What a wonderful gathering on Saturday. We put on our clogs, walked through the wet meadow and harvested a few twigs of Wild Chokecherry, returning to the kitchen and peeling the bark, deconcocting the bark and creating cough syrup! It was a very simple process, and easy to remember. Everybody left with a beautiful ball jar of their very own cough syrup… alcohol free! Of course some opted to dowse the Brandy and add… no qualms there! Make it your own, twice the power.

I keep thinking of the phrase “the meek shall inherit the earth”. Regaining our ability to heal ourselves offers immense comfort and power as we learn to depend on ourselves and our earth for medicine. That song about teaching a man to fish… applies to medicine too. Nature is power, if you want to know how to make it yourself, here is a great video from Rosalee de la Floret http://youtu.be/lV8jV4o-mvU. Or come over and I will show you.

Perfect time to harvest the bark is now!
Have a wonderful day.
Wendy
GardenPlum.com

Unlike choosing a drug from a shelf, or even a pre-made herbal remedy from a natural food store, your cold & flu medicine will be tailored to your own body’s needs, and your own family’s needs. (Could make a unique homemade holiday gift). Choose from ingredients such as echinacea, fresh farmers market garlic, onion, cayenne, catnip, thyme, turmeric, astragalus and more – the full apothecary is at your fingertips.

Which one works best in your body and how will you know? I’ll show you! Come and learn this fascinating scientific method of giving your body the right tools for excellent winter preparedness. All ingredients supplied, $15 to register. Contact me at info@gardenplum.com to register, limited to 10 spaces.

Sat. Sept. 24th
10:00 – 11:30 am
Garden Plum Herbals
290 Quaker St.
Weare NH 03281

Yesterday, a student asked, “How do I know when my herbs are dry? I put my chamomile into a jar and it molded.”.

Instead of returning a length of days or desire for sunny, dry weather, or paper bags or low heat – I had her eat a chamomile flower that had been overdried. It had been left out too long as I was too busy with life and a few snips of chamomile got away from me. “Taste this.” She tasted it, a tiny taste of chamomile, no burst, no medicinal value. Then I brought her outside and had her eat a fresh chamomile flower, where she reacted almost as if she had eaten a jalapeno.

“OH!”

Learning zing!

“That’s how you know. Through experience.”

I find lectures don’t work. Storytelling is a nice second. Hands on – she will never forget chamomile now, and has a much different perspective on its’ potency and effectiveness. We talked about following intuition and watching the plant, cutting it when necessary, keeping it out of the sun – and all the while following intuition. That is the key component in successful herbalism.

So if you would like a private lesson, it is centered around what herbalism means to you. The lesson is tailored to your ailments and concerns, and whether you are called to make tincture, tea or drop it in oil. The best way of learning is when the story applies to you!

Here is a pic of the classroom:

(This handwritten sign was reportedly found on the wall of Mother Teresa’s room:)

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;
forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends, and some true enemies;
be successful anyway.

What you spent years building, someone could destroy overnight;
build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, others may be jealous;
be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
give the world your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

On pg 45: “ABRAHAM, JERRY AND ESTHER HICKS.
At two different meeting series 1 year apart, we took 1 photo each during the preparation phase of the presentation, about 5 mins before the session. Numerous beings from other realities were present in each photo… (photo 41 taken on the cruise ship tour 2007 and 2008)”

Its fascinating to read a book solely about the messages and meanings of these orbs and what they are saying, of this one I am still trying to figure out:

I love adding diverse products that celebrate the joy and wonders of life! I’ll borrow from a master here:
‎”The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.” -Albert Einstein

Have a mysterious day.

Otter is always on the move and is very curious. Unlike other animals, Otter will not start a fight unless it is attacked first. This joyful little creature is adventuresome and assumes that all other creatures are friendly – until proven otherwise. (Innocence, reminds me of Baby Blue Eyes).

