Rosemary: For Remember Our Natural Selves Pulling Ourselves Back to CenterThe earth smelled moist as I entered the front garden. It was moonless night and the fire in the broken five-gallon cauldron commanded all my attention promising warmth and my very first ritual. But first I must pass under a threshold of climbing vines wrapped … Continue reading Rosemary

ALOE VERA: An Ancient Ally Returning to the earth in sacred ceremony is part of the life/death cycle and honors our bodies and feeds the body of Earth. The spiritual communion is not left only for the end of life, but can be shared in the beginning of life as well by burying the placenta … Continue reading Aloe

Sage is one of the most useful plants - an ally for all When sage rather insisted to be the next herb to be written about, I assumed I would write about White Sage and my best friend Melinda, a drummer and healer who wanted to change her name to Sage but crossed to the … Continue reading Sage

Motherwort: An Ally for Soft Power Motherwort first revealed herself to me eight years ago at the Northern California Women’s Herbal Symposium in Laytonville California. I looked over the forty or so unfamiliar, robust green allies in 4-inch pots at the Insta-Garden, a pop-up nursery of medicinal plants tucked behind the 30-foot tepees under the … Continue reading Motherwort

Mint - Yerba Buena: The Good Herb is a magical herb for processing pain and assuaging grief. The call came in the dead of night. My sister Megan screamed into the phone, “He’s dying!” amongst the clatter of doctor’s commands and general chaos.  The stint they had put in our father’s heart earlier that day … Continue reading Mint

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA Yarrow – My Plant Sister. My Protector I planted yarrow in my first herb garden because the plant alleviates the throbbing pain of bee stings. Bees terrified my young son Kobe since he was a toddler and received his first sting. Once he screamed so loud and long from a bee sting … Continue reading Yarrow

Rose Geranium: A Companion for Confidence and Love The first home I owned came with a courtyard filled with rose geranium. The musky, rose scented plant seemed to thrive regardless if I gave it a lot of attention or very little. I began to look at the plant as a comrade, a loyal friend who … Continue reading Rose Geranium