Ficus carica Gender: Masculine Element: Fire Planet: Jupiter We are featuring the fig this week, and it has numerous powers that can impact your life! The fig has the capacity to make you irresistible. If you want to enchant someone, give them a fig and they will be spell bound by your charms (as long as they like figs)! Both sexes will find the fig beneficial! Men can overcome infertility and impotence, and women who carry figs will be able to conceive. Undoubtedly life altering! The fig is a member of the mulberry family with an extensive history. There are over 850 types of figs. It is one of the first edible plants and has been cultivated since ancient times, dating back to 9400 - 9200 B.C. It is found all over the world, resulting in a wealth of stories and legends. Mythological tales often mention the fig, and it is highlighted in many spiritual and religious texts including the Bible, Haggadah, the Koran, and the Vedas. One species, the Ficus religiosa (the tree of awakening) was the Bodhi tree Gautama Buddha sat under when he gained enlightenment. Angels, ghosts, fairies, sages and supernatural creatures have been sighted living in and protecting fig trees from the Amazon, Australia, Greece, Guatemala, Madagascar, Philippines, and Vietnam. Find out more in Mike Shanahan’s Ladders to Heaven: How Fig Trees Shaped our History. The fig is associated with the planet Jupiter, ancient ruler of Pisces. Since the sun left Aquarius and moved into Pisces today, it is an ideal time to honor the fig! Ginger, another herb of Pisces, combines beautifully with the fig to make a delightful and easy treat, recipe courtesy of the Rosemary House in Mechanicsburg, PA. Gingered Figs
Figs Honey Candied ginger, chopped Preheat broiler. Cut figs in half and place on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Top fig halves with a light coating of honey Sprinkle with chopped candied ginger Place under the broiler until the honey bubbles. Enjoy!
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Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”. Gender: Feminine Element: Water Planet: Venus In Victorian days, the yellow rose was given to represent jealousy. The modern symbolism is to honor friendship. This is the rose to give to cherished friends to let them know you value them.
The peace rose, a yellow rose with hints of rose on the edges of the petals, represents peace as well as friendship. I’m wishing all of my friends and followers a Valentine’s Day filled with dear friends and a peaceful heart! Happy Valentine’s Day! Red is the featured color in this week’s Exploring Rainbows course for the Renaissance Institute, Notre Dame University of Maryland. We’re immersing ourselves in the color red - exploring how it is used in art, advertising, language, songs, fragrances and flavors, sports, superheroes, cartoons and characters, legend and lore and more! How fortuitous that both Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day fall in this week’s calendar! Join us if you’d like and make red your focus for the week. Put on your rose colored glasses and consider looking at the world in a different perspective this week. In our rainbow course, Exploring Rainbows, I've encouraged the class participants to seek out red.
Red is the color of extremes. It stimulates, excites and inspires action. It is associated with love and joy, passion, sex, anger and rage. Spending some time to learn more about the color can unfold in a variety of ways. I'm calling their homework "Homeplay". There are a number of ways to play. Join us! 1. The first is by simply being observant. Look for red in advertising logos, clothes, foods, in movies and television, internet posts, sports teams. Notice super heroes, cartoons and mascots dressed in red. Listen for references to the color red in songs and in phrases and quotes. Look for references to red in other cultures, fairy tales and fables, religious and spiritual association. Be aware of how red is used in art - fine art, crafts, mandalas, mosaics, stained glass. 2. The next level of participation is becoming actively involved. Put on your favorite red sweater and the ruby ring tucked in the back of the dresser drawer that you haven't thought about for ages. Go to a restaurant (check to see if they are open and practice safe distancing) with a red interior - you can find one by doing a google search on 'restaurants, red and the name of your town'. Order red foods and look around the restaurant for shades of red. You can go to a museum or gallery website, purposefully looking for red in paintings, collages and sculptures. When was red used? Was red used more often in certain time periods? Not at all in others? Why? Do certain artists use it more than others? Visit sites or blogs featuring light shows, festivals and fairs, seeking out the color. Are you more likely to find red associate with certain cultures? What are they? Do more research and discover how they view red, currently and historically. 3. Another way to play with red is to become immersed by creating something red! Get out the paints, yarn, or fabric. Gather foods in various shades of red, then play with the fragrances and flavors of red. While you're cooking and creating, play songs with red in the title. Explore a catalogue to plan for your garden this spring and see how many flowers and plants (many plants have red in the leaves) in different shades of red. Yesterday I ran across a stack of baby animals I painted years ago and decided to use them to create collages. This morning a post from the past showed up on Facebook, featuring several. It seems the universe is encouraging me!
After cutting them out, I placed them on some 18” by 24” canvases that I had planned for other projects, just to see how they’d look. Here are a few . . . Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”. Gender: Feminine Element: Water Planet: Venus When we think of a red rose, romantic love immediately comes to mind. But there are so many kinds of love - love of beauty, gardening, nature, family, life. When I posted this rose on Facebook recently, a friend shared this beautiful story, celebrating her mother-in-law’s love of roses. She gave me permission to share it. I hope it will touch your heart the way it did mine! "The rose was Michael's Mom's favorite flower. She could grow them like magic. On the night she passed, we stopped on the way to the hospice and picked up a single red rosebud all wrapped in plastic from a gas station store. We unwrapped it and layed it on her chest. After the family left the room and the preparation to move her to the funeral home was done, they wheeled her out of the room past all of us. That bud had fully opened and the most beautiful red rose was laying on top of her. It was one of the most comforting signs of life I have ever seen. Thanks for this, Mikell"
- alice Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”. Gender: Feminine Element: Water Planet: Venus The lavender rose is associated with enchantment, splendor and royalty. In the Victorian era, its message in the language of flowers was “love at first sight”. This rare beauty is rich in meaning. Send it to that special person with an essence of elegance, or someone who deserves special appreciation because of the way they share their gifts. Send it to the person who immediately enchanted you, in a romantic, or friendly way. Receiving a lavender rose is said to be an unforgettable experience! Rosa spp.Rosa is the Latin meaning for “a flower”. Gender: Feminine Element: Water Planet: Venus Our weekly herb series will continue through out the month of February with roses. The orange rose is burning with passion! If you want to send a message declaring your fascination and desire, this is the color to choose! Adding a red rose, to declare your true love, would certainly be an ideal combination! In an earlier post, I mentioned the Language of Flowers from 1846, when each flower, and the numbers of flowers in a bouquet, represented a message. The chart below will give you a framework for choosing flowers but you can also use your own creative combinations, along with other flowers and herbs, such as rosemary for remembrance. Most florists are familiar with the symbolism of flowers and can help you create the perfect bouquet to send a one of a kind message. SYMBOLISM OF COLORSRed - Love SYMBOLISM OF NUMBERS |
Welcome!! I’m Mikell (pronounced Michael). If you love spicing up your life with herbs, recipes, decorating and crafts, symbolism and rituals like I do, I hope you’ll sign up for my newsletter and free Enhancing Your Life with Herbs e-book!
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MikellMikell is a writer, artist and professional treasure hunter, finding the greatest treasures in the wonderful people who enter her life! |