What studying herbalism represents for me

 I looked around my family room today.  I saw my beautiful shelf of tinctures and oils, along with my books and my sacred things.  Herbalism has connected me to my future self, when I will have enough knowledge and experience to help another person.  When I am confident, I will be able to help.  That is huge to me.

But at this moment, I am a student.  I am opening to science and to spirit in my coursework; a deep connection to my ancestors who obtained this knowledge and passed it along student by student, until they one day became a teacher themselves.  I am also working on my mental health alongside herbal studies.  Combined, I am sensing an enormous shift in myself.

There are many times I cannot study.  I need to really focus, take it seriously, grow, open, share, trust, evolve.  Sometimes, I don't want to or even can't.  The woman I used to be would berate me for needing to step away, to regroup.  But I respect the process now, able to give myself space to reflect and recenter.

I have made people tea.  It feels like such a lovely, heart gift. There are so many herbs that are tonics to our systems, a means of self-care that speaks to the mind and the body.  I have made cordials for digestion and oils to nourish and heal the skin.  I have blended tinctures for specific ailments, always adding a component of intention, the spiritual aspect of knowledge, to my work.

This has been and continues to be an amazing journey.  While part of me wishes I had begun earlier, I understand that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

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