Just a chronically ill witch who lives in the Cascade foothills of WA.
Sometimes when my kitten (River) is sleeping on my lap, she’ll wake herself up just to make sure I’m still there. She’ll look up at me with sleepy eyes and purr ever so loudly and it warms my heart every time.
chihiro never forgets her time spent in the spirit world, because that’s no fun for anyone. she never forgets her friends, how could she? she holds them all close to her heart, which is where they belong, especially her beautiful white dragon.
haku is hers as far as she’s concerned, but she’s his too, so it’s all nice fair. of course, haku thinks that she doesn’t know he exists, but that’s okay. she’ll go find him again one day.
because chihiro plans to return to the spirit world. but she knows the time isn’t right, that if she just goes darting through every place where the boundary between their worlds runs thin, then nothing will change. as is, she’s just a little girl, just a helpless little girl who will get lost and killed in the world of her friends, of her dragon. so she doesn’t go back.
she could. now that she knows what to look for, she sees entrances to the spirit world everywhere. they’re rarely in the exact same place twice but she knows what to look for, how to find them if she wants to, how to get back to rin and kamaji and zeniba. but she’s not ready yet.
she needs to get stronger.
her family’s not religious, so they’re surprised when she asks to go visit shrines, but maybe it’s for the history or the culture, or, they don’t know, the architecture. it’s a simple thing, and so they go.
chihiro keeps her eyes peeled, because she’s looking for something in particular.
she’s looking for a shrine with a lot of spirits living in it.
oh, because that’s another thing she can do now.
she can see spirits.
not ghosts, not the echoes of the dead. but spirits, nature spirits mostly, but tricksters and guardians, and all sorts, really. so they visit shrine after shrine, and there are sprits there, of course, but never enough, none of them are there for anything but the offerings, and that’s not what chihiro is looking for.
it takes months, and she’s already started school, settling into it easier than she knew she could. after her adventures in the spirit world, human children are nothing. but one day she visits a shrine, and she knows it’s the one. it’s small, nothing impressive, all the way at the top of a long hill.
but she knows she’s found what she’s looking for. someone who can help her.
there’s an old priestess taking care of it all on her own, and all around her dart spirits, some lingering, some running by and doing nothing more than patting her on the shoulder or back, but all of them acknowledging her in some way. she takes one look at chihiro and says, “looking for an apprenticeship, then?”
her parents start to say no, but she interrupts them, says, “yes, i am,” and her parents don’t understand, but they have no reason to deny her, so they don’t.
“it’s been a while since i’ve seen someone else who was spirit touched,” she says the first day that chihiro returns, this time on her own.
“what happened to you?” she asks, and knows the old priestess will understand. those with the ability to interact with the spirit world aren’t born. they’re made.
“a spirit saved my life as a child,” she answers. “you?”
she grins. “a river spirit saved me. once when i was younger, and then again just a few months ago. i’m going to back to him.”
“returning willingly to the spirit world is foolish, and dangerous,” she says, but there’s something like approval in her eyes.
“yes,” she says, “teach me how to survive it.”
so the priestess does. chihiro becomes known to the local spirits, helping them however she can just like the old woman. plenty of guardian spirits offer to attach themselves to her, to mark her as under their protection, but she always refuses. there’s only one spirit who’s mark she’s willing to carry.
years pass, and chihiro grows, from a girl to a young woman. she grows up strong, and beautiful, and thanks to her years under the priestess, she grows up powerful. she learns how to shoot arrows that cut spirits and to write spells on rice paper, she learns every inch of the forests around her home and the spirits that dwell there, and on the day she graduates high school she moves into the temple.
but she’s not planning to stay.
“i hope he’s worth it,” the priestess tells her.
chihiro grins, sharp and eager, and says, “i guess i’m going to find out.”
she walks into the woods and slips through one of the places where the border is too thin, and enters the spirit world once more. she has her bow and her ink, and this time she’s not going to be easy prey, she’s not going to be someone that has to be saved or coddled.
she’s come here for her dragon, and she won’t let anything get in her way. it’s haku, and haku alone, who will be able to turn her away. if he rejects her, she’ll leave. but for no other reason.
it takes her a long time to get to the bathhouse, to fight and bargain her way there, because before it was an obstacle, so it came to her easily, but now it’s a goal, so this world holds it back from her. but she won’t let it stay out of her grasp forever. when she arrives she’s filthy and tired and half her arrows are missing, her clothes are different, and she’s older. by how much she doesn’t know, because time isn’t the same in here, but she’s not the same girl who entered.
the whole realm is talking of her, of the human who walks among them and won’t be chased away, of the girl who marched across the endless marshes until she reached the end, something few ever manage, and then just kept going. who aids those in need and destroys those who stand in her way.
when she walks through the bathhouse doors, haku is there.
“it’s you,” he says, eyes wide, and he looks older too, like breaking free of yubaba’s curse finally allowed him to grow up. “i didn’t think it could be. i didn’t think it was possible.”
she marches forward, grinning, and grips the front of his snow white shirt with her muddy hands. “anything is possible. you taught me that.”
she kisses him, exhausted and filthy and feeling more alive than she ever has. she kisses him like it’s the last thing she’ll ever do, because it just might be, because if she angers him, then he could easily kill her.
he doesn’t kill her.
he kisses her back.
chihiro gets exactly what she wanted – her friends, a place in the spirit world, and a reputation as someone who’s dangerous, even as a human.
and her dragon husband, of course. she gets that too.
When I was first starting out with herbology, I was living in a small village in Croatia with a total population of less than 100 people. We depended on homemade teas, salves and medicines to heal us since the nearest hospital was two hours away. We treated ourselves with the power of herbs, gifted to us by the Earth.
