Dear Community,

I hope you don't mind us sharing personal stories about what we're learning and how we're being inspired these days. We're stepped off almost all social media now, with the exception of posting mostly short clips on YouTube periodically, and we've always enjoyed real connection with our community, outside of consultation, courses and retreats. Here's hoping that such stories ignite ideas of your own, or perhaps bring a smile to your heart knowing that nature is supportive, abundant and generous.

As promised in our email last week, I want to share about a plant that has a sting, but if you're prepared with good garden gloves and a pair of scissors, she is also quite delicious and packed with beneficial nutrients: stinging nettle.

According to Dr Nicole Apelian research supported benefits and uses for the stinging nettle are as follows:

• Allergies - Stinging Nettle is a natural antihistamine and helps inhibit mast cell degranulation
• Anti-inflammatory - helps block proinflammatory pathways
• Contains the following anti-inflammatory and anti-allergenic compounds: adenine, nicotinamide, synephrine, and osthole
• Known to help with eczema, joints, and RA
• Promotes detoxification and circulation
• Widely used as a traditional remedy in Germany for rheumatoid arthritis
• Studies have shown in vitro that stinging nettle helps to reduce allergic histamine and inflammatory responses.⁷

Jason and I, along with our children, love to look for stinging nettle on our walks and have a batch of it growing in part of our medicinal garden. Recently, even grandma even got in on the action as she's really loving the taste of these greens.

Our favourite way to have them is to first "blanch" the nettle in boiling water for about 60-90 seconds to neutralize the sting. Then fry them in butter, while adding a bit of salt and pepper. So good! Best to cook them this way when the leaves are young (freshly grown), or use the leaves on the upper part of the stem which will be more tender. The larger leaves - or if you come across this plant later in the season when the leaves are more coarse - are great to make tea with.

Our 8 year-old actually put together a few herbs today from our garden to make a delicious and soothing tea today (pic below). So you can enjoy stinging nettle tea on its own, or mix it with a few other herbs. Just add hot water, let it steep for a few minutes, and enjoy!

As soon as the plants awaken from slumber and come back to life in Spring, we typically make a pot of tea almost daily, which we all enjoy during the day. And at the end of the day, whatever is left, I drain the herbs, pour the tea into a mixer, add a bit of honey to taste, and whip it up. I leave it in the fridge overnight and then we have iced tea for the next little while too. The kids love this as much as we do.

So whether it's stinging nettle, wild chamomile, rosemary, rose petals, lavender, mint, lemon balm, spruce tips, or whatever else is growing around you, get to know the plant and how it can support you, steer clear of the plants growing in high traffic areas (as they're doing their job and collecting toxins from the air and soil), and know that nature has always been present and offering its support to make you stronger, healthier and more resilient.

So here's to our beautiful Earth, not just to be celebrated one day out of the year, but revered and appreciated each and every day.

We've learned first hand, that this appreciation is not just a pasted on and superficial set of hollow words, but a genuine heart-felt, whole body lit up giddiness of 'Wow! You are truly loving and beautiful!!' which spontaneously arises when you get out in nature or find it in whatever capacity you can within your vicinity and truly spend the time to get to know all the ways in which she is there for you.

Grateful for our Earth's generosity, care and abundance as she continually provides for all life!

Stinging Nettle

It's Sunday! As a service to our community, we gather for a short talk and sit in silence together. Feel free to join in. Our time together is for about 30-40 min.

Sitting in silence is a powerful act and one that we feel is greatly needed in our world. As we become more sensitive and in tune to our own innate nature, we are much more receptive to the signals available in nature to guide and inform our perception and decisions. It's an inside job.

You'll find the link to join the community's Sunday's coherence gathering below.

We start at 11:30am Pacific Time (2:30pm Eastern Time). Please arrive 5 minutes early.

Click Here To Join

In gratitude,

Téa & Jason

inspirelife.earth

This communication is intended for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We speak of our own direct experience. Always do your own research and be responsible for your own decisions, and seek the guidance of a healthcare provider with any questions regarding personal health concerns.

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