I'm especially pleased to select Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) to be this month's plant medicine card! As part the process of gathering a plant spirit team of allies, I'm coming onto the end of a moon cycle initiation with Lemon Balm. This is similar to the one I learned to do with Mugwort a few months ago. A plant initiation involves a month long focus on a specific plant or tree-- doing research, ingesting it in safe and available forms, meditating on it and honoring it in a variety of ways. I was able to include a tincture of this herb that I made back in 2016 from an especially productive Lemon Balm harvest.
Looking back a month to when I first began this Lemon Balm initiation, I was sensing a little hesitancy in getting Melissa to welcome my efforts to befriend (or might I say "recruit") her.
This improved when I decided to honor her by creating a circle of shells around the Lemon Balm plant in my backyard herb garden. At the time, I didn't realize I was being guided, but after doing so, I was able to make a plant essence to use along with the tincture. She's now twice the size of what you see here:
Working with plant spirits has led me to explore the subject of plant energetics more deeply. This includes focusing on how plants are containers of the elements--earth, water, fire and air. From what I've learned, all plants and trees contain all of these elements although some have a closer affinity with one or two of the four. This gives them special healing powers related to that particular element. Briefly, plants more connected to the air element are those that support insight and communication. Those associated with the element of fire encourage passion and liveliness while earth plants foster a sense of being grounded and stable. Melissa is a good example of an herb dominated by the element of water.
I've read that Lemon Balm actually fits into the categories of both air and water dominated plants since both elements promote free flowing movement--of mind (air) and emotions (water). This accounts for Melissa's popularity as a medicinal herb for her ability to balance an unsettled, anxious mind and instill or restore a sense of emotional calm.
Interestingly enough, I recently made a journey to meet the spirit of Lemon Balm as part of an article I was writing on plant spirit healing for anxiety. At the time I was not consciously thinking about the relationships of plants and their elements. When I asked for advice from the spirit of this herb, I was advised to emphasize how important water is on so many different levels including consuming purified amounts of it, being near it, in it or on it. Look to water, I was told, when seeking tranquility. I believe this all to be common knowledge, but it always helps to be reminded.
Weeks later, reading about how Melissa officinalis is a plant so connected to the water element was one of those "wow" moments that convince me of the validity of plant spirit healing.
This also would explain why the spirit of Lemon Balm responded so positively to the circle of shells since, as products of the sea, they represent the element of water. Along with adorning my Lemon Balm plant with shells, I have displayed them in several places inside and outside my home for years. Now I have a better idea of why I was drawn to this practice, then and now.
In addition to my own experience and going back to the oracle card, notice the bee pictured over the head of a nurturing, earth mother figure. Ayales tells us in the oracle guide that "Melissa" is derived from the Greek word for "honeybee," and that Lemon Balm was planted near the temple of Artemis to keep the sacred honeybees happy. She confirms that his herb comes to us with a long and rich history from various cultures as a botanical healer that soothed the mind and the emotions.
I thought about how to pull all this together one day as I watched a bee hovering over the bird bath that sits in the middle of my backyard garden.
We're moving into late summer here in Arizona, and this bird bath continues to be more than just a community pool for the local birds. It's also a hydrating respite for flying insects, and this again brings to mind the elements of both air and water.
My Lemon Balm happily thrives only a few feet away. She's almost ready to be harvested for tincturing at the end of the season. From past experience, I expect she won't make it past the first frost. The guardian spirit of my plant suggested posting the steps on how to prepare a homemade tincture. So watch this space.
For now, enjoy what's left of the summer, and Happy New Moon (in Virgo)!!
In a totally unrelated afterthought, I found this little 5 question quiz in one of the Mountain Rose blog posts, so I thought I'd share it. I'm not sure how long the link will work, so give it a go if you're interested in discovering "your plant personality"!!
As always, thanks for letting me share my thoughts and journey with you. I welcome your input, so if you want to submit a comment, scroll down to the bottom of this post. If you are interested in booking a personal session, you can do this here:
You can also contact me via email at: my.plant.allies@gmail.com
For now, here's wishing you wellness, wisdom and bloomin' vibes!
Yorumlar