SOPHIE HODOROWICZ KNAB AUTHOR
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Feast of the Assumption-Our Lady of the Herbs

8/15/2019

3 Comments

 
Picture


​ The custom of taking the earth's  bounty and offering it up in a sacred place has gone on for millenniums.  And I shall do the same today.

I have gathered roses and black-eyed Susan's from my garden because I have nourished them  and helped them grow. 

I don't have an orchard  but I do have a crab apple tree, a thing of joy that lifts the spirit when it blossoms in the spring and then yields  berries than can sustain the body in the form of jellies and preserves in the summer.

 I walked through fields  this morning,  aware that what at first glance appears to be a weed, is truly a gift, an offering from Mother Earth. I picked Queen Anne's Lace ( wild carrot)  because the root can be eaten  and my  ancestors knew the root  was high in vitamins. I cut down chickory.  What looks like  a pretty blue wild flower  has a root that can be converted into a drink.  At the beginning of the 18th century Polish agronomist Krzysztof Kluk wrote: "The roots are kept over the winter by burying in sand in the cellars. The roots were cut into chunks, dried in the oven and used in place of coffee....the roots of this plant are a much respected medicine: it opens, cleanses, loosens phlegm and fortifies the stomach and lungs. The most common way of ingesting it is through an alcoholic beverage.  For the lungs, it is taken with sugar."

That this Polish custom of taking plants to church to be blessed has is its roots in pagan times does not disturb me. Instead,  I feel a sense of continuity, a part of something that has been going on for as long as man has roamed the earth. There's a feeling of gratefulness.  

Everything is gift.

3 Comments
Antoni Tragarz
9/9/2019 03:58:53 am

A beautiful flowers arrangement

Reply
Soolah link
3/9/2021 01:09:21 pm

Thank you so much for sharing your findings, thoughts and more. I am binge reading your blog to catch up and I have ordered your Folk Customs, Traditions & Folklore. Everything you are writing hits home with me. My grandmother was Polish and so much hits home for me. I appreciate you also sharing the pre-Christian traditions because they are the deep roots of Poland and more of what I follow. I am grateful! I look forward to learning more when my book arrives. Thank you!

Reply
Michelle link
9/23/2021 12:11:26 am

Great article! Thank you for sharing this informative post, and looking forward to the latest one.

Reply



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    Categories

    All
    Feast Days
    Forced Labor
    Herbs Plants
    Poland History
    Polish Country Life
    Polish Customs
    Postcards From Poland
    Roadside Shrines

    One of the biggest moments in my life was being able to sign for my very own library card. When I'm not reading, researching and writing I'm riding my bike, sewing or gardening. I love flea markets, folk art, and traveling to Poland.

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