Beast of Beauty

Nature's Abstract

"Why should one reject the perfect in favor of the imperfect?  The precise and perfect carries no overtones, admits of no freedom; the perfect is static and regulated, cold and hard.  We in our own human imperfections are repelled by the perfect, since everything is apparent from the start and there is no suggestion of the infinite.  Beauty must have room, must be associated with freedom.  Freedom, indeed, is beauty.  The love of the irregular is a sign of the basic quest for freedom."
  - Soetsu Yanagi  The Unknown Craftsman

"Whosoever is delighted in solitude is either a wild beast or a god." - Sir Francis Bacon

"Beauty is a form of genius - is higher than genius, as it needs no explanation.
It is one of the great facts in the world like sunlight, or springtime,
or the reflection in dark water of that silver shell we call the moon."

  - Oscar Wilde

Nature's Abstract

"Ask a toad what beauty is.”  - Voltaire

“The divine is not separate from the beast.” - Lenore Kandel

"There is no exquisite beauty without some strangeness in the proportion."  - Edgar Allen Poe

 “Truth isn't always beauty, but the hunger for it is.”  - Nadine Gordimer

Nature's Abstract

 “What the imagination seizes as beauty must be truth.” - Keats

 “The heart suffers when it cannot see and touch beauty,
but beauty is not shy it is synonymous with existence.” - Hafiz

 “Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.“

 - Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

"There is a beast in man that needs to be exercised, not exorcised."  - Anton LeVey

 "Beauty lifts the soul and the sublime shatters the ego." - J. Campbell

"If women can learn to surrender the seductiveness of youth and to value themselves 

by other than adolescent standards of beauty, they can explore the dignity of elder beauty 

and reclaim the right to age without stigma."  - Z. Schachter-Shalomi 

Beatrice Wood - a hero of mine

 "Beauty will save the world."  - Fyodor Dostoevsky

Paridaeza Flower Essences For Sale

Flower essences work on a vibrational level to encourage balance.
They work on the subtle body.
They are not biochemical medicines.

Essences can effect change slowly or quickly; the change will be subtle: changes in eating, sleeping, dreaming, energy, thinking, feeling, moving.

It’s important each day to take a moment to center yourself and draw attention to what you are working on in your emotional/mental life.  This is something you can do each time you take the essence.  Awareness of the body, thoughts, and emotions is the foundation from which you can create and witness change.








 All of these flower essences (except the White Lily which was given to me by a friend) have been created with Love off the land I caretake organically on Blue Mountain in Virginia (since 1998).  I harvest the flowers at their peak on a sunny day, and using well water and the sun, I allow the essence to become, then I prepare and bottle it.  I do this with intention and gratitude and sometimes with the help of a friend.  Here are some of the flowers that bloom on this land.  I will be working to make essences out of more of them over the coming years…

  “I do not have to go to Sacred places in far-off lands. 

The ground I stand on is holy.

Here, in this little garden I tend, my pilgrimage ends.
The wild honeybees, the hummingbird moths, the flickering fireflies at dusk
are a microcosm of the universe.

 Each seed that grows, each spade of soil is full of miracles.  

And I toil and sweat and watch and wonder and I’m full of love.  

Living in place, in this place.  For truth and beauty dwell here.”

- Mary de la Valette

 ~ ~ ~

Paridaeza Flower Essences: 
Each Essence is $4.95, See Price at Bottom for Special Offers.
 

