Date: May 19th 2023
Moon Phase: New Moon
Place: Home, Lancashire, U.K
Weather: Mild and rainy

My goodness, it’s nights like this that can really take your breath away – or lead you off on some wonderful adventures, such as drum journeys with spearmint, or sitting beside the plants at dusk and listening to their wisdom while the odd patter of rain trembles it’s leaves, and the birds sing their families home.

Most of my children are thankfully now asleep in bed. They never seem to sleep well on new or full moons. So this morning, I woke them up a little earlier – in the hope that they may sleep better tonight. So far… this approach seems to be working.
Most are now asleep, with the exception to my eldest daughter who is tucked up in bed reading. After a long afternoon of dedicating time to catch up on my herbal studies for my Herbal Foundation (in preparation of hopefully one day becoming a full medical herbalist), I was more than ready to unwind.

And yet, the more I tried to sit still, the more the energies of the new moon called out to me – beckoning me to do something – anything, that might help me collect some much needed ‘spoons’. You see, the last few days have been incredibly active and actually quite stressful. With some not quite so positive news regarding the ongoing results of one of my children’s hip surgery, having to write tedious home education reports to prove to the state that I am in fact providing a full time education for my children (home educators are asked to do this annually), and a slew of other paperwork, I found that by Thursday this week (yesterday) my M.E and Fibromyalgia caused me to very nearly ‘hit the wall’ and crash (phrases used by those with these conditions to explain a flare up in symptoms). And where neither of these conditions are ‘psychological’, they are very much impacted by stress and over exertion. As such, my nervous and adrenal system had switched from suggesting that we “slow down”, to a full blown and physiological application of forcibly applying the breaks that forced me to stop.
Because of this, I chose to take a wellbeing break from all emails, social media, correspondences, and even cancel a few appointments.
After all, what use am I to others as a wife, mother, wise woman, and Priestess if I myself am burnt out?

So, today I cleared the decks and stayed home. I slept in, played with my children quietly in the late morning, made home made ginger and chocolate spiced scones when I had a brief rise in energy levels, and then in the late afternoon I studied my herbalism. This may sound busy, but it was actually quite nice. I was replenishing my internal battery by slowly and mindfully doing the things that I loved.

Today’s herbal studies were very practical and scientific. Lots of talk about the bodies microbiome, the role of water, plant identification tests, trace elements, and a little overview of some Auravedic principles.
Where I love the study of Phytotherapy (herbalism) and the science behind it, I also adore the more esoteric side of herbs, plant folklore, plant energies and so on. This I often have to explore in my own time, as this element of herbalism is limited in formal studies.

As I sat on the sofa this evening, watching the dusk fall over the new moon sky, I felt the guidance of the goddess Cerridwen.

“Come on now Zanna. Not all rest is inactivity. You wanted to write a blog on mint for your plant lore series. Well, I have an idea for you. Go out in to the garden, find the most perfect sprig of the plant, take it inside and use it for a drum journey. Trust me, I think you will find it quite motivating and revitalising”.

I smiled, Cerridwen is always so forthright, never mincing her words, she will move you to action whether you want her to or not!

Upon her suggestion, I roused myself from being a sprawled out couch potato and hobbled across the across the room to open the patio doors; my joints still sore from my fibromyalgia flare.
As I did this, a beautiful mild and damp air bathed my face in refreshment. At 7.32pm it was still mildly drizzling after the shower that nourished the earth about an hour before. A blend of mild spring air and damp sent many fragrant aromatics up in to the air – each caressing my face as it hit my senses. First the pineapple mint (Mentha suaveolens), then the calming tang of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), before I quietly walked up to the spearmint. I was at least four paces away from this vastly spreading plant when I could already feel my nose prickle with the unmistakable spicy and earthy aroma that is spearmint (Mentha spicata).

I spent a moment or two just gazing at this beautiful plant and it’s impressive opposite and alternating leaf system that climb high upon the proud and erect square stem. I breathed in the spearmints earthy fragrance and was filled with an immediate feeling of being both calm and awake. The scent alone had already revitalised me somewhat!
I leant over and let my hands stroke through the stems and serrated leaves, as I did so, yet more lustrous fragrance rose into the air, made more intense by the rain.
Eventually I came upon one sprig in particular that beckoned to me, and as usual, I asked the plant (as I do with all plants when either out foraging, or collecting from the garden), “may I please take this sprig for medicine and journeying?”

