Flower Power and Ikigai
Spring is in the air, little “flowers” everywhere…
What a colourful time of year in the northern hemisphere with all the “darling buds of May”!
I can’t help waxing lyrical as I walk the byways of Devon and Wales. Hosts of golden daffodils are giving way to bluebells, fields are dotted with daisies and dandelions, woodlands carpeted with wild garlic, while the shady lanes are edged with primroses and violets.
My fingers itch to pick this abundance of phytonutrients and anti-oxidants for my daily salad BUT the where and what are very important in foraging.
My daughter recently celebrated her birthday and used primroses to decorate her carrot cake — picked on the organic farm in Wales where she is blessed to live — not from roadsides where they are covered in pollution from car exhausts and canine “messages”
Prima Rosa means “first rose” and primroses are one of the first flowers of spring and can be used freely (leaves and flowers) in salads and soups.
English bluebells on the other hand (unlike Virginian Bluebells) are not edible. They are so important, that they are protected here in the UK which brings to mind the line from Emily Dickinson’s poem “to be a flower is profound responsibility”.
Other blossoms that are captivating my camera lens at the moment are the ornamental cherries. These make me think of the Japanese and their ikigai.
I discovered this mysterious word when reading a book by that name — Ikigai. It’s probably the Japanese secret to a long and happy life. This is one of the most enlightening books on longevity and the meaning of life that I have come across.
The authors visit a village on the island of Okinawa, nicknamed The Longevity Village, whose inhabitants live longer than anywhere else on earth. If you’d love to find your Ikigai The Japanese secret for a long and happy life, this is a must read.
Live well and find the happy,
Merryl @ GreenSmoothie.com
P.S. Having a reason for being is a huge factor in a long and happy life — ikigai.
We all have it and carry it within us. Read this to find out more.
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