Natural Healing Corner (1)

If you know anything about my books (A Healing Grove: African Tree Remedies for Body and Spirit ), you will know that I spend a lot of time and thought writing about herbs. As a magical herbalist, I write about the magic, mythology, folklore, and healing properties of herbs. In "A Healing Grove" I dedicated the book to trees so a tree is our point of departure today.

I have decided that on Friday’s I will turn this blog into my Natural Healing Corner. Here I will talk about all the qualities of herbs I love as well as nature’s healers like stones, crystals, water and fire. I am partial to Fridays. Not in a TGIF sort of way but for its connection to the goddesses, particularly Venus.

I call it the Natural Healing Corner because in a conversation with an octogenarian African American woman from the south, she mentioned that they (meaning Black folk) didn’t have doctors when she was growing up; just Natural Healers.

Today, I want to focus in on Linden Flower, also called Tilia. It is a magical healing tree. Traditionally Linden has been a tree sacred to Slavic and Germanic peoples, being revered and celebrated. It is beloved by poets and figures into Greek mythology as well.

As an herbalist, I must admit, until last year, I had overlooked this herb in my personal practice. Once I started using it I was amazed by its myriad healing properties. I found what was called Tilia tea bags in our local Mexican American supermarket. Popular in Mexico, it was touted as a cure for nervousness and anxiety. Upon further examination I found it to be good for so many ills that plague our modern society. Just consider two of the most popular drugs, Xanax and Zantac or the little purple pill.

Tilia helps the body release water. It is a diuretic. As a sedative it brings about a state of tranquility. Tilia eases anxiety. It is a balancing and stabilizing herb. For people suffering from IBS in particular, Tilia helps with stomach disorders of various sorts and boosts the immunity—important to cold and flu season. I understand now from within my body, Tilia’s sacred healing properties.

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Gran Bwa

Gran Bwa is a lwa that helps you connect to ancestral roots or the spiritual home of Vodou. A friend of mine, who is an expert on Haitian Vodou, who has spent a lot of time in Haiti with the artists there, told me I had painted Gran Bwa when I made this spontaneous work out of walnut ink and sumi-ink on handmade paper. I had considered this painting a self-portrait. She now holds this piece in her private collection: Quite a few people are afraid of Vodou but it is an awe-inspiring tradition of bringing together plant energy with divinity, spiritual and personal energy. My friend who is very involved with Vodou, especially the art that surrounds it, is from European ancestry. She is light in spirit and bubbly, with a close relationship to nature and her garden. Vodou affirms the relationships between cycles of life, trees of knowledge and spirit. The Vodou vision of lwa , understands them as the intelligence of energy present in humans, nature and thoughts. Mysteries ca

Xochitl--Flower

(Winter Poinsettia by Stephanie Rose Bird, oil on wood) One of my Facebook friends does daily posts and shares called "I love Flowers." I love flowers too, in real life, in my garden, in paintings and as they are related to the gods and goddesses, in healing, as well as their use in folklore like Hoodoo. Not long ago I posted about Xochipelli (Sho-CHEE-pee-lee) prince of flowers and Xochiquetzal (Sho-CHEE-ket-zul) goddess of flowers in anticipation of April's blooming season. The Goddess and Prince of Flowers post is here. Today, I want to focus in on the root word of their names and it's symbolism. This word is Xochitl (Show-CHEE-tul) in the Nahuatl language of the Aztecs. This word means flower. ( Frida Kahlo "Self Portrait Dedicated to Dr. Eloesser) In many different belief systems there are nature gods and goddesses connected with flowers. Flowers possess symbolism,

Follow Fest Interview and Sharing

When I first became a blogger it was difficult to know if I had readers and visitors coming to my blog. I’d post and be met by the sounds of crickets. Then, I branched out into the world of the blogosphere, a world I didn't know really existed. From my ventures, I met a lot of interesting bloggers. I've started following and commenting on numerous blogs, for you see, prior to my outings, I too was out among the crickets. Lurking about but seldom saying anything. A fellow blogger I've met through my journeys around the blogosphere is Melissa Maygrove . She had the brilliant idea to have a Follow Fest , where we share about who we are, what we do and most importantly, how you can connect with us further. It is my intention through joining Follow Fest, that I’ll connect with many more readers and people interested enough in what I do to want to learn more by following. So, here goes my entry for the fest. Name: Stephanie Rose Bird Fiction or

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