Whether you are, like me, a folk witch, Priestess and practicing wise woman, or you are a Shaman, Wiccan, Druid, or follow any other spiritulity, the plant will always speak to you in slightly different ways. Varying it’s communication in the certainty that whoever is connecting with it will understand it’s message. I often find that when a plant or tree is not happy for me to take from it, my hand will either feel heavy or I will have an immediate energetic impression of “No!” or “Back off”. And yet, when the plant is happy for me to take, they often send a feeling of lightness into my hand and an energy that feels as though the plant is smiling. And spearmint smiled, from ear to ear (well, metaphorically speaking).

I carefully broke off the sprig and travelled on back up the garden path. When I got inside, I got my Doula drum down off of the wall (a drum I made at a shamanic drum birthing workshop in 2019 with dear friends at ‘the way of the buzzard‘) and laid both the spearmint and the drum on the family dining table.
Briefly, I stood beside the two, pondering on how to proceed. I have worked with herbs, plants, flowers and trees for most of my life – but drum journeying with them? Well, this was a new calling within my practice. “‘I’m overthinking this”, I told myself. “Why complicate things? You know how to journey. Do this intuitively and get on with it!”.

With the pep talk over, I picked up the spearmint and gently shook off the rain and a couple of aphids that were lurking under the leaves and held it in my left hand along with the drum stick. With the right, I held my drum.
With eyes closed, I took several long and slow breaths. Gently and steadily I took in my inhale, before steadily releasing it as an exhale.
I became aware of how grounded my bare feet felt upon the carpet, and how calming the smell of the spearmint was as it rose up to greet my nose. When ready, I called forth one my guides, Jackdaw, and asked them to be present with me while I journeyed.

Before I was fully aware of what was happening, I felt my beater make contact with the drum. A slow and steady beat issued from it, like a heartbeat.
Ba dum…dum…dum…dum…ba dum….dum…dum… dum.

Every time my beater made contact with the drum, the dreamy and spicy scent of spearmint pulsed up and into my face. And with each beat, it seemed to send me deeper and deeper into trance. The fragrance wrapped around my being and lulled my senses into quiet space. The more my hands moved in drumming, the more the motion caused the spearmint to rise up and commune with my senses.

After a few minutes, I was met by an almost grandfather like archetype. This was how spearmint chose to greet me, an archetype he knew I would recognise and be able to understand his message to me. You see, although the spearmint showed itself to me as a masculine energy, in reality, the plant has both male and female parts. He showed himself as a man perhaps in his early seventies, and he wore clothes of off-white and almost forest or khaki green. A shade of green different to the vibrant earth green of fresh spearmint – but then, I remembered, that when spearmint is dried or aged, it does have an almost khaki like colour to it. So, this version of spearmint was the aged version. He smiled at me and then he told me his story.

“I am one of the links to the grandfather, the ancestor. The wise man, and elder.
I ground and I ease, offering healing wisdom to all who work or take of me.
I am tall and focussed like the spear, but instead of harming I point to the sky – ever reaching towards the sun. Reminding those who know my wisdom, that they should reach sunwards too. I am of the earth, and my constitution is cooling like a breeze on a bright spring day. I soothe nerves and stomach dis-ease. I cleanse and I soothe, moving old energy away and bringing new scent that is pleasing. I am cleansing in more ways too, I am anti-viral, anti-septic and anti-fungal – I am anti dis-ease and pro healing.
You see my squared stems? They show balance and strength. Those who drink or eat of me know that I can bring them back to centre, and help them stand tall again. My stems also demonstrate resilience, they are not easily bruised under thumb, and although I sway in the warm summer breeze, I move with the wind and rarely break with it’s force.
Like my many mint siblings, I bring cleansing and ease, and my scent awakens, revitalises and cleanses. And I do this inwards too, moving out of the body all that does not serve.
Observe my alternating and opposite leaves… like arms reaching first one way, and then another. I show balance again. And this is where I help all those who call upon me, I bring them balance”.

