Bent by the Wind and Pricked by Thorns

This year rose has been my number one ally with my SSA. I have found much common ground with my beloved rose…and learned so much about her and myself in the process…

“A rose, bent by the wind, and pricked by thorns, and yet has its heart turned upwards.”   Huna of Babylon

                 

Life offers so many challenges.. some of them not very pleasant… the trick is to be like the rose, and accept the thorns and their lessons, and bend with the wind.. all the while still opening our heart to what the Universe is teaching us and coping by turning our faces to the Sun….

For those less than pleasant times, rose in any form will help you cope. She supports us on an emotional level with a softening action. She helps us be open to love and open to giving love, not only to others, but also ourselves.

I have learned for myself, simply applying some rose otto to my pulse points, chakras, and a bit under my nose, or rubbing safflower/almond oil I have double infused with rose, into my skin, I feel a centering and opening.

A personal story, one day, a few years ago, something had happened that just had my nerves feeling frayed, I was scattered emotionally and shaky physically, so I went in the bathroom to do my rose oil ritualistic application… I ended up totally naked, slathered from top to bottom in rose oil! Time had disappeared, or at least as I know it..it felt as if I simply left my tired, exhausted, frayed soul behind and came back refreshed, calm and centered… a true metamorphosis had occurred.

In Ayurvedic medicine, roses are considered cooling and tonic for the mind. My own experiences with rose verifies this. One of my lessons learned on this year long journey is that rose is an important emotional supportive herb, a nervine that is steadfast in helping depression and anxiety.

        ( I can’t give credit for this photo, as it is a fb foundling… if it is yours or you know whose it is, please tell me so I can give credit for this lovely photo)

Being an energy worker, I will share that physically rose works on the first chakra, symbolizing vitality and strength. Rose can help you overcome fear. Remember, fear can manifest as feeling you have no control over something…For harmony and balance I place rose scent over my fourth chakra. A dab on my third eye, helps me meditate, center, have understanding, and become one with the universe. I like to dab my third eye with rose before bedtime as it helps me to explore the dream world, and expands my intuition..

Herbal and Honey Hugs to all who visit Comfrey Cottages xxx

A Year with the Rose - History

I had a list of 20 herbs to study, with Rose being my number one, as part of my Springfield Sanctuary Apprenticeship.

                    ( Julia Childs rose in my garden)

I am a ground up learner, so this year I really delved into the history of roses. I bought two books that I especially enjoyed as good reads, besides learning about roses in history, their lineages and other tidbits such as how to identify by the type of thorns etc.

 A Rose by Any Name  The Little-Known Lore and Deep-Rooted History of Rose Names by Douglas Brenner, (former Martha Stewart Living garden editor) and Stephen Scanniello, (President of the Heritage Rose Foundation).

 From the ancient Apothecary Rose to the modern roses like my Julia Childs, this book has a story behind about 1200 roses. It is not some dry, boring read either. Oh no, it has humor, wit, romance, intrigue, triumph, failure, glory, sadness and danger all included. Great leaders, actors, politicians, Empresses, Queens, Presidents, artists of every stripe, and many of other types of peoples,  stories entwined throughout. Even if you are not a rosarian, this little book is a wonderfully entertaining read, and gave me a great appreciation of just how important roses have been throughout history, religiously, medicinally, and of course, for their beauty.

In Search of Lost Roses by Thomas Christopher, ( a horticulture, gardening and environmental author of great renown), is the other book with a historical bent I truly enjoyed for what it taught me as well as the stories.

The book, In Search of Lost Roses, tells the story of how after the first hybrid tea rose, in 1867, many of the old roses were for generations virtually unobtainable or lost entirely. He then crafts a wonderful tale of chasing down , across continents, many of these “lost” old roses and bringing them back so we can enjoy and appreciate their historical importance today. We are introduced to rose rustling, ancient Greece, China, and Rome (amongst other places), necropoli, and bridal beds during this fascination journey through time, in search of old roses. A must read!

These books came from the story of roses from a historical perspective in different ways, and they really don’t have much overlap, so I wanted to share about them and suggest both as superb reads for those of you with an interest.

Stay tuned… I will be posting a few fascinating, stories where Rose was a witness to mankind’s history…

Herbal and Honey Hugs to all who visit Comfrey Cottages xx