family, because of its sturdy stems, served as a torch to ward off evil spirits, and some old-timers smoked the leaves to cure coughs and colds. There are stories that it makes a lovely rouge and lightens the hair. Above all, “a tea from the leaves or flowers helps chest colds, bronchitis, and asthma” (Magic and Medicine of Plants 259). Moreover, if you’re looking for a tall flower in a floral arrangement, mullein is perfect. In addition, according to the editors of Natural Remedies Handbook, mullein oil from the flowers helps an earache (100). In fact, I had two intriguing plants in my garden from seed I’d found in the mountains. Unfortunately, a gardener, to use the term loosely, decided they were weeds and tossed them. What do you say? Breathe deeply, and enjoy chamomile tea.

That same summer, the young man and I almost had an argument over yarrow. He was determined to chop it down, and I said, “Absolutely not.” Incidentally, he no longer mows my lawn and trims the bushes. As you probably know, yarrow blooms in several colors: white, yellow, and pink, perhaps others that I’ve not seen. It’s one of my favorite herbs. In a flower arrangement, it complements sage and rosemary. Yarrow dries so easily. According to the authors of the Mother Earth News: Herb Companion Series, Achilles stopped the bleeding of his soldiers by binding up their wounds with yarrow (93). Also known as Bloodwort, Stanchgrass, and Thousand-leaf, the herb is easy to grow. Native Americans used it for earaches, and early settlers drank a tea for colds and reducing fever. Some used it as an astringent (Magic and Medicine of Plants, 350).

Obviously, the flowers of nasturtiums and marigolds vary in hue from the yellow flowers we’ve been discussing, but they’re so lovely I couldn’t resist them. After all, are the not a combination of red and yellow?

Smile, dear readers. When I was a child, my dear grandmother (Gangie) grew nasturtiums. She used these in floral arrangements, in salads, and in sandwiches for a tea party. I was delighted. Moreover, the flowers can be pickled. Writers of The Edible Flower Garden suggest making a nasturtium omelet (106-107). Enjoy these flowers in your garden.

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InterpNEWS Enjoy marigolds as well. The flowers may be pickled or dried, and they are popular in puddings, salads, and soups. Writers of The Edible Flower Garden say that the flowers are may be used in wine (see above note on dandelion wine; as a dear friend used to say, “You can make wine out of any flower”). Sprinkle on meats, potatoes, and use in salads and syrups, omelets (70), or wherever, for that matter, you’d like to try them.

Marigold flowers are yellow, bright orange, or deep orange, and they enhance any summer garden.

Perhaps I’ll find another essay which suggests flowers of another hue besides yellow. Blues and purples abound. This article was, after all, somewhat whimsical, magical perhaps, but appealing to those with an artist’s flair for color and possibilities for healing other than medicines in the pharmacy, for decorating other than flowers from the florist, and, finally, for cooking (culinary arts) other than the everyday. Enjoy, be creative, be inspired, and plant your garden. I almost forgot to mention Cowslip. Another time. Another writing. Happy Spring.

Dr. Martha Macdonald College English instructor (Ret) author, and performer. doctorbenn@gmail.com

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InterpNEWS My Most Memorable Interpretive Experiences Planning and Delivery of Living History Interpretive experiences.

John Veverka

I have been involved with interpretation for over 30 years now and the range of interpretive experiences I have seen or helped plan have run the gamete from outstanding to “what were they thinking when they came up with this presentation”? As I wanted this issue of InterpNEWS to have some focus on historic/living history interpretation I thought I would share some of my more memorable living history programs/experiences to help illustrate that when the program/character presentation is indeed “interpretive” some magical things can happen. Here are three memorable ones I would like to share.

Hot girl by the fireplace! A number of years ago I had the opportunity to do some contract work for the Tennessee Valley Authority, Land Between the Lakes (which is now a US Forest Service National Recreation Area). One of their main interpretive attractions was (and is) The Homeplace. The Homeplace is a working history farm. The farm produces corn, tobacco, sheep and hogs. If this really were the mid-19th century, they would probably market their goods in town, at the river boats, or upriver in big cities like Nashville and Memphis. When you visit us in person, you might see the men folk working oxen, harvesting and curing tobacco, shucking corn or repairing a farm building. They'll even let you lend a hand at the walking plow or help repair a fence. So as a visitor you see/watch “life going on” from cooking and eating daily meals, to the men folk tending crops and animals. So let’s get to the “hot girl”.

