Saturday, October 23, 2010

birthday wishes

it's not every year that the garden still lives at the end of october.

and it's not every day that a girl has a birthday.

today i had an idea that i'd like to create something beautiful for myself - as well as create something of my self.


so i headed out.

after perusing my books, and making my lists of things i wanted, i got my favorite scissors (that i save for just such purposes) and my gathering basket.


into the gardens, then.


a birthday seems like a good time to gather herbs for a bit of wishing, doesn't it?

i'm a potions and notions kind of girl, so it quite suits my heart and mind.


let's see, here... a little catnip for attaining beauty.
beauty is a good thing to shine, and share with the world, hmm?

oh, courage. we'll snip some yarrow and gather some sweet pea pods.

ground ivy for divination.

friendship - being a better friend is certainly something on my mind of late - we'll have a few extra bits of sweet pea for that.

happiness - catnip, lavender, st. john's wort, witch grass (aka couch grass. it comes in handy for some things!)

healing is always a good idea... we'll take some lemon balm, dock, ivy, peppermint, rose, rosemary, spearmint, and thyme.

love - well, now that's certainly an important one. lemonbalm, catnip, chamomile, columbine, peppermint, and witch grass.

luck - certainly if there is such a thing, i'll take it - rose.

for strengthening mental powers we'll add grape and rosemary and spearmint.

for money and riches we'll gather and add bergamot, blackberry, chamomile, cinquefoil, clover, dock, grape, honeysuckle, honesty, and sweet woodruff.

lavender for peace, of course.

tomato for prosperity.

i'm awfully fond of purefications (especially on new-beginning sort of days), so we'll add chamomile, lavender, peppermint, rosemary, and thyme for this one, too.

st. john's wort for strength.

lemonbalm for success.

sage for wisdom, of course.

since we're talking wishes, we'll have some sage and a sunflower.

rosemary for youth - seems like a good idea to maintain my youthful self.

i got out a special cloth that i only use every now and again, and set to work.

at the center of my first project is the sunflower - for my wishes.


sweet peas, tomato, st. john's, rosemary, lavender, blackberries, spearmint, catnip, and sage.

wishes for me, wishes for my world.

when the rain stops again i'll go out and gather long lengths of grapevine, and start making a wreath. many of my herbs will find their way drying in the wreath, and the rest of what i've gathered today (and my mandala bits) will be dried and then placed in a large jar.

who knows what it will be used for.... tossing a handful over a fire when thinking upon personal renewal or rejuvenation.
carrying a stuffed tiny sackfull with me for a day when i'm needing a little extra courage.
sprinkling over a candle's flame during a special meditation.

silly, i guess, to some.
no matter.

to me, it's a delicious medicine for the soul.

13 comments:

  1. New followere here from Indiana.I love your blog and this insert from today is BEAUTIFUL.I am learing more about unschooling and letting my son have more of a say in what he wants to learn at that time instead of doing the whole school thing.I really enjoy reading your past posts.
    THANKS

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  2. It sounds lovely to me. How did you learn your "potion" skills?

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  3. Hi, Jamie.
    Thank you so much for the compliments.
    It's always nice to hear about people growing out of the "just because" 's and grow into themselves, and make room for their children to do the same. :)
    I hope you find things that make sense and help, here.

    Melody - I've been reading and studying for years. Herbology, folk lore, energy, wise-crafting... whatever makes sense to my poor head and eager heart. :)

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  4. Do you have any books you'd like to recommend??

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  5. Happy birthday to you! I'd like to smell that fire!

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  6. oh happy you. thank you for treating yourself to such beauty. i love your mandala and that you'll carry your garden with you into the winter...

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  7. LOVE the mandala. I love what you wrote too - potions and herbs and shamanisim and making big wishes all fill me with so much joy - so I can relate. Hope your day was as special as you are. xo

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  8. Happy Birthday!
    I love your mandala and the wreath sounds wonderful - a potion to enhance all the attributes you have already :-)

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  9. Stephanie, the mandala is lovely and such a beautiful way of celebrating you!

    I'm all for a bit of soul soothing and courage :0)

    Happy Birthday.

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  10. What a perfect birthday gift to celebrate you! Your knowledge of herbs and potions and medicines astound me and I love hearing and learning about it from you. I'm also jealous that you have flowers in your yard at this time of year:)

    Sounds like you had a lovely day, I'm happy for you:)

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  11. Julie -
    well... there might be three out there.
    and thanks so much.

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  12. happy birthday beautiful Mama (a few days late). What a wonderful gift to give yourself. Enjoy this next year.

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  13. Beautiful! My garden's just waking up and we've been weaving a little magic too...

    Love the idea of gathering (with intent), drying, and storing in a jar for time when they're needed.

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Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts!