If a flower essence for humility became a child, what would it look like? Bradley Banana! This high-seas adventure tale is presented in a hardcover children’s book that arrived to our office less than a week ago—yet people already seem to like Bradley Banana the moment they look into his watercolor eyes.

“Great name,” said the town librarian when I enquired about presenting an enacted storytelling of Bradley Banana and The Jolly Good Pirate for the library’s “storytelling hour” to the children.

The book’s first performance took place last night at a loca week long camp out. A dozen families gathered around a campfire to watch the proud pirate captain, Chadwick Clumpalong, emerge from the trees to meet a little boy who would change his life forever.

And so the story unfolded: would the pompous captain force Bradley to walk the plank, or would Bradley’s example of calm humility help Clumpalong to understand that there’s more to life than merely himself?

The idea came to me many years ago of personifying the Spirit-in-Nature Essences as children—though it wasn’t until years later that I was finally able to actually commit to writing about them.

First came Samantha Strawberry while I was on a camping trip near Lake Tahoe. Paragraph by paragraph, my sharpened pencil sketched out her quality of dignity that saved the Trufflestrum Forest from being leveled into a housing development. Next was Leona Lettuce, whose calmness became a soothing presence in teaching her brother to ride his bicycle with confidence.

Why Bradley Banana came first in the book series is a mystery. It just happened that way. Every part of this project has had a sense of fun and adventure, much like Bradley’s trek up “The Vanishing Mountain.”

A great deal of research was involved for everything including the shape and size of the book—landscape or portrait, large or small—and even the tiniest detail of what font to use. After many trips to libraries, book stores and online stores, there it was, the perfect font with sans serif letters (easier for children to read), long and slightly arched—just like bananas!

It’s been an honor to work with Chitra Sudhakaran on this book. Her sensitivity to the subtleties of this project is apparent in every illustration. In bringing the storyboard to life, we both felt that something much bigger than either the text or the drawings alone was created. (Thank you, Chitra!)

I hope you get to meet Bradley Banana. He’s a delightful little guy.

Erin’s Letter

Dear Lila,

Thank you so much for our wonderful and insightful session last week. I just received the essences today, and I wanted to ask you a quick question if possible.

I failed to mention in our session that I have been craving pears lately. Every time I feed the twins pear baby food, I am always sneaking in spoonfuls for myself. In doing greater research about the flower essences, I have realized that food cravings can be insightful and that pears are often recommended at the beginning of an essence program.

I am wondering if it would is be okay if I took Pear Essence for six days, and then went on to begin my flower essence program? Please let me know.

Thank you so much, Lila, and I hope all is well!

Blessings,

Erin

My Response

Dear Erin,

Glad you took the time to write, and also got your phone message just now.

And, yes, if you feel drawn to pears, you are correct that the flower/food connection is a wonderful tool for essence selection. Taking Pear Essence first is usually a substitute for not working with a practitioner. It’s a great first-choice for people who can’t decide which essence they need, or in fact want to take them all at once—which people often report. Though the fact that you are also craving pears to that degree is a fantastic clue.

So, yes, please do add 6 days of taking Pear Essence to your program before you begin with the Raspberry, and then you can take the program as we discussed it last week.

Very intuitive of you! And I always like to support someone’s input and feedback to make the consultation more interactive. Good job!

Take care, Erin, talk to you tomorrow,

Lila

And Erin’s Latest Comments

Lila,

Thank you so much for your swift response. I absolutely give you permission to use my question as a blog post. I think it is probably a common question and would be helpful to others interested in the flower essences.

I have to say that I am so excited about my flower essence program. It has really given me a sense of hope and happiness. I am not sure if this is even possible—however, I feel a slight difference already.

Blessings,
Erin

We received this letter today from someone interested in our Home Study Course:

I have been using another essence line on and off since 1990. Now I feel moved to learn about other essences and to probably take a course. That’s when I learned that there are many makers of flower essences, kits, and courses! I’m also wondering if you might have some thoughts on differences between Spirit-in-Nature essences and some of these others.

Many thanks,

Karen

Hi Karen,

How good to hear from you! Thank you for taking the time to write.

The first thought that came to me is one you’ve probably already considered. You mentioned your connection and resonance with another essence line. Since the essences lend themselves so readily to intuitive work, being vibrational by nature, it sounds like you already have the ability to tune in to the essences you need to work with. The point being, different people resonate with different essence lines; perhaps that’s why there are now hundreds of them.