These character traits are a beauty of a balanced female side, the side of ourselves that creates a space for others to enter our lives without preconceptions or suspicions. Otter teaches us that balanced feminine energy is not jealous or catty. It is sisterhood, content to enjoy and share the good fortune of others. Otter people express joy for others.

Otter is saying that the finer qualities of women need to be striven for in both men and women so that a unity of spirit can be achieved. This would involve the destruction of jealousy and of all the acts of anger which stem from…fear…

Excerpted from Jamie Sam’s Medicine Cards June 2011.

Here is another great book that speaks to this, The Return of the Feminine World Soul.

In my late teens and early twenties, I was on birth control pills. There were a few different names, one of which was Tri-levelin. During this time, in the late ’80′s it was socially reasonable for a person to go on the birth control pill as soon as they became sexually active.

By the time I was 16, I developed a breast lump in my right breast. They tried to aspirate this “cyst” by sticking a long needle into my breast and trying to extract fluid. The cyst was solid. So after massive bruising (internal bleeding) from that frightening and painful experience, next they decided I needed surgery. It was done locally, and the anesthesia did not last during the entire procedure which had to be completed with partial feeling. The nurse gave me a steel tin of grapefruit juice saying I looked dreadful. The next lump was by 17 in the same breast, followed by 2 more, one on the left breast and another a few years later. The last one, turned out to be scar tissue created by all the previous gross invasions into my most personal tissues. I was given the diagnosis “Fibrocystic Disease.”

YEARS LATER, I read that a side effect of birth controls is … you guessed it, breast lumps.

Our medical community – as much as they campaign about feel your boobies, get your mammograms, and save the boobies – does not know what the hell they are doing when it comes to breast health. That is my experience and my reality. And my apologies to myself for being innocently naive that they were practicing safe, normal practices. When in reality, the drugs created the problem. And the industry continues along, mowing over women in its’ path in the name of profit. Now we have Yaz, the drug that stops periods altogether. A vaccine, Gardisil, for genital warts that actually has killed some women. The morning after drug, estrogenic drugs, synthetic hormones…god what next? The medical “industry” is like an ugly monster who arrogantly tinkers with our female bodies. Only knowledge can stop it.

Rather than stay on the pity pot too long, I have spent decades researching breast health and coming to my own conclusions, carrying my breasts right along with me on my journey, supporting their health and my own. I have not had a single lump since being off the birth control pills, but I have had several doctors check my breasts and, feeling all of the scar tissue, panic spread across theiir face. This is precisely when time after time, they try to send me for more ultrasounds! Are you kidding? How ignorant! Radiation on scar tissue? Why not warm me up in the microwave?

But what can these doctors do but continue to try and hide their mistakes that the drug companies made, pretending not to know why or how. Its ok, they can continue to hide behind their degrees, because we have blogs now where truth shall prevail.

Here are the answers I found to maintain breast health. Susun Weed’s book Breast Cancer? Breast Health! awakened me to not only breast health and herbal remedies, but also environmental hazards and other life habits to look at in terms of lifestyle risks that lead to cancer.

When I meet young women now, they have never heard of Fibrocystic disease, and I’m surprised that most every young female I talk with has no problem with their breasts. No lumps. I’m glad to see this “disease” has disappeared. I think the cure was a quiet hushing by the pharmaceutical industry.

Motherwort is a very powerful ally, for those with hypertension, who are experiencing menopause, or major hormonal fluctuations due to thyroid issues (and other issues).

Read my post Motherwort and her primal posture for more information and to see the beginning photos of the tincturing process including photos of the original plant. These photos are ideal for ID’ing as we prepare for the new season of medicine harvesting 2011. Think spring!

It started over weeks of name-calling and jealous, gossipy type behavior.

I only have sons and not daughters. I am looking for an explanation from the mothers, teachers, female mentors as to why this happens. Is there anything we can do about it? Is it a source of low self-esteem? Or is it just the way girls try to become most popular? This is an offspin of bullying… it is not exactly bullying, it is competition as its’ most extreme. It is girls putting down girls week after week until it becomes volcanic.