Eventually my journey slowed and came to it’s natural conclusion, the beater struck it’s last three beats, and I lowered the drum. I felt sore from the drumming- my arms ached and stung from fibromyalgic throbs. But it was worth it.

How much of the plants wisdom was already held within my consciousness and unconsciousness from my own budding herbalist knowledge of the plant, and how much was genuinely offered up to me by the plant spirit of the mint, could be debated. I make no effort to hide the fact that I have been self-studying herbalism and folk ways for all of my adult life, and that I have recently taken the plunge into studying it formally, therefore, I of course already know a lot about this plant and it’s medicinal applications.

However, there were insights into this plant and it’s spirit nature and constitution that I do not feel could be easily summed up as previously learnt wisdom or even having a vivid imagination. The more that the mint spirit spoke to me about balance, the more it made sense to me – from both a spiritual and a medicinal perspective. Balance is something I am currently bringing back into realignment in my own life, so perhaps this is why I have been so intuitively drawn to mint over the last two weeks? Perhaps the mint, in spirit essence is stepping forward as a temporary plant and medicinal ally? Offering it’s skills and wisdom to me to help me through this particular phase of my life’s journey. It is certainly food for thought, or perhaps in this case, ‘herb for thought’.

With the drum journey done, I hung my doula drum and beater back upon the wall and set the spearmint down on the counter, thinking that I would either compost it or use it in cooking tomorrow. But as I did this, I felt the plant rise up again! “No! No! The lesson is’nt over yet! Drink me! Drink me!”.
I went to reach for my chamomile and lemon balm, in preparation to make a particular home tea blend that I like, but intuitively, I felt as though I shouldn’t do this tonight. That perhaps in some way, it might dilute any message that the spearmint was trying to offer up. That perhaps the mint might end up vying for attention over that of the other two herbs.

With this in mind, I boiled the kettle and placed the spearmint into my favourite mug (a large green tankard style mug that I bought from the Henge Shop in Avebury, Wiltshire). Before I poured the water over the spearmint, I thanked it for it’s sacrifice and lessons so far, and for any lessons it may impart while I drink of it’s medicine.

I stirred in some organic honey, and left the tea to steep and cool.

When I came back to it, I took the warm mug to the sofa and curled up comfortably in order to slowly sip my brew and watch one or two of my favourite Youtube channels who vlog on either herbalism or homesteading. My first sip sent a warm and refreshing waterfall down through my throat, I felt it pour into my stomach and rest there, a sense of ease and relaxation spread through my entire body – even though I didn’t have any digestive dis-ease, the mint seemed to flow through and ease every part of me.

“This is how life is supposed to feel”, I thought to myself. “This is the level of contentment we should be feeling at the end of every day. Our bodies are not meant to work so hard that stress manifests as stomach issues, high blood pressure, or headaches. We are supposed to follow our passions and experience life. Not work ourselves into the ground for the sake of what? Capitalism and others peoples ideal of what life should be? There needs to be more balance in my life. And I need more boundaries. And not feel guilty when I implement those boundaries and say ‘no’ to others. I need to slow down and express myself more through my writing. That is where some of my passion lays, through my writing, folk witchcraft, doulaing, Priestessing and herbalism. I continually tell my children to learn through their passions. Home education is child led, and that the best learning comes through self exploration, perhaps it is time I modelled this myself. Then I will find balance and a little more peace”.

Mint had given me another message, but not directly like in the journeying. Instead, the act of sitting down and drinking that magical tea gave me the time and space I needed in order to process some of the causes of my current stress, dis-ease, and flare up of health conditions. Mint had forced me to sit down and make way for mental processing time. There is an undeniable magic and healing element to drinking tea. That is why as a Doula I was taught the art of ‘intelligent tea drinking’ (a form of sacred listening, where a Doula holds space for parents to speak and debrief while on their pregnancy journey), and why so many witches make sacred and healing, tea blends, or why some of us still practice the age old art of tasseomancy (the reading of tea leaves) – because a cup of tea is a potion, and really is magic.

Through the time, mists, and distance between us, blessings from me to you.

Zanna, 2023