All the Better
On getting outside
Upon rising in the morning, I pad to the dark kitchen, careful to avoid tripping over the cords along the floor that have powered the overhead fans for forty-six years. The sodium lamps outside the cabin cast a green glow through the windows, giving me enough light to make my way. It’s another couple of hours before sunrise, but I don’t expect to see sunlight break through the thick winter clouds anyway.
I set the water to boiling and tap out herbs into my little pot: black cohosh and dong quai for hormonal support, gotu kola for my brain, nettle for the minerals and a touch of licorice root for its adaptogenic support. I pour in the hot water and let the whole thing decoct for about ten minutes before straining in to my ceramic mug. Does it taste good? I think yes, the entire endeavor does: the quiet of the house, the old orange cat rubbing on my ankles, the time it takes to put a drink together. Then there is the sound of the water…