Today’s journal page, my contribution to Artsyville’s Glue It Tuesday challenge, is a little more blossom love.
I’ve mentioned before I’m always on the lookout for delightful fortune-cookie philosophy, and today’s little slip of wisdom is something I whole-heartedly believe: “Your happiness is intertwined with your outlook on life.” YES!
But it also got me thinking as I was out tending my Jackmanii clematis which is beginning to put out this season’s green climbing shoots. I thought about the literal meaning that each blossom’s outlook (the view they were able to see from) was dependent on their particular placement of the vine intertwined on the trellis. Every blossom with a different world view, and yet I’m willing to bet each on is happy. There you have it – a lesson from the garden and one from a fortune cookie!
I recently ordered a sacred plant medicine reading , a 3-card plant oracle reading, from herbalist Darcey Blue of Shamana Flora. I received it last night. The messages were very helpful, and indeed the plants showed up in a dream last night, so clearly we’re doing some work together. I tucked a copy of the report in the envelope on the journal page.
This being May, and playing along in Lori Moon’s May Flower Challenge, flowers have of course really been on my mind. And it seemed like the perfect time to bump up a couple books on my woefully huge reading pile. Having read them over the last couple days I thought a little blossom bibliography might be fun. So here we go:
–The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
Woven through this story is the mostly-forgotten largely-Victorian way of communicating using flowers. But the story is also the tale of a young child who by age of 9 has passed through 30+ foster homes, and the life she unfolds for herself with flowers being an anchoring point. Diffenbaugh includes a little flower dictionary in the back with meanings of a great many flowers.
I thought it would be fun to give my rating as a tussie-mussie – a little nosegay bouquet of flowers and herbs with symbolic meanings. So I rate this book with a bouquet of:
Gladiolus (you pierce my heart); Lisianthus (appreciation); heliotrope (devoted affection)
-The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Ok, the only flowerish-related thing about this book is the term Wallflower, but that’s good enough for me. And it’s off my reading pile now so I’m celebrating that as well.
A sad-sweet coming of age in the 90s story, done as a series of letters reporting the events. I think it’s a very effective capturing of how hard it is to navigate those adolescent years trying to figure out your place when so many of the road signs are about love and loss. I’m so glad those years are behind me – they were difficult ones!
My tussie-mussie rating: Aloe (grief); cyclamen (timid hope); elder (compassion); hibiscus (delicate beauty).
-Confederate Jasmine and the Fat Tuesday Tree: A Poetic Herbarium by Ann Lewis
This isn’t a new find for me – I read it years ago and return to it periodically because I love it. There’s a kind of layered love here – it’s a lovely book absolutely; but it also awakened in me a delight of seeing in print the kind of book I myself which to create. So it has a special place in my heart.
Lewis, author and artist, creates a beautiful homage to the South she grew up. She collected specimens of the native plants and used them as starting points to weave together stories.
Tussie-mussie rating: Agapanthus (love letter); Angelica (inspiration); White Carnation (sweet and lovely).
-Flower Therapy: Welcome the Angels of Nature into your Life by Doreen Virtue and Robert Reeves
This little book profiles 88 flowers with their energetic properties, associated Archangels, chakra, a lovely photograph, a healing description and a message from the flower. Although not a deck of oracle cards, it has that kind of feel to it, as you would expect from something with Doreen Virtue’s name on it. I own a lot of flower reference books so this is probably a bit redundant for me, but it is charming and I can imagine it being a good fit for lots of folks.
My tussie-mussie rating: White carnation (sweet and lovely); Petunia (your presence soothes me)
So there you have it, my first tussie-mussie rated books. I may continue on with the tradition with later ratings as I found it amusing. Did you? Have any flower books you’d like to recommend, or not recommend? Have a tussie-mussie story? Do tell, you know I love to hