11 Comments
Aug 4, 2022Liked by Mary Poindexter McLaughlin

Wow...this was a long one to get through but also one that made me stop and think...and think...and think some more. To me, I enjoyed thinking about weeds as a reminder to never allow people to tell us how to think...how to judge... That definitely hit a nerve with me as I thought about how much my father tried to mold me into what he thought all Americans should become...I was a weed to him but in my mind, I was/am a glorious flower!

Expand full comment
author

I love the insight that came to you about your father, Jack. Weeds are definitely in the eye of the beholder! Glad the essay provoked some deep thinking. :-)

Expand full comment
Jun 1, 2023Liked by Mary Poindexter McLaughlin

Mary! OMG, I LOVE this! I have been on the hunt for Horsetail on the land here. It's such a beneficial weed/plant. And the fact that it was so tenacious and persistent growing near you migh just be that you could have benefited from its medicine. I want to go back and re-read this when I have more time. I loved it! 💚

Expand full comment
author

I actually took Silica as a homeopathic (I had terrible rosacea) long before I realized that Horsetail is loaded with it, so you are absolutely right.

Before I moved, a friend came and got some to keep in pots. I thought about doing the same, but was too traumatized by the stuff...😂

Expand full comment
Dec 6, 2022Liked by Mary Poindexter McLaughlin

Last thought.. related.. sorta.. I find it interesting how much energy people spend blowing away the leaves during the Fall. Where do all the fallen leaves go? Is someone making money from this? Can we use them instead of fertilizer for

farming? Do they meet up with single missing socks somewhere.. where extra pens and nail files and scissors and tape and tweezers disappear to?

Expand full comment
author

That's so funny. I'm sitting here listening to leaf blowers RIGHT NOW. Here in FL some of them do get turned into mulch. I've always been a composting gal, but now I'm diving into the permaculture movement! It's absolutely fascinating to me. My husband and I have just started turning our backyard -- which was landscaped before we bought the house, and looks very corporate -- into a food forest. We're starting by taking out some overgrown stuff and replacing it with fruit trees. It's such a different growing climate here -- so much to learn!!

Expand full comment
Dec 6, 2022Liked by Mary Poindexter McLaughlin

Some herbalists believe that the weeds that grow near a person are in relation to what that person needs.

Expand full comment

I looked it up! Any odd coincidences?

https://www.mountsinai.org/health-library/herb/horsetail

Expand full comment
author

Yes!! I believe that's entirely possible.

We looked into it before we left, and the high concentration of silica in horsetail is exactly what one of us needs for some hair-loss!

Expand full comment
Aug 1, 2022Liked by Mary Poindexter McLaughlin

Love your willingness to challenge … thank you.

Expand full comment
author

Thanks, Charlotte!

Expand full comment