Come by the Hills
We invite you to come breathe in the beauty of the Peace! "Come by the Hills" (based on a Celtic melody) was recorded by Peace River musicians, Matt O’Connor, Melanie Pittman, and me (Sharon Krushel). You’re welcome to sing or hum along with us as we take a hike through the Mother Earth book to enjoy some fabulous photos by local nature nerds. "Sharing the wonder" is our passion. Feel free to share this video with nature lovers you know. You can find the lyrics at the bottom of this page and under the video on YouTube.Take a two-minute Tour of the Mother Earth book
Each Mother Earth book is autographed by Sharon Krushel. If you would like your book autographed to a particular person, let us know in the "Order Notes" on the checkout page, or contact us if you have questions!My Sweet Canada Canada - a Song for the White-throated Sparrow
This song was written and recorded by Sharon Krushel as the first in a series to teach her grandson and other children the songs of our boreal birds. There are some fun facts in the narration that follows. Feel free to share this with bird lovers you know!Mother Earth Presentation for NAIT Centre for Boreal Research
Author, Sharon Krushel, was invited to do a presentation for the Boreal Nature Series in Peace River. The video tells the story behind the creation of the Mother Earth book and the many people involved in the project. There is a narrated slideshow of beautiful images and stories as we explore ways of expanding our "umwelt", and at the end you’ll see recommendations on some wildflowers you can plant in your garden!Ruffed Grouse Beating his Heart Out
In the lusty month of May, Ron Marceau (Smoky Buck Photography) posted this video of the "little drummer grouse" beating out his mating call, "Ladies, here I am!"
Ron also submitted some fabulous photos of this amorous percussionist for the Mother Earth book. You’ll find them on pages 178-179.
Ruffed Grouse; Bonasa umbellus; Cree: pihîw; French: Gélinotte huppée
To attract a mate in the spring, a male ruffed grouse will perch on a fallen hollow, resonant log and make a low-pitched drumming sound by opening and closing his wings in rapid succession. The thumping starts at a slow tempo but gradually accelerates, and the rapidly beating wings turn into a complete blur when the drumroll reaches its peak. I've heard this mating call in the forest but have never seen the drummer in action. I'm grateful Ron was able to attend a live performance and get these shots from the wings. I look at the courting rituals of species like this and think, "Wow! That's so bizarre!" Then I consider the many and varied courtship rituals of Homo sapiens... Maybe standing on a log thumping your chest with your wings isn't so strange after all. 😉
Original Crowd-funding video
We created this video story in 2021, before the Mother Earth book was published. We pre-sold over 400 copies! This helped us immensely with the downpayment to Friesens Corporation in Altona, Manitoba. In November 2022, we received our second printing. Thank you to each person, company, and municipality for your encouragement, purchases, and support!Song for the Black-capped Chickadee
"Hey Sweetie! Won’t you come and sing with me?”
I composed this song for my grandson, François, when we were hiking in the forest last spring, so he would recognize and remember their song and their call. Learn more about these faithful feathered friends, and feel free to share this with the children and chickadee lovers you know.
Our second printing (November 2022) is pretty much the same as the first edition, except that it has 45 additional words in the Beaver language, plus a few more species and photos. If you want to see the additional Beaver words, you can find the spreadsheet with all the species names linked below.