The day I was visiting it was approaching lunch time and the women were in the main cabin preparing lunch for the extended family… chicken and dumplings. There were about 20 of us visitors behind a barrier watching the meal being prepared while chatting with the women cast members. The smell of the chicken and dumplings filled the room and we were all getting hungry. Now this is Kentucky, in the hot-steamy summer.

That cabin had to have been 90 degrees, and there’s a cooking fire in the fireplace – get the picture? So we are watching a young girl cooking biscuits by the fireplace – you could see rivers of sweat pouring from her face – cooking in a hot room, by a hot fire, in a long sleeved period dress. You could hear her sweat hitting the fireplace with a “pzzz – pzzz for each drop. So one of the audience members watching this – and sweating himself, asks her “honey, aren’t you hot?” Now I am just waiting for her answer, which could have been replied in many different ways, but her answer is one that I will always remember. She replied “no sir – I just splash water on my face from time to time so I will look authentic!”

Hot girl by the fireplace.

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Now I don’t know how the cast/interpreters were trained, but I liked the answer and remember it still. It was a full living history experience where we could relate to life on a farm in the mid 1800’s – the work, heat and all the challenges of daily life. Living history interpretation that created great, relatable, memories. You can visit the Homeplace at: http://www.lbl.org/HPGate.html.

Ghost Rider. Back in the late 70’s I was working as a interpretive planning consultant for Alberta Provincial Parks, Canada. Alberta Parks interpretive division was creating some of the best living history interpretive programs I had seen, and the “visitor from the past” program, given at night for visitors by campfire were outstanding. So here is the scenario. A group of visitors are sitting around a campfire with an interpreter talking about the cultural history of Alberta and some of the historic sites the Provincial parks was charged with managing, and just general chatter in general. So we are sitting around the campfire when we hear horse hoofs along the dirt road leading to the campfire amphitheater. We listen, the hoof sounds come closer, the, out of the darkness, the campfire glow lights up the face and uniform and horse of a Canadian Mountie. He gets off his horse, ties it up and comes to the campfire where he is greeted by the interpreter who asks him to join us.

He tells us he has about a 100 square mile territory to patrol, that he is the only law in that area. He has been out on patrol for over a month and has one more stop in Yellow Knife before he can return home to his wife.

He is 19 years old and loves his job, even with the hardships that come with it. He asks if anyone is going back to Calgary and if they were if they would post a letter from him to his wife. He reads it to us to ask us if we think it is OK. In it he talks about missing her, his job, and their future. Then he says that he has to be going, needs to be in Yellow Knife by tomorrow evening, hands the letter to the interpreter, mounts his horse and rides off into the blanket of darkness that surrounds the campfire.

After he leaves, the interpreter says that his name sounds familiar and looks up something in one of the history books he brought with him. Acting surprised, he finds the young Mounties name in the book. He shows it to us. According to historic accounts, he is murdered on his way to Yellow Knife – he will never make it home!

You could hear a pin drop from the audience around the campfire. They met a ghost rider, connected with him, related to him, and feel terrible about his fate. After a pause, the interpreter continues the interpretation of the experience – one that everyone will remember.

What impressed me most about this living history experience was the following: - The amount of research required.

- The cost to create the historic uniform the Mountie wore.

- The authenticity of the uniform and the kit for his horse.

- The quality of the “theater” in making the presentation/interpretation so powerful.

- How the total presentation involved the visitors creating the connection between them and the presenter.

Living history interpretation at its professional best!

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Hobo Hopes – Lakeshore Museum, Muskingum, Michigan.

During the Great Depression thousands of men who had lost their homes, jobs, even families, took to the road leaving the big cities moving town to town looking for work. The Lakeshore Museum in Muskingum, Michigan has as part of its management, several historic homes that date to the depression era, and which they have developed living history programs around. A few years ago I had the change to work with the museum staff and do training for its interpretive staff.

One of the programs was interpreting the life of a hobo.

As a tour group approaches a home, they meet Matt, a hobo from the east who came to Michigan looking for work. He talks with the group about losing his job and home due to the stock market crash. His family is staying with relatives – hasn’t seen them for months, while he moving from town to town looking for work.

He tells us of life on the road, being homeless, and his hopes that he can get his life back, and his family, and start over. The analogies he presented relate to today – with the housing bubble burst, people losing their jobs, homes, and struggling too. His story of his experiences (in the 1920’s) could be today’s stories. A super relate. He also told us about the hobo codes and symbols that they would leave by a house as to the kind of reception they might get, such as the symbol that the lady of the house will feed you a meal in return for chores.

Living history Hobo with our group. He also explains the hobo symbols to help other travelers know what to expect at each home they may visit.

