First and foremost, Johnna Holmgren is a mother to three girls named straight out of a fairytale—which is only fitting considering her family of five lives a life most dream of. She lives in an A-frame in the woods of Minnesota with her chalk-artist husband, two dogs, two cats, ducks and chickens. When not baking or gardening with her girls Luella, Minoux, and Juniper, Johnna can be found foraging the countryside for wild berries, mushrooms, and anything else mother nature produces.
Cabin Life: For starters, tell us a little about your whimsical life.
CL: As a mother, how do you hope your lifestyle influences your children?
JH: Wow, this is an important one for me. Everything we do stems from this. I think maybe all parents hope their lifestyle influences their children, yes? We decided to pursue entrepreneurship to be able to spend as much time with the girls as we can. Currently, they are homeschooled and I hope they feel a sense of peace and slow living woven into their childhood. We like to honor feelings and emotions, and my hope is that they feel our presence and love. That’s all I could ask for them.
CL: In a recent Instagram post, you wrote: "Imagine a world filled with grown-ups who never gave up their sense of curiosity and wonder and intrigue and discovery.” How has this mentality changed your perspective on the important things in life?
We have so much to learn from children and these days it sometimes seems like as a culture we have it all backward: that we are there to raise them and they must listen to us. We sign them up for so many things to keep us all busy, but if we settle back a little and spend more time playing than cleaning, we might find a new beautiful corner of our own hearts that we haven’t visited since childhood. There can be such a peace when we realize we are enough, just to be alive and breathing. We are enough and we can show our children what it means to be truly thankful for this life we have been given. Each morning we get to wake up to a new set of possibilities, a new perspective, a fresh possibility to connect or love on another human, whether stranger or friend.
CL: Let’s talk about that A-frame. How do you see this cabin lifestyle changing the world your children grow up in? Yours? Those who follow you?
CL: What exactly is this “foraging” lifestyle, and what are the things that embody it?
In the woods, the elements can shift. I could hope for sun but instead encounter rain. I could prepare for wind and still be caught in a snowfall. I could plan for cool weather and end up stripping down layers to do the awakened heat of the sun. The same is with life—we get so caught up in the ever-shifting elements around us, that we forget to breathe in the incredible parts of this earth.
We forget to stop and remember those childhood memories that so many of us have had that included some form of life-changing nature experience. We need to bottle that up and carry it with us into adulthood. I hope we can reopen that sense of childlike wonder and discovery and open-mindedness for the new and the magical and bring that into our kitchens and into the lives of our children or others. It can be so simple to connect with others’ hearts and braid imagination and curiosity into our plates. We can engage in imaginative conversation with others and open up an entire world of goodness and life-giving ingredients. We can gather from this earth, give back to this earth, and open up our eyes to see the glory in this life that we have been given. There is good on this earth. There are earth-grown goods available to us that can inspire our minds and hearts but ultimately nourish our bodies and souls so we are able to nourish others.
See also Forager’s Pot Pie
CL: You post often about hosting friends and families for meals (in that gorgeous glass house!). How does eating together cultivate relationships?
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Cabin Porn: Inside
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Dutch Oven
