#Nettle and Assam

[moonfurthetemmie]

mmmmm i should gather teaverse stuff and work on making that a legit Thing

woke up at 3am. couldn’t go back to sleep. Wanted to write something with two characters but couldn’t remember their names bc it had been literal ages. Couldn’t find SHIT in my notes which means it’s all in discord dms

I was able to write some stuff down from memory but not near all of it

camellia is my favorite though. There’s something deeply wrong with her <3

all that said I’ll probably tuck it away for a while longer since there’s so much other JMV/DINTIS AU stuff happening

[apiswitchcraft]

some tea recipes

if you like tea rituals or giving tea offerings, then this post is for you! keep in mind, though, DEFINITELY do your research on any of the herbs/plants I've listed here if you've never put them in your body before. there's no harm in making substitutions or omitting certain things for the sake of your own health. i've gone ahead and highlighted some herbs that have potential side effects (although not everything i've highlighted may effect you, and not everything i haven't is for sure safe).

also, all of these teas can be made with one of those little tea strainer balls, or with a good mesh sieve. either way, have some way of removing the mix after it's steeped, because over-steeped tea can get sour. store any leftover tea mix in an airtight container in a cool, dry place

if you need to replace any fresh ingredients with dried, divide the quantity in half. also, some of the floral teas will seem like it's a lot of mix just for one cup, but petals just aren't as strong as leaves/roots/etc.

CLEAR SKIES TEA

Ingredients: 1/2 cup dried peppermint, 1/4 cup marigold petals, 2 stalks of finely chopped lemongrass, 2 tsps orange zest, 1 tsp ground ginger Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, use 1-2 tsps for 1 cup

EVERYDAY MORNING TEA

Ingredients: 1 rooibos tea bag, a thin slice of lemon/or a little bit of juice, two thin slices of ginger, 3 cloves (or 3/4 tsp of ground clove), top with a few lemon balm or spearmint leaves after steeping Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes to make 1 cup

COTTAGE TEA

Ingredients: 1 cup earl grey leaves, 1/4 cup dried lavender, 2 tbsps each of cornflower and sunflower petals, add a couple vanilla seeds or extract in each cup Extra Instructions: steep for 3 minutes, use 1-2 tsps to make 1 cup

GROUNDING TEA

Ingredients: 2 tsps/1 bag of black tea (assam or darjeeling is best), 2 tsps/1 bag of chamomile tea, 2 tsps elderflowers, add a pinch of lemongrass and a few vanilla seeds/a couple drops of extract to each cup Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, makes 2 cups

CALMING TEA

Ingredients: 1 cup lemon balm leaves, 1/2 cup valerian root (I use lavender instead), 1/2 cup rose geranium petals, 1/2 cup chamomile flowers, 1/2 cup comfrey leaves (or nettle leaf) Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes to make 6 cups

GODDESS TEA

Ingredients: 1 tsp each of hibiscus petals, marigold petals, rose petals, and thyme leaves Extra Instructions: steep 5 minutes, makes 1-2 cups

TEA FOR FAIRIES

Ingredients: 2 cups dried chamomile flowers, 1 cup green tea leaves, 1 cup lemon balm leaves, 1 cup calendula, 1/4 cup of rose petals Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, use 2 tsps to make 1 cup

DANDELION DIVINATION TEA

Ingredients: 1 tbsp fresh dandelion petals (although you can use the full flowers), 1 tbsp fresh marigold, top with a lemon/orange slice after steeping Extra Instructions: steep for 5 minutes to make 1 cup

ROSE VERBENA TEA

Ingredients: 1 cup Chinese green tea, 1/2 cup rose petals, 1/4 cup dried lemon verbena leaves Extra Instructions: use 1-2 tsps for 1 cup. steep for anywhere from 3-10 minutes (3 is best for the tea, 10 is best for flowers)

