Winter days
Winter’s here, and is being felt within us all, human and more than human.
The leaves are thick on the ground, no longer held on most trees or on plants. The tiny earth angels - the worms, the beetles, other insects and the fungi turn the deadening into life, into food for seeds and fertile ground, so future medicine and forests can thrive.
The smell of rot, dampness, compost, fungus, moss, petrichor and wet bark fill the air. And I breathe it in with gusto, for there is something wholesome in its decay, in its bacteria rich alchemy. It is a marvel, to watch and feel the transformation.
The fungi and the insects are incredible alchemists, especially at this time of year, turning the shit, the decay and the fallen into rich dark wonderment that can feed life and keep it healthy.
This community of devourers includes such allies as beetles and their larvae, flies and maggots, worms, woodlice, fungi, slime moulds, bacteria, slugs, snails, millipedes, springtails and earthworms. These incredible, tiny beings, eat and digest the cast offs, breaking it down, through their bodies and transforming it into fertile compost, potent and rich, because of the journey it has taken through the interior world of these devourers. It is a wonder to think, how my food, my herbal medicine, grows rich from a matter that has been through an insects body and how life is grown from layer and layers of death.
Most of the devourers work quietly, easefully, and out of sight. Their handiwork isn’t immediately obvious, and their function often happens gradually, but together, they convert dead plants, trees and animals into forms that feed new life. They are the forest’s unsung heroes of recycling, they are the bringers of life, for they are the ones that create the fertile ground for a healthy spring, they ensure seeds grow well, and the roots are nourished.
Death, letting go, change, decomposition and decay, may appear to be unpleasant, frightening or uneasy processes from our modern human perspective. However, they are vital for the functioning of ecosystems as well as for our own life journey and growth.
These processes, provide essential nutrients for the growth of new organisms, just as the letting go, the crumbling away of habits or ways of being that no longer serve, in their letting go, can feed our new beginnings with lessons, nourishment and fertile space.
It may be frightening or unsettling to open to a death of something we have known or cultivated, but, most often necessary if we are to live to our fullness.
It is such a shame, that so many of us humans fear the insects and dark earth and the fungus. Calling them creepy crawlies and ugly, or the earth dirt, or the fungus yucky. We need to remember how our lives depend on these wee ones, we need to remember the magic they create right under our feet.
The decline of solar energy, mixed with the increase in dark hours and the growing coldness, signals to all wild, including us, a time of change. Within creatures and within the trees and plants, hormones decrease or increase with the seasons.
In the autumn and winter forest, the hormones for fertility, reproduction, outward growing and achieving, as well as it being used to communicate between the mother plant or mother tree and their embryos, declines. The outward growth, outward longing and attraction fades and all energy shifts its direction, to downward growth. Strengthening the heart of themselves, the roots and bones of themselves.
We have largely been led to believes a downward focus, towards the earth inward towards the body, to be a bad thing. That instead, what is holy and godly, is the upward reaching, light based shining, this I used to think was what we should aim for. Yet Ive come to realise, there is something deeply holy, about soil and soul, about the heart of the matter, the feeling realm and the darkness. If we always pushed ourselves to reach for the light, to be outward and upward, our roots would never be tended, our hearts not known the stories held in bone, nerves and blood not listened to, our feelings not felt and our bodies weakened. Too quickly have we forgotten the immense beauty of what lies below and within, in the realm of the invisible, this is where true alchemy happens.
It has been shown that the human hormonal cycle also shifts and changes with autumn and winter, and that it is not just the changing scenery that affects our mood, but a whole weaving of components. With change in our internal hormones, we feel more tired, restful, quiet and inward.
This can lead a person to think there is something deeply wrong with them, especially if they have grown up to believe more sleep, more quiet times, more inward focus, more melancholy or dreaminess is wrong.
Or, if people have not been helped to navigate their feeling realm, or if quietness scares them for fear of their inner voice, or if being a people pleaser is what has kept them safe, then being this winter way, can feel scary.
Often what we feel is wrong with us at this time, is not a fault of our nature or of nature as a whole. It is more that the changes our bodies and minds exhibit, are in tune with the needs of our growth, but clash with societal demands.
All too often, we see winter as some punishment, some death or abandonment, yet we forget, that in the dark and invisible world of winter, life thrums.
Deep under the earth, covered and fed by all that has been let go of, all that has been given up in offering, are the seeds.
Forming, rooting, opening and shaping. Cradled in mycelium, rot and damp, midwifed by insect, death and fungus.
Within the blackened transformational matter, life begins.
In the death of the old, medicine is born.
All beginnings start in the darkness, in the fecund earth, in the pulsing womb.
It is not spring where life suddenly appears out of nowhere, but now, in these inward months.
Spring is not a saviour of winter days, it is birthed from winter, born because of winter.
And it is this winter story, that teaches me much about my own human journey.
Poem -
Be taught now among the trees and rocks
How the discarded is woven into shelter,
Learn the way things hidden and unspoken
Slowly proclaim their voice in the world.
Find that inward symmetry to all outward appearenaces, apprentice
yourself, to yourself, begin to welcome back
all you sent away, be a new annunciation,
Make yourself a door through which
To be hospitable, even to the stranger in you.
