The Monthly talks to musician, Michelle Wooderson (Starlyng), about her book and album “A Little Herbal Hymnal” – Part 3 – Dealing with grief and releasing the book

How long does the project take to come together?

I didn’t start writing the book until 4 or 5 months after John (Fitzpatrick) died. I was spending a lot of time working with plants, spending a lot of time outdoors. It was winter and I was studying as well, so I didn’t know that what I was doing at the time was producing a book.

Once that became clear, I started work on the project in January 2024 and it took 12 months to complete. I financed it all through savings, and my family helped me. I have sold enough now to recover the costs and do a second print run but I am thinking that I might look at sending it to a publisher. The book has been really warmly received and I only have a few copies left of the initial printing.

It is an impressive package which is nicely put together

Thank you! I knew exactly what I wanted it to look like –  a cross between an old hymn book and an old herbal,  a small hardback book, beautiful enough to sit on a coffee table or carry around in your bag. The artwork was mostly done by a very talented friend of mine – Pauline O’Flynn, and my mum who’s also a gifted artist, added some botanical illustrations too. It is a book of plant wisdom, poetry, wild food and foraging, medicine-making recipes, deep nature connection, an exploration of what plants teach us about life and death, love and loss. At the end of each chapter is a QR code taking the reader to a song that deepens the whole experience. John’s beautiful strings can be heard throughout. It’s very poignant and beautiful. All the tracks were produced by the wonderful Rick Bleakley at Blackdog Studios in east Belfast.

What are the aims of the project?

Two things.

One is that I want people to connect more deeply with the natural world, to know that there is sentience and magic in every living being. We as humans have forgotten who we are. We’ve got very lost and disconnected. I think that’s why we cause so much destruction. I wanted the book to reignite wonder and love for the natural world. When you love something or someone, it’s unthinkable to cause harm.

And the second thing was a question of looking at grief. I think we’re all experiencing a collective grief over the things that are happening in the world at the moment: the genocide in Palestine, climate change, loss of biodiversity and habitat, to mention just a few.

Grief can be really isolating and our culture doesn’t talk about death or dying or loss. We’re scared of it. That makes the isolation so much greater for those experiencing bereavement. I say this not only from my own experience, but from working as a grief therapist for the past twenty years and hearing this loneliness spoken of so many times. In my job in palliative care I work with grieving families all the time and so I wanted to give a voice to this and open the conversation. I’ve found that a lot of people who have bought the book have have written to me and expressed that it has helped them deal with their own losses. Actually, some people have said that the book and songs touched them so much they have bought multiple copies for friends who are recently bereaved. But although the threads of love and loss run throughout, it’s not a sad book by any means. It’s a book full of joy, wonder, magic and beauty. One of my taglines for it is

‘Plants. Songs. Remedies.

Wonder. Curiosity. Love’.

That sums it up really.

Was there anything else which emerged through the project?

One of the other jobs I do is working part time at The Larder community food hub as the community gardener and community herbalist. The Larder is based in the heart of one of the poorest sections of Belfast society. It started off as a Food Bank but it doesn’t follow that model anymore. We’re looking to create a much more dignified system where everyone, regardless of income, can access really good quality food.

We’re establishing a little medicine garden, growing plants that help us with things like sleep, anxiety, menopause, digestion, respiratory issues, mood etc. Some of these incredible plants might be considered weeds by many people, but they have so many gifts for us if we take time to notice. So, part of what I am doing with the book is posing a question about the things that we, as a society, throw to the side, things we consider of little value, that actually have a lot to offer.

I think there are parallels with some of those I am working with at The Larder who feel like they have been thrown to the side, as do a lot of people on the margins of our society. The gaps are widening. And it is just the same with the plants and weeds around us that have so much to offer and yet we don’t see their value.

I launched ‘A Little Herbal Hymnal’, with a sold-out immersive gig on March 1^st, in tribute to John Fitzpatrick. It felt beautifully fitting to perform it at St Christopher’s Church (home to The larder), in the place where he and I first began. We were able to get Lottery Community Funding to host it, which was fantastic. I’d never have been able to cover the costs otherwise, and it meant the income from tickets could all go back into supporting the work of The Larder.

The event included foraged wild foods and drinks, songs performed from the book, stories, a video installation, a tea ceremony, a gratitude ritual and an audience choir. It was incredibly rich and beautiful and John would have absolutely loved it.

There have been lots of requests to repeat the event, so I’m planning to do another one later this year at the Oh Yeah Centre in Belfast. I’m also continuing to write music, so perhaps down the line there may be ‘A Little Herbal Hymnal Vol 2’, who knows!