Wild roses – what’s not to love?
My heart always lifts when I see their pale pinkness swaying gently in the summer breeze. They are almost too beautiful and delicate to be true.
But don’t be fooled by the daintiness of the plant – this is no flimsy botanical! Instead, rose is steadfast and deep medicine.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll have a childhood littered with failed rose perfume experiments that turned brown and disappointing. As an adult, I now know that alcohol or syrup is the best way to preserve this plant!
Rose is wonderful skin medicine – tightening pores, smoothing the surface, and reducing redness and puffiness. Simply use rosewater (which you can buy in the World Foods aisle of your supermarket) and use as you would a normal toner. You can add some of that rose water to your ice cream too and enjoy the wonderful flavour!
For me though, the power of rose medicine is in the aroma itself. Rose has the ability to allow us to relax, to process difficult feelings while giving us enough distance for them not to hurt too much. She is steadfast and strong, she holds us up in grief and allows us to enjoy and keep us going. She is the plant I turn to at the end of a long, hard day, and the one that I keep with me in difficult times.
To access rose in this way, simply buy some Rose absolute (rose essential oil, prediluted in a carrier oil) and wear it on your pulse points. In addition – make sure you stop to smell the roses at every opportunity!