- David Whyte
I love this poem, it’s one of my all time favourites. It speaks to me, of nature, the journey of life and of soul work.
Inspiring Podcasts -
Winter podcast on December 21st - Click here
Ocean Vuong, a life worthy of our breath - Click here
Smoke Hole sessions with storyteller Martin Shaw, talking to Jay Griffiths, author of ‘Wild’ This podcast is called, what animal do you have under your cloak - Click Here
DeeplyRooted: Declaring Interdependence with MILLA PRINCE /170 - Click here
Things of interest -
Charles Eisenstein video - Trust your heart - Click here
Herbs for Winter -
Cinnamon (Cinnamomum spp.)
Cinnamon is a warming, aromatic spice, that adds cheer and friendliness to many hot drinks, tinctures and foods.
Cinnamon is not only a beautiful warming spice, it also offers a number of health benefits that are really very helpful in the winter days. For this spice has circulation-boosting properties and the combination of heat and sweetness makes cinnamon an especially good choice for autumn and early winter.
Cinnamon is an anti inflammatory which can soothe the gut lining, this spice also aids digestion, soothing spasms and cramping in the gastrointestinal tract, easing gas and bloating, along with having antimicrobial properties, making it a great ally for fending off colds and other viruses that tend to be particularly present in winter.
Cinnamon has also been shown to be helpful for blood sugar balance, a number of studies have demonstrated that cinnamon is helpful in lowering blood sugar levels and supporting insulin sensitivity.
I just adore this spice in winter warmers, such as hot toddies, cocoa, raw cacao and date truffles, porridge and apple crumble.
Astragalus root (Astragalus mongholicus)
Astragalus root is a favorite of mine for many reasons. A beautiful ally for dealing with initial cold symptoms or low energy.
You can have it on its own in an infusion, or add it to other immune-boosting allies such as mushrooms or ginger, or mixed into broths or bone broths. I love to add ¼-½ teaspoon to a mug of miso soup and a touch of ginger and cayenne, this will warm you, help circulation and help the immune system. Or make a chai, with astragalus, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, star anise and black pepper.
St. John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum)
For a herb that supports mood, you may want to look into St. John’s wort. A herb that is well-known for helping people remember the light, fire and sunshine inside of them when all feels a little too dark. This is a herb that works well for folk in winter, softening the edges and supporting them through the darker days.
St. John’s wort can be taken internally as a tincture or infusion, I adore an infused oil applied topically for inflammation and muscle pain.
When buying this herb, sourcing matters —look for products made with fresh buds and flowers. Also, a red color in the oil or tincture indicates quality and effectiveness.
Ginger Root (Zingiber officinale)
A beautiful ally of the herb and spice world, ginger’s benefits are many.
Ginger is lovely for colds, flu, coughs, nausea, indigestion, arthritis, menstrual cramps, and, as an overall support for heart health.
For colds and flu, ginger is wonderful, if i could only use one herb for these times, it would be ginger. Ginger is especially good when colds and flu are accompanied by dampness and also upper respiratory problems.
Ginger helps fight infections too, especially stomach bugs, ear infection and fungal infections, and has long been be used for food poisoning caused by bugs, along with helping to relieve painful cramping.
Ginger tea, or a spoonful of ginger-infused honey can be a great balm for a sore throat. Ginger is also antimicrobial, which is great for preventing further infection. Ginger is lovely when people feel shivery or chilled to the bone, warming a person up from the inside out.
Ginger is wonderful for getting stuck mucus flowing again, relieving congested coughs and stuffy sinuses when had as a tea. Ginger can also be used externally over the chest to relieve congestion, either an infused oil or poultice.
Ginger is great for digestion, it is said to ignite digestive fire, a simple ayurvedic practice of chewing on a small slice of fresh ginger 15 minutes before meals to boost digestion.
Being warming, dispersing, aromatic, and carminative, it can help with stagnant and cold digestion which leads to bloating, gas, constipation, cold feet and hands, white tongue coating, painful belly.
Ginger is used for nausea too. I used to often chew some fresh ginger, or, have ginger tea when feeling sick in pregnancy and it always worked a treat, also great with motion sickness. Ginger is also used to decrease nausea after chemotherapy and surgeries.
Ginger is a herb for the heart, and has been shown to reduce blood glucose and inhibit the inflammation associated with these metabolic imbalances.
As you can see, ginger really is a wonderful herb, and I’ve only touched the surface here, but you can enjoy this herb in a multitude of ways -
Fresh juice, tea, decoction, foot baths, oil and tincture.
Cayenne (Capsicum spp.)
If cinnamon is gently warming, ginger is a bit hotter, and cayenne brings the heat. When it comes to cayenne, just a pinch will do, sprinkled just a little on your food or add a very small amount to curries or homemade masala spice mixes, chai or tea or into fire cider.
Cayenne is a blood mover that is good for cold hands and feet in the winter, or just run cold in general.
It has cardiovascular benefits as well and I love to add it to my rose elixir with cinnamon too.
Cayenne can be made into a balm and used externally to soothe pain and inflammation and to stimulate circulation. Cayenne also has anti-inflammatory and endorphin-boosting effects, making it good for promoting both health. Another effective way to enjoy cayenne pepper is in the cold season classic, fire cider.