Hi Folks,

I hope you have been enjoying the exercises for your children and grandchildren that I have included in my past posts. Of course there is many more to come but at this point I just wanted to point out that all of these posts both in the past and the future came from Grandfather and the lineage of elders. With that being said you do realize of course that all of them are steeped in the Way of the Coyote, meaning that beyond the obvious teachings there are layer upon layer of deeper teachings both physical and spiritual. What is so important and I beg everyone to do this is to work with your children on these projects. By doing so you will experience a tremendous bonding and of course hours of fun. So many parents have told me that they actually got more from the exercises than their kids. That for me is a beautiful example of the Coyote going to work.

One thing I do want to say is that you and your children should start putting together your own medicinal herbal garden. By selecting plants in your area that have medicinal values, planting the seeds or the emerging plants you create a garden that is not only highly medicinal but a tremendous learning experience for both you and the kids. These gardens can be done in the classic garden way by creating a border of old logs, adding the proper soil, fencing it in and/or setting aside part of your normal garden just for herbs. It’s also a good idea to label each plant or seeded area so you and the kids can watch them grow. Then when the time comes and the need arises you can go right to your garden and make up the herbal mix from the plants you will know intimately. I also stress planting edible wild plants and as they grow to maturity harvest them with the kids and add them to a meal.

When creating these edible/medicinal herbal gardens make note of the type of soil each plant prefers. For instance some plants like acidic soil, other plants like very damp soil while other plants like the classic garden soil. Always match the plant to the soil they like to grow in. This way you maximize their medicinal qualities and get stronger healthier plants. Remember to save the seeds you don’t use so that you can plant them in areas that have been damaged by carelessness or neglect or use them for next years crop. Working together with your children research each plant thoroughly using several field guides to cross reference. This way the wisdom of the plants stick with the kids. Again, Enjoy and In Medicine, Tom