Samhain's Sirens Day 9, October 10

Welcome back! Can you believe it's Thursday already? This month is flying by!!

We have a lot of fun in store for you today! Don't forget, you can email us or use the contact form at the top of this page if you need assistance!

Remember, every time you enter into our giveaways, you are automatically entered into the grand prize giveaway at the end of the month!

We'll be showing you a sneak peek of the grand prize later this month, so be sure to check in with us daily.. and tell your friends about us!

Today's Tribute is to Mary Wells

Plant Spirit Work

By Lily Shahar Kunning, proprietor of Boline Apothecary

Before pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies, before doctors and people in lab coats, people sought extra help with their healing from herbalists. They may not have called them “herbalists” back then- some were called “granny”, “bruja”, “curandera”, “strega”, or “cunning man”- but these healers were wise and knowledgeable about plants and their actions in the human body. Often they practiced what we now call magic(k) in addition to herbalism.

Many of these healers lived somewhat apart from the hustle and bustle of the village- allowing them time and energy to commune with plants and learn their secrets- though cultivation, wildcrafting, listening to plants, and experimenting with them to make medicines. And these generations of healers from across the globe, now called herbalists, have left us a legacy of amazing information. Indeed, to really master herbalism, one must study for years to get a basic grasp and then continue your education for a lifetime. There are tens of thousands of plants, just as there are myriad maladies to help cure.

I started out as most do- a dabbler called to heal myself and my friends. I made simples and teas, created poultices, and cured yeast infections. The more I learned, especially as I got into plant spirit work, the more I was fascinated and wanted to know. I personally believe that plants taught us what they could do- and those that knew how to listen became the first healers.

To listen to plants is not easy to relearn (I say relearn, because children do not seem to have a problem doing it- I distinctly remember my son, Rowan, even before he could speak to me in words, telling me to water a neglected plant by tugging on my shirt and pointing at the houseplant and making the sign for water (he was taught ASL as a baby).

When I was in herb school in California, we went out into the mountains to listen to plants. As I lie under a manzanita bush, I distinctly got the message “I was first” and saw strange strobe-like flashes of pictures of manzanita and madrone traveling across hard desert and clay before any other plant life. As they traveled, other plants befitted from them taking root in the hard terrain and breaking up the soil- so they followed and sprung up in manzanita's wake. After my “vision”, I did research and sure enough- this is what botanists believe happened. I was tickled and astonished the clarity of communication.

Recently on a hike with my apprentice, the wind rustled through the trees and I got a feeling of euphoria and joy- coming to me from a very specific tree. “This is how we move” said the tree. “You move from within, we move from without. ” The tree was delighted to be moved in this way.

We can remember how to talk to plants, though a series of conscious decisions. Taking a cue from the generations of herbalists before me, I try and live part of my life apart from the hub bub. Apart from other people, machines, and electronic communication. This is not easy to do when you live in a city, run a business, have a part time job, are a parent, and go to grad school! Not easy at all. It requires deliberate effort and choices.

I have told my apprentice as we begin this work: to listen to animals, one must lower their energy several notches. To listen to plants, you must go even lower (and by lower, I am not referring to hierarchy, I am speaking to vibrational frequency. Plants vibrate at a lower frequency than non-human animals and even lower than human animals. So to “hear” them, you need to “shift down”, too. I am still crafting language around this skill and truth, so this may not be the clearest explanation to you reader. Sorry for any confusion the language may cause.)

Cultivating this skill requires no distractions, stillness (in mind and environment) and the skill of knowing how (which comes from years of practice). I can do it at will when I have time, space, and no distractions, but it took years to be able to do this on command. Now I can make small spaces for this skill frequently, rather than needing hours at a time as I needed when I first started (although hours at a time is a luxury I would take!).

