​As with my last post about Daffodils and William Wordsworth's tribute to these beautiful beings, I have been fascinated by the ideas put forth by Romanticism in Europe. I have been watching documentaries and reading up more about this movement; about how it came about in response to the events of the time as well as how valid they are even till this day.
 
As a child, I grew-up watching TV, as my parents didn't really set healthy boundaries for my media consumption. When they watched horror movies, I watch them too. I remember covering my eyes with my fingers to soften the blow of my distress, though I would hear everything, from bloodcurdling, suspenseful music to gory mauling sounds and screaming. But I would peek between the spaces of my fingers, to get a 'filtered view' of the scary scenes. My older siblings would then tease me about being scared, which I would flat-out deny, but I was frightened out of my wits. What I needed then was clearly a "No, this is inappropriate for you. You may not watch this film." Anyhow, my exposure to horror films as a 5-year-old did allow me to see Frankenstein, in many of its Hollywood versions, which scared me thoroughly. Later, when I was in my primary school library, I was surprised to find a book, an abridged version for children, written by Mary Shelley. I remember borrowing it to take home to read and I was surprised by how un-horrifying it was. The "monster" who many call Frankenstein but that is not his name; it's the scientist who is Frankenstein. This creation of Dr. Frankenstein has emotions and a sense of justice, enough so that he chides Dr. Frankenstein for creating him so hideous that no human will love him, not even his own creator, and that Dr. Frankenstein had the responsibility as his creator to help him dispel his loneliness by creating a companion for him. If you haven't read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, which was first published in 1818, when she was 21, you should. It is more than just a horror novel. 
 
I have only recently become aware of Mary Shelley's life. Her mother was Mary Wollstonecraft, a famous feminist philosopher of the 18th century, best known for "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman" written in 1792, which I had to read for a class in university. Mary Shelley's mother died of birth complications, as such she was brought up and educated by her father, William Godwin, a political philosopher, one of the early advocates of a form of anarchy. Her husband was Percy Bysshe Shelley, another famous British romantic poet of the time. Returning to the story of Frankenstein and how Mary Shelley developed it; it was in good old Switzerland, in a villa on Lake Geneva. In the company of other Romantic poets and literary greats, Mary Shelley goes to bed after some discussions of the events of the time, of science, of electricity and wakes from a nightmare of this creature created by man, without regard for the laws of Nature. 
 
"Frankenstein is a prophesy that science might be misused by those who wish to alter or tamper with nature. The novel's frightful horror is the dark reflection of the Romantic sublime. Its message was simple but powerful. Respect and revere Nature for it has the power to destroy you. Science alone is not enough. It is a warning many people are repeating to this day."  (Peter Ackroyd, The Romantics - Nature BBC Documentary)       
 
Just because we are able to create something, it does not mean we should. Hence, the necessity of ethics in science and medicine. Science used to be as defined by the Oxford dictionary "the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment." However, many in science have gone far beyond the boundaries of "the physical and natural world" as well as over-exceeded them, with little regard for the consequences of their inventions. Take nuclear fission, when German scientists discovered it in the early 1930s, they may have been unaware how this discovery would be later used to create the atomic bomb or how it would be used to create energy, that would leave behind thousands of years of radioactive garbage, which we still do not know how to dispose of, and some very sick people struggling with cancer from radiation due to nuclear power plant malfunctions. The climate crisis, polluted environments, the nuclear arms race...the list continues are what we humans have done in the name of science and progress to Nature. We are in this state of "emergency" because we chose to not listen or respect the boundaries given to us by Nature. Maybe it is time to stop and listen to the voices of reason, such as from the Romantics of 200 years ago, that we return to listening and being with Nature.
 