Bee Balm (Monarda didyma) - Spark and Vigor *
Assists with inspiration and will that one may be joyful and live their dreams - Clears psychological obstruction so that one may grow and transform - Helps workaholics not be so serious
 -  Helps leaders use their power positively for others

 

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria Canadensis) 
- Learning from Our Elders
Promotes creative visualization, balancing the intellect - Connect with one’s heritage - Heal old wounds - Move from despair to the light - Embracing one’s roots as one moves forward in their evolution
 - Heart Chakra

 

Dogwood (Cornus florida) - Deep emotional trauma *
Brings our gifts up from the depths of us, giving us a new ability to be in this world, including psychic abilities, connection to all that is, a deeper knowing - Awakens the Phoenix that rises from inside of us after a traumatic experience

Mayapple (Podyllum peltatum) - Meditation Assistant *
Readys one for growth, teaches temperance, good for impatience and the need for instant gratification,
Be Here Now

 

Mimosa (Albizzia julibrissin) - Delivering Your Truth *
Facilitates intuition and awareness so that one may open to others without doubt, with power, particularly if one is introverted, timid, or dependent - Helps with depression that may result from being closed off to others - Personal strength

 

Orange Daylily (Hemerocallis fulva) - Rebirth and Release *
Aids in letting go of a need to control by understanding that life is eternal and infinite, hence beyond our control - Teaches about the cycles of death and rebirth

 

Red Horsechestnut (Aesculus x carnea) - Live and Let Live *
Teaches one to not be overly concerned, worried, anxious, or fearful for others, to allow them to be and live their lives - also helps animals with respiratory issues

Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica) - Open Heart Center *
Supports one in healing the Heart, which often closes from painful life experiences and fear - This flower opens to the sun each day and helps your Heart to flower, to be open and let the light in

 

Sweet Cicely (Myrrhis odorata) - Enthusiasm for Life *
Helps to release anger or tension that one feels in the "pit of my stomach" - Brings hope when one is depressed and feels there is no end in sight, brings about sweetness when one is feeling low

 

 Virginia Bluebell (Mertensia virginica) - 
Freedom from Restriction, Safe to Love *
Transmutes fear and clears blocks, particularly in throat and feet chakra areas - Allows for free expression of Love without fear, especially in speaking, chanting, or singing (throat) and moving or taking the next step (feet) - Aids in saying what needs to be said and doing what needs to be done (Love)

 

White Lily (Lilium candidum) 
- Integrate Sexuality and Spirituality
Works to bring wholeness to one’s sexuality - Join with others at a higher level of consciousness - Helps one to gain a healthy understanding of  sexuality and find the balance between prudishness and excessive promiscuity that is not fulfilling and feels empty - Aids in healing sexual trauma, which can arise from many circumstances:  rape, prostitution, invasive medical procedures, physical abuse in a sexual relationship, porn addiction, and so on  - Crown Chakra

 

Wisteria (Wisteria japonica) - Relax into Intimacy*   
Increases vitality while smoothing emotions, helps with focus, softens - allows one to enjoy, to not be uptight, but be vulnerable in relating - Promote calm through chaos and turmoil, particularly helps with separation and/or lack of equality in relationships - Great for use with any type of meridian therapy

 

 ~ ~ ~

* These essences have been “Honeybee-potentized” - a name I have given to those essences that came into being while sitting on one of my organic beehives in the sun.  I do this so that the essence is also infused with the life-giving, steady tenacity of the Honeybee.  Flowers and Bees are intimately linked and together they make a potent essence.

Price List*
All orders come with a printed sheet of details about each essence.
10 mL brown glass bottle with dropper - $4.95 each (plus shipping, add below)

Individual Essence -

  ***Please note which Essences you would like.***

Buy 3 get 1 free! (4 for $14.85) 
Purchase 3 individuals, add shipping below, and tell me which 4 essences you want.




Shipping and Handling - Sent first class mail via USPS in recycled packaging.

$4.95 flat rate for up to 2 bottles

$9.95 flat rate for 3-24 bottles

SPECIAL OFFER!  ‘Full Kit’ One of each, 12 total, for $39.95! (plus shipping, add above)

 (a savings of almost $20 off the individual price!)

Take two to four drops four times a day, under your tongue or mixed in  a few ounces of water,
ten minutes prior to eating or one hour afterward. You can take them more often if you want, as needed.
Listen to your Inner Guidance.  You can also add them in with a bath or lotion, etc.
  I would love your feedback after using these Essences...

