Imparting lore, knowledge
To others with love
Plainly stating
This is NOT an herbal reference book
So many of those already available
All different cultures
No
This is 4-planes medicine
Physical, yes, a bit
But also
Emotional
Mental
Spiritual
Roma—Gypsies—did not travel
With huge herbariums
Have you ever lived in a trailer?
I lived in a Fifth Wheel for two years
I lived in a 15-foot travel trailer for more years
There is barely room for everyday necessities
So why would readers/reviewers think
We should copy the great herbals
For your viewing pleasure?
The Gypsy herbarium was in the surrounding forests
In the wild flower fields
In the rivers and streams
But all that changed
I’d never recommend wildcrafting
When plentiful poisons threaten the land
Only basics are tucked lovingly away
In the vurdon—wagon—that is home
No detailed grimoires exist
Most didn’t know how to read or write
The oral tradition served for everyday cures
If more serious, the Witch-in-the-hole
Was consulted
Or the Vrezitorka (so say my Sinte family)
Or the Chovaxani (so say my Kalderash side)
If the town hid one
There was no pantheon of gods and goddesses
Although sprung from India
Speaking a bastardized version of Sanskrit
Now named “Romanes”
Gypsy Chib
But Mother Earth
Father Sky
And a few household helps
Like the Domovoi
Lived alongside the Gypsies
Whether they traveled or
Unfortunately became slaves
In Eastern Europe
No collection of pharmaceuticals
The lesson is
Portability
What can be carried on the back
Is most important
Even today
Many of us grow
To adulthood
Learning that lesson
Herbs?
Magic Words?
Future paths
To live life joyfully
Contained in the 22 numbers
Of the Drom Ek Romani
That some call the tarot
The day of birth
Reveals your lifetime study
15 is mine
Temptation down the wrong path
Add to get 6
Love thrown in the mix
Read the book
It’s all explained
This past week
It was useful for me to be ill
Helping me remember
The simple cures
Seeing that they still work
That’s the other lesson
Less is better, always…
© 2017 Clarissa Simmens (ViataMaja)
Re: Drab Lil: A Gypsy’s Medicine Book © 2014