My company is the oldest in the U.S. and outside the U.K., so it has an established history for helping people, children, pets and even plants. The feedback we get on a continual basis is our line meets people’s needs to grow, and to get in touch with their highest expression of themselves.

We receive input that each flower essence company has its own energy, or “flavor.” Spirit-in-Nature has a lot in its favor: longevity; substantial feedback; only 20 essences, making them easy to understand and work with; a website that people find educational and informative; helpful literature, including 21 youtube.com videos, etc.

One point that intrigues me is that people find Spirit-in-Nature Essences very simple to work with and simple to understand. I like that myself! Nature itself is simple, so I take that as a positive comment rather than a demeaning one! That these essences are prepared from the blossoms of fruit trees and vegetable plants makes them familiar and understandable.

A further thought, Karen, is that you might peruse The Essential Flower Essence Handbook that we have online in its entirety. It’s the textbook for this course and it can really give you a sense of what it’s all about.

Well, I hope this is helpful. If you have other questions, please let me know.

With warm regards,
Lila Devi
SiNE Founder

Rosa wrote the following letter, documenting her strong response to a flower essence, not knowing how to accurately interpret her reaction. Below is her email with my answer, followed by her additional comments.

Hi, Lila,

I am on day 5 of the 6 days of Strawberry Essence that you suggested for me, so I am more than halfway through the program. I was doing fairly well with the essences. Now that I have started the Strawberry, I can’t believe how terribly sad and weepy I’ve been these past few days. If someone just looks at me, I cry! This is not me, as I am not a crier. (Eveyone knows I’m a crabber, not a crier!)  What in the world is going on here!?!?!?  I have one more day of Strawberry Essence, and then I go to Fig and end up with Grape. Any advice on what is going on with me?

Thank you,

Rosa

Hi, Rosa,

And thank you for writing. I’m glad to hear back from you.

Here’s a comment about Strawberry Essence to consider: A sage once said that circumstances are neutral.

In this light, the crying could be seen as a neutral response that depends entirely on how you choose to interpret it. Is it good; does it feel like a welcome release; are the tears healing for you? Or is the crying upsetting; making you miserable; leaving you feeling like you’re out of control?

If the former, do complete the extra day on Strawberry; if the latter, please stop and begin the next essence in your program.

My dear, let’s not call you crabby. Maybe you’re just a fantastically gutsy lady!

Let me know how this goes for you, and please take good care. Either way, this reaction means the Strawberry Essence is working for you.

Rosa then wrote with these comments:

It wasn’t a physically hurtful sort of feeling, just overwhelming sadness. I went back and re-read the Strawberry chapter in The Essential Flower Essence Handbook; after doing so it made a bit more sense.

I’ve always thought I was a tough old bird and could handle just about anything. Guess I was fooling myself all along! I was just stuffing all that pain inside somewhere, and this wonderful little essence crept into those places to do a thorough cleaning. Well it is spring, so spring cleaning is appropriate. I do notice subtle changes happening though—sort of like positioning the spices in the cupboard in a more organized way.

(Note from Lila: the subject of unexpected or unusual flower essence responses is also addressed in the following posts: The “Direct Hit” Approach to Flower Essences; Detox Reaction to Flower Essences—Or Not?; and Grape Flower Essence for “Loving ‘Til It Hurts.”)

People often ask about physical and emotional responses to their flower essence programs. Here’s an interesting correspondence on that subject:

Hi Lila!

I have a question. I’ve been taking a flower essence per your suggestion since last Thursday. I don’t know if you remember or not, but my desire was to remove the lower back pain that occurred from an injury many years ago.

I’m sure there are emotional factors that are making the pain continue at this point in time, though I can’t seem to access those emotions. In other words, I do have the memories but there is no emotional charge attached to any of them, so I’m not sure if I need to address the emotions for that reason or not.

My questions is: do the flower essences sometimes cause detoxing or the re-surfacing of old pains? Last Saturday in the wee hours of the morning, I had severe mid-thoracic pain and was concerned that I was having gall bladder/liver stones that were trying to pass (since that has come up in the past before, I assumed that was what was happening).

The next day I had discomfort every time I ate something, so I continued to assume it was the gb/liver issue. However, when I went to work on Monday, a friend mentioned that perhaps it was something triggered by the flower essence.

I was surprised because I hadn’t ever considered that possibility. I haven’t had any pains like that since Saturday night. I’m wondering if it’s indeed possible that the pains were caused by the essence releasing something.

Also, when I had the toboggan accident in ‘97, I remember that my entire spine, including my mid-thoracic, was in spasm for several days after that. The pain I had the other night also felt that way.

What do you think?

It was a delight to meet you, and thank you for all your good work!

Sue

Dear Sue,

How nice to hear from you! Thank you for writing.

Well, you’ve asked a very interesting question, and here’s an answer for you.

There could be any of several things going on. First off, some flower essence practitioners might be quick to say there’s a detox or cleansing happening, either physically or emotionally. As I explain in The Essential Flower Essence Handbook, we call this an “awareness celebration” and not a detoxing or flushing up of negative emotions. The essences make us more aware of what’s going on in our consciousness.

As a metaphor for how the essences work, I often give the example of turning on a light in a darkened room. There may be clutter in the room that we didn’t see in the dark, and yet it’s been there all along. This applies to both emotional and physical responses to the essences.

I was telling someone at lunch just today that, in contrast, the animals never, ever have these kinds of reactions. So there’s a certain way that the essences interface with the human ego, which doesn’t happen with animals who live so purely in their personalities with just the first budding hints of ego.

Now: in addition, it’s entirely possible that there was a coincidental timing in these symptoms returning for you, since you’ve felt them before. I remember years ago in Paris, a woman came for a consult and, a few days into her program, had a severe outbreak of herpes on her upper lip. While she was quick to attribute it to the flower essences, Coconut being the first in her program, I happened to notice the beginning of inflammation on her lip when she first walked in for the consult.

So these are some things to think about. What do I think was happening for you in particular? Well, I can say that there well could be a connection between your low back problems, if I’m remembering correctly, and the beginning of your marriage to a fine man yet someone who doesn’t support you, especially because both incidents took place at the same time in your life. The spine, in some cases, can be symbolic of support. That’s why I suggested topical applications as well as sublingual, to positively affect the cellular memory in your lumbar area.

In fact you might be the best person to answer your own question. Would you say that you feel a lightening or clearing in your low back area? Did the pain disappear as suddenly as it appeared? Did it enter and exit your conscious mind, and body, in a different fashion than it has in the past when you could attribute more physical causes to the times of distress?

Well, Sue, I hope I’ve answered your questions. This is certainly a fascinating, multi-faceted subject!

In the joy of the essences,

Lila

Welcome back!

As mentioned in the previous post, this entry is a continuation of essence suggestions for issues raised by one of our Asian distributors on behalf of their flower essence clients.   

For communication problems with the daughter-in-law

Banana: for the ability to listen to, and understand, other people’s realities; for remaining non-reactive; to understand all sides of a story, in this way creating an environment where the daughter-in-law can naturally feel more open with the mother.

Raspberry: for kindness; similar to, but not duplicating Banana, for being a very good listener, with compassion and empathy, so the daughter-in-law can feel safe instead of threatened and thus able to talk freely and open the channels for communication.

(Note: both Banana and Raspberry Essences are equally important.)

Peach: for the mother to set an example of unconditional love and giving to all members of the family; to exhibit an attitude toward her daughter-in-law that she too is a part of the family who is deserving of love and nurturing, even if she doesn’t agree with the way the daughter-in-law is running her home, raising her children, or treating the mother’s son (the daughter-in-law’s husband).

Grape: for unconditional love, from mother to daughter-in-law and vice versa; to remove any undercurrents of jealousy, infringement of familial boundaries, or other sources of emotional friction.

Lack of sense of achievement 

(Note: I am assuming this means the mother feels somehow inadequate or that her role as a mother is not fulfilling for her.)

Corn, for vitality; to find ways to do daily chores with creativity and freshness, where she will feel refreshed and able to inspire her family through her enthusiasm.

Orange, to find happiness in the accomplishment of seemingly little things, especially when this feeling has continued for a long time.

Raspberry, for compassion toward herself and others in the family; for feeling “put upon”; also if this feeling is accompanied by a sense of hurt, which, if not released, can be expressed through holding grudges or lashing out at loved ones.

This post will be continued in Part III in March, 2009. Although the answers given were addressed to a different culture, I hope you find this short series a helpful addition to your own understanding of the subtleties of flower essences and how they can enrich our lives.

Some time ago, one of our Asian distributors requested a brief flower essence summary for several prevalent issues frequently encountered by their flower essence clients. 

They asked, “For a special activity about mothers whose jobs are taking good care of their family and household, we want to recommend 3 to 4 flower remedies to those mothers. We would like to seek for your suggestions, for these typical worries and problems, including”:

 Here are my flower essence suggestions.

For children’s education, future and health:          

Avocado Essence, to help children get better grades as well as enjoy the learning process.

Apple Essence, for peaceful clarity; for general well-being and healthy attitudes; also for the mother, so that she can convey to her children her own healthy outlook on life and lack of worry about them.

Blackberry Essence, for the mother, to free her of any negativity or carping about her children performance in school.

For the generation gap problem between parents and their children: 

Fig Essence: for the mother (and father too!): to relax their discipline while remaining firm and loving instead of harsh, thus bridging any emotional distance between parent and child. 

Tomato Essence: for the courage to work with problems that arise, especially with teenagers and their rebellion.

Pear Essence; for harmony in the home and the individual family members. Good to spray in a misting bottle throughout the house, especially in areas where the family members gather.

For the husband who engages in extramarital relations:

Strawberry Essence, for the wife’s grounding and strength in herself; to understand that, by strengthening her own magnetism, this may stop or prevent further extramarital problems; to know that she is deserving of her husband’s loyalty; to draw a deeper commitment from him to his family.

Grape Essence, for coping with feelings of jealousy, abandonment, betrayal, or loss of love. 

Coconut Essence: for the woman to develop the ability to transcend difficult marital situations and to find a place in her heart to deal with these circumstances.

Almond Essence, for the husband: for the moral vigor to honor his marriage vows and resist temptations that may be culturally permitted yet are not in harmony with his or his family’s highest good.

For Finances:

Pineapple, Pineapple, Pineapple! For belief in oneself as the primary way to draw improvements in income; for an attitude of abundance and prosperity.

For “not being able to stop chattering all day”:

Lettuce Essence, for children who are too wound up, to help them act more calmly (also it is important to provide a sugar-free diet, especially with snacks); also not to allow them to watch upsetting or violent television programs or games.

Almond Essence, for children who exhibit excessive or compulsive behaviors such as chattering.

Spinach Essence, especially if excessive speech is caused by stress—from school, peers, or any challenging issues which the child may not be able to articulate clearly; for  “acting out” behavior.

This post will be continued in Part II later this month and Part III in December. I hope you find this short series of posts helpful and relevant.

At a workshop earlier this month in Boise, Idaho, we conducted what’s called an “open session consultation.” This is a mini-consult with the class in attendance to observe the following consultation components: the selection of flower essences; the order of the essences in a serial program; and a brief substantiation for the flower essence choices. Since we only had about 20 minutes, the session was somewhat condensed.

Susie, on staff at the bookstore where the workshop was held, was animated and enthusiastic about being the “guinea pig.” Here is her flower essence program, followed by her initial response.

Flower essence #1: Coconut for 6 days: to support her desire to change herself and her efforts to dissolve her negativity and grief. This store is the first place where she said she’s felt that she belonged.

Flower essence #2: Strawberry for 6 days: to help her reclaim her sense of dignity and for working on being who she’s meant to be. She said she had a beautiful childhood. “Mom and Dad are my heroes. My sister’s a saint, my brother is a doll.”

Flower essence #3: Avocado for 4 days:  to remember herself as whole and complete; and to support that humor is how she works with her pain; to continue in her wisdom and knowledge of the person she was aspiring to become.

Flower essence #4: Tomato for 10 days: to encourage her attitude that she’s now ready and willing to make the changes she desires in her life (willing being the operative word for Tomato Essence). By her own admission, Susie said that she had been in love with the wrong man, thus continuing a pattern of relationship abuse. She mentioned feeling a great deal of anger. She was angry at her habitual choice of the wrong people. Also, for her best friend breaking her heart. As it turned out, the woman wasn’t who Susie thought she was. She felt a tremendous sense of betrayal.

Flower Essence # 5: Corn: 2 weeks. Corn Essence, for mental vitality, is Susie’s theme essence. This is the essence she most closely resembles on a vibrational level, the one with which she resonates in its positive expressions.