How do I work it into my busy life? I sought a part-time job that was within walking distance of my home. (Driving requires a brain wave state that is the antithesis of what you are cultivating. And it takes hours to “come down” out of that state.) I walk to work every day, taking back alleys alone. I drop my son off at the babysitter's and give myself 20-30 extra minutes to get to and from work. The alleys of Clintonville (my neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio) are lovely- overgrown and lush with “weeds”, crows and goldfinches, squirrels and murals. I have flipped over a flailing cicada, done augury, and wildcrafted red clover, melissa, dandelion, and plantain to and from work.

I do media fasts. In order to keep people up to date with my blog and business on social media, I queue up blog posts to self-publish, so I do not have to manually post frequently. Being on the internet is not being present with what IS- right in front of your nose. (link last sentence here to this video: http://myscienceacademy.org/2013/08/25/i-forgot-my-phone/)

I send my three year old son, Rowan on playdates when I make Boline recipes or process ingredients each week. This a time for me to be hands-on and commune with my ingredients, so I can make the best possible product. I can infuse my remedies with intent and add my intent to the will of the plant to make the medicine stronger.

I have a sitting practice that reminds me of stillness and being present. And I grow and wildcraft many of my ingredients. My family does a red meal rite weekly and feeds a tree/the ancestors. We thank the animals and plants that doe for us to survive. And so much more that connects me in a real, daily, tangible way to the gods, the earth, its cycles, and all of creation.

Boline Apothecary is my small artisinal project that helps heal people through seasonally available remedies and body care. My giveaway this month is for a $35 gift card for anything available on the website. I hope you and yours enjoy what I make, with the knowledge that it is a labor of love.

Lily Shahar Kunning, the founder of Boline Apothecary, is a trained herbalist and a recent transplant to Columbus from California. She formally studied Western Herbalism at Ohlone Herbal School and has been practicing herbalism for two decades. She is also a Master's candidate in acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine. If you live in Columbus, Ohio, you may have met her at myriad farmer's markets at her Boline Apothecary booth.

Pumpkin Bran Muffins

*These are a good and healthy muffin! Great on a chilly Fall morning
or school lunch boxes!

1 1/2 cups bran flakes cereal, crushed
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup flax seed
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup chopped pecans

In a large bowl, mix together cereal, flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. In a separate bowl, combine remaining ingredients; stir well and add to cereal mixture. Mix well. Spoon batter into greased muffin cups, filling 2/3 full.

Bake at 350* for 12-15 mins. Cool muffins in pan for 10 mins before removing.

Make 1 1/2 dozen.

Blessings
Autumn

You can visit Autumn's blog at My Moonlit Path and her shop at Verbena Lane Botanicals!

Today's Giveaway also comes from Lily at Boline Apothecary. You'll get a $35.00 credit toward any purchase in her store.

Here’s how to enter: You have until 6am EDT tomorrow to enter. Drawing is held by random number generation and winner will be notified in email (that's why you have to have an email address listed). Announcement will be made on the October 11th blog post at 9am EDT.

Note: These giveaways are open to the U.S., Canada and where allowable. Void where prohibited.
Canadian residents, please pay close attention as by law, you have to use a different set of rules. Not to worry, we have you covered :)

You MUST provide a valid email address to enter the contest.

1. Go to Boline Apothecary's site . Find your favorite item, come back here, and tell us about it in the comment section. (1 entry)

2. Like the Facebook page for Boline Apothecary. Let us know you did (1 entry)

3. Blog about this giveaway (make sure you link back here), come back and leave us a link to your blog. (1 entry)

4. Tweet about this giveaway (link to us, please), come back, and leave us a link to your tweet (1 entry)

5. Be a follower of this blog, Samhain's Sirens (1 entry)

6. Like Samhains Sirens on Facebook (1 entry)

Note: If you want your entries to count as separate entries, you must post them separately. If you post 1 comment with all of these on it, it will only count as 1 entry.

Canadian residents, by law, instead of the above, you must answer the following question to be eligible:

What is 10+1?

What's cool about being a Canadian? You automatically get 6 entries per giveaway for just answering 1 question! :) Remember, even Canadians have to give us an email address!