People Love

Needless to say, one of the best things about being a Herbalist (among a whole lot of many good things) is that I get to hang out with plants. Being a Herbalist gives one the legitimate excuse to wile away the hours (and even days) wandering around in forests, fields, meadows and along riverbanks. (Not that I've ever needed an exuse, thank you very much.)

The other best thing about being a Herablist is that I get to hang out with the most amazing, awesome, wonderful people in the world – my students! My students are among some of the most amazing, beautiful ,wonderful and talented people I have ever met. And this year's students were no exception. Actually – that's not quite true – they were exceptional!!


My students this year raised the bar. They challenged and inspired me.....

They made me laugh...

They made me cry (in a good way).....

They impressed me beyond my wildest expectations. And for those who know me, you know my expectations are high.

Indeed it was my honour and privilege to have been their guide and mentor these past six months.

As my good friend Jean aka Faery Prairie Dancer said ....10 more women who love the Earth just a little bit more".

And so it goes....

Symbiosis

So.....is it a garden within a weed patch or weed patch within a garden?

To Bee or Not to Bee

I wrote this in response to a message I received from one of my students who had heard that honey wasn't good for you because it was made from bee waste. She was, at the time, at a point in her life when she was unsure of what her purpose in life was meant to be. Here's my response .....

......My thought then is this - if honey is bad for us because it is waste from a bee then is oxygen bad for us because it is waste from plants??!! Or is it just a matter of perspective?

I've spent the last few days hanging out with dandelions - harvesting the blossoms to turn into sweet medicine for winter so that, when all the world is white and stormy, I can open a jar of that golden goodness and bee immediatley transported back to a warm, sunny day in the Shuswap, when all the world was green and gold, on a day wherein I was privilege to one of the miracles on Earth - the ancient and oh-so-intimate-and-delicate dance between plant and pollinator - the bumblbee engaged in her ancient, ritual of relationship with the dandelion - harvesting sweet nectar to bring backto hive, to transform into food that will keep her hive alive during the winter. In her short life she will have lived a privileged life - long days filled with playing in the sun, dancing among all the beautiful flowers - not questioning the purpose of her life - living completely in the moment. She is thus a manifestation of the wisdom of the Earth, the alchemy ofNature, the siral of Life, and in partaking of her sweetness - her honey - we too become part of that ancient, delicate ritual and yes.....how sweet it is!!!

On that note - pass the rose petal honey, please!

In Love With Weeds - A Weedy and Always Seedy Love Affair

Some call them “aliens”, some call them “invasive species”, some call them “noxious”, some call them names that are not fit for the ears of gentle readers, some pull them out by their hair or their roots and some even poison them.

But some of us love them! We love for the very reasons others don't. We love them for their stubbornness, we love them for their tenacity, we love them for their resilience, we love them for their abundant availability, we love them for their uncommon beauty, we love them for their food and we love them for their medicine.....we love them, we love them, we love them for many, many reasons!

Weeds are to the plant world what pioneers are to the people world – they come from somewhere else. Unlike native plants (and people) they are not indigenous to the landscapes they call home. In fact, many of the weeds in North America were purposely brought here by the pioneers, being used as food or medicine in their country of origin or, they simply hitched a free ride on an unsuspecting host - animal fur, clothing, soil etc. (For all their immobility plants have incredibly amazing ways and means of getting around!)

And Just like the people/pioneers who introudeced them, they more than thrived in their new homes. And some even kinda “took over”. (Hmmm....at some point we'll discuss the parallels between the plant world and the people world). At any rate, they are here to stay, for better or worse – it's a matter of perspective. And from a Herbalist's perspective it's more better than it is worse. Let's find out why......

To be continued...

Welcome to In Love With Plants

Just as Cowgirls are in love with their horses, Musicians with their instruments, Mathmeticians with their numbers and Astronomers with their stars so are Herbalists in love with their plants!

Thus, I am unabashedly, passionately, head-over-heals in love with plants and the landscapes within which they live! In fact, my love affair with my landscape has far outlasted any other love affair.

And so I offer this blog, “In Love With Plants” a forum by which I will be sharing with you my love of plants and the landscapes within which they live. You'll meet many of my favourites, both the weeds and the wild ones. You'll learn about their many virtues and perhaps you may even fall in love with some of them yourself....I'm hoping so!

Let the Love Affair begin!