A
quick, upward glance
at the sunlight filtering
through the canopy of
trees signals that it’s
about time to head back
to camp. The crisp, pungent
smell of the forest floor
reminds you how much
you needed this family
vacation.
You
can almost smell the
trout that you and
Billy caught early
this morning frying
in the pan over the
open fire. Just as
your stomach begins
to rumble in anticipation,
you hear a scream.
Your
head snaps around and
you can see Billy just
a few yards down the
trail, his arms flapping
wildly around his head.
Back over the log you
jump, and running reach
him in just seconds.
Billy
has upset one very
angry wasp. Whipping
off your cap, you swat
it away and while it’s
stunned lying on the
ground you send the
nasty critter off to
meet his insect brothers
in the great beyond.
Quick
examination shows that
Billy has been bitten
repeatedly by the wasp
and is in some serious
pain. No medicine cabinet
and no drugstore for
miles. Your emergency
medical kit is back
at camp.
Eyes
darting around the
ground near the trail,
you spot just what
you need. Grabbing
a handful of leaves
from what looks like
a weed, you toss a
few in your mouth and
chew them quickly.
You apply the poultice
to the red welts appearing
on Billy’s arms
and face.
Almost
as quickly as his screams
began, Billy stops
crying. Wiping away
his tears with the
back of his hand, he
manages a crooked grin
and a sheepish, “thanks
Dad.”
Disaster
averted.
As
you and Billy begin
the hike back to camp,
you remember that book
you purchased online
about herbal remedies
and acknowledge it
was money well spent!
If
you enjoy the outdoors
and all the fun and
memories that go along
with spending time
with Mother Nature,
chances are you may
have had a similar
situation once or twice.
There
are thousands of plants
that can treat just
as many ailments. In
this particular case,
Billy won’t even
require and medical
attention and by the
time the family vacation
comes to an end, so
will the memory of
this incident.
What
is so amazing about
herbal remedies is
their close association
to our modern medicines.
Most of our current “wonder
drugs” have a
botanical connection.
Sadly,
many of those medicines
contain much more than
simple botanicals.
Stuffed with chemicals,
allergens and who knows
what else, we are fast
becoming a medicated
society.
We’ve
got pills to make us
sleep, pills to wake
us up, pills to make
us eat and pills to
curb the appetite.
It’s absolutely
crazy. Whatever ails
you there’s a
pill to take care of
it.
The
good news is, that
you can learn to wean
yourself from your
medicine cabinet. For
every ailment that
you are currently taking
pills to correct, there’s
a natural remedy that
can take it’s
place.
Do
you know what Dad
used to stop the
pain for Billy? Are
you aware it’s
a simple plant that
you probably know
very well? In fact,
you probably dig
them out of the cracks
in your driveway
every couple of weeks
during the growing
season. It’s
called “Plantain.”
If you are sick and tired of being over-medicated, you can take control
and start a journey toward natural herbal remedies. After all, natural
remedies served the human race very well before we became so smart!
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