Pantry Power – Plant Infusions For An Abundant Life

Many enthusiasts enjoy several cups a day of their favorite herbal infusion which is a large portion of herb brewed for at least four hours and as long as ten. I recommend placing one cup of the dried herb into a quart canning jar and filling it with freshly boiled water. After the steeping, strain with a non-metallic method such as cheesecloth or bamboo. Herbal infusions can be made with the leaves and fruits which provide healing aspects of this comforting brew. Many of the favorite kitchen garden herbs contain minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals including the list herein. 

What do you need to attend to in your life now? This list of herbs and associations can be your guide; one of the smartest ways to approach this methodology is to brew right before bedtime and you will awaken to a freshly infused herb. Some of the most popular herbs and fruits used to create infusions are as follows:

• Caraway Seeds: aids in relationships
• Catnip Leaves: makes women even more attractive 
• Chamomile Flowers: helps with sleep, good for abundance
• Dandelion Leaves: makes wishes come true
• Echinacea: makes the body strong
• Nettle Leaves: hex breaking
• Pine Needles: increases skin health as well as financial health 
• Sage Leaves: purifies energy, antibiotic 
• St. John’s Wort: antidepressant that lifts spirits
• Thyme Leaves: a protectant for you and your property
• Yarrow Flowers: reduces fever, brings courage and good luck

Hedgewitch Hoedown

Be inspired by the industrious herbalist monks who steadfastly worked with these gifts from the earth to create blessed brews for health, comfort, and pleasure. Gardening is not a chore when you invite your fellow pagan pals for an outdoor party to sow seeds, do a little weeding, and plant herbs and flowers. Serve your guests a Goddess Green Chartreuse or another suitably herbal option, such as a Lavender Love Drop Mocktail, and enjoy each other’s good company and the generosity of Mother Earth!

You can also say these words together:

    Great Goddess of our Green Earth, we thank you today with heart and hands.

    We pledge to preserve your beautiful land, and call all to join in the healing of our planet,

    Ancient One, we thank you for your generosity.

    With heart and hands, gratitude to you. Blessed be!

Earth Stones for Centering: Grounding and Healing Gems and Crystals

Jasper Stone: This stone has been valued for its healing and grounding energies since ancient times. These healing crystals carry a very strong earthly energy, helping to deepen your personal connection with the earth when you wear or meditate with these grounding crystals. I recommend either brown or red jasper, both of which are healing stones that also give you great strength, heighten energy, and have a lovely reinvigorating effect on your body.

Hematite: This stone is a deeply grounding crystal for the body. It has a high density and even it is a relatively small pebble; it will feel heavier in your hand than you might expect. Hematite contains tremendous grounding energy that literally feels like you are one with the Earth. Touch it to your skin, and you will feel a magnetic energy. It is this effect that will make you feel more balanced, calm, and centered. Hematite stones also soak up any negative energy within your body or energy field. After you have used it, you should place the stone in a bowl of pure salt to cleanse it.

Smoky Quartz Stone: Smoky quartz is another beautifully grounding and stabilizing crystal that brings powerful energies for centering the body. This particular quartz has the effect of making you feel deeply rooted to the earth. It is very centering in an uplifting way, having a much more subtle energy than Hematite. Smoky quartz works to counteract any negative vibrations, replacing them with the positive.

K2 Stone: This crystal has recently become more popular as it brings new discovery and revelation for many. K2 is a combination of grounding granite and celestial Azurite, which balances our earthbound life experiences with our higher consciousness and connection to the universe and the heavens. It is an extremely powerful way to connect to your intuition and find the balance between your intuition and your daily life. If you are wrestling with a real issue in your life or need to make a difficult choice when the options are unclear to you, call upon K2 and use it in meditation. Soon, the answers will come.

Shungite Stone: Here is the most powerful stone for balancing. Shungite will inspire you to deal with your emotions, toxic mental thoughts, and anything that no longer serves you. While it can be unpleasant to look at these personal issues, it is, in actuality, a healthy thing to do. What you gain from this exercise is the grace and strength to cut the energetic cords that hold you back from your personal power.

Gratitude to Mother Nature

Stones, crystals, and gems are regarded as the purest forms of the earth’s generosity. Whenever you get a new crystal, receive a piece of jewelry with a stone or gem, or decorate your home or garden with rocks and pebbles, show gratitude for these gifts from nature. Simply say, “Thank you, Mother Nature, for this gift.” Your gratitude will be rewarded tenfold, and you will enjoy a shower of crystals and gems in your life from our benefactress Mother Earth, who enjoys getting credit for her good works!

Love Your Mother: Spells to Heal Nature

Unlike our forebears, modern witches have to help heal Mother Earth. We are charged with crafting spells to restore and nurture the planet, which in turn nurtures us. In spring, on the Vernal Equinox, March 21, sprinkle clover leaves, ground mistletoe, and cinnamon on the ground while walking widdershins, or counterclockwise. Face north with right arm raised, and say aloud:

I call upon the great powers in the north 
Bless and protect this land,
Bless and protect our beloved Mother Earth! 
Harm to None. So mote it be.

Service to Mother Earth: A Walking Meditation

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   As you walk, take the time to look and really see what is in your path. For example, my friend Brenda takes a bag with her and picks up every piece of garbage in her path. She does this as an act of love for the earth. During the ten years I have known her, she has probably turned a mountain of garbage into recycled glass, paper and plastic. Goddess bless!