FULL MOON RITUAL TEA

Ingredients: 2 tsps dried elderflower, 2 tsps dried lavender, 1 jasmine tea bag, 1/2 tsp dried yarrow leaves (or can use elderflower), 3 crushed cardamom pods Extra Instructions: steep for 5 minutes, makes 2 cups

GREEN SPIRIT TEA

Ingredients: 2 tsps/1 bag green tea, 1 tbsp dried rose petals, 1 tsp each dried dandelion petals and dried nettle Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, makes 2 cups

APOTHECARY'S BREW

Ingredients: 2 cups dried echinacea, 2 cups dried chamomile flowers, 1 cup dried mint leaves, 1 cup dried anise seeds, 1 cup dried thyme leaves Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, use 1-2 tsps for 1 cup

ROMANTIC TEA

Ingredients: 2 tsps/1 bag white tea, 4 tsps rose petals, 2 tsps each raspberry leaf and lemon balm leaves (can substitute jasmine and mint for these), add a couple vanilla seeds/drops of extract in each cup after steeping Extra Instructions: steep for 5 minutes, makes 2 cups

MAGIC REALISATION TEA

Ingredients: 1/2 cup dried borage flowers, 1/2 cup dried thyme leaves, 1/4 cup dried dandelion, 1 tsp each fennel seeds and ground coriander, 1/2 tsp ground ginger Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, use 1-2 tsps for 1 cup

FAIRY CIRCLE TEA

Ingredients: 2 cups dried chamomile flowers, 1 cup dried lemon balm or mint leaves, 1/2 cup dried calendula petals, 1/4 cup dried rose petals Extra Instructions: steep for 5 minutes, use 1 tbsp for 1 cup

JASMINE JOY TEA

Ingredients: 4-5 jasmine tea bags, 2 tbsps each lemon balm leaves and rose geranium petals, top with a few sprigs of mint and a slice of lemon after steeping Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, makes 5-6 cups

AURORA TEA

Ingredients: 1 oolong tea bag, 1 tsp dried cornflower, 1/2 tsp dried peppermint leaves Extra Instructions: steep for 5 minutes, makes 1 cup

KINDRED SPIRITS TEA

Ingredients: 2 cups dried thyme, 1 cup dried rosemary, a few cloves, 3 ground/torn up bay leaves, 1 star anise, the dried rind of a small orange Extra Instructions: steep for 10 minutes, use 2 tsps for 1 cup

abridged from "Enchanted Tea Time" by Gail Bussi (a bunch of these recipes I changed to be a little easier to do for the average person, or provided alternatives for a "risky" ingredient)

[kivrin]

Because your ask box is open: what teas do you like best? Also, what is one change you've made to your home that continues to be useful or delightful?

These are lovely questions! Thank you for asking. So, I really enjoy having a variety of teas on hand - one of my ongoing pleasures is a subscription to Plum Deluxe where they send me a different caffeinated tea every month. The current one is a "pecan cream" that is delicious. My regular morning workhorse, though, is an Assam (think Irish Breakfast) currently Kalami Assam from Ahmad Tea. Perennial favorites include Whittard's of Chelsea's Piccadilly Blend, Harney & Sons Black Cask Bourbon, and a Smoky Vanilla Chai from Soluna Garden Farms in Boston. I don't particularly care for green tea. In the herbal realm, there's a nettle-ginger-licorice blend called Respiratory Rescue that I love when I'm sick, and I also like tisanes with a lot of hibiscus. Celestial Seasonings' Lemon Zinger was an early fave. I do also enjoy rooiboos - that's the non-camellia-sinesis tea that most scratches the black-tea itch for me. This is so small but it is a serious convenience - I got an old paring knife at the thrift store and keep it on the shelf over the key hooks near the door for slicing open packages. It keeps the household scissors from getting lost in the chaos of shoes and coats near the door.

[rosiewitchescottage]

Lovely!

We love our tea, Chez Nous.

English Breakfast

Earl Grey

Assam

Rooibos

(The above all drunk hot with milk)

Green Tea (I haven't tried Matcha. But I'd like to. What's the difference?)

