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The Green Woman - Part 3

The Green Woman - Part 3

by Chloe Pringle

Part One can be found here

Part Two can be found here

Pulling her boots on and avoiding looking at the card and pouch she stepped outside. Don’t take em too seriously eh? I need to walk, just an average stroll at auntie Clarys.

The day was cloudy but warm as she stepped out, the familiarity of the garden calmed her, no hemlock here, all, parsley n dill. A nice stroll she thought, yep Ill pick me some greens. Handily a basket, complete with scissors in it was sitting, on the deck.  Chickweeds looking happy she smiled. Clary’s garden was one where weeds were encouraged, being full of wild food goodness, they had beds to themselves to flourish merrily without fear of pulling or pesticides. She crouched down and began to snip, the rhythm soothing her, as she cut nettle, lettuce leaves, baby silverbeet, dandelion tips and parsley. Fresh salad greens ready and I’m going to go visit the neighbours, find out some more about you n your surprises Clary....

The folks next door, some way in these parts, were a young family with that glow that slightly bemused Sam, being beyond her range of experiences. Friendly, simply living their lives. Clary spoke of them kindly and mutual visitations for the odd cuppa had kept them in neighbourly touch...

“We haven’t heard from her since she went to visit her friend. That was almost 2 months ago, she left raging against regulations and destroying traditions, like she was fired up for another book, or a court case. You know how she was, some big wigs shut Edna down cos she was teaching people how to use the medicines that Clary helped to make. Misinformation or something, trained chemist should know better than to meddle with herbs.

“Can we do anything for you?”

“No, that’s ok, I think I just need time. Time, and some contact details, you wouldn’t have Edna’s number?”

“Let me have a look, I’ll ask Fred if he knows anything else and if he does I’ll let you know straight up. At least you’re here, and that’s something, you can keep the place ticking over. She must have got real fired up this time, she always was one for a mission.”

Sam wandered bleary eyed and in a state of shock back to the house, the old place was her headquarters, as the garden and the vines encroached. She didn’t know where or what to do, but collapsed on the sofa and slept. No nightmares, no visions, just sleep for a weary traveler.....

The date on the discarded parcel wrapping was 2 months ago....

**********************************************************************************

When Sam awoke at least she felt rested, but as her eyes scanned the house she saw it in a new light. This was Clary’s life’s work scattered around her now, piles and lack of filing and all, it was an act of devotion from a woman who adored things green and growing. What was she meant to do now? Why had no one called her? Who was there? Clary hadn’t been a blood relation but she was a friend of the family going way back. There was no landline here, and Sam had happily left her mobile back at her flat.

She unconsciously sat and fiddled with the leather pouch, soft and warm. Her hand delved in and shuffled away, she pulled another card. A woman, a green woman, with nettles in her hair and bushflowers all around her. A blend of the two realms. Thank goddess she sighed, no ominous forces here, natures soft side. Not despite, but because of her sting though, nettle taught awareness. Green awareness. The card eased her but also brought tears.

Through the eons shamans voyaged to discover from the plants themselves, in a less Linnaeus based format, what medicines they carried. Passed down what they learnt orally, sometimes only to apprentices. Is that what I was for you Clary? An apprentice? Did you expect me to translate all these piles as only you could? I don’t know enough, I barely know a handful of plants and I’m no shaman, although my fishy friend imposed some faith in me. Her dream flooded back, how could  anyone expect her to save the ol ways from anybody, when she didn’t have them in her comprehension? This was Clary’s work, I’m just a sometime gardener and artist. What of Clary’s affairs, she thought as she looked towards the door and noticed a bunch of semidried plant matter bound to the architrave.

Getting up somewhat nervously she picked it up and saw the speckled stems. She turned and began to see the space as it truly was, a frenzy of activity had gone on here, a driven focus with an emphasis on finishing and ‘organising’ research. Hemlock was bound protectively in other places too.... above the kitchen window, on the bookshelves. This was Clary’s legacy, but where was she herself?

