Remembering who we are…
On this day … 11/11/20… my thoughts are with those who are honouring all of their loved ones who have been lost in battle.
The cost of war is vast… not only in terms of human lives lost…. but also the inter-generational trauma which is carried down through the generations.
Many years ago I made an Essence from the Red Poppies which were growing in a very peaceful olive grove outside of the village I lived in in Andalucia.
Here is it’s story…
History and Traditional Use of Red Poppy
A pretty red flower growing on a delicate stem usually found in agricultural fields, on roadsides and wasteland.
Papaver, also pappa is the Latin for food or milk and rhoeas means red in Greek.
The Common Poppy is thought to be native to the eastern Mediterranean region, and it seems likely that it was introduced to northwest Europe in the seed-corn of early settlers.
The delicate red flowers are an attractive and popular feature of the countryside, and have long been recognised as symbols of fertility and death. It is rare to find a home in Britain that doesn’t have an image of a Red Poppy on some interior furnishing, whether it’s on a plate, in a painting, on a bedspread, in a dried flower arrangement, etc,
Key Uses:
Medicinal, edible (seeds), ornamental (Shirley poppies), red dye (petals), cultural icon (wartime remembrance)
Medicinal Uses:
The flowers have been used in treating mild pain caused by earache, toothache and neuralgia, and an infusion of the petals is traditionally taken for coughs, insomnia and poor digestion.
What can Red Poppy Essence help with?
Indicated for: Fear, terror, panic, overwhelm, loss of ‘Self’.
Brings: Peace, comfort, security, relaxation, courage, connection to Essence of Self.
The Energetic Signature of Red Poppy ~ ‘Profound Security’
This Essence was made in an olive grove outside a small village in a remote part of Andalucia on May 7th 2007.
The early indications of this Essence were that it was very calming, relaxing and grounding. It was found to be highly beneficial to help ease cramps and improve the circulation, especially in the feet, legs and for some people, the hands.
Since 2011 it has been possible to connect with deeper aspects of this essence, which is, in effect a master pain reliever for the Soul. Red Poppy helps us to re-connect to the eternal part of us and when we are in this place of re-membering who we are, we feel no pain on any level, physical, emotional, mental or spiritual.
It is so interesting to witness that the physical aspect of one member of the poppy family (the Opium Poppy Papaver somniferum) is where we get morphine from. This is used on the pharmacological level to relieve physical pain. There is also the mis-use of poppy in the form of heroin, which is derived from morphine. Heroin is well known for being highly addictive and can be massively destructive. What is not so well known is it is frequently used as an existential medicine, to relieve emotional, mental or spiritual pain.
Relief from Suffering
Other addictions such as alcohol, gambling, sex, food, etc have also been described as ‘spiritual diseases’. The 12 step recovery programme set up by Alcoholics Anonymous and used by Narcotics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, etc., works to re-balance this disharmony.
The message which is coming through from the Red Poppy is that when we are re-connected to the Essence of who we are, which is Love, we are not in a state of ‘lack’. Therefore we do not need ever more food, alcohol, approval, money, sex, drugs, material stuff, oblivion, etc to feel calm, safe and at peace.
Also, as we feel safe and secure within our own self, we know who we are, we recognise our boundary and identity, there is no need to exert our will on another person. Or, on a national scale, another country.
Transformation
It is very poignant that the symbol of the First World War is the Red Poppy. This symbol has become very familiar to us to help us remember those who have fallen, as a result of man’s inhumanity to man.
For this reason, as every bottle of Red Poppy Essence is sold in 2014, the 100th anniversary of World War 1, 10% of the money is going to the White Poppy Appeal. This is a charity which promotes peace through education and research. The time to meet anger, fear and hatred with more anger, fear and hatred is surely over.
The white poppy is a symbol of hope for a more peaceful future.
A personal story ~ “Take your Poppy Essence Darling”.
In May 2011 I was invited to take along some of my Flower Essences to a regional meeting with other Flower Essence Practitioners and Producers. These gatherings are a great way to share new Essences, especially through ‘blind testing.
It’s a bit nerve wracking having your peers review your work in this way, so with knees a-knocking I took a look at my Mother Tinctures to see which one/s to take along. One bottle stood out immediately. It was labelled ‘Red Poppy – Agron – May 7th 2007’. The meeting I was going to was on May 7th 2011, so this was obviously going to be coming along too!
When my fellow Essence practitioners tested the Essence and gave me their feed- back, I was made speechless by their comments. ‘Peace…. deep warm peace…’ ‘Gentleness…. security..’ ‘Nothing can cause pain…. safety 100%’ ‘Settling… warming… like a red blanket around the base chakra.’ ‘The most beautiful Essence I have ever taken’.
These comments filled me with an amazing feeling of awe, pride, humility and wonder. I burst into tears. What an honour to be involved in the process of making this beautiful Essence.
When I got home I exuberantly shared the news with my patrner, Jake. He was a huge fan of poppies generally, they were his favourite flower. When we lived in Southern Spain (where the Poppy Essence was made) he was always so delighted to see the hundreds of poppies in the olive and almond groves.
When we moved back to the UK and went out on country walks he would often have poppy seeds in his pocket which he’d harvested and we would scatter them all over the countryside.
As well as being an amazing gardener, Jake had worked for many years in drug and alcohol counselling, ending his career in Queensland, Australia running the drug unit and teaching GP’s how to support people coming off heroin. Amongst other things he set up the biggest needle exchange in the Southern Hemisphere. A very enlightened humanitarian.
As I mentioned, the Essence meeting was on May 7th 2011. On May 15th, just over a week later, Jake died very suddenly of a heart attack, walking in an ancient Woodland in the New Forest. He died instantly, walking in the May sunshine, with his brother with him, on their way to the Filly Inn for a pint. The last sounds he heard were the birds singing, and the last sight he saw was deer grazing. A very beautiful way to die.
The first couple of days after he died were very intense, naturally, but I didn’t feel any shock or pain at the time.
The third day after he died, I woke up feeling the most indescribable dread, fear and panic. I lay there and knew ‘I can’t do this.’ Jake was my Soul Mate.
On top of this devastating loss, I had already lost 2 people very close to me fairly recently. My sister, Lily, in 2006 and my brother, Ally, in 2008. Both of whom were aged just 48 when they died. I hadn’t fully recovered from their deaths.
As I lay there in that extreme state of wordless pain, with my eyes not yet opened to the morning light, I heard Jake’s voice, as clear and gentle as if he were laying next to me simply say, ‘Take your Poppy Essence Darling.’
So …. I did….
And then I began to learn how powerful the Red Poppy Essence is….. After taking a few drops my panic and despair lessened. I felt I could breath and I knew I COULD find a way to cope. I felt a deep connection to a part of myself I had never acknowledged before. An immensely strong, wise, loving part of me that felt like a harbour of calm and safety, a place of refuge in a violent stormy sea.
I learnt that, even in the midst of our deepest darkness, fear and loss, if we can connect to the Essence of who we are, we can always feel Profound Security.
Summary:
Red Poppy Essence helps us on the following levels:
Physical: Improves circulation, especially in feet, lower legs and hands. Relieves pain anywhere in the body. Promotes deep sleep. Emotional: Calming, reassuring. Mental: Relieves anxiety, panic and feeling mentally overwhelmed. Spiritual: Re-connects us to our Spiritual Essence.
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