White Tea - Very delicate. I find it works best with some fruit steeped in it, then drunk cold.

Peppermint - I !like to mix this with Green Tea to have cold. Sometimes with Nettle Leaves added too.

Chamomile - Very soothing at bed time, drunk hot.

Fennel - Also hot, great for indigestion.

Lemon and Ginger - the tea bags are good for the taste. But if I want lemon, ginger and honey for cold relief, then it has to be ginger root and lemon juice.

I like trying out other different fruit and flower teas, letting them.go cold.

[transistor-rhythm-909]

Just finished a mug of this tea @cesenalauren brought back from france to me (I should cut her in on the profits of these 'reviews', she provides the material for a lot of them);

l'Herboriste No. 47, by Palais Des Thés- part of their range of caffeine free herbal teas (and they're purely 'herbal'- there's no actual tea in any of them). No. 47 is a blend of primarily Orange Blossom, Lime Flower, Chamomile, and Lemon Balm, though it also includes apple, orange peel, orange oil, and nettle. She tried it whilst over there herself and raved about it to me + was confident I'd really like it.

And I do. A fair bit.

Now obviously, I'm not doing this optimally- I don't have a set of scales that can deal with super small measurements, nor do I have a thermometer, so the amount of tea I used and the temperature of the water might not have been what was specified- though the brew time I adhered to. With that said, the mug I had was very subtle- very strong orangey and citrus-y notes on the scent, natch, but the flavour was a lot more delicate and slight. But it was refreshing, very- I don't know how much stock I put in any sort of 'medicinal' effect PdT claims drinking four cups of this will have, but frankly I'd drink four cups of it just because I want to. I did add a little sweetener to it purely because I like my tea sweet, but I tried it without any sweetener first as is tradition- all teas and coffees i have are tried as-is and to manufacturer specs so I know what the intended result and flavour is meant yo be before I start altering it. Though I will be experimenting a little bit to see if I can tailor it to be even more to my taste- brewing for longer than recommended, upping the amount used, possibly blending with some actual tea leaves (I think most any type of tea would work here, though a rich Assam would make it nice and hearty and malty, an oolong would make it even more pronounced and heavy, and a green would mix a nice extra bitter and earthy note). I'm sure I'll keep you updated on such experiments.

Can you tell I'm a Tea Wanker? Is it obvious? I'm actually considering becoming a tea sommelier, you know. To be even more obnoxious. Because I can.

[twoleavesandabud-us]

Tea: It's good for you!

Now, more than ever, we are all thinking about our health. Luckily for Two Leaves and a Bud tea drinkers, your perfect cup of tea isn’t just delicious, it’s also good for you!

Whether you’re sipping black, green or herbal tea, there are all sorts of health benefits to be aware of. Here’s a quick rundown:

Herbal Teas: Herbal teas (also known as tisanes) feature something great for wellness…herbs and spices! The benefits depend on the blend. For example, our Organic Invigorate is a blend of peppermint for concentration and blood pressure; lemon oil for mood health; lemongrass for digestion; and nettle for boosting immunity. Our Alpine Berry has vitamin C and antioxidants, and it includes hibiscus, which has anti-inflammatory properties and can lower blood pressure.

Green Tea: Many people are familiar with green teas like our Organic Matcha Mint and Organic Energize as a rich source of antioxidants. But green tea has also been found to be high in the amino acid L-Theanine, which can have a number of benefits like counteracting stress (which we could all benefit from right now!), improving memory, and helping to prevent strokes.

Black Tea: While not normally recognized for their healthful properties, black teas like our Organic Assam and our Organic Darjeeling feature a number of benefits. Those include high flavonoids for heart health; polyphenols, which are a source of antioxidants; and catechins and tannins, which can improve oral health.

Two Leaves and a Bud also features an entire collection of Wellness Teas, blended specifically for their benefits, and for your drinking pleasure, of course!

