Hot water with a slice of lemon… I feel this tonic sloshing in my belly as I gulp the sweet tart medicine of Grandmas secret tonic. Dandelion flowers in honey and vinegar is another one of her favorites… She would say “this will get rid of allergies, extra water weight, will make your liver happy, and will keep your bones strong. Make it in the spring. Add it to your water all summer long”.
She had a “fix” for all ailments, whether woes of the body or woes of the spirit, My Grandma Marey could tell you a remedy.
Oatmeal, cooked for a long time with a spoonful of honey, a dash of wheatgerm, and a full handful of dried cranberries, dates, or chopped prunes. She said this would “keep you regular”… No need for anything over the counter or prescribed by the “white coats” for her family.
Warmed blackberry brandy for the occasional sore throat or sore mind from too much thinking.
White pine tea for cough, sore throat, or tickle that does’t seem to go away.
Elderberry syrup was another favorite. We would spend afternoons gathering so many berries… and what a pretty purple hand we’d have when we were done… and she used ONLY LOCAL honey for the syrup! She would say “whatever you need will come from where you are… no need to look anywhere else”.
My Grandma would sing to the bees… she told the bee keeper neighbors that it made her feel as if she was helping to keep the bees healthy and happy! I still feel like singing when I take a spoonful of honey warmed with fresh lemon juice and ginger for an achy chest or grizzly scratchy throat.
I wonder often, how did so many lose the wisdom of our ancestors??
How did “we” allow ourselves to give the power to be healthy and close to the Earth, to someone who sees us for less than 8 minutes per appointment? Why do we forget that the plants, trees, and flowers are here for all of us, they cost nothing (besides your time) and are meant to help us humans while we live on this Earth in these bodies?
I often hear Grandma Marey when I’m in the garden, or walking in the fields… She’ll whisper “oh look honey, that plant can help with x,y,z…” and so I stop and sit awhile with the lovely plants that she points out to me and I listen. She whispered to me last summer about purple aster and autumn olive berries. And I gathered them with reverence and gratitude and made medicine for folks I love. And guess what… both of these medicines have been greatly needed by family and friends…
What did your Grandma (wise woman elder) teach you?… My hope is that you were listening, just like me! And if you weren’t able to listen to your Grandma, I hope that you might begin listening to the plants…
Start soon… your life may depend on it.
Love, Aniiyah
You help me remember so much of what my Grandmother Albetine (Teeney for short–she was anything but!) taught me plus so much more she didn’t share.