 
 
 
 
Image Power Plant by fietzfotos on Pixabay

If you go on a walk right now, you will observe that the Peony is in or coming to blossom.  In German, we call them Pfingstrosen, I imagine due to the fact that they flower around the time of Pentecost. As a child, I recall having experienced the flower Peony in the form of soap from China; a very strong, sweet scented soap, which was almost too sweet for me. We also used to get duvets from China that were Peony brand. When I went with my mother to the market, I would ask her about the flowers, whose blossoms were wrapped in white tissue and she would tell me that they were Peonies imported from China. So, I had an impression that Peonies were Chinese, as they don't grow in the tropical climate in Malaysia.
 
Since my studies in Chinese Medicine began, I have come to know of how the Chinese honor the Peony. It was referred to by Confucius (551-479 BCE), was often the subject of art in the Tang dynasty (618-907 CE) and even declared the national flower of China during the Qing dynasty, the last imperial government of China till 1912. In Chinese it is called Fu Gui Hua, "flower of riches and honor." Peonies are naturally occurring in temperate and cold areas of the northern hemisphere, from Morocco to Japan to North America. There is a Greek myth of Peony, where the God of Medicine, Aesclepius, got jealous of his student, Paeon, and he was saved from Aesclepius' attack by Zeus who transformed him into a flower - the Peony. 
 
There are tree Peonies, herbaceous Peonies and hybrids that have leaves like the tree but are herbaceous.  In the Chinese Medicine itself, we use 3 different species of Peony: Paeonia suffruticosa, Paeonia lactiflora and Paeonia veitchii. Interestingly, the part of the plant that it used as medicine is not the flower. The part of Paeonia suffriticosa, which is the tree, that is used is the cortex or bark of the tree, Mu Dan Pi. It is used to cool the blood and clear heat, as in the case of fevers. It also moves blood when there has been trauma, lowers blood pressure and inflammation. Paeonia lactiflora, the herbaceous Peony, provides its radix or root as medicine in the form of Chi Shao or Bai Shao. Chi Shao is the root that is still red, which helps move blood and relieve pain from trauma or menses. Bai Shao is the white root, which tonifies the blood, calms the liver, relieves tension and adjusts Ying Qi (Nutritive Qi) as well as Wei Qi (Defensive Qi). One of my Chinese herbal teachers called Bai Shao the "White Fairy Mother."
 
I grow Peonies in my garden, both the tree and herbaceous ones. They are special plants that don't like to be moved, they find a spot and they root there till they die. I observe them throughout the year. After they flower in Spring (April to early June), the tree has already flowered now and the herbaceous form is flowering soon, the energy of the plants goes inward and dies back its external manifestation in autumn. This does not mean the plant is not working, the power of the Yin (autumn and winter being Yin times of the year) is being generated in the root of the plant. This I believe is why the root of Bai Shao are so powerful to nourish the Yin and Blood in our bodies. Right now, those who react to the seasonal pollen that is currently in full emission, that includes myself, will be thankful to Mu Dan Pi for providing the cooling and calming of the mucous membranes in the eyes and nasal passages. The bark of the Peony tree is hardy yet gentle, providing the soothing coolness and protection of autumn-winter in the searing heat from growth of spring-summer. It is an herb of balance; sinking when there is strong rising action, calming when there is over-excitement. 
 
Chinese Herbal Medicine uses herbs mostly as formulae, almost never one herb alone, as the synergy of the combined herbs counteract the overexertion of another. One could say they operate as a team, supporting one another and balancing the forces of the other. Each herbal formula is prepared specially for each individual person, paying attention to causes of the imbalance and not just on symptoms. If you are interested in using Herbal Medicine, discuss it with your practitioner so that s/he can help you understand your imbalances and how these amazing plants can aid you in your health.  