Sam made her way into the study and there on the desk was the closest thing to organisation she’d seen, apart from the medicines. A document on beautiful sepia paper, “A Post Apocalyptic Herbal”. Not in the scribble of the parcels note but a calligraphy like lettering designed with intention. She turned the page, apocalypse, jesus I thought I was getting away from that....

"The Green Woman" is a taster of a herbal tale. If you enjoy this portion you can read more at http://opalplantways.blogspot.com/

Featured Weblog ~ opalplantways

Featured Weblog

opalplantways

 

We are grateful to Chloe for sharing her observation of how Susun Weed's Seven Rivers of Healing can change lives. Read an excerpt from her blog here...

Time limits are essential to using Susun Weeds Seven Rivers model safely. Neither delay treatment nor push ahead to more severe treatments if they are unneeded. Many people involved in caring for their own health delay whilst people involved in going to doctors are rushed into harmfull diagnostic tests and unneeded treatments. The time limit will help you resist being pushed....Read the rest of Chloe's post at her blog: http://opalplantways.blogspot.com/2011/10/my-attempt-to-look-at-mental-health.html

Seven Rivers of Healing

A 46 week self study course with Susun Weed

SEVEN RIVERS OF HEALING Have you ever felt amazed and overwhelmed by all the different approaches to healing available to you?  Susun Weed's Seven Rivers of Healing provides a clear path through the maze of health care choices.

Relieve your anxiety, enlighten your mind, and empower yourself through the personal delivery of easy-to-access knowledge.  Rediscover your inner wisdom with this 46 week self-study course brought right to your email inbox each week once you join.

Register here

 

Featured Weblog ~ Home Sweetening

Featured Weblog ~ Home Sweetening

Exploring where we live, how we live there, and how it relates to our health and well being.

View the blog here: http://homesweetening.blogspot.com/

Glorious Goldenrod by Susun S Weed

Glorious Goldenrod
© 2006 Susun S Weed

As seen printed in Mystic Pop Magazine

I love autumn; don't you? The days shorten and fall colors thrill my senses. Perennial roots get busy storing nourishment that will last them through the winter. And the meadows bloom with purple asters and riotous goldenrod flowers.

Goldenrod (the Solidago genus, Asteracea family) is one of my favorite plants, and hopefully, soon it will be one of your favorites too.

Before you complain that goldenrod is a pest and you're allergic to it, let me set the record straight: You aren't. No one is, no one can be, allergic to goldenrod pollen. Why? It has virtually none. What little pollen it makes is sticky, all the better to stick onto insects who pollinate the goldenrod. Only wind-pollinated plants -- like ragweed (Ambrosia artemisifolia), which blooms at the same time as goldenrod, and has an especially irritating pollen -- make enough pollen, and spread it widely enough, to cause allergic reactions.

Set aside your mistaken bad thoughts about lovely goldenrod, and, if you can, visit a patch. Goldenrod is a wide-spread wild plant in North America (found from Florida to New Hampshire and west into Texas), Europe, and Asia. Goldenrod is also treasured as a garden plant from New Zealand to Germany, and has become a highly-successful weed in Japan. So, no matter where you live as you read this article, it is likely that you can find a patch of goldenrod.

It is rare to see one goldenrod plant growing alone; it multiplies by sending out root runners, so there are usually dozens of plants growing densely together. Notice all the bees and insects happily crawling about on goldenrod's numerous small yellow flowers.

There are many types of goldenrod, and you are likely to find several kinds if you look around. The species Solidago canadensis and S. odora are considered the most medicinal (and the tastiest), but all species of goldenrod are safe and beneficial and can be used to help the immune system get ready for winter.

Goldenrod tonics are easy to make. Harvest any goldenrod by cutting the top third of the plant in full flower on a sunny fall day. Or, respectfully pull the entire plant, roots and all, in the late autumn or early winter. Then follow the simple directions below. Note: You can use any size jar when making a vinegar or a tincture, so long as you fill it full.

To dry flowering goldenrod:
Bundle 2-3 stalks together and hang upside down in a cool, shady room until thoroughly dry. When the stalks snap crisply, store the dried herb in brown paper bags. One or two large handfuls of crushed leaves and flowers, steeped in a quart of boiling water for thirty minutes makes a tea that can be used hot, with honey, to counter allergies (especially pollen allergies), fevers, sore throats, coughs, colds and the flu; or taken cold to relieve colic in babies, and gas in adults. Dried mint and/or yarrow are tasty, and useful, additions when making goldenrod flower tea.

To dry goldenrod roots:
Rinse dirt off the roots, then cut away all th estalks, leaves and dead flowers. If possible, hang your roots over a woodstove to dry; if not, place them on racks and put them in a warm place to dry until brittle. Store in glass jars. Depending on the difficulty you are addressing, goldenrod root tea may be made with large or small amounts of the roots brewed or decocted in boiling water. Or the roots may be powdered, alone or mixed with flowers, and applied to hard-to-heal wounds and sore joints.

To make a goldenrod vinegar:
Chop the goldenrod coarsely, filling a jar with chopped flowers, leaves, stalks (and roots if you have them); then fill the jar to the top with room-temperature, pasteurized, apple cider vinegar. Cap it tightly with a plastic lid. (Metal lids will be eroded by the action of the vinegar. If you must use one, protect it with several layers of plastic between it and the vinegar.) Be sure to label your vinegar with the date and contents. Your goldenrod vinegar will be ready to use in six weeks to improve mineral balance, help prevent kidney stones, eliminate flatulance, and improve immune functioning.

To make a goldenrod tincture:
Chop the goldenrod coarsely, filling a jar with chopped flowers, leaves, stalks (and roots if you have them); then add 100 proof vodka, filling the jar to the very top. Cap tightly and label. Your goldenrod tincture will be ready to use in six weeks, by the dropperful, as an anti-inflammatory, a sweat-inducing cold cure, and an astringent digestive aid. Medical herbalists use large doses (up to 4 dropperfuls at a time) of goldenrod tincture several times daily to treat kidney problems -- including nephritis, hemorrhage, kidney stones, and inability to void -- and prostate problems, including frequent urination.

The colonists called goldenrod tea "Liberty Tea," for they drank it instead of black tea after the Boston Tea Party. In fact, Liberty Tea proved so popular, it was exported to China! Let goldenrod liberate you, too. Herbal medicine is people's medicine, a gift from Mama Earth to us.

Green Blessings.
Susun S Weed

Online Course with Susun Weed
Menopausal Allies
( Link to detailed description of: Menopausal Allies )

Mentor: Susun Weed

This course will look at menopause as puberty prime, as a metamorphosis, and as the springboard for the last fifty years of our lives. You will mine gems of wisdom from how you dealt with your first puberty, recast your problems as allies during menopausal withdrawal, meltdown, and emergence, and learn how to use herbal allies to create yourself as wise old crone – juicy, vital, vibrant, strong-boned, hale-hearted, and gleeful. You will look at the facts behind some of the prevalent myths of and learn which herbal allies are better choices. You will learn about herbal allies for menopause: herbs for dealing with fertility, mood and emotion, sex, hot flashes, sleepless nights, lack of libido, and your own personal problems. I invite you to join our circle, a menopausal moon lodge, as it were, of women honoring themselves and reweaving the healing cloak of the Ancients.

find out more about Menopausal Allies

Susun Weed, author of the Wise Woman Herbal series, is an extraordinary teacher with a joyous spirit, a powerful presence, and an extensive knowledge of herbs and health.

Ms. Weed is the voice of the Wise Woman Tradition, empowering women worldwide to reclaim their health and wellbeing through knowledge, simply and safely.   

Susun Weed is the founder of the Wise Woman University.

The Poetry and Art of Amy L. Alley

  Universe

 

Sisters

-Amy L. Alley

 

Eyes meet

Across cave fires in the time of the ancients.

Eyes meet

across crowded supermarket lanes today.

 

The message is the same.

 

I understand.

I understand what it means to be a

Daughter

Mother

Grandmother

Aunt

Sister

Wife

Woman.

 

I understand because I, too, am

Daughter

Mother

Grandmother

Aunt

Sister

Wife

Woman.

 

Maybe you are all of these roles

And I am simply one or two

 

By blood or choosing it’s no matter.

We are sisters

Not because we understand each other.

But because we are each other.

My Daddy was a Tall Blue Heron

 

Amy Loftis Alley is an artist, writer, poet, educator, mother of an amazing son, free spirit and tree-hugging lover of nature who resides in Upstate South Carolina. 
Her art is in public and private collections nationally and abroad. Her poems and essays have appeared in numerous publications throughout the state.

Her first full-length novel, The Absence of Anyone Else, was released in 2009. You can see more of her art at www.panpanstudios.com.

Mixed Blood

 

 

She maintains two blog sites, http://boldnessinitiative.blogspot.com/ which is 
about overcoming fear and living fully and http://panpanstudios.blogspot.com/, musings on the creative/spiritual life.

She also has an etsy shop that features art and recycled jewelry, http://www.etsy.com/shop/PanPanStudios, and she would love for you to follow her on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pan-Pan-Studios/188526097202.

She recently celebrated recieving her first level Reiki training.

She Walks Two Worlds

The Window

 

The Artwork of Suzanne Gyseman

The Artwork of Suzanne Gyseman

Suzanne Gyseman creates images inspired by the realms of angels, faeries, myth,  folklore and dreams. She also finds inspiration in the life forms of the natural world, and approaches her work with a vision of the inter-relatedness of life, extending this beyond the physical dimension.

Graduating with a BSc in Botany she originally intended to work for nature conservation. She has worked in a variety of jobs including nature conservation, botanist, gardener, map analysis, computer control clerk and 
mother, but continued to draw and write faerie stories in her free time.  

Her paintings are included in private collections worldwide and her work is appearing increasingly in publication as book covers, illustrations, in calendars and with over 50 images licensed to date as greetings cards and prints. Her short fiction has appeared in West Coast Magazine (Issues 23 and 26) and Visionary Tongue (Issues 5 and 7). 

Visit the Artist's Website Here

 

Now Remember Rosemary by Susun Weed

   Now Remember Rosemary

by Susun Weed

As seen printed in Mystic Pop Magazine

 

Mad Ophelia tells us: "There's Rosemary, that's for remembrance." In Shakespeare's day it was common knowledge that rosemary helped one remember. Today, as then, herbalists agree: "For weyknesse of ye brayne, sethe rosemaria in wyne and keep ye heed warme."The leaves of this tough, evergreen shrub are valued for both medicinal and culinary uses. And, the powerful antioxidant vitamins found therein do help the brain work better.

---

 

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) is an especially aromatic member of the mint family. When grown in dry, poor soils in hot areas, a little protected, but touched by the winds, rosemary rewards us with minerals, vitamins, and antiseptic, antibacterial volatile oils which extract easily into water, vinegar, alcohol, and fat. While evergreen, and thus usable at any time of the year, rosemary is considered most medicinal when flowering.

A large pinch of dried rosemary in food acts as a preservative. A strong brew of the fresh or dried leaves makes a particularly effective wound wash.

Old herbals hint that rosemary exerts its influence magically as well as physically. Burned as an incense, twined into a wreath, or grown in a pot, rosemary protects the house and those who live in it, especially the women. Added to the wedding bouquet, it insures fidelity. Tied with silk ribbons and given to the wedding guests, it spreads loving kindness.

"As for Rosmarine, I let it runne all over my garden walls, not onlie because my bees love it, but because it is the herb sacred to remembrance, and, therefore, to friendship" said Sir Thomas More several hundred years ago, with a smile.

Juliette de Bairacle Levy repeats an old, old story about rosemary: When Mary and Joseph were fleeing with the infant Jesus, Mary placed her damp blue cloak on the rosemary bush to dry it. The rosemary, thus blessed, forever more has had blue flowers, and the absolute power to protect against evil. A sprig of rosemary hung by the door banishes all thieves; a bush of rosemary growing by the door allows only love to enter.

Rosemary is a traditional Christmas decoration, partly because it smells good, and partly because pruning rosemary back mid-winter makes it stronger and healthier. So don't hesitate to cut bunches of it for beauty. If you take your decorative rosemary down before it gets too dry, it can be used for cooking or as a smudge.

The dense smoke (smudge) produced by burning dried rosemary is equally favored in religious, mystical, and medicinal settings. When frankincense and myrrh—expensive and foreign resins—are in short supply, rosemary stands in for them in the church's—or the pagans—censors.

During the plague years, and thereafter in many hospitals, the burning of rosemary reliably cleared the air and countered airborne infections. By extension, rosemary was given to mourners to protect them from contagion. It was laid in the coffin to preserve the body. And it was cast into the grave at the end of the funeral.

In England, a branch of rosemary was placed in the dock of the courts of justice as a preventative against goal-fever. To ward off moths, lay it in your woolen chest.

European ladies, princesses, and even queens used rosemary in many ways to enhance their beauty. They tied it into a cloth to keep fleas away; they smelled it to "keep youngly;" they soaked it in wine and used it to wash their faces so they would be "light and lovely;" they added it to their bath water so they would "wax shiny and be merrie;" and they stopped bad dreams by placing rosemary under the bed.

Modern ladies praise rosemary's ability to make their scalp healthy and dander free, and their hair lush, thick, and dark. To make a rosemary hair rinse, brew a full ounce of dried rosemary in a quart of boiling water overnight. After you've washed your hair, pour the dark, sweet-smelling rosemary liquid over your head, rubbing well into the scalp. Leave it be; no need to rinse it out.

If you have very bad dandruff, add a tablespoon of borax per half cup of rosemary hair rinse just before use. Lavaggio, a hair tonic made from an Italian folk recipe that is 99% rosemary, is available for sale for those who don't want to do it themselves.

Recent research has found that the heart has memory cells just like the brain. No wonder rosemary is renowned as a heart tonic, too! The oldest recipes call for soaking several handfuls of fresh rosemary in a large glass of white wine for several days, then sipping the wine to ease palpitations, strengthen weak hearts, and heal broken hearts. Rosemary in capsules, or rosemary tincture in large doses, can raise blood pressure however, so I stick to tea or external applications.

Rosemary infused oil or ointment (not the essential oil, which can cause poisoning) eases the pain of arthritis, improves flexibility of the joints, counters and sometimes cures eczema, and hastens wound healing. If you don't have the oil, rosemary tea can be used instead.

Rosemary tea has a beneficial effect on the lungs and breathing. If you have a cold, rosemary tea is happy to help you feel better. Too tired and sick to do anything? Just throw a big handful of rosemary in canned chicken soup and heat. For best effect, let steep for an hour, then eat it. Ahhh. When imbibing rosemary tea, feel free to add honey, especially if your throat is scratchy and sore.

Rosemary, like all its mint sisters, is antispasmodic, mildly so as a tea, more strongly in vinegar, and powerfully as a tincture. Not only does it relieve nervous pains and headaches, rosemary eases all digestive woes, from gas to gall bladder problems. A tablespoon or two of the vinegar on salad is an easy way to take this remedy. Because of the danger of kidney damage, I use small (1-5 drop) doses of rosemary tincture, and only occasionally.

