Astragalus, New Moon, Witchcraft, and Other Herbal Miscellany

I ordered a box of herbs this week (the completely legal kind). My friend had learned all about herbs to support your immune system in a recent herb class she took, and had given me an herbal tincture to use a few weeks ago when my family came down with a cold. Baby T and I were only sick for a few days, but Big T was sick for at least a week. Baby T and I took the tincture, and Big T did not. My friend had told me all about how elderberries were so good for your immune system, and I decided I had to get me some of them. So we placed a big order, and got some elderberries, astragalus, echinacea, lemon balm, and elder flower from Mountain Rose Herbs.

The box arrived yesterday. I dug through it and was surprised at the amount of stuff we got for about $40. Big T dug through it and pronounced it "weird." I think the astragalus freaked him out. He asked me what I was going to do with it, and I started to tell him about the tincture we were going to make:

"You put it all in a glass jar, and cover it with alcohol, and let it sit for a few weeks---shoot, we have to start it this weekend! See, you're supposed to start it on the new moon---"

And Big T cut me off:

"Ok, that's it!! I don't want to hear anymore! Lalalalalalalala."

I tried explaining that it wasn't all just voodoo magic. It made sense. If the moon has such an effect on tides and liquids, then it makes sense that it may help with the extraction of the herb into a liquid. But all I got was "Nope. Nope. Nope. Lalalalala."

Grrrr...

He said if science told him this, he would believe it, but since I read it on various blogs, he wasn't buying it. I don't know who this Science is, or why he is so persuasive.

He said he was with me until I had mentioned the moon (which apparently brought the whole idea into the realm of witchcraft, at which time he called me a devil worshipper and tuned out). Now, I don't believe in the devil, so I can't really be a devil worshipper, can I? I also don't really believe in science. I think that a lot of people are right, and a lot of people are wrong, and I like to learn what different people believe and decide for myself what I think sounds the most convincing. The Wiccan religion makes a lot of sense to me. I believe that Nature has more power over us than we realize. This freaks Big T out a little bit. I also explained to him that there is a lot of proof that herbal remedies work, and that is quite scientific. Any credibility I had earned by that last statement was quickly wiped out when I was searching for an elderberry syrup recipe and Big T looked over my shoulder and saw a blog with a gothic-looking web banner.

In any case, we are traveling by plane for Thanksgiving, and with all the H1N1 germs flying around, I don't want to take any chances. So this morning, since Baby T woke me up at 5AM, at which time I was wide awake for the day and he went back to sleep until 8AM (which rarely happens), I decided to make myself some immune boosting potions. While my elderberries were simmering in a pot of water, I made myself some tea with elderflower, lemon balm, and astralagus. I clipped some mint from my garden (which, incidentally, was supposedly pulled up when Big T stripped our garden a few weeks ago so we could start fresh... now we have a wonderful new crop growing along side the morning glories and sunflowers that just won't go away). When the elderberry syrup was done, I added a few tablespoons of it to my tea. I brought it to work so I can sip some iced herbal tea today. Yum!

I realize that reading a blog is no fun without pictures. Since I'm always doing 5 things at once (and trying to get it all done before work), I keep forgetting to take pictures. So I will add another post soon with my tea and syrup recipes, as well as some pics.

Oh, and this morning Big T told me that if I become a witch, my witch name should be Herbal Miscellany. And that he "will totally try [the tea I made] once the moon settles into its sixth sign and delphi becomes visible in the western sky."