3 Earth-Body-Soul: Consulting With Lavender, Serenity.
“To make a perfume, take some rose water and wash your hands in it, then take a lavender flower and rub it with your palms, and you will achieve the desired effect.”
Daily Word of Intention
Serenity
Centering Thought
I am serenity.
Questions
Where do you go to find peace in your life?
Is it easy for you to experience serenity?
How would you define serenity?
Gratitude:
I am so thankful for my serenity. I am thankful for the peace that I am experiencing in this moment. I am thankful for the power of peace. I am thankful for stillness of being. I am thankful for my calm.
Reflection
There is an innate wisdom in the Earth. Our kinship with plants can enlighten and empower us. As we consider and consult the greens that grow so near to us, what do we learn— what Earthly gifts are they so freely offering to our body and soul?
What do we know about lavender?
It’s beautiful! Spikes of thin, long, and cream colored green leaves lift and grow and bloom fragrant purplish flowers, purples of all shades. And did I say fragrant? These purple flowers contain a potently pungent oil, which has not gone unnoticed. People have used it for perfumes for centuries. When archeologists opened King Tutankhamun’s tomb, lavender was found, and it still retained some of its scent! Aside from the bowers and tombs of kings, lavender has been used to scent laundry, cosmetics, toiletries, and culinary dishes. Insfused in water, it scents baths. Flowers are also dried and made into sachets that can be used to put into drawers and closets as another way to scent clothing and linens. Some people put these sachets under their pillows for a beautiful sleep. A low growing shrub, that grows evergreen, there are many different varieties — some like the Hidcote are known and grown for their color, and some, like the Munstead, known and grown for its fragrance.
It’s growable. Lavender ia a hardy plant and it is easy to grow after its seeds have germinated. It likes a light soil, and not too much moisture. Pruning is important to the health of the plant and is best done when the flowers have faded. At that time, make a cut about and inch above the old wood.
It’s got roots. Egyptians long ago documented their use of lavender in the arts of embalming and comics using hieroglyphic texts. Arabians were the first to cultivate and distill the oils of lavender. This Mediterranean shrub can be found in the wild all over Europe and Asia. Like most herbs, it was introduced to Europe by the Romans who bathed with it.
It’s got a name. The Greeks called it naardus, after the Syrian city Naarda. As spikenard, this plant is named several times in the Bible, both in Old and New Testaments. Some say the Romans were the first to refer to it as lavender, associating its name with its function: they used it to bathe and lavare is their word for bathe.
It’s edible. Lavender works well in any dish whether it be sweet or savory. I like to top my salads with it and to make teas of it. Some people like it in lemonade and bake it into cookies and casseroles.
It’s nutritious. Lavender has vitamin A, calcium and iron and contains many phytochemicals and antioxidants.
It’s medicine. In 77AD, Dioscorides, a Greek physician detailed the healing benefits of lavender. A sedative, when taken internally as well as when applied externally, lavender reduces pain and promotes relaxation. With its anti-inflammatory compounds, this herb relieves stress headaches and migraines. It is the perfect herb to include in self-care routines because of its calming properties. It dissolves anxiety and dispels depression. It helps one to sleep. This plant is great for the liver and for the entire digestive system. As a diuretic, antiseptic, and anti-viral, it protects and helps to cleanse the body of toxins. Worn around wrists to ward off disease in times of plague and utilized on battlefields, lavender protects, and cleanses, and eases pain. It clears congestion. It bolsters immunity.
Even its oils are useful. The oil pressed from lavender has been used for centuries for many of the same reasons as the whole plant. In aromatherapy, lavender, relieves stress, relieves headaches, improves mood, and helps the body to fight infection. A natural disinfectant and insecticide, add drops to homemade household cleansers. The smell is wonderful, and can be used safely. Applied on the skin with a carrier oil, it soothes the discomfort one may feel from stings, rashes, burns, and scratches. Used consistently in bath water, a salve, or in liquid soap, it prevents scaring, stretch marks, and wrinkles. By blending 3 to 5 drops of it with a carrier oil, lavender essential oil can be used on the scalp to ease itching.
Fun fact: In the heat of summer, and because of the levels of oil in the leaves, some species of lavender, and it is the seeds of these species that only germinate after a fire. Nature amazes me!
What Advise for living does this plant give?
Be beautiful. Grace the world with your fragrance. Be volatile and potent. Awaken every sense. Soothe and reduce and protect. Be a calming presence to those around you. Be gentle and powerful. Be comfortable in your serenity.
Sources
Buczacki, Stefan. “Gardening.” New Statesman, vol. 149, no. 5528, July 2020, p. 57. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=buh&AN=144464791&site=eds-live.
“Lavender.” Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Jan. 2018, p. 1; EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=funk&AN=la027100&site=eds-live.
Ogata, Keizaburo, et al. “Lavender Oil Reduces Depressive Mood in Healthy Individuals and Enhances the Activity of Single Oxytocin Neurons of the Hypothalamus Isolated from Mice: A Preliminary Study.” Evidence-Based Complementary & Alternative Medicine (ECAM), July 2020, pp. 1–9. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1155/2020/5418586.
SANSONE, ARRICCA ELIN. “Natural Benefits of Lavender.” Prevention, vol. 73, no. 4, Apr. 2021, pp. 20–21. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=148966170&site=eds-live.
Stow, Lee Karen. “In Love with Lavender.” In Britain, vol. 14, no. 4, Aug. 2004, pp. 28–32. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=13667651&site=eds-live.
William, Anthony. “Lavender.” https://www.medicalmedium.com/blog/lavender. Assessed 29 June 2021.
Wolf, Nicki. “What are the Benefits of Eating Lavender?” Livestrong.com. https://www.livestrong.com/article/500806-what-are-the-benefits-of-eating-lavender/. Assessed 29 June 2021.
Blessings
Thank you for joining me today! I hope you have a beautiful day! Please leave a comment below. I would love to hear from you. Peace for now - And remember, stay CHARMED.