As a seasoning, rosemary feeds the brain and helps prevent cancer. As a medicine, rosemary restores memory and improves digestion. No wonder boxes made of rosemary wood are considered magical. As rosemary is only happy when commanded by a woman, its magic is most suited to the needs of women. Perhaps Pandora's box was made of rosemary wood. For sure, your life will be more magical when you remember rosemary.

As seen printed in Mystic Pop Magazine, www.mysticpopmagazine.com

© 2007, Susun S Weed

Optimum Nutrition the Wise Woman Way - 3 CD set
Susun Weed. Green Nations Gathering 1996.

Simple secrets of optium nutrition, beyond rules, beyond heroics.

How to find, choose, prepare, and consume nutrient-dense foods that build vitality, joy, and superior health. Follow digestion from start to finish, encounter the mysterious cell wall, and marvel at the microbes that feed you.

Learn about the health-negative effects of vitamin/mineral supplements, problems with sprouts and juices, long-term difficulties caused by low fat, vegan, macrobiotic, and raw food diets.

Price: $30.00

Order Optimum Nutrition the Wise Woman Way - 3 CD set
in our Bookshop

Lessons Learned From Everyday Goddesses

Lessons Learned From Everyday Goddesses

A powerful blog from Lisa Levart exploring the impact of Everyday Goddesses on her journey to self discovery.

 Many incredible women are mentioned, including Susun Weed!

Lessons Learned from Everday Goddesses. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-levart/everyday-goddesses_b_928177.html

And check out Lisa's upcoming book:

Goddess on Earth will be available September 23, 2011. To pre-order, go to: www.goddessonearth.com or join the Goddess on Earth community on Facebook.

Goddess on Earth by Lisa Levart

Goddess on Earth

by Lisa Levart

Lisa Levart is photographer and multi-media installation artist. Goddess on Earth, her book of portraits of women as the divine feminine, will be release by LUSH Press in the fall. Her photography captures the vitality, archetypal beauty, and inner life of her individual subjects.

Levart’s photographs have appeared in numerous publications, including: Architectural Digest, New York magazine, The New York Times, O, The Oprah Magazine, Time magazine, and The Washington Post. Lisa’s work includes an ongoing project photographing the Maloto organization in Malawi, Africa that helps feed, educate and empower the women and children of their region.

Read Lisa's Huffington Post Blog. Many Everday Goddesses are mentioned, including Susun Weed!

Lessons Learned from Everday Goddesses. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-levart/everyday-goddesses_b_928177.html

Radicalizing Herbalism and Activating the Healers

Radicalizing Herbalism and Activating the Healers

Facilitated by Claudia Abbott-Barish and Meghan Murphy

Using popular education, our workshop will cover a brief history of corporate power and how herbal medicinal use has been prevented in the past, barring us from actions of self-sufficiency. We will focus on why cultivating, wild-crafting and teaching about herbs creates new possibilities for us to create more healthy, reciprocal systems (social and economic) in the rest of our lives.

This analysis will include examples, past and present, of how people have used herbs and herbal medicine to resist exploitation by those in power. The workshop will end with a dialogue on how to engage around these issues with members of our communities; what methods are inclusive, representative and equitable, and how to collaborate with the most people.

Sliding Scale Donation $0-10, none turned away for lack of funds.

 

ITINERARY POSSIBLY SUBJECT TO CHANGE: We will keep you updated as we confirm our venues!

August 16th – 27th BIKE TOUR IN NOVA SCOTIA!!!!

August 30th Florence, Massachusetts, 6pm – Gold Thread Apothecary

September 1st Chatham, NY, 6pm – Common Hands

September 2nd New Paltz, NY, 6pm – Tweefontein Herb Farm

September 5th, Brooklyn, NY, 5pm – The Commons

Visit the Root Medicine website to learn more: http://rootmedicine.org/