Happy sipping!

[rosalind-of-arden]

All this talk of babies has me writing fluff...

“You can come in, Chris. Morgan says it’s all right.”

Without looking at his partner, Wolfe continued rearranging the tins of tea leaves in the cabinet. “I’m trying to find the nettle leaf. The Medica guidelines say -”

“Chris. She doesn’t want medicinal tea. She asked for black.” Santi came to stand behind him, wrapping his arms around Wolfe’s waist. “You’re hiding. Stop.”

“She doesn’t need us hovering over her while she’s trying to feed the child,” Wolfe said. He took down a tin of Ceylon and one of Assam and made a show of considering which to use.

“Being in the same room isn’t hovering.” Nic reached around him to pluck the Earl Grey from the cabinet. “She likes this one. She doesn’t like you running away when she only just arrived.”

Only just arrived, and immediately announced that the whining bundle in her arms was in need of milk. Preparing refreshments while she attended to that matter seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. “I was not -” Wolfe began, but was interrupted by his lover’s finger on his lips.

“You were.” Santi gave him a quick kiss, then turned to the boiling kettle on the stove to prepare the tea. “Is it the nursing or the baby that has you hiding in here?”

Wolfe sighed. He put the two tins back in the cabinet and took down four cups to add to the tray with the teapot and the plate of cookies he had meticulously arranged. “I haven’t a clue about the etiquette for these things. You know that.”

“Compliment them on the baby. Keep your mouth shut about Morgan’s health. I’d warn you not to stare at her breast, but given your distinct lack of interest in those...”

“Nic!”

Lifting the tray, Nic winked at him and started back toward the door. “Come on. If you don’t, they’ll know for sure you’re hiding.”

There was nothing to do but follow. He saw Jess first, sitting in the chair facing the door with a pale green blanket in his hands, looking to his side with pure adoration. And there, beside him, was Morgan, cradling an impossibly tiny person in both arms and rocking gently back and forth. All he could see of the infant was a tiny head of brown hair and a little red fist clenched in the fabric of Morgan’s dress. The rest was lost in a pale blue dress entirely too long for a baby of that size.

Morgan looked up as they approached. “She’s almost done now. Would you like to hold her?”

Wolfe was immensely grateful for his years of practice hiding his emotions. Terror did not seem at all an appropriate response to that question. “I... I wouldn’t want to presume...”

“We don’t mind at all,” Jess said. “Give our arms a rest.”

“And it’s only fitting, don’t you think?” Morgan said, turning to Jess with a smile that spoke of secrets.

A quick glance at Nic, who had taken the seat nearest to Jess, leaving the one closer to Morgan open, revealed a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. So he was in on whatever mischief this was. Wolfe resolved to have words with his partner later.

“If you’re certain,” Wolfe said, taking the seat. Before Santi could do it, he picked up the teapot and poured tea for everyone. It was something to do.

He’d hardly had a chance to taste his tea when Morgan shifted in her seat, moving the baby away from her chest and toward Jess’s waiting hands. It looked like a delicate maneuver. Was it safe for Jess to stand while he was holding her like that? It didn’t look safe. How did one stand while holding a baby, anyway? Wolfe didn’t remember seeing that in the books he had consulted on the care of infants.

There was no more time to contemplate the matter, though, as Jess was there beside Wolfe’s chair. “Hold out your arms... a little closer together. Ready?”

No. How could one be ready for such a thing? Even after reading some dozens of books over the months since Morgan announced her pregnancy, Wolfe felt woefully unprepared to hold this impossibly delicate little creature. But Jess’s arms were moving lower, and then the weight was in Wolfe’s arms, and Jess was moving away, and all Wolfe could do was stare down at the child he now held.

The closed eyes opened, and brown eyes, so very small and yet huge for the face they were held in, gazed up at him. The mouth opened in a yawn, and then the eyes closed again. Wolfe fought the urge to touch the soft-looking wisps of hair. He might drop the baby. He could not drop the baby.

