I Am An Environmentalist

The first time I ever helped someone’s sleeplessness and stress with a simple tisane blend, I felt such a strong sense of familiarity, rightness, and resonance that I knew that something in my life had irrevocably changed. Stepping from curiosity into active involvement in herbalism was a form of initiation for me, a door opening into a world I’d always wanted to be a part of, but wasn’t sure I was good enough for. This transition also shifted my role in my community, and I became a person that others came to for help, advice, support, and information much more often than previously.

Now that I have witnessed and helped so many others through the same portal, this moment of transformation is something I think of as the taking on of the green mantle. I imagine it like the fairy shawl of Manx folklore, woven of living flowers, moss, and mushrooms that rests upon the shoulders of all who follow this path of devotion to the healing powers of the green world. When I meet someone with a deep connection to the plants, it almost seems as if I can see that mantle on them, and it never fails to remind me of the importance of connection and relationship in herbalism.

 

For me, herbalism is one part of pragmatism, in which I practice herbalism in order to take care of friends, family, and myself to the highest degree possible, and also to be able to teach other people to take better care of themselves and those they love. The other part is born purely of my passion for the plants, and my obsessive fascination with the effects they have on the body. I try to keep these two parts fairly balanced, making sure I can apply what I’m learning in a way that has tangible benefits but also focusing on a type of herbalism and healing that is satisfying to my whole self and allows me to experience my plant love on a daily basis. 

 

- Aminah K.