her able hands

The time to purge is upon me, and I’m facing the task on every front; body, mind, house, heart and basement. Hoo-boy, that basement. It’s the metaphor for everything else that feels stuffed down and shoved away and dusty in my life.

I keep thinking I need to get the living space handled, but lounging in bed this morning, awake, but enjoying the soft rain falling on the porch roof outside my window and not ready to get up and get going, I realized that I need to approach this from the ground up. I made my cup of coffee and wandered down the cluttered steps (we toss things down onto the landing all week, meaning to take them the rest of the way next trip down, but somehow nobody ever does until I do). First thing I started a load of wash, then surveyed the monumental task ahead and knew it wasn’t going to happen today.

Chris and I have both been suffering for weeks with digestive problems. I think of that crazy basement and no wonder my lower-intestines are in turmoil. I’m going to self-diagnose IBS, and jeeze-oh-man, it hurts. The stress level in our lives has cranked up considerably in the past couple of months and we’ve reacted to it by making stronger coffee in the morning, reaching for empty carbs during the day, and finishing the night with a couple of drinks (he more than me, I try to save it for the weekends, though failed at it this week and had a drink three nights in a row).

It’s all connected, I know it is, so it must be time for the spring cleanse. We agreed this morning that when I food shop in the afternoon, I will not buy coffee. Instead we’ll get our caffeine in the morning from a cup of green tea to stave off the headaches while we wean off of the morning jolt. My meals have been far more whole grain, nutrient-rich vegetable and protein based recently, but I’m going to turn that it up a notch and did so starting with tonight’s dinner (another post to follow).

I’m also going to get a batch of spring tonic made this weekend. My new banner shows the dandelion I plucked from the garden bed where I hope to plant spinach, kale, carrots and turnips next weekend. Dandelion greens have started to stretch their arms and reach for the sun, but are still light, tender and sweet (bitter-sweet). If you have a yard, or a place you can gather greens from that hasn’t been treated with pesticides, isn’t close to a busy road and doesn’t have regular doggy traffic, you can make a spring tonic, too. It’s super-easy and very helpful.

Pick and wash about 4 cups of dandelion greens, chop them just a little to open the leaves up and get the juices flowing then set them loosely in a large bowl. Pour boiling water on top (I usually do 6-8 cups) and let it sit, covered with plastic wrap for a few hours. Strain off the tea into a pitcher or a few mason jars, seal tightly and keep in the fridge.

I like to drink a cup of this a day for about a week, along with plenty of water throughout the day. Be prepared for some extra trips to the WC, it’s a diuretic and really gets you flowing. I also find that it gives me a light energy lift, and maybe this is my imagination, but I also feel a connection and partnership with my plant friends, which is a terrific way to start off the gardening season (which I did in earnest this weekend and will post details of during the week ahead).

They’re also nice to add to sautéed greens like chard, kale and collards—all very sweet greens that can handle the bitter burst of dandelion. Delicious cooked fast in a hot cast iron skillet with extra virgin olive oil and chopped garlic, then tossed with toasted nuts (pecans or walnut) and crumbled with a little gorgonzola. Yum.

Simple vegetable soup is also a great way to clean out the system, and dandelion greens added at the last minute with some fresh chopped chives tastes exactly like eating spring.h

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