Touch Your Nose

*Lydia* · 02-25-2019, 08:20 PM

Lydia slipped out of her den, pack already on her shoulders and determination in her eyes. She headed west toward Fern Gulley. The day was chilly but not as bitterly cold as her trip to the north earlier in the week. It was so cold up that way that she'd felt as though the breath was freezing in her lungs. It was an awful feeling. Judging by the build up of clouds in the north and the northerly wind she reckoned they'd soon get a taste of that horrid weather. The approach of a potential storm had her antsy to replenish her stores, especially for anything that might aid against respiratory diseases. She still had a touch of meadowsweet left but she was complete out of boneset. Lydia sure hoped spring was around the corner. She'd had enough of this weather.

The journey was straightforward and with her mind wandering it seemed like barely any time had passed at all before she arrived at the gulley. The jagged cut ate its way into the earth but it was such a relief to enter. Out of the wind the air inside the gulley was warmer and also seemed more humid. Lydia inhaled deeply of the rich earthy smell. There were so many herbs she barely knew where to start. Focus. She was here for boneset. She didn't want to get carried away and run out of room or worse, dawdle and then get caught in a storm on her way back to Kesali. Lydia paused as she caught the distinct scent of meadowsweet. It'd bee tempting to try and gather more but the best time to gather meadowsweet was in the summer. Of course the best time to gather boneset would be in the fall. Very few herbs were at their ideal harvest time in the dead of winter but at least she had more leeway with the boneset. She had plenty of white willow bark, thanks to Kesali laying claim to the weeping woods.

Lydia continued hunting for boneset, keeping her eyes peeled for its shape and her nose primed to find it's slightly aromatic scent. It wouldn't be flowering this time of year so that made it a touch more difficult but in truth, she relied on her nose to confirm what her eyes saw.

She moved farther into the gulley into a small area that resembled a small meadow. The ground was damp and she wondered if it had rained recently. The gulley seemed to hold onto moisture so thankfully it wasn't freezing cold which was good to know. She knew that boneset was a fairly hardy perennial herb but with the way this winter had been going she didn't want to make to many assumptions. Lydia was glad though that her journey at least seemed to be fruitful. It would've been a huge disappointment to walk all that way and not be able to show anything for her efforts.

Lydia walked up to the plant. It was a good healthy one about three feet high. The leaves branched out from the stem, large lance-shapped leaves with the largest at the bottom growing smaller toward the top. The edges of the leaves were finely toothed, the veins prominent. She looked the plant over carefully, fairly sure she had the correct plant but it never hurt to be sure. The hairy stem was a notable feature and the aromatic scent sealed the deal. This was definitely boneset.

Lydia shrugged her pack off her back and set it gently to the side. Eyeing the plant she dipped her head and started chewing at the base. Immediately her face wrinkled in disgust. The plant had a sharp bitter taste. It was awful but she persevered, her teeth working through the fibrous plant until she severed it. Carefully she started to slide the plant into her bag only to realize that it was too tall. Ack, of course it was. Pulling it back out she worked to chew the plant in half to make sure that it could fit into her back. Once she was satisfied that she got the herbs stashed away in her bag she gingerly slipped it back oh. Checking that it was secure she turned around and started heading back toward Kesali. As she did she saw a little pool of water and quickly bent her head to take a drink and help rinse out the bitter taste of the plant. Yuck, yuck, yuck!

Satisfied, she continued on her way. The boneset would be useful against colds and fevers, especially this time of year. After the time she spent up north she worried that the cold might have affected her respiratory system and of course illness was always a concern this time of year. As far as she knew there hadn't been much going around Kesali yet but fate favored the prepared. Boneset would also be useful to ease the aches that came with the flu and winter travel. She could also make a mild tonic for indigestion as long as she was careful not to give to much. The last thing she wanted was to give someone nausea or diarrhea. Lydia had known a healer that had used it to expel tapeworms but she wasn't comfortable with using boneset for that use. She'd want to put one ounce of the herb to one pint of water but ideally the water would be hot which made things difficult. She could always grab water from the hot springs but she wished there was a way to keep it warm or heat up water. Well, she'd have plenty of time this winter to experiment.

"Talk" "You" Think

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