The inspiration for this blog

 As I look out my south window during the isolated days of this pandemic, the green world outside keeps me sane and inspired. Although our whole tribe of humans is suffering from a sweeping scourge of sickness, our plant relatives look much as usual. For that I am grateful. I remember hearing a Native American story about the beginnings of life on this planet. First there were our rock ancestors, and  then there was water grinding the rock into small fragments. And then came the plant ancestors, the green tribe that would transform our future home into a vital living space for the millions of life forms that followed. Today our globe is covered with a breathtaking assortment of plants, from the microscopic to the giants. And although we humans are short-sighted enough to be threatening the health of this living planet, there is still time to change our ways and our awareness. And especially there is time to form a deep bond with the green tribe of plant life.

Since my early twenties, I have felt bonded to plants. It started when I became pregnant with my first daughter, Heidi. The nurturing gene began to come alive, and I not only wanted to care for the growing child inside me, but also the plants outside. I began begging cuttings from my friends' houseplants, and I started my first garden. From that point on, I was connected to the green world, sometimes more than to the human world. 

There have been stunning moments in my past when I suddenly glimpsed a reality much outside my usual awareness. It has always happened in Nature. And these experiences have kept alive my inner knowing that there is a wider place that is open to us if we choose to go there. Gradually I've started thinking of Nature as my teacher, and plants as a beloved representative of that Wisdom. Many of us feel the same way, and as the speed and complexity of our human culture wears us down, we have learned to escape to natural settings to restore our sanity and our souls. 

So why am I starting this blog? It seems to be because I feel the need to honor the relationships I've had with specific plants over the years. I am in the process of making 16 medicinal tinctures from plants that I've grown in my garden this past summer, and as I work with the roots and leaves of these respected helpers, I remember the whole story: planting, tending, watching, marveling, harvesting. And it feels important to me to document the contribution these green co-inhabitants are making to our world. I'd like to devote each blog post to one plant and the experience I've had with it. One of my friends suggested I include photos in this blog. However, it seems we have enough screens in our lives these days. Showing a photo can be limiting. To connect with plants, one needs to go beyond what the eyes see. So no photos. But if I can find woodcuts, line drawings, and other depictions of plants that lead the imagination to supply the details, that's what I'll include. This first post is probably too long already, so no more for now. Next time, a plant story.