My childhood occurred before the Industrial Food Supply and Big Pharma took over the world, so the concept of eating Seasonally was not a completely new concept to me when Michael Pollan came out with the book The Omnivores Dilemmaand then a bit later the little handbook Food Rules. I had, by then, become a Witch, so I had added Magickal properties to what I knew about herbs. I will admit, I had strayed far from the idea of eating Seasonally and Colorfully, but I got really good at casting spells using the Magical properties of the herbs.
Life moves on. In the last two years I have lost a lot of weight. Not sick, just a natural weight lose that I didn’t do anything to accomplish. I did wonder what had changed. Then I realized that about two years ago is when I started really hanging with a group of herbalists. I “remembered” that eating foods seasonally was healthier than all those products you can get any time of the year. I “remembered” that processed food was filled with chemicals that were deleterious to your health. I “remembered” that the more colorful the food, the healthier it is for you. I “remembered” that age-old adage about colors and health – if you have a urinary issue, eat yellow food; circulatory issue, eat red food; nervous conditions, go with blue or white. The list is quite long and it applies to herbal medicines as well. I am also convinced that way back in time those first wise women and wise men were originally concerned with making sure there was enough food and that could only be accomplished on a seasonal basis. Then they noticed that people who ate certain foods never had certain health issues. Eventually they would have added the magickal properties to the nutritional and medical properties that the foods and herbs were supplying.
It is almost Summer. Spring has provided those first crops of truly magickal food, primarily berries. Now Summer’s bounty is hitting the table and it’s time to feast and start preparing those wonderful foods and herbs for Winter. By the end of Summer the larders will be full of food and medicine. The Great Harvests of the Autumn then take place. More feasting and more preserving to make sure we have the food, medicine, and magick we need to withstand the Winter. Eat it fresh when it is in Season. Eat it preserved (smoked, dried, tinctured, etc.) when Winter arrives.Now here I am eating Seasonally and Colorfully. In other words, eating healthy. I have tinctures brewing away in the kitchen. My tea bags are full of leaves. I gathered wild vegetables out of my very own forest to make my family dinner this past weekend. Lately I stopped by the side of the road to gather some herbs I saw growing there. I take no prescription medicine to monitor my very few health issues here in my Elder years. Hang with herbalists and I guarantee you will lose weight while eating extremely well. You will be healthy and happy and feel good most of the time. Damn herbalists, now I am one.