Moving his chair closer to Wolfe’s, Santi leaned in and stroked the baby’s cheek with one finger. “She’s beautiful,” he said.

“Yes. Beautiful,” Wolfe agreed.

Santi reached for the baby’s hand. She wrapped her fist around one of his fingers. “And she has a good, strong grip. Tell Chris her name.”

“Christophina Elizabeth Hault,” Morgan and Jess said together. “The middle name was my grandmother’s, and his great-grandmother’s. We decided on my last name for a girl, his for a boy,” Morgan added, though Wolfe could barely hear her over the sudden pounding of his heart.

There were no words. He could not begin to understand. Of all the names they could have chosen for this tiny, perfect child...

Nic cupped his cheek, wiped a tear away with his thumb. “An excellent choice, don’t you think?”

“You... you didn’t have to...”

“Yes,” Jess said. “We did.”

He was crying. He was holding a baby, and he was the one crying, and he couldn’t stop himself.

[jeanne-jash]

#treatyoself #spiritfreebevs #intuitiveliving #blacklivesmatter I made this Spirit free beverage by brewing gunpowder green tea with Assam black tea and dandelion root and then steep that with milk thistle elderberries nettles and Pau d'arco (at Northwest Baltimore, Baltimore) https://www.instagram.com/p/CCtQrR0MDys/?igshid=11te4h9wovh1g

[arcisfoodblog]

Our lunch at Vancouver’s Hawksworth Restaurant during our summer holiday in British Columbia surely warranted a separate post!

As we knew that would be meeting up with Koen, Erica, and Madouc in Vancouver before they would kick off their road-trip of the entire Pacific West Coast, I already looked into places for a nice dinner. It proved rather tricky to make a fine-dining dinner reservation for 7 persons (as such and especially that would also appeal to 3 teenagers), so I was quite content to be able to book lunch at Hawksworth Restaurant (801 W Georgia St, www.hawksworthrestaurant.com) late July.

About the restaurant Vancouverite chef David Hawksworth spent the 1990s in Europe working in Michelin-starred kitchens such as Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons (Raymond Blanc), L’Escargot (Marco Pierre White) and The Square (Philip Howard). Back in Canada, Hawksworth was considered one of the countries’ leading culinary talents and was inducted in the British Columbia Restaurant Hall of Fame in 2008.

His eponymous restaurant in the glamorous Rosewood Hotel Georgia opened in 2011 and has been lauded ever since. From the winner of the 2012 and 2013 Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards fir Restaurant of the Year and Chef of the Year and subsequently winner of Best Upscale Restaurant for 5 years – of which 4 consecutive – to currently being placed #11 in Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants.

Hotel restaurants benefit from being open all day and being able to offer a more extensive array of dining experiences, but many of such restaurants are lackluster​ and fall short of the mark. However, this is definitely not the case here. Hawksworth (with Chef de Cuisine Antonio Sotomayor, Pastry Chef Wayne Kozinko, and Wine Director Bryant Mao) clearly does not compromise on striving to offer excellent contemporary and innovative Canadian cuisine, regardless the time of day and audience as the kids had a great time too. The cocktail bar is apparently also unique as it was mentioned several times online as a must-visit spot in Vancouver.​

About the food After browsing through the excellent wine book, we decided to stay local and toast on our respective holidays with a bottle of British Columbia sparkling wine: Blue Mountain Winery‘s Gold Label Brut from Okanagan Valley.

For food, the adults choose the 3-course prix fixe lunch (CAD 28) which had a vegetarian and protein option for the starter and main dish. We also selected the wine pairings (increasing the menu total to CAD 44). The kids had a go at the smaller version of Hawkworth’s signature burger (CAD 14) and Pasta Pomodoro (CAD 12) which portions proved to be sufficient for them. From the Zero proof drinks menu, our kids tried the Provence iced tea (Tahitian vanilla bean, Okanagan lavender, Hathikuli estate Assam cold brew) and the Yuzu iced tea (pomegranate, honey, yuzu, chilled earl grey) and there were no complaints there.