So those are a few of my favorite interpretive living history experiences that I am happy to share. What interpretive experiences have you created for illustrating your sites stories? I love to hear them and share them on InterpNEWS. John Veverka IN Editor jvainterp@aol.com

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InterpNEWS Memorable Moments in Interpretation Brian C. Westfall U. S. Army Corps of Engineers The most memorable interpretive moments of my career were experienced during the Lewis and Clark Expedition Bicentennial Commemoration. As a member of the Corps of Engineers interpretive team, I was fortunate to work signature events in Kansas City, Long Beach, Billings and two in St. Louis.

The opportunity afforded me by Corps team leaders, Jean Nauss and Ken Wilk ranks as one of my most influential life and career-changing experiences.

Hassan Davis’ first person interpretive depictions of York, William Clark’s manservant, were tremendous.

It is universally accepted that York made a more than meaningful contribution to the Corps of Discovery’s 28month journey into history. Mr. Davis’ performances were essential to the success of the Bicentennial Commemoration.

From a troubled youth, often expelled from high school and college, Hassan made the commitment for a better life. He rose to student body president at Berea College and went on to graduate from law school. With more than twenty years of public speaking experience, Hassan shares living history stories of noted but not well known African Americans like Joe Lewis, boxing legend and York of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

"I want to do more than repeat statistics, I want to reenergize, and encourage, I want to reenergize, and encourage, I want to inspire. Most of all, I want audiences to walk away realizing the power they have to contribute to the success of a child in this world, or ultimately, insure their failure”, proclaimed Hassan Davis.

Hassan Davis as York

In bringing the past alive, Hassan exuded power and raw emotion in relating events that formed history two-hundred years ago.

As an expedition member, York was afforded the opportunity to vote and enjoyed many perks that were unprecedented for a slave in the early 1800’s. After the expedition, he returned to being Clark’s slave and was kept in slavery for several years before Clark finally allowed his freedom. Hassan related York’s frustrations with tangibles that left his audience with an emotional glimpse into York’s life.

Hassan’s inspirational, first person interpretation style brought the past to present by revealing meanings, feelings and relationships. His heritage interpretative technique provokes inspiration and the desire to know, persuades the audience to relate and reveals a deeper meaning that produces behavioral changes.

As visitors from the past, the heritage interpreter, has the opportunity to heighten visitor involvement. When done properly, the interpreter entices the audience to see, hear and touch the past as they view the present. This is memorable interpretation, generating a visceral response opposed to presenting a few facts that are forgotten upon the conclusion of the presentation. Programs and presentations were plentiful along the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commemoration trail, but interpreters-like Hassan stood out and made the entire journey into history more memorable for me.

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InterpNEWS “Does Setting Play a Role in Charlotte Bronte’s Villette? And What about Allusions?

By Dr. Martha Benn Macdonald

Charlotte Bronte

When I began reading Charlotte Bronte’s novel, Villette, I was a little confused, I admit, but after several pages, I was very engaged. I do not disagree with Virginia Woolf who called it “Bronte’s finest novel,” nor do I disagree with George Eliot who said, “A still more wonderful book than Jane Eyre.” They were both good novels, but Villette seems richer, more mysterious, and supernatural. If you have time to read the novel, I would enjoy hearing your thoughts. As an interpreter, I will not focus on the plot nor the development of Lucy Snow, the protagonist, in particular, but on points in the setting and allusions which contribute to her character and to the themes of isolation, deception, and confusion.

After losing a couple of jobs for one reason or another, none of which seems to be her fault, Lucy Snowe makes a decision to leave England and venture to France. As readers, we marvel at her determination, tenacity, and her ability to navigate. Lucy finally ends up at the house of Madame Beck on the Rue Fossette, a house which serves as a school in the town of Villette. Here, Lucy becomes a successful teacher. As she explained to someone, “Yes, I am a rising character: once an old lady’s companion, then a nursery-governess, now a school teacher.” And it is this setting which Lucy, as first person narrator, describes. Behind the house which serves as a school, Lucy discovers a garden, a ghost story, and more, allusions showering over all.

