February 12 – Daily Feast

The Cherokee can agree with Sir Francis Drake when he wrote about the herb garden, “A perfect garden planted with herbs, when trod upon gives the very air a delightful fragrance.” But to the Cherokee it meant even more – food and medicine. As a child, I spent much time following my Grandmother Essie in search of herbs, mullein, lamb’s quarter and other things I hoped I wouldn’t have to eat in greens, but the hunt was a joy. Kneeling to dig the herbs, feeling the soil and the warmth of the sun, gave me the realization that the plants were only a part of a gift from Asga Ya Galun lati. I was also being given the day to enjoyment, the songs of dozens of birds, the little meal I shared with Grandmother, and her company away from others.

~ A Cherokee woman is never idle and has no time to tattle or to create mischief. ~

WILLIAM FYFFE

‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler