Healing From With-in~

One of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of a new idea.~Walter Bagehot~

My belief is aligned with this thought as I listen and see....many who say they want better health, better way of daily living, better choices, better outcomes...yet, the true way for bringing all these desires to fruition seems to be the most unacceptable..embracing a "new idea."  New thought process, new actions, new reactions.
When we find ourselves at this 'crossroads,' the decision is, to stay on the path we know ( comfort zone ) or take the path less traveled. ( embrace a new idea )
To think we can have it both ways is choosing to live in denial and thereby, adding confusion to our already non-working method.

A perfect time to stop, reflect, embrace, and apply, is anytime...so right now is the perfect time.

We must live in this world-we do not have to conform to it.

You, I, we, are the only ones who can change those areas of our life that bring us less than joy and harmony.

When we clear and clean the mind, we will naturally follow the steps to doing same for the body.

Think of it as de-fragmenting your computer~cleaning up all those little bits and pieces of radical escapees.:) Works every time~

Welcome to a new season-a great place/time for a "New Idea~"

Bea Rigsby-Kunz
Culinary Herbalist/teacher/speaker
Sage Hill Farms

http://www.sagehillfarmsandvintagestore.com

 

Chaos--Do You Know It ?

What exactly is chaos? The name "chaos theory" comes from the fact that the systems that the theory describes are apparently disordered, but chaos theory is really about finding the underlying order in apparently random data.

When was chaos first discovered? The first true experimenter in chaos was a meteorologist, named Edward Lorenz. In 1960, he was working on the problem of weather prediction. He had a computer set up, with a set of twelve equations to model the weather. It didn't predict the weather itself. However this computer program did theoretically predict what the weather might be.


One day in 1961, he wanted to see a particular sequence again. To save time, he started in the middle of the sequence, instead of the beginning. He entered the number off his printout and left to let it run.

When he came back an hour later, the sequence had evolved differently. Instead of the same pattern as before, it diverged from the pattern, ending up wildly different from the original. Eventually he figured out what happened. The computer stored the numbers to six decimal places in its memory. To save paper, he only had it print out three decimal places. In the original sequence, the number was .506127, and he had only typed the first three digits, .506.

By all conventional ideas of the time, it should have worked. He should have gotten a sequence very close to the original sequence. A scientist considers himself lucky if he can get measurements with accuracy to three decimal places. Surely the fourth and fifth, impossible to measure using reasonable methods, can't have a huge effect on the outcome of the experiment. Lorenz proved this idea wrong.

This effect came to be known as the butterfly effect. The amount of difference in the starting points of the two curves is so small that it is comparable to a butterfly flapping its wings.

The flapping of a single butterfly's wing today produces a tiny change in the state of the atmosphere. Over a period of time, what the atmosphere actually does diverges from what it would have done. So, in a month's time, a tornado that would have devastated the Indonesian coast doesn't happen. Or maybe one that wasn't going to happen, does. (Ian Stewart, Does God Play Dice? The Mathematics of Chaos, pg. 141)

This phenomenon, common to chaos theory, is also known as sensitive dependence on initial conditions. Just a small change in the initial conditions can drastically change the long-term behavior of a system.

Now, flap your wings and ignite a spark.

Bea Rigsby-Kunz

 

Embracing The Power of Nature~

Connecting To The Power Of Nature~

This brings all sorts of imagery to mind, the gardens, favorite hiking trails, greenhouses overflowing with common and exotic plants, a single rose, and water-free flowing from the core of our earth.

All of this and more.

However, my thoughts today revolve around a favorite book of mine.

" Connecting to the Power of Nature." by...Joe H. Slate, Ph.D. ( Alabama ) is a licensed psychologist and Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Athens State University.

The U.S. Army and the Parapsychology Foundation of New York have funded his lab projects in said subject. His research led to the establishment of the Parapsychology Research Foundation.

Quote..."Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth  find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life last."    ( Rachel Carson )

Most of my waking hours from April through September are spent in the outdoors. I am blessed and so grateful for the connection I have with nature. The feel, smells, sounds, and knowing that my spiritual and physical energy is powered by a force so easily embraced...renews me to full potential and desires with each new day.

Those who know me well-know this is my time of year to reflect, give consideration to what was, and what must be, come the new year that is moving in.

May the Season bring what you need to grow.:)

Bea Rigsby-Kunz
Culinary Herbalist
http://www.sagehillfarmsandvintagestore.com

 

Culinary=Medicinal~

Our skin is constantly exposed to one extreme after another. Summers are long and hot, over-exposure to the sun, saltwater and chlorinated water from swimming, perhaps too many slathers of different creams and oils...and our diet, all play a major role in the health of our skin. Our health status can and does determine the appearance of the skin.

If we are aware and understand our body, we can look at our skin and know, to a large degree what is missing in our diet-or perhaps what should be removed from our diet.

Simply by drinking enough water, keeping the system hydrated will go a long way in reducing or eliminating dry skin, acne, and other skin irritations.

With winter just around the bend, it is a great time to embark on a system to winterize 'self.'

Sunflower oil... is one of the best remedies for needy skin. It absorbs easily and does not leave a fatty residue. Sunflower oil/cooking or Essential, mixed with Cocoa or Shea Butter, makes an awesome ointment for dry-skin, eczema, and for healing damaged/stressed skin.

Sunflower... in culinary...we all know and love the roasted seeds, sprinkled on salads, as a topping for mac/cheese, a few scoops on top of fresh tomato or pumpkin soup...and in many breads and even desserts.
Use the light cooking oil in any salad dressing along with your favorite addition of herbs.

1/2 cup of brown mustard and 2 Tbs of sunflower oil-blended together with 1 tsp of Sage Hill's Cajun blend will bring baked salmon to the height of goodness. ( makes enough for 2 to 4 salmon steaks. )

- With a pastry brush -start blending the sauce on the salmon about 2 minutes prior to removing from oven. ( don't over heat it. )

* Salmon is a very- good for the skin-food also .

Feel good, look good, and live long...by using culinary for medicinal benefits.

Bea Rigsby-Kunz
Culinary Herbalist
http://www.sagehillfarmsandvintagestore.com

Herbs Past & Present~# 8-From Plants To Pills

Herbs In Modern Medicine

Although Extracts, such as essential oils have been prepared from various plants for centuries, traditional herbalism has always combined herbs to modify effects, viewing the whole as greater than the parts.

The move to identify the individual active ingredients and use these as single drugs began in the 18th century, and many thousands are now known.
The chemicals display quite different properties from original herbs.

Initally, these drugs could only be obtained from plant extracts, but later the chemical structures of many extracts were identified and the drugs are now made synthetically. In the transition of use from crude plants to clinical pills, modern medicine has lost the art of combining herbs to modify toxicity and of using whole plants which themselves contain chemical ingredients that can reduce the risk of side effects.

Some well known herb plants that were chemically synthesized and we know them today as:

Foxglove....digoxin and digitoxin...used in treating heart conditions today.
( in 1775 Dr. William Withering began testing and research on foxglove and its benefits and side effects. He spent 10 years studying the side effects of foxglove and identifying the plant's optimum dose before publishing his ground-breaking research.

Opium Poppy....morphine, first identified by Friedrich Serturner in Germany-1803 in the form of white crystals from crude opium poppy.

Willowbark....first was salicin, which was later modified to be less of an irritant on the stomach, and acetylsalicylie acid was launched as aspirin-1899, by the Bayer company. In less than 100 years plant extracts have filled pharmacists' shelves.

* Extracted chemicals can often be extremely potent and can cause effects that were unknown when the whole plant was used.

In 1947 CIBA, extracted the alkaloid reserpine from snakeroot and began marketing the drug Serpasil as a cure for hypertension. However, it had severe side effects that included depression and abnormal slowing of the heartbeat. A new drug was developed from the herb in the 1950's. It has always been restricted to prescription only in the US.
To date, however, snakeroot continues to be widely used in parts of Europe and Asia, taken by many as a soothing tranquilizer.