Ordering the bottle of bubbly apparently confused the – otherwise impeccable – waiters, as we didn’t get the ordered wine pairings with the quickly-served starters. No worries; the fruit-forward, yet dry Methode Traditionnelle-style sparkling wine paired very well with the food. The wine director noticed this, so we did switch to the intended wine pairings for the main courses, and both red and white (from British Columbia, of course) were excellent. We actually looked for them in liquor stores to try them again.

Marinated Heirloom Tomato Miso Aioli, Cashew Cheese (V)

Octopus Ceviche Guajillo Aioli, Radish, Black Rice Cracker

Braised Lamb Cavatelli Pickled Vegetables and Stinging Nettle 2016 Meyer Family Vineyard. Chardonnay, H’s blend, Okanagan Valley, BC

Charred Eggplant Panisse, Zucchini Aioli (V) 2016 Winemaker’s Cut Syrah, Okanagan Valley, BC

Apricot Earl Grey, Almond, Honey

For dessert, the kids sampled the à la carte ice cream and sorbet menu (CAD 8 each), which that day contained several tea-infused ice creams and raspberry and other fruit sorbets.

Also,​ the Candy Cap mushroom ice cream (CAD 14) was tried and approved. A Candy Cap is a unique variety of mushroom with a maple-esque flavor.

Candy Cap Ice Cream Toasted White Chocolate, Toffee, Walnut

The dishes were prepared spot on, and their complex flavors worked very well with the “best of summer” intensity of the ingredients. The pomegranate and buttermilk sauce served on the charred eggplant was an unlikely but memorable combination. The lingering heat in the braised lamb sauce was a pleasant touch to its already intense flavors.

Overall, amazing food and top service at very reasonable prices for what you get. Hawksworth Restaurant is therefore highly recommended if you happen to be in Vancouver!

Around the World – Vancouver, Canada – Hawksworth Restaurant (July 2019) Our lunch at Vancouver's Hawksworth Restaurant during our summer holiday in British Columbia surely warranted a separate post!

[birdseyetea]

March Newsletter

AWAKENING!

By the looks of the day outside my window, it is hard for me to believe it is almost mid March. Last week it was snowing, and no significant breaks in the rain expected this week. I heard lots of frustrated rumblings from other farmers at the farmers markets recently. The growing season is definitely off to a slow start. I have hundreds of flats in my greenhouse and almost nothing has germinated...YET. Chamomile is a champ and is the first to germinate in my cold greenhouse. My greenhouse is unheated, so the grey skies and cold weather is holding a lot of seeds dormant. I bought some heat pads that I will utilize to force germinate seeds this week. Each growing season has a full spectrum of unpredictabilities that have to be tended to with grace and patience. Discipline is my number one ally...oh, and my ability to try to see the silver lining in almost any situation.

Spring Equinox is March 20th. At which point we are officially half way from the shortest to the longest day of the year. Huge changes take place between spring equinox and summer solstice. The entire natural world seems to beautifully renew right before our eyes. Each day new birds, insects, plants enter our field of awareness as they reemerge to converse with the world around them. Our bodies change as well. We have more access to fresh nutritious foods which renew the body, our energy increases as daylight and the sun return, and we naturally become more extroverted.

Above: rhubarb reemerging (left) and the naturalized Rosa rugosa leafing out (right)

Spring is a profoundly sensual season. Our minds awaken to the drama that unfolds outside. New sensations catalyze into fresh perspectives, creative inspiration, and put us on the path toward shedding anxieties and fears along with our wool sweaters and thermal under ware.

Just be aware that March and April can also be a highly volatile time for humans and their emotions. The weather is so unpredictable. Wind thrusts clouds across the sky at dizzying shapes and speeds, and moments of hot piercing sun are sandwiched between squalling sheets of rain drained from nearly charcoal colored cumulonimbus monstrosities. The constant flux between hot and cold, light and dark, gusty and still overwhelm our slowly awakening senses and we can become spectacularly emotional.

Notice if you feel as though the spring winds have invaded your body and stirred up your internal wind. Some symptoms of internal wind are tension, stiffness, spasms, pics, clumsiness, headaches, allergies, and shifting pain. When we start to feel the aforementioned symptoms the liver becomes congested (more about this next month) resulting in anger, frustration, irritability, stiff upper body, hypertension, depression, mood swings, and menstrual irregularity.

It is easy to simply become an expression of the weather because it literally feels like it is invading our internal body space. 

I love and embrace the spring, despite it’s inevitable moments of wild turgidity. Spring helps flush out the cobwebs of our inner life, reminding us what is real and what is not. It beckons us to pay attention and hones our senses so we can attune to the world around us. Early Spring can be a treacherous time for relationships. It is easy to place blame when we find ourselves in volatile emotional states. Frustration, tension, and anger can easily arise and if reacted to can cause major communication mishaps.

If you find yourself more tense than normal this spring, just pay attention to it and notice if it just a natural reaction to the changing season. I experience really confusing emotions this time of year as my body is acclimating to the dramatic changes each day during spring. I am excited for the growing season, take on a larger workload, and have to constantly negotiate my farm schedule and plan based on weather. I have the urge to strongly react to minor inconveniences and get all frustrated by silly miscommunications this time of year. I have been monitoring my spring moods for a long time so I have a pretty clear understanding of my pattern, but that does not keep me above the fray all the time. Just yesterday I was about ready to throw in the towel half a dozen times, my pendulating emotions also bring forth pride and joy, because the frustrations inspire creativity and the impulse to overcome obstacles. Conflict resolution is very important to me, this time of year I have to practice it diligently.

Our bodies are highly attuned to seasonal shifts. We spend a lot of our lives clinging to the idea of consistency and ignoring some of the most basic sensations that are affecting our thoughts and emotions. Our lives are shaped around narratives regarding consistency. We build structures and social systems that force us into an idea or pattern of consistency, which does not honor the daily changes that take place in our bodies or in the natural world around us. Winter is a season where consistency is easier to manage, but after the relatively consistent patterns of winter, spring shows up and gives us an energetic jolt. Our nervous systems are jarred by the overwhelming experience of waking up and experiencing so many forms of change in one single day. Nature is being transformed rapidly starting in March and so are we, we are not above the laws of nature, we are right there deeply imbedded in the lush atmosphere of growth and renewal in spring. 

The sensations that are arising from within you mimic the rollercoaster of this particular part of the season. It is a tough beat when, instead of finding curiosity and joy in unpredictability, we get caught in the blame game and project our fluctuating emotions onto people or things that we know we can get a reaction from. Just remember that within you is the clarity and emotional awareness to be fully present and accepting of yourself and carry within you total kindness toward what you are going through. Use the excitement and stress of spring to build good natured humor, physical strength, tolerance, and acceptance.  

Do not let early spring overwhelm you, just let it be what it is and enjoy the marvel of being alive to witness it. 

Spring is a time to cleanse the body and shake off excesses and sluggishness. Physical activity, healthy diet, and herbal teas are your best allies for this. Your body might not be as agile as you think when you start increasing your physical activity. I have been injured twice already this growing season because I overestimated my body’s fitness. During early spring make sure you warm up your muscles and stretch before heading out to do yard work or exercise. Eating lots of leafy greens such as nettles, kale, chard, and mustards cleanse the blood and liver. *Adding lemon juice to your spring greens helps increase absorption of iron. If you have sluggish digestion cook your greens before you eat them and try adding some garlic and slightly bitter greens to the mix. Eating lots of cooked vegetables and non-red meats also encourages liver health. Over the next few months I will be creating teas that support spring imbalances. The three teas this month are designed for early spring clearing and renewal.