As Lucy narrates, “Behind the house at the Rue Fossette there was a garden---large, considering that it lay in the heart of that city, and to my recollection at this day it seems pleasant: but time, like distance, lends to certain scenes an influence so softening; and where all is stone around, blank wall and hot pavement, how precious seems, one shrub, how lovely an enclosed and planted spot of ground…there went a tradition that Madame Beck’s house has in old days been a convent.” Planted in the garden were nasturtiums, orchard giants, an acacia, jasmine, and ivy. So what might these plants offer? Nasturtiums are not only pretty for floral arrangements, but they are also edible in salads and sandwiches. Acacia flowers, made into a tea, reduce fat, relieve pain, and sooth coughs and sore throats, according to scholars. Finally, what are the benefits of jasmine and ivy? For one, of course, they are beautiful in floral arrangements. But Madame Beck probably wanted more. And, indeed, with her cleverness, knowledge, and manipulative skills, she would have known that jasmine and ivy had medical benefits, to wit, jasmine, known as the flower of love, was healing because of its delicious scent, and ivy was healed sores and cuts.

And in that garden is a ghost story which I believe most interpreters would enjoy knowing, sharing, and adapting, particularly on All Hallows’ Eve. This one is telling. Beneath a pear tree in the garden, there was a vault surrounded with grass and flowers. A nun had been buried alive there during the Middle Ages “for a sin against her vow.” Five hundred years later, visitors on moonlit evenings see the nun’s black robe and white veil. If we use our imaginations, we will come up with an interpretation. Had a poor nun succumbed to the sexual abuse of a decadent priest and been punished? He certainly wasn’t shamed. A Gothic story, for sure, this is, and the implications are contemporary as well.

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InterpNEWS Lucy is troubled by this story, for the image of a woman wearing black and white often appears to her. But the games of Mrs. Beck, owner and teacher of the school (and a very wealthy woman) bother her as well. Mrs. Beck pretends to be a confidante of students and teachers, but at the same time she deceives her students and teachers. A control freak, she goes through their possessions which she finds in closets, in chests, sometimes under bed pillows. Mrs. Beck has power, and the teachers and students know it. They are her victims. They are trapped if they want to remain at the school. When she saw the woman reading her letters from Graham, also known as Dr. John, Lucy is appalled and finally puts them in a bottle which she’ll conceal somewhere, so Mrs. Beck won’t see them.

Finally, what about these allusions showering down throughout the novel? Not thunderstorms, just gentle rain. What is their purpose? Do you think Lucy Snowe’s references play a significant role? Are they engaging? Do they support themes of isolation, bondage, and more? Are female characters yearning for love and independence at the same time able to experience what seems a juxtaposition of opposites in the mid nineteenth century? Allusions to Vicar of Wakefield or to Babylon in the Bible may seem abstruse for contemporary readers. However, they reflect the way Lucy thinks. “While I read (a pocket classic---a Corneille___I did not like it, but he (Monsieur Paul) did, finding therein beauties I never could be brought to perceive),” or “comparison with the compliments of a John Knox to a Mary Stuart.” Many of these allusions reflect her knowledge of Protestant duty and what she calls ostentatiousness of Catholics.

The novel ends rather ambiguously. Monsieur Paul does not return from his sea voyage. We’re not sure about Lucy. Like other female characters in Charlotte Bronte’s fiction, she is troubled. She yearns to experience love and independence at the same time, to develop a career and experience marriage, and to overcome oppression and bondage. But does the novel really end happily? What do you think?

Dr. Martha Macdonald College English instructor (Ret) author, and performer. doctorbenn@gmail.com

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InterpNEWS

If it Bugs you - eat it !

John Veverka Interpretive Planner/Trainer Director - Heritage Interpretation Training Center

I guess this story started back in the 1970's when I was working my way through college at Ohio State University, majoring in interpretation. I was on the staff of the OSU Museum of Zoology, for the academic year, but need a summer job. Found one with Ohio State Parks as a Seasonal Naturalist, and my interpretive career was born. One of my "nature hike themes" was that all of nature was connected together and we were part of that connection. One of my trail stops was interpreting a shrew skull, and then talking about what shrews are. "Our next stop on the trail will be a shrew's grocery store. Let's see what they might be shopping for today. In case the shelves are a little empty, I've brought some shrew food with my for you all to try - if you dare"!

Of course eyebrows were raised as they wondered just what the "experience" at the next stop would be. At the next stop I would ask them if they were ready to eat like a shrew and try shrew food? I then brought out my freeze dried mealworms (see pic) - open the package and give each person a worm or worms to try (BBQ flavored). Most tried them and I talked about how not just shrews are insects, but for a majority of the people in the world, insects were a prime source of protein. From that time on, no matter which hike I would lead people asked - "will we eat a bug on this hike?" Word spread - and edible insects became a part of the interpretive story.

You can order your own mealworms at: www.HotLix.com

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First - let's learn a little more about edible insets.

Entomophagy, from ĂŠntomon, "insect", and phagein, "to eat") is the human use of insects as food. The eggs, larvae, pupae, and adults of certain insects have been eaten by humans from prehistoric times to the present day.

