A Heather in Wolf's Clothing

After an evening masquerading as a wolf, I decided I prefer to be a Heather.

Wolves are scary. Heathers, generally, are not.

"I thought you was a city girl!"

"I didn't know you was no country girl!" my friend, the art school janitor, yelled across the hall to me this morning. She wasn't heckling me; it was a statement of admiration and understanding (loud though it may have been)- and when she said it, I felt good.

She and I bumped into each other at Alachua County Farm and Feed about a month ago on a Saturday morning. She was buying collard starts, I was buying lettuce starts. She didn't recognize me in my pony tail and gardening clothes and apologized to me the next week when she saw me at the gallery, explaining that she was so surprised to see me there that she forgot my name. Since then, whenever I see her, she asks me about my garden and I ask about hers. We discuss what is working and what isn't, which bugs are the worst and how planting under the full moon was the best thing we could have done for our fall crop.

Today her smile and stories transformed my day and my attitude. Today I am proud to be a country girl.

Let me see your tongue

Each week for the past four, my physical therapist has given me this directive. "Let me see your tongue" So, I abide - not sticking it out and saying 'aaaahhh' for better tonsil viewing - she really just wants to see my actual tongue. Apparently, because she is a doctor of Chinese Medicine, she can determine how my entire body is functioning just by that one act. My tongue has been purple/ pink and not too shiny - it should be pinky/red & shiny. The purple tint indicates blockages and pain in the body - when it is more pale than shiny - that tells you the body is weakened or possibly anemic. She also looks at the coating and then the regions of  my tongue to get more info - she can tell if I have a cold or flu or other infection, if I've been having trouble sleeping, if I'm constipated, if I've been depressed. After I stick out my tongue, she asks me questions to confirm what she has learned.

My therapy has been for a strained rotator cuff, but we talk often about how an injured shoulder can only heal well if the body is in optimal condition to help it. So, she is using acupuncture, ultrasound, cold laser, and massage therapy to put my whole being back in order. Once a week, for an hour and a half, I feel pampered and  cared for by a doctor who has my best interest in mind. She doesn't rush me to heal, and, instead, encourages me to be patient and enjoy the healing process, because pain and suffering create awareness, and with healing is growth.