Let the Light In

Ingredients: nettle, coriander, hawthorn, cinnamon, fennel, orange zest, bay leaf

Let the Light In tea is a nutrient rich blend for circulation, cellular renewal, and digestion. This comforting blend is perfect for March. It is a little warming, digestive, and gives your body extra nourishment to rebuild tissues as we become metabolically more active in spring. As winter opens to spring we find ourselves desperate to get outside and enjoy the outdoors. During the active parts of the year we simply need more nutrient dense foods and teas. Nettles are the first dark leafy green to come up in spring where I live so I immediately gravitate toward it as a food and herbal supplement. Nettles are a powerhouse of minerals to help renew tissues. Nettles pretty much supports the whole body. Nettles also help clear liver and kidney congestion which is often a symptom poor diet and sedentary lifestyle. Hawthorn is a great cardiovascular support herb. Hawthorn is a heart tonic. It’s main ability is to improve coronary circulation. Coriander, cinnamon, fennel, orange zest, and bay leaf are culinary herbs that support digestion, immunity, and circulation. Cinnamon specifically can lower cholesterol and blood sugar so for folks who routinely get very “hangry” should be aware that drinking tea with lots of cinnamon on an empty stomach might make the hangry human hangrier. 

Traveler Tea

Ingredients: assam tea, sage, winter savory, rosemary, thyme, cinnamon, & licorice 

Traveler Tea is a bit of a savory blend. It combines digestive and antimicrobial herbs and black tea. I have been making a version of this tea for a few years now and each time I make it I find it more interesting and comforting. It was inspired by research on nomadic groups and lifestyles. My friends and I contemplate how to live a nomadic lifestyle in Oregon and Washington and we have spent a lot of time researching modern nomads. During my studies I learned about the Bedouins in North Africa and parts of the Middle East. The social tea they drink is usually just a combination of locally foraged desert plants. Wild thyme and relatives of sage are common ingredients in Bedouin tea. This tea is very loosely inspired by Bedouin tribes. Most of the herbs in this blend are common culinary herbs that grow easily in the pacific Northwest. 

Traveler tea is a wonderful blend for people in flux. Whether you are traveling to work or long distance via plane, car, or animal, or foot this blends provides energy and protects the immune system. The blend is a little drying and great for people who are cold and damp. Spring often brings on colds that are wet in nature with lots of mucus and damp congestion. Traveler tea helps dry up excessive mucus in the mouth, throat, and lungs. Thyme, savory, and sage in the tea also helps relieve digestive upset that is associated with stress and poor diet.

Rebuild Tea

Ingredients: nettle, skullcap, eleuthro, ashwagandha, mint, dandelion root, gotu kola, and licorice root. 

Rebuild is a fabulous tea for an engaged and active lifestyle. It has been indispensable for me during spring and summer for the last six years. This blend rejuvenates the body in times of increased physical activity or physical stress. 

Eleuthro and ashwagandha are adaptogen herbs helping the body adapt to stress. Eleuthro specifically is great for athletes. It helps muscles and nerve tissue recover quickly from physical stress. Ashwagandha is to Ayurveda what ginseng is to Traditional Chinese Medicine. It has a strong rejuvenative quality that aids bodies that have become debilitated by stress, nervous exhaustion, or inactivity. But where ginseng is stimulating, ashwagandha is calming. Studies have shown that ashwagandha benefits individuals with chronic anxiety and insomnia. Dandelion root supports the liver and gallbladder, specifically inflammation and congestion of the liver and gallbladder. Gotu kola is used in the Ayurvedic tradition for a mental boost and has been extensively researched for it’s aid in mental acuity and memory. Mints are included in this blend for their nutritive properties and to balance the flavor of this blend. Nettles are practically a superfood, they provide a storehouse of micronutrients essential to healthy tissue maintenance. Licorice is also adaptogen and adds a touch of sweetness to the blend.