Human insect-eating is common to cultures in most parts of the world, including North, Central, and South America; and Africa, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Over 1,000 species of insects are known to be eaten in 80% of the world's nations. The total number of ethnic groups recorded to practice entomophagy is around 3,000. However, in some societies insect-eating is uncommon or even taboo. Today insect eating is rare in the developed world, but insects remain a popular food in many regions of Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. Some companies are trying to introduce insects into Western diets. FAO has registered some 1900 edible insect species and estimates there were in 2005 some 2 billion insect consumers worldwide. They also suggest entomophagy should be considered as a solution to environmental pollution.

Before humans had tools to hunt or farm, insects may have represented an important part of their diet. Evidence has been found analyzing coprolites from caves in the US and Mexico. Coprolites in caves in the Ozark Mountains were found to contain ants, beetle larvae, lice, ticks, and mites. Evidence suggests that evolutionary precursors of Homo sapiens were also entomophagous. Insectivory also features to various degrees amongst extant primates, such as marmosets and tamarins, and some researchers suggest that the earliest primates were nocturnal, arboreal insectivores. Similarly, most extant apes are insectivorous to some degree.

Cave paintings in Altamira, north Spain, dated from about 30,000 to 9,000 BC, depict the collection of edible insects and wild bee nests, suggesting a possibly entomophagous society. Cocoons of wild silkworm (Theophilia religiosae) were found in ruins in the Shanxi province of China, from 2,000 to 2,500 years BC. The cocoons were discovered with large holes, suggesting the pupae were eaten.[22] Many ancient entomophagy practices have changed little over time compared with other agricultural practices, leading to the development of modern traditional entomophagy.

Eight Bugs to try: According to the cookbook, Creepy Crawly Cuisine by biologist Julieta Ramos-Elorduy, a leading proponent of the entomophagy movement, here are the eight critters most often ingested worldwide.

1. Beetles The most commonly eaten beetles are the long-horned, june, dung, and rhinoceros varieties. These are munched by people living in the Amazon basin, parts of Africa, and other heavily forested regions, both tropical and temperate, as diverse species are easily found in trees, fallen logs, and on the forest floor. (Native Americans, I've heard, would roast them over coals and eat them like popcorn.) They are efficient at turning cellulose from trees (indigestible to humans) into digestible fat. Beetles also have more protein than most other insects.

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2. Butterflies and Moths They do more than look pretty fluttering across a meadow; these winged insects, during their larval and pupal stages, are succulent and full of protein and iron. They're very popular in African countries, and are an excellent supplement for children and pregnant egnant women who may be deficient in these nutrients. In Central and South America, fat and fleshy agave worms, which live between the leaves of the agave plant and turn into butterflies, are highly sought after for food and as the famed worm dropped into mescal, a Mexican liquor. Cultivation of these worms could help protect them from overharvesting.

3. Bees and Wasps We love bees for their honey, but they have more to give. Indigenous people in Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, and Mexico commonly eat at these insects when they are in their immature stages. Stingless bees are most commonly munched, with wasps a distant second. Bee brood (bees still in egg, larval, or pupal form tucked away in hive cells) taste like peanuts or almonds. Wasps, some say, hhave ave a pine-nutty pine flavor.

4. Ants You're probably thinking that it takes a lot of ants to make a meal. True. But they pack a punch: 100 grams of red ant (one of thousands of ant species) provide some 14 grams of protein (more than eggs), nearly 48 grams of calcium, and a nice hit of iron, among other nutrients. All that in less than 100 calories. Plus, they're low in carbs.

5. Grasshoppers, Crickets, and Locusts Grasshoppers and their ilk are the most consumed type of insect, probably because they're simply all over the place and they're easy to catch. There are a lot of different kinds, and they're a great protein source. The hoppers have a neutral flavor, so theyy pick up other flavors nicely. Cricket curry, anyone? Meanwhile, locusts move in swarms that devastate vegetation in countries where people are already struggling to eat—one eat of several reasons to turn them into dinner.

6. Flies and Mosquitoes Not as popular lar as some of the others, these insects insects—including including edible termites and, yes, lice—still lice have a place at some tables. Flies that develop on various types of cheese take on the flavor of their host, and the species from water habitats may taste like duck or fish.

7. Water Boatmen and Backswimmers Easy to cultivate and harvest, these cosmopolitan little guys deposit eggs on the stems of aquatic plants, in both freshwater and saltwater environments— —even in stagnant water. The eggs can be dried and shaken from the t plants to make Mexican caviar (tastes like shrimp), or eaten fresh for their fishy flavor.