Images Peony by Elaine

"An apple a day, keeps the doctor away," is a common English adage. I recall as a young student in school, where the girls used to pass on friendship books to write details of ourselves as a remembrance and this was one of the little adages included. I thought it funny and cute. We don't have apples growing naturally in tropical Malaysia; all our apples came from China, Australia, New Zealand or USA. They weren't always the crunchy, juicy, sweet apples we have here in Switzerland. Sometimes, they were soft and powdery on the inside but outside was bright red. No wonder, as they had to be shipped a couple of thousands of kilometers to get to me. The first time I saw an apple tree laden with fruits, ready to be plucked and crunched into, it felt like a dream, like something from a fairytale. What I did not realize then is that apples are very special fruits and symbols of life and bearers of nourishment, holding the power of spring and summer in its flesh.
 
Malus domestica, is the Latin name for the fruit we now know as apple. It is an ancestor of Malus sieversii, which is a wild form of apple native to the mountains in central Asia, in countries like Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as Malus sylvestris, European crabapple, found all over Europe. Apples appear to have been around for over thousands of years and have over 7500 cultivars. What also is amazing about this fruit is that it comes from the family of Rosaceae, the Rose. All the relatives of plants that we had no idea of, native to an area and migrating from one place to another and then becoming almost natural to that place over a period of time, as we humans. Have you ever cut an apple horizontally? I normally don't but when I did, this is what I found, a star with five points. Wow! What a revelation for me! The pentagram is sacred in many cultures, the Celts, the ancient Greeks, Romans, Jewish tradition...to name a few. It is also relevant in mathematics and geometry. In Chinese Medicine, it represents the 5 Elements (refer to the diagram in my first post in February 2019). All these years, I have been eating my apple and was never ever aware it had this form within it.  
 
Now is the time of the apple harvest, late summer into autumn, the time of Earth and Metal in Chinese Medicine. As such, the apple affects the organs of the Spleen, Stomach, Lung, Large Intestines and also the Gall Bladder, by nature of its medicinal properties. All herbs and foods in the Chinese Materia Medica, have organs associated with it, a temperature, tastes, which also have connections to organs and its specific functions. Apple is cooling, as most fruits are, and has a sweet, sour taste. This means that apple will cool down warm conditions or heat in the body, its sweetness will nourish Qi and the sour will astringe fluid. So, when we look at its functions of reducing and clearing heat in the body, moistening dryness, stimulating digestion, as well as tonifying Qi and Blood, it all makes sense with the tastes and temperature. It also will cool down heat in the Lung, protecting it from cigarette smoke, stimulate appetite, help lower cholesterol and toxic metal levels in the body. You can grate apple and make a poultice for sunburn and conjunctivitis. Of course, be aware that if you have a tendency to feel cold and have sensitive digestion, like loose stools, you should not overeat apple. Cooking it may help that it be absorbed better, like in the case of babies, who have weak digestive systems. 
 
Remarkable isn't it?  Something so common, found in every grocery store at the moment, or somebody's yard falling to the ground as no one had time to pick it, can do all that. We take too many things for granted. Maybe the simple things in life, right in front of our eyes, hold the magic and the miracle of healing and health. For us in Chinese Medicine, we take the perspective that "Food is Medicine." What you eat in the everyday, affects how your body and mind functions.  Don't just eat apple, because someone told you it's good for you, eat it and sense how it makes you feel, in mind and body. With this, I propose a new adage,
"If you want to stay healthy, listen to your body (and mind ;-))".


Image: apple by Pixabay user bernwaeltz
Image: 5-pointed-star apple by Elaine

The extreme heat (above 35 degrees celsius) and the rains of this past summer has both helped our plants to grow and mature. Some plants like the Coriander have dried out, which I had expected as they are very fast-growing, short-living beings that need to be plucked regularly for their leaves to continue growth. They are beginning to grow their seed, which we will harvest for next year's growth. We have also discovered a stowaway Tomato plant, growing in our pot of Lupins. It grew late in the season so we will see if it will have enough time to fruit. The Garden Project adventure has gotten many of our team members on the balcony, watering and sharing in its growth. Looking up from Falknerstrasse to see living beings on our balcony is very satisfying. Not just that they are beautiful, green and blossoming, but also to know that life can thrive in the harshest of environments by adapting.   


​Photos by Elaine