“Alternative” Medicine

It is very disturbing to see and hear so much negative and derogatory comments about Alternative Medicine, particularly Plant Medicine.

Yet the Truth is: Plant Medicine is the FIRST medicine. All drugs were first manufactured from .. plants.  Plants are not an alternative.  Plants are it. Here are two articles about drugs that come from plants:

Natural Products Derived from Plants

Drugs and Medicine From Plants

It is very much like the insanity of organic food. Organic food IS the original, and it has been smothered by big money and health-crippling chemicals. Organic Farmers have to pay to earn the right to grow things naturally.  While the big companies push the harsh poisons that keep the drug companies in business.

Society has been brainwashed to believe it is normal to pour poison into your soil and into your body. The minority that tries to raise awareness are called ‘extreme environmentalists’.  Money and marketing.

It is easier. Easier to use chemicals. Easier to just go along with what everyone else does. Easier to ignore and put off responsibility.

Yet we are all responsible. The ‘weed and feed’ on lawns, which dogs will consume, which poison their bodies, which results in their illnesses. That is our responsibility.  And those weeds are actually medicine. Dandelions are amazingly beneficial to the body. Plantain is another. Yet the perfect swath of poisoned green is preferred.

Plants and naturally grown food is not alternative.
And the willful indifference to what is in our food and the damage to our Earth …. that is conscious or unconscious suicide.

Be the change.
Be Love <3

Canyonville Farmers’ Market

Unlike the Umpqua Valley Farmers’ Market in Roseburg, the Canyonville Farmers’ Market is still finding her way. There has been many changes and turn over in the last several years. And this year … for me, a huge change. My experience being so brief compared to so many, yet I have taken on the title of management.

In any Market, some people have the view that it is just about produce. After all, it is called Farmers’ Market. But a grocery store is not just groceries, either.

Traditionally, a Market has offered a wide array of talents. The criteria is simple: Everything is grown, processed, produced, or crafted by the vendor.

Markets offer many choices for the roving eye … food, herbs, plants, garden accessories, body products, sewn items, crocheted/knitted items, metal work, woodwork … It is a long list. When you buy from the Market, you are supporting a grass-roots movement to keep alive local communities.

Last summer I wrote an essay on why I participate in the Market:

Why I do Market ….

My ‘mission’ is to promote health through physical activity, mental stimulation… and to encourage nurturing care for this magnificent and complex body that navigates us through this physical world.

I spend many hours of many days preparing product for Market, harvesting, drying, combining ingredients, and labeling. For all this work, the income generated might cover the costs of production and gas to get there, but rarely does it cover much of the ‘cost’ of labor.

Is the Market a way for me to make a living? Not so far. But there is something else involved, something beyond the hard cash that many of us so desperately need in order for ends to meet. 

There is a difference between Making a Living and …. Living.  The difference between ‘life events’ and ‘life’.

I am an Introvert. For those of you unfamiliar with that concept, it means social activities are uncomfortable at best, and sometimes painful at worst. You will never find me at a party or ‘hanging out’.

I do not consider the Market a ‘social’ function. It is Community. It is deeper than sharing a drink over dinner.

At Market, we display our wares, and we share aspects of our True Self. We connect with other ‘like-minded’ souls, and encourage a more authentic and healthier life style.

In a society that is riddled with ill-health and confusions, the Market is a place that strips away the false ideals of thoughtless living. The vendors reveal a different truth … a truth that embraces our connections to each other and to Nature.

The Market is a quiet revolution. It is a place of education and revelations. It sparks imagination and creativity. It is a life-style and a life-choice.

Is it hard work? Oh yes. Oh very much yes. Is it worth it? Oh very much yes!

~~

Idealistic? Sure. Why not? I still believe in the Market. I believe in the ideal of it.

… with gratitude ^_^

My Favorite Local Businesses

Part of living a healthier life involves choosing Farmers that match your goals. I am blessed to live in a community with several local (and private) produce growers, so many of my needs are met right here at home.

Farmers’ Market brings other vendors into the mix. One of my very favorite is: Big Lick Farms out of Myrtle Creek (http://www.biglickfarm.com/)  Their produce is AMAZING.

My garlic and tea needs are met by Viriditas Wild Gardens (lizziematt@frontier.com). She also does fermented foods which is delicious!

A wonderful Hummus vendor: Blue Nile Authentic Hummus (bluenilefoods@rconnects.com).

And if you want the BEST organic coffee (Cafe Mam out of Eugene) ever … Oregon Sunshine Espresso in Canyonville. They also have the cleanest, cutest restroom that I have ever had to use ^_^  Their jalepeno bagels are also melt-in-your-mouth delicious.  To see more about them, they can be found on Facebook (I don’t use Facebook, so you are on your own here!)

I will be adding to my ‘Favorite Local Businesses’ as time allows.

… always with gratitude ^_^