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InterpNEWS 8. Stinkbugs If you can get past the funky smell, these insects apparently add an apple flavor to sauces and are a valuable source of iodine. They're also known to have anesthetic and analgesic properties. Who would have thought?

My favorite places for bugs.

I have a few favorite places to order my edibles: In a recent order from: http://www.bizarrefood.com/edibleinsects-bugs - I received:

- Sago Worms - Silkworm Pupae - Jungle Trail mix (giant water bugs, diving beetle and of course Asian Forest Sorpion.)

- One can of cicadas.

- One can of zebra tarantulas - One can of mixed pupae.

- One can of chocolate covered silkworms.

If you're ready to try some unique interpretive experiences for your next forest walk, and also to interpret an important cultural story as well, give bugs a try.

So when you're on your next walk in the forest or beach and the bugs start to bother you. Don't just swat them ..... eat them!

Other website for bug eaters: - https://www.amazon.com (search for edible insects).

- https://www.edibleinsects.com/ - https://www.teachersource.com/category/biologycandy?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Biology%2FLife%20Science&utm_term=edible %20insects&utm_content=Insect%20Candy - https://www.thailandunique.com/edible-insects-bugs John Veverka Director, Heritage Interpretation Training Center jvainterp@aol.com

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InterpNEWS Why Interpretation?

Brian C. Westfall U.S. Army Corps of Engineers George Tabb, retired U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Chief of Natural Resources, adamantly proclaimed during his career: "When people tell me they can't afford to do interpretation, I tell them they can't afford to NOT do interpretation!"

From the top down, interpretation is important, but what is interpretation? Interpretation is not just something we do for water safety or for children’s programs and is definitely not just a nice thing to do.

Interpretation is the voice or boots-on-the-ground communication tool for natural and cultural resource managers. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers uses this definition in modified form and focuses on the mission of the Corps. The EP 1130-2-248 definition of Interpretation is: Communication and educational processes provided to internal and external audiences, which support the accomplishment of Corps missions, tell the Corps story, and reveal the meanings of and relationships between natural, cultural, and created environments and features. The Corps of Engineers also has an outreach program that involves the interpretive services program. Outreach is defined as: Communication efforts involving interpretive programs that reach diverse populations such as students, teachers, organized groups such as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, 4-H and general public beyond the physical boundaries of Corps projects and facilities.

Interpretive services and outreach program goals are designed to serve as the blue print or playbook for all Corps employees, not just Park Rangers, to follow. Interpretation is a management tool to achieve management objectives. Interpretation improves overall interagency communication and performance.

Likewise, interpretation serves as our voice so that others understand what our agency has to offer. It is not something ”extra” we have to do. Interpretive programming gives our staffs the ability to better communicate with park visitors, customers, stakeholders and community leaders on a wide variety of management issues.

The goal is to promote faith and understanding and ultimately, voluntary compliance with organization’s operating principles, rules and regulations.

Interpretation helps reduces accidents and fatalities, vandalism, recreation area degradation, erosion, graffiti, gray and black water dumping prevents invasive species proliferation and theft. Conversely it improves compliance, resource protection, partnerships, ownership, understanding, support, donations, sponsorships, volunteerism, energy reduction and community pride.

Every dollar spent on interpretation pays significant dividends. How much return have our National Forests gotten from the U.S. Forest Service’s “Only YOU can prevent forest fires” campaign? How about Woodsy Owl’s slogan, “Give a Hoot, Don’t Pollute?” Both examples have made huge differences for protection and sustainability of public lands. Interpretation is the voice of the present and future of public lands!

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InterpNEWS An outstanding example of interpretive excellence is the annual DeGray Lake Shoreline Cleanup. The program fosters environmental awareness and stewardship sustainability sustainability. For decades, community support and commitment from the staff have helped make DeGray one of the cleanest lakes in the nation. The interpretive team helped visitors develop a mindset to care enough not to litter. Positive results have been realized as children that helped clean up the lake are now bringing their children back to DeGray. Thousands of volunteers have removed tons of litter and now, more volunteers pick up less trash. This longstanding publ public awareness program continues to be a viable eenvironmental program and is now a best management practice for Corps lakes and rivers across the nation

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DeGray Lake Cleanup 1972

Through interpretive programming, our personnel sing the praises of Corps Civil Works programs. The Corps is the 4th largest electrical utility, lity, has reduced flood damage 19.7 billion dollars over the last 10-years, 10 maintains 25,000 miles of commercially available navigation channels, protects wetlands and waters of the United States, provides dependable water supply, and serves as a land stew steward ard for almost 12,000,000 acres.