These Flower Essences are in a base of 140 proof Vodka.
They have been made with a homeopathic succussion of 6X.

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA; These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

*If you are buying several Ravenwind Botanica products at one time, whether the same item or not, you can save substantially on shipping as I will ship it all together, please inquire and we'll get the payment set up right for you.  :)  You can click on 'Ravenwind Botanica' in the list to the right to see all products available.  Thanks for supporting my work.

                                                                        

A Day in the Life

Happy Cactus

Burst into bloom with all this heat we've had - early Summer in late Winter!

Crazy Cat

Calyx doing his thing.

Brave Spider

In the bee hive, surrounded by propolis.

Wild Dinner

Harvested from the yard - free food full of nutrients and organic!

This rainy day has determined that my scheduled landscaping will be done another day, so Mathieu and I worked more on house designing; we have come full circle over the past year and are looking into yurts again.  I checked on my new bee packages that were just installed a week ago today.  They're doing well:  producing lots of comb, bringing in pollen, and doing their "purr" buzz.  They even started building comb on the queen cage:

Each hive had constructed 10 times this much comb in 5 days.

I went into my other hive (Monkey is her name); I have 3 total now.  Monkey has made it well through her second winter; no need for sugar water.  A thunderstorm suddenly started to come in, so all I could do was get into the top super.  I noticed 2 spiders inside the cover, one of them a Black Widow - both of them the type that stay put in their web nook - not hunters.  I wonder what they do in there and if there might be symbiosis.  If not, why wouldn't the bees kill them?  and what are the spiders eating?  Bees?  other insects?  I'm guessing other insects and the bees leave them alone because they aren't bothering the bees.

I harvested some wild greens to saute for dinner, above, clockwise from bottom left:  Redbud flowers, Garlic Mustard, Plantain, Wisteria flowers, Smilax shoots, wild Chives, Chickweed, and Violet leaves and flowers in the center.  You'll notice I pulled up the Garlic Mustard by the roots.  I did this because it is an invasive non-native and it is prolific.  I want to weed it out, but even pulling it up all the time does not get rid of it.  The roots too are edible if it doesn't have a flower stalk.  Throw the roots away if you don't eat them; don't put them in the compost.

Here is the finished product, with humane, local, organic Chicken. I simply wilted the greens in a little olive oil in a skillet and added the flowers later with a little salt.

Listening:

Healing from Lyme: Defeat the Spirochete!

I posted some time ago with a list of symptoms of Lyme disease, of which I had most.  I am doing a lot better and I want to share my protocol.  When I read that post from almost 3 months ago, I realize how much of an improvement I have made since that time.  I have gone from feeling rather bleak to being hopeful.  I do feel that I should be able to reach a point of being symptom free.  As of now mostly I just have joint pain (in the shoulders and hips), tightness in the upper back and neck, occasional mild headaches, and some emotional difficulties (depression, irritability).  I also have dry mouth at night which I am working on by addressing my Liver Yin Deficiency (TCM).  I'm not sure if it is related to the Lyme particularly, or if it's an effect of the Lyme treatment.  I was having insomnia regularly until recently which is not normal for me (prior to getting Lyme).  I took herbal formulas to address the insomnia particularly along with doing some acupressure.  The latter which helped tremendously.  Anyway, I want to share what's been working for me...

 Initially, back in September of last year, I took a month of antibiotics (along with various herbal formulas prior to the research that led to the formulas I am sharing here).  I did notice some improvement initially but then reached a point where I was not improving and not well and I felt that it would not be good for my body to continue taking the antibiotics.  I did not want to destroy my intestinal fauna and felt my immune system needed all the help it could get if I was going to defeat this spirochete!  I decided to try a serious run of herbal formulas and supplementation.