These days, we can purchase all the tools we need to grow both common and exotic plants. Dried herbs are also another good option, especially for those that cannot grow their own. And with these tools, we can craft our own medicines.
For the first lesson, I’m going to focus on something simple: the art of crafting medicinal tea.
Creating Tea Blends
When starting out with creating medicinal teas, it’s important to understand how each ingredient interacts with our bodies. Be sure that you’re not allergic to any of your herbs and that they won’t interact poorly with any prescribed medications that you’re on. For example, those who are diabetic should not take angelica root; folks who are allergic to ragweed should avoid chamomile.
Here’s a list of common herbs and their functions for the purposes of crafting medicinal teas:
Angelica Root: Soothes colds and flu, reduces phlegm and fever. (Do not use if you are diabetic)
Catnip: Soothes teething pain, colic, diarrhea, indigestion, anxiety, insomnia. (May cause drowsiness. Avoid if on Lithium or sedatives)
Calendula (marigold): Reduces fevers, soothes indigestion, gastrointestinal cramps, flu; antiseptic. (May cause drowsiness. Avoid if on sedatives)
Cayenne Pepper: Soothes coughs, colds, arthritis (topical), nerve pain, fever, flu; expectorant. (Avoid taking with medications that contain Theophylline).
Chamomile: Reduces insomnia, anxiety, stress, fever, indigestion; aids with sleep and pain relief. (May decrease effectiveness of birth control pills and some cancer medications, may increase the effects of warfarin; avoid if you are taking medications for your liver)
Cinnamon Bark: Soothes sore throats and coughs; anti-inflammatory (Avoid taking with diabetes medications)
Dandelion Root: Detoxifying, aids digestion, relieves constipation, laxative. (Avoid if on antibiotics, lithium or water pills)
Dandelion Leaf: Mild diuretic, potassium-rich (Avoid if on medication for liver)
Elderberries: Wards off colds and flu
Ginger: Eases morning sickness, nausea, colic, indigestion, diarrhea, fever, sore throats. (Avoid taking with medications that slow blood clotting)
Ginkgo: Relieves anxiety, vertigo, tinnitus; improves circulation, helps concentration; helps PMS. (Avoid taking with ibuprofen or with medications that slow blood clotting; numerous medications have interactions with ginkgo so speak to your specialist before use)
Ginseng: Aphrodisiac, mild stimulant, boosts immune system. (Do not take with medications that slow blood clotting, and avoid taking with diabetes medications or with MAO inhibitors)
Goldenrod: Relieves gout and cramps
Lavender: Reduces anxiety, headaches, tension, stress, indigestion, IBS; antibacterial; antiseptic; disinfectant (May cause drowsiness; avoid if on sedatives)
Lemon balm: Relieves anxiety, cold sores, colic, insomnia, restlessness, indigestion; boosts memory (May cause drowsiness, avoid taking with sedatives)
Nettle: Reduces hay fever and arthritis; diuretic. (Avoid taking with diabetes medications, medications for high BP, sedatives, medications that slow blood clotting, and lithium)
Peppermint: Relieves nausea, anxiety, indigestion, IBS, colic, diarrhea, fever, coughs, colds; anesthetic (Avoid if you have acid-reflux disease; avoid taking with cyclosporine; avoid if on liver medications)
Pine Needles: Expectorant; antiseptic; relieves coughs, colds, fever and congestion
Thyme: Antibacterial, antiseptic, eases coughs and colds, expectorant (Do not take with medications that slow blood clotting)
Recipes
For those starting out, here are a few recipes for common ailments. As you start making your own teas, you’ll learn which blends of herbs work best for your body. Keep track of which ingredients and combinations are successful – with each steep, you get closer and closer to crafting your perfect personalized medicine cabinet.
Anxiety Relief – ½ tsp chamomile – ½ tsp lemon balm
Cold Relief – ½ tsp elderberry flower – ½ tsp thyme
Mood Booster – ½ tsp lavender – ½ tsp catnip – ½ tsp rosemary
Cramp Relief – ½ tsp basil – ½ tsp calendula (marigold) – ½ tsp goldenrod
Indigestion Relief – ½ tsp ginger – ½ tsp lemon balm – ½ tsp peppermint
Expectorant – ½ tsp pine needles – ½ tsp nettle leaf – ½ tsp angelica root
Insomnia – ½ tsp chamomile – ½ tsp catnip – ½ tsp lavender
Sore Throat Relief – ½ tsp cinnamon (or half a stick) – ½ tsp ginger – 1 tbsp honey
Flu Relief – ½ tsp calendula (marigold) – ½ tsp lemon balm
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Photographs are under the Creative Commons License. Content is from my grimoire and is embedded with information from a variety of sources over the years.
Updated 7 March 2018 with relevant warnings and to be consistent with other posts in this series.
Warnings: All plant material should be sourced appropriately and responsibly for your own safety and well-being. Be certain that you are purchasing food-grade ingredients from a reliable retailer or supplier. Along these lines, not all dried herbs are meant for consumption so please be on the lookout for “external use only” labels – you do not want those products for this.
Do your own research regarding medicinal plants and usage, especially if you are sensitive or have allergies of any kind. If you are on medication(s), consult a doctor before use.
Finally, medicinal teas are a health supplement and not a substitution for professional medical and psychiatric aid. If you are experiencing any prolonged health and/or mental health issues, SEE A DOCTOR.
I’ve compiled some helpful websites and databases for researching herbal medicine + possible interactions with other herbs or medications. (Click me)
Heatherwitch 