Corps employees are also making a positive impact nationally in our emergency response mission, in our global war on terrorism and in support of the Wounded Warrior program. All these missions are of great value to the nation.

Utilizing interpretive techniques is a fantastic way to promote and enhance safety programs for both employees and visitors. When safety becomes interpretive, team member interaction and accountability increases. The results are lower accide accident nt rates. An outstanding example of the power of interpretation in visitor safety is the Corps of Engineers water safety program. Before the boating and water safety program was enacted in 1973, an average of 500 visitors perished annually while recrea recreating ting on Corps lakes and rivers. Now, the number of fatalities has diminished dramatically and the overwhelming majority of visitors return safely to their homes after a weekend of recreation.

Interpretation entices families to spend more time out outdoors. doors. Sedentary life styles are now the norm. It is the duty of interpretation to support the Get Outdoors campaign, which has proven to positively impact physical and mental health. Effective interpretation educates the public and helps improve visitors’ visito grasp of natural resource management strategies. Outreach enables them to better benefit from what we do at our recreation sites, their public lands.

As these management strategies are absorbed, stewards entice our youth to become our next generation of rangers, scientists, engineers and mathematicians. The Corps of Engineers Science, Technology, Engineering and Math awareness program (STEM) is a grea greatt example of interpretive services outreach, encouraging great young, creative minds to be the stewardship leaders of tomorrow!

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2005 National Scout Jamboree, Brian Westfall, Interpreter.

As stated, interpretation is not just something we do for water safety or for children’s programs. It is a communications process that we use to make business practices more effective and integrated. The role of interpretation has been re-directed. Interpretation can help with marketing, water safety, environmental stewardship/sustainability, compliance, shoreline management, off-road vehicles use and anything else that relies on more efficient communication with the public. Interpretation is our boots-on-the-ground communication tool for natural and cultural resource managers. It should be the first tool you grab for in your toolbox!

Brian C. Westfall U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Retired Ouachita Project Management Office

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Interpretive Planning for "Exportable" Interpretation – ideas to go away with.

John A. Veverka jvainterp@aol.com

The concept of "exportable" interpretation.

So what is "exportable" interpretation? The concept came very clear to me almost by accident while working on an interpretive plan for a Conservation Education Center in Iowa. Our team had visited several nearby nature centers to review their programs, services, exhibits, etc. so as not to duplicate anything at our project site. The thing that was lacking from all of the centers was the fact that none of the programs or exhibits had anything on how the visitor might use information being interpreted to them! None of the ideas or information were of any use outside of the Nature Center, Park, Forest, or Site boundary. The concepts could not be exported for use anywhere else. They were dead end programs!

The two key questions for planning exportable interpretation: 1. Why would a visitor want to know that?

If you can't answer this question, then why would a visitor want to come to this program or look at the exhibit in the first place?

2. How do you want the visitor to use the information that you are giving them? If you don't want the visitor to use the information, then why are you giving it to them?

In other words, an interpreter may find knowing the names of 100 wildflowers to be of use, but most visitors have no need of all that information. We are giving lots of answers to questions that no one is asking! Of the 20 or more plants you identify for visitors on a wildflower walk - how many do you think they will actually remember 10 minutes after the programs is over or by the time they get home? And, how will they USE this information once they get home?

Using the exportable interpretation concept.

The exportable interpretation concept means that the planner: 1. Asks the two questions noted above, with particular interest to question #2.

2. Considers activities, handouts, demonstrations, etc. in the presentation of the program or exhibits to motivate, support, and encourage the visitor to use the information being presented in some way.

3. The concept and information should be able to be used not only within the boundaries of the site, but should be able to be used by the visitor when they leave the site.

Given limited time and budget for programs, or visitor contact, why would an interpreter want to give visitors "non usable" information when, given the same time and cost, can encourage visitors to DO SOMETHING?

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Here is an example: Non exportable program theme: We have over 20 different species of trees in our park.

Exportable program theme: There are many benefits to planting trees at your home and throughout your community.

Let's take this last example and expand on it by developing the interpretive program objectives for the program.

- The majority of visitors will learn several different tree species that are native to this region and habitat requirements of each.

- The majority of visitors will learn at least one way each tree benefits wildlife, and people.

- The all visitors will feel encouraged to plant a new tree at their home, or donate a tree seedling to be planted at some local park or site.

- All visitors will receive a handout with three different tree seeds that they can plant at home.

As you can see from these objectives there is a focus of the program to 1) use the resources of the site for examples and inspiration; and 2) to transfer that information and inspiration into some positive action. Note the objective of having a handout to give each visitor at the end of the program.