I consulted two books I found on Lyme along with various online sources:



The Buhner book I cannot recommend enough.  'Course I'm biased because he happens to be a favorite author anyway, but it's the most comprehensive book I could find on Lyme and natural healing.  The second book is modern CM, not TCM, so it has lots of scientific study data.
Also, I just found this book, literally.  Not sure why I didn't come across it before.  It looks good too.



Here are the best two online sources I found besides Buhner's:
Fruehauf
Winston

Here is the Herbal blend I made specifically to deal with the Lyme:
(I also have been making various herbal formulas along the way as needed to deal with my personal symptom picture, which is quite possibly different than yours, so I am not going to share those here - see a qualified Herbalist if you want to do this yourself).
A major key to defeating the spirochete is to change what you are doing regularly.  It has an incredible ability to respond to threats and will defend itself against whatever:  antibiotics, herbs, your immune system, etc...  You need to trip it up.



So, here are the various herbs and herbal formulas that I interchanged.  I did not follow a specific schedule, but would switch up every few days or at most every two weeks, with an occasional missed day because life'll do that.

#1 - Herbal Formula in Decoction - amount that I took daily (when I took it that is) decocted in 4 c. water with lid for 1/2 to 1 hr. then strained and re-decocted the same a second time, then composted (except Reishi, see below)

Hawthorne 3g.
Turmeric 1-30g.
Licorice Root 3g.
Ashwaganda 3g.
fresh Ginger 1g.
Neem tincture
Dandelion Root 10-30g.
Forsythia 12-15g.
Lonicera 12-15g.
Polygonum cuspidatum* 9-30g.
Cat's Claw* up to 20g.
Devil's Claw 3-6g.
Red Root 1g.
Astragalus 3-16g.
Chen Pi 3-9g.
Red Clover 6-15g. (added in last 10 minutes to infuse)
Smilax 3-6 g.
Teasel 6-12 g.
Eleuthro 8-30g. (I add this only when I will be drinking it in the am only as it can too stimulating for sleep)
Reishi 15 g. (this needs to be decocted 6-8 hours for full break down, so I pull it out before composting the marc and continue to re-use it)
Artemesia annua 9-27g. (I didn't have this on hand and so didn't add it, but would if I had it)
Add honey to taste as needed to get it down; it is bitter.
*The starred herbs are ones that I worked up to taking the full amount, watching for unwanted side effects and cutting back the amount if needed.

#2 - Boneset- as a cool tea, 1 oz. herb in quart boiling water, let steep with lid overnight, strain and drink

#3 - I make a separate decoction with Andrographis* up to 9-15g. as it is 'The King of Bitters' and overwhelms the already bitter formula above.  Also, it is stimulating to me, making me almost giddy, and I don't want to have it at night.  It may not affect others this way though.  I add honey to taste to help get it down.

#4 - Gaia Para-Shield - a product you can get from Mountain Rose (see link to right to order).  I took this to help with the damage to the digestive tract from taking an antibiotic for a month and also because it has some herbs in it that should help with the Lyme.  Here is info from their website:  "This formula supports a healthy intestinal environment and supports the GI tract by promoting healthy intestinal flora.

Contains: Black Walnut Fresh Green Hulls (Juglans nigra), organic Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium), organic Sweet Wormwood herb (Artemisia Annua), Pomegranate Seed (Punica granatum), organic Gentian Root (Gentiana lutea), Coptis Rhizome (Coptis chinensis), Ginger Root (Freshly Dried) (Zingiber officinale), Clove Bud Oil (Syzygium aromaticum), Vegetable Glycerin, Vegetable cellulose (capsule)."

#5 -  LB Core Protocol - from a great company who has put together a formula based on Buhner's book into capsule form.  Green Dragon Botanicals

On top of mixing up these 5 listed above, I also am taking a lot of supplements to help with the Lyme itself and also to repair the damage it does.  This is the daily amount but I rarely actually take it daily because it is so many pills and they should be taken in several portions throughout the day rather than all at once so the body can process them, and well, it just doesn't happen some days.  This protocol is a lot to keep up with for months on end.  I'd say on average I have taken this daily amount 3-4 times a week.