**The information in part for these eight articles comes from The Complete Medicinal Herbal-by-Penelope Ody.










 Disclaimer....Any and all herbal articles from and by Sage Hill is offered totally as educational information only. We do not intend this information to be viewed as medicinal advice for any given treatment.
Sage Hill does not sell Medicinal products nor do we give Medicinal advice.

Herbs Past & Present # 7~Merging of Practices

There was a time ( before all the land battles ) when early pioneers and the Plains tribes shared much of their herbal lore/knowledge with each other.

One of the early and most popular was Samuel Thomson-founder of "Physiomedicalism."  Born in 1769 he learned his craft as a child from Widow Benton--" a root and herb doctor," who combined Native American skills with the traditional role of " herb wife."

Maintaining Balance....Central to the Physiomedicalism view was the belief that it is possible to strengthen the body's vital force by keeping both tissues and nervous state in balance. This was/is accomplished by sedating one and stimulating the other. ( chamomile was a popular sedative herb, while ginger was perfect for a stimulate.)

Eclecticism....Other "botanic" systems followed, among them the Eclectic school founded by Dr. Wooster Beech in 1830's.
Along with the herbal remedies and the Native American practices was the addition of a more orthodox medical technique, and the analysis of disease.
At it's peak this practice claimed more than 20,000 qualified practitioners in the United States and was serious rival to regular medicine.

* The challenge ended only in 1907 when , following a review of medical training schools, philanthropists Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller decided to give financial support solely to the orthodox medical schools. *

This was in truth the beginning of the separation/war between herbal and what we now know as Western medicine.

The Movement In Europe....Physiomedicalism was brought to Britain in 1838 by Dr.Albert Isaiah Coffin, who set up a similar system of patent remedies and do-it-yourself guides to diagnosis. Wooster Beech followed in the 1850's to preach his Eclectic message. The movement took hold and was popular until well into the 1930's.

In 1864 the various groups merged to form the National Association of Medical Herbalist. It continues to thrive today as the National Institute of Medical Herbalist--the oldest formalized body of specialist herbal practitioners in Europe.

Next...From Plants To Pills.

Bea Rigsby-Kunz
EatWell-BeWell~
http://www.sagehillfarmsandvintagestore.com

 Disclaimer....Any and all herbal articles from and by Sage Hill is offered totally as educational information only. We do not intend this information to be viewed as medicinal advice for any given treatment.
Sage Hill does not sell Medicinal products nor do we give Medicinal advice.


 

Organic Pumpkin Cheesecake

1 cup Organic Gingersnap Crumbs  2 Tbs... sugar
3 Tbs...melted butter
3/4 cup... sugar
1/3 cup...crystalized ginger
2 large eggs
1/4 cup half & half
1 Tbs unbleached flour
1/2 tsp fresh grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp clove
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 cup...unsweetened pumpkin puree

---

Directions

Use middle rack in the oven- and preheat to 350 degrees F.
Place the cookie crumbs and sugar in a small bowl and whisk to blend. Add the melted butter and stir to combine. Press the mixture onto the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan. Bake the crust until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Place the sugar and crystallized ginger in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the ginger is finely chopped. Add the cream cheese and process until the mixture is smooth. Add the eggs, half and half, flour, ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt, and pulse the machine until the mixture is just combined.
Remove about 2/3 cup of the mixture and set aside.

Add the pumpkin purée to the remaining batter in the food processor and pulse just until combined. Pour this mixture into the prepared crust. Drizzle the reserved 2/3 cup of batter over the top of the pumpkin mixture, and then lightly swirl it to create a decorative orange-and-white pattern.

Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until the center of the cheesecake is just set, but still jiggly, 30 to 35 minutes.
Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely, then cover the pan with foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, 4 to 6 hours.

 Remove the sides of the springform pan and slice into thin wedges to serve.