Other exportable interpretive program or exhibit concepts (desired results) can take a variety of forms such as: - Do not pick up Indian artifacts or pottery shards at any historic site you visit.

- Do not pick wildflowers at any park natural area.

- Recycling helps everybody - here are three simple things you can do at home.

- Join a nature or history club to learn more about ________.

- Go and visit other sites to keep on learning.

- Go to the library and read more about the subject.

- Volunteer at a park, forest, nature center or historic site.

Summary The concept of exportable interpretation simply means that visitors can continue to use the information you interpreted to them "on site", after they have left your site. The "use" can be psychological in nature, such as "valuing" the natural world or understanding and supporting a particular type of resource management practice. The use can be "physical" in application, such as using native plants to landscape a yard, or recycling at home or office. The important thing is that the visitor can "use" the information interpreted to build on in some way.

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The Heritage Interpretation Training Center The Heritage Interpretation Training Center offers 44 college level courses in heritage interpretation, from introductory courses for new interpretive staff, docents and volunteers, to advanced courses for seasoned interpretive professionals. Courses can be offered/presented on site at your facility or location, or through our e-LIVE on-line self-paced interpretive courses.

Some of our on-line courses are listed below. You can start the course at any time and complete the course at your own pace: Introduction to Heritage Interpretation Course. 14 Units - 2 CEU credits. $150.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/introduction_to_heritage_interpretation_cou rse.html Planning/Designing Interpretive Panels e-LIVE Course - 10 Units awarding 1.5 CEU Credits $125.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretive_panels_course.html Planning Interpretive Trails e-LIVE Course - 13 Units - 2.5 CEU Credits $200.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretive_trails_course.html Interpretive Writing e-LIVE Course - 8 Units and 2 CEU Credits $200.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretive_writing_course.html Training for Interpretive Trainers e-LIVE Course - 11 Units and 2 CEU Credits. $200.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/training_for_interp_trainers.html The Interpretive Exhibit Planners Tool Box e-LIVE course - 11 Units and 2 CEU Credits. $200.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretive_exhibits_course.html Interpretive Master Planning - e-LIVE. 13 Units, 3 CEU Credits. $275.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretive_master_planning_course.html A supervisors guide to Critiquing and Coaching Your Interpretive Staff, Eleven Units, 1.6 CEU Credits. $175.00 http://www.heritageinterp.com/critiquing_and_coaching_interpretive_staff.h tml

The Heritage Interpretation Training Center/John Veverka & Associates. jvainterp@aol.com – www.twitter.com/jvainterp - Skype: jvainterp Our course catalog: http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretive_training_center_course_catalogue_.html

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The Heritage Interpretation Training Center Interpretive Bookstore and the Heritage Interpretation Resource Center http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretation_book_store.html

If you’re looking to expand your interpretive library, check out our interpretive bookstore. Most of these books are available as e-books. These are the same text books that I use for our 44 interpretive training Courses.

All of these books can be ordered/purchased through PayPal at the bookstore web site page. http://www.heritageinterp.com/interpretation_book_store.html --------------------------------Interpretive Master Planning Volume 1, Strategies for the new millennium. (Available as an e-book $30.00), Interpretive Master Planning Volume 2, Philosophies, theory and practice resource materials. (Available as an e-book - $30.00).

Advanced Interpretive Master Planning -.Developing regional and multi-site interpretive plans, interpretive systems planning and creating “Landscape Museums”. John Veverka's Master Copy is available as a PDF ebook - $30.00.

The Interpretive Trainers Handbook Available as an e-book - $30.00. The fine art of teaching interpretation to others.

The Interpretive Trails Book. The complete interpretive planning book for developing and interpreting selfguiding trails. John Veverka Master copy – e-book publication copy available as a PDF - $30.00 The Interpretive Writers Guidebook - How to Provoke, Relate and Reveal your messages and stories to your visitors. Interpretive copy writing for interpretive panels, museum exhibits, self-guiding media and more.

Available as a PDF - $40.00 - this is our new Interpretive Writing text book used for the Heritage Interpretation Training Center's Interpretive Writing Courses.

40 Years a Heritage Interpreter – This is my huge collection of interpretive resource articles and reference materials from 40 years of doing, teaching, and writing about heritage interpretation. $40.00. Sent as an ebook.

You can also visit: The Heritage Interpretation Resource Center: http://www.heritageinterp.com/heritage_interpretation_resource_center.html The Heritage Interpretation Resource Center has a list of FREE articles and handouts.