Supplements

Vit. C 1000-3000mg. (I often take Emergenc-C for this)
Vit. E 400-800 I.U.
Pregnenolone 50 mg.
Huperzine-A 100-200 mcg.
Magnesium 400-1200 mg.
Zinc 30 mg.
Copper (I have just stopped this as I don't want to interfere with Zinc absorption, but took it for awhile - see Buhner's book)
Selenium 200 mcg.
Garlic- Kyolic Formula 100 - 2 capsules
Vit. D 2000 I.U.
Probiotics
L-Carnitine 250 mg.
Acetyl-L-Carnitine 500-1500 mg.
Alpha Lipoic Acid 100 mg.
Glucosamine sulfate 1500 mg.
Quercetin 500 mg.
Grape Seed Extract
regular food-based, high-potency multi-vit/min (I like Rainbow Light brand)- not a one a day, not a generic store brand - this is a case where you get what you pay for - your health is worth more than being cheap


I also have been having SuperGreens+ almost daily in about 4 oz. of organic juice and 4 oz. of water.


Extreme heat is supposed to be of help in combating Lyme and it does seem like it helps me so I have been going to a local Korean spa about 1-2 times a month that has hot saunas up to 170 degrees and spending as much time as I can in there.

I take hot baths with a couple cups of Epsom salts to help with the joint pain.  Sometimes I add a cup of Lemon Balm herb in a bath bag.

I saw an acupuncturist for 5 weekly visits (and 156 needles, yes, I counted!) and it helped a lot with the pain and emotional difficulties.  I stopped going because I felt I reached a plateau with this particular acupuncturist, but may go to another whom I learned specializes in Lyme.  The one I went to did not seem particularly knowledgeable about Lyme. 

I get a few (1-4) massages a month and it helps quite a bit with the tension that seems to be in my body.

Otherwise, I try to eat well and get good sleep as usual as this makes a huge difference no matter.

I have been using St. John's Wort oil and Comfrey oil on my sore joints and muscles.

I sometimes use Yunnan Bai Yao plasters on my painful upper back.

An herbal blend for my particular symptom picture.

Best of luck if you're dealing with this, and please, share anything you have found or experienced.  It seems Lyme maybe be epidemic and we need to pool together our findings since no one seems to know real clearly how to deal with it absolutely.

For the longest time my symptoms seemed to fluctuate drastically, continuing to have some really bad days, but now I seem to be having mostly better days and some days almost normal.  I think it's also important to make time for relaxation and renewal, such as yoga, meditation, walks in nature,...  The body gets quite stressed dealing with Lyme and needs to be given extra care.  I notice that a couple alcoholic drinks or getting too little sleep or eating junk food will make me feel much worse than it ever did before.  So, if nothing else having Lyme has forced me to take even better care of myself than I used to because when I don't the results are especially unpleasant.


~~~~

Green! Cookies: Delicious and Healthy!

Here's how to make a healthy option when wanting a sweet treat.

Pumpkin Seed Cookies

Pumpkin seeds are loaded with healthy goodness!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. pumpkin seeds and 1/2 c. sesame oil ground up in food processor or mortar and pestle.

1 organic egg

1/2 c. hemp milk

1 1/4 c. pancake mix

1 c. powdered sugar

1/4 tspn. vanilla

additional 1 c. whole pumpkin seeds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a bowl adding the whole seeds last. Oil baking sheet(s) and place by heaping tablespoonful. 10 minutes.

Experiment with these. I think they would be great with goji berries, pine nuts, etc.

- or drizzled with Maple syrup!

These cookies have a neat greenish color. You can make them even greener by using all organic ingredients.

~~~