Last week, Susie emailed a summary of her response to this flower essence program while on her second essence:

“I am feeling so great, my spirit seems calmer and more peaceful already….I’m taking Strawberry now.”

The subject of survivor guilt and related flower essences is an interesting one. Here’s a recent correspondence with one of my students:

Hi, Lila,

I hope you remember me from the Pets and Animals Home Study Course lessons.

I’m doing a fictitious case study for a class in Chinese Herbal Therapeutics and wanted to include flower essences in the treatment plan. The situation is Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome following a car accident where the patient survived but the driver, her grandfather, died.

I was wondering if there were any flower essences specific to survivor guilt, or if one of the flower essences for guilt would work?

Cheers,
________

Here’s my response:

Dear _______,

How are you? It’s wonderful to hear from you again. Of course I remember you! And our consult. And your deep love for animals and your sensitivity to flower essences.

Yes, I have some ideas for you. What a fascinating assignment!

Before recommending any flower essences or essence programs, it might help to mention some metaphysical truths. A wise person once said, “The things that happen to us do not matter; what we become through them does.” That same sage also said, “Change no circumstance of my life; change me.”

Speaking of the epitome of survivor guilt: why is it that some people emerged from the concentration camps as saints, while others were completely broken by their experiences? Wouldn’t this suggest that it’s not circumstances, but the attitudes toward those circumstances that are most important?

Here’s where a simple change of focus, embodied in Coconut Essence for greater spiritual awareness, can be of value. If we can’t change our circumstances–in reference to your fictional case study, a fatal car accident—we can change our perspective. How do we grow? By making ourselves bigger than our tests, not by shrinking from them.

This is where Banana, “the perspective essence,” can help. Our car crash survivor can help to heal her body with healthy attitudes, such as broadening her focus; including others in her reality; and identifying with the greatness and beauty of life instead of the smallness and seeming tragedy.

A part of survivor guilt is the sense of “why me,” or rather, “why not me?” The question itself suggests a form of resistance, which is certainly understand- able in a fatal accident for those left behind. As mentioned in my previous post on Pear Essence, Pear reminds us to not resist our tests—which only causes greater suffering— but instead to accept them as best we can. This is why Pear Flower Essence is such a powerful salve for crisis situations. It addresses the thought, “This shouldn’t be happening to me.”

I would also suggest that this woman spend time in Nature: taking gentle walks with deep breathing, as a way of com- muning with its healing energy. Peach Essence, likewise, can help her to transmute her own suffering by becoming aware that others, too, have suffered; that we are not alone in our trials, and that we can help others emerge from their difficulties through the very tests which we ourselves have undergone. Consider, too, that many of the problems people face stem from simply focusing too much on themselves.

Every single moment of our lives offers us the same choice: to expand or to contract; to move toward the light or away from it. Guilt has been called, by clinical professionals, a coping mechanism. This may be so, but it’s a contractive approach. If perpetuated long enough or strongly enough, guilt can easily cause physical symptoms, such as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia.

Yet life force is an amazing thing. Give it half a chance, and it can heal even the most broken body! Activate that life force with the “bottled Nature” in flower essences, and watch what happens when we raise our energy and broaden its scope.

I hope, ________, that this answer offers some help for your assignment. I wish you well with it and with your continued flower essence studies.

Kindly,
Lila

A veterinarian in Austria wrote to us this morning, asking which flower essences are best to use for parasites or infections in rabbits. Here’s my reply:

Dear Dr. _____,

I am very sorry to hear about your rabbits and hope they are soon better.

To answer your concerns and explain how flower essences work: they work directly on the life force rather than directly treating physical symptoms. This is why we call flower essences “bottled life force.”

Yes, the essences can help with physical issues, but I cannot say we have essences for parasites or infections. These are physical symptoms that often need to be dealt with through physical substances, which can mean either herbal remedies or traditional medications. Having said this, you could try Lettuce Essence for the rabbits, to supplement whatever herbs or medicines they are given for their physical condition.

We have found through case studies that Lettuce Essence, for calmness, can help animals with physical dis-ease to deal with the implications of the medicines, including any possible side effects, and to help keep the integrity of their life force intact. Animals whose immune systems are strong tend to be more resistant to parasites. So we could say that flower essences would strengthen the life force that could in turn strengthen the immune system.

I hope this makes sense. Please let me know how the rabbits respond to their flower essence program.

Kindly,

Lila Devi Stone