I started carrying a new deck, The Journey, which addresses some of these emotional eruptions in the form of cards. How else can we diffuse this situation? I don’t hear it talked about enough. What direction does this send our ladies into as they launch into their own uniqueness?

I guess I have more questions than answers on this one. Of course there are flower essences, herbs, aromatherapy – but they are remedies to the situation. My question is how come it is here in the first place. I just can’t fathom furiously kicking at someone else’s head.

I welcome you to comment below with your insights, stories, answers.

If your father tells you you are perfect and wonderful, you take that as truth for the rest of your life. If he is absent, you could suffer from abandonment issues for the rest of your life. If he is abusive to you, you could take on the belief that you deserve to be abused. Your innocent mind registers abuse as a thing that exists and it “naturally” is part of your world. Studies show time and again that our truths are based on our experiences in these first formidable years, and they set-up there like hard and finely poured cement.

How do we overcome the belief system that we were taught while the adult had a sometimes unfair advantage over our innocent subconscious and readily open minds, hearts and souls?

Flower Essences is one way of changing our deep seated beliefs, together with counseling, herbs, energy work, and many other alternative therapies available to us now.

I was recently asked “Which flower essences are for father issues?” Here is a list that I feel is very vital for people that have father or fathering issues:

• Baby Blue Eyes – Restores Innocence. For disturbed relationship to father, often involving abuse or abandonment; unable to trust in goodness of the world due to lack of guidance or protection from father.
• Chrysanthemum – Drive to accumulate material wealth, status or power which overshadow the interpersonal values of family and children. This could be applied in cases where the father implied that he will only approve of a materially successful child, placing conditions that must be met before he will give love.
• Elm – Assuming responsibility for role of provider but later feeling overwhelmed and despondent; very helpful for new fathers and mothers. This is very helpful in today’s economic and socio-economic climate, which can carry unrealistic expectations.
• Fairy Lantern – Difficulty assuming fatherly responsibilities due to arrested emotional development in childhood; resentment of wife’s motherly attention to children, wants attention for oneself. This is applicable for both genders who dealt with father abandonment issues in childhood.
• Fawn Lily – Remaining aloof from family and role as parent due to preoccupation with other-worldly spiritual values; bringing more warmth and love into family life. This one is also very applicable where the father figure was always placing work or other exterior roles in a higher priority than family. (Think like how Bambi would look upon his new family vs. how Bambi’s father was absent from his family).
• Larch – Difficulty conveying confidence or authority in father role; doubting own capacities.
• Pine – Internalizing much guilt and self-blame due to overly strict or harsh father; self-deprecation which prevents full realization of own fathering capacities.
• Pink Monkeyflower – Unresolved psychological wounds or abuse from own childhood which prevents emotional expression or vulnerability; emotionally unavailable in father role.
• Quince – Internal conflict about role of father, especially in balancing strength and love; vacillating between strict disciplinarian or permissive father.
• Sage – Realizing elder wisdom in one’s father or other important male figures; ability to reflect and learn from own experience as a father.
• Saguaro – Conflict with or abuse from father, grandfather or other males in family lineage, resulting in alienation from father role; healing one’s relationship with ancestral family and elders.
• Scarlet Monkeyflower – Episodes of rage or power battles with child; feeling powerless as father due to own unresolved issues about anger and power.
• Sunflower – General remedy for healing relationship with one’s father and self-image internalized from father.

  

• Sweet Pea – Difficulty in making a commitment to family, community and living environment; fathers who are absent, travel often, or frequently relocate or uproot family.
• Vine - Exerting harsh or extreme control over children; feeling a need to be dominant in father role
• Zinnia – Relating to children in a playful way by contacting one’s own childlike nature; to counterbalance workaholism or other ways of avoiding children and one’s inner child.