“Sometimes you will never know the value of something, until it becomes a memory.”
Dr. Seuss
The effects of cannabis have always held a certain mystical essence to its nature. Even after the discovery of the active component Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) along with other active constituents, and even after we have come to extract and refine THC from the plant and concentrate and mechanize its ingestion, we still find ourselves drawn to the otherworldly connection to the herb. What is it that we, as cannabis consumers, value in our products and those who provide them in the craft cannabis market?
Surely we are all able to grasp the power and significance of this one plant to captivate us with such unique effects. Perhaps it is by the plants ability to help offset our selves, for just a short time, from the spinning of this planet and thrusting us into becoming more aware of the universal hum of the cosmos.
Perhaps it is the memories we have of laughter and joy, and of heightened discourse with fellows of shared group enlightenment. Perhaps it is the solace of natural splendor as we find connections with landscape. Surely it is the joy we find by entering into synchronicity with the grace of music and sound, light and darkness, the warm embrace of instrument and rhythm, where we find moments of music gently separate us from the urgency of time.
With little doubt it is the stories we were told by those who fought to bring and keep this herb available to us, even during times of persecution, the stories we hear our elders tell of discovering the magic of imported herb, and the stories of developing a plant hybrid so close to our own ideal cultivar.
The stories we hear of mysterious, unwritten, oral tradition, like those stories we cherish so dearly, as with any origin story. These stories which convey a mythology worthy of debate, and with those who claim to hold the truth to notions which may never be fully verified, but still carry the weight of decades of shadowy existence.
These mysteries, these stories, these experiences…they are what we hold most valuable as human beings. We value the experiences with which memories are built upon, and we hold close the sense of identity these stories add to our foundation as humans and our individual, as well as group sense of self.
We also value the scarcity. We value the scarcity of the stories our favorite cultivator or hash maker has told, only to our ears, as we learn of the intricacy and unique methodology, perfected over years, which were applied to the herb we are graced with. We value the scarcity of a certain varietal, protected by a small group of tight knit cultivators, which brings us effects and aromatics and the experience enjoyed in such privileges. We value the scarcity, in knowing the time that was given to learn how to deliver such a beautiful product as craft cannabis.
While exchange value is only a small part of the cost of this herb, we recognize that the intrinsic value which is built by these sentiments holds as much weight as the technical prowess and methodology into perfecting the craft of growing and extracting small batch cannabis.
As a species we have always been enamored with the mysticism of the cosmos. We find joy in the stories told, they help bring meaning to our purpose, and they root our identity to basis and origin. These stories also help us be removed from the mundane state we, from time to time, find ourselves in.
These stories can also become our identity whether true or false; the objects of our desires.
As cannabis culture pivots from a more or less informal economy to one fully immersed and included as an industry, tracked, traced, and regulated part of the greater exchange of goods and services, are we losing the essence which has captivated and nurtured the culture which cherishes this plant and her powers? As the cannabis space opens up, and craft cultivation licenses become acquired, traded, and capitalized on do we lose the stories which gave character to our herb, or do we find ourselves becoming immersed into a new set and style of value-adding stories?
