Tales of Desert Forest Goth

 I am a Nature Goth, specifically a SW Forest Goth, and live near the land.  As a Goth, I see "beauty in the midst of a dark and dying world."  I am also a Gothic Rewilder, someone who seeks to work with the land with native plants, animals, and non-destructive "invasive" plants which have naturalized, in partnership to live off the land.  Rewilding is a verb; it is an action. It is a conversation with the land, animals, and cultures we live among, where in we adapt and transform by the unending changes of the seasons and the land.  It is reconnecting to the Creator and the wilderness.   Goth is a subculture which, with its two threads:  the1800's literature/architectural movement and the 1970-80s musical expression, is a very old-rooted way of looking at the world, dealing with the challenging subjects, and the dying state of things. Together, Gothic Rewilding looks at the dying state of the world, along with the possibilities of carving a differ...

  F all Equinox is a Celebration we enjoy greatly as a family.  It is within the middle of Fall's harvests and the cooling days.  The Fall Garden is tended to, and any extra items are planted or replanted.  Herbs are cut back and hung to dry.  If weather permits, a fall foraging gathering is done.  We refresh the Fall decorations, inside and outside.  Then the evening's feast is served. Example of a  Fall Equinox  Blessing:   "Creator of All, we thank You for this Fall Equinox.  As we gather here this day, may we always give thanks for the cooling days of fall, the warm clothing made by loving hands, and for the roots, dried berries, smoked meats, fall gardens, and evergreen foraging which will sustain us into this coming winter.  As we eat this feast set out before us, may we never forget those who taught us to live here in the wild shadowlands." Example of  Fall Equinox  Crafts: Basket Making  Weaving Corn Stoc...

Last month I introduced you to peppermint, but before we dive any deeper into my Herbal Nook, I wanted to tell you the story of how this SW Forest Goth became an herbalist: I grew up in a small town called Haysville, along a creek called the Cowskin.  My mother was a plant lady and was raised as a farm girl.  Having survived cancer before I was adopted, she was always visiting the natural food and plant storse back in the '80s and early '90s, before it was "cool".   When I was 9, I was playing within the dark coolness of my closet, which was my secret fort.  I laid down upon my trusted blanket, and disaster struck.  An eight-legged invader, a silver dollar-sized brown recluse, the dreaded fiddle back, spider had made its way within my blanket.  Soon, I had a giant lump behind my left ear.  It was upon this night, we learned I had something greater to fear than the spider... I was deathly allergic to the Lidocaine shot they gave me for the pain. 1 ...

F all's Feast is a Celebration we enjoy greatly as a family.  It is the end of the Monsoon Season and the Beginning of Fall.  We normally have our little feast on September 1st which is the start of meteorological fall, though we might also have friends and family over and celebrate along with the "Labor Day" weekend too.  It is a day of changing, Summer/Monsoon's annual garden is pulled.  Herbs are cut back and hung to dry.  If weather permits, a fall foraging gathering is done.  We decorate for the Fall, inside and outside.  Then the evening's feast is served. Example of a Fall's Feast Blessing:   "Creator of All, we thank You for this Fall's Feast.  As we gather here this day, may we always give thanks for the cooling days of fall, the warm clothing made by loving hands, and for the roots, dried berries, smoked meats, fall gardens, and evergreen foraging which will sustain us into this coming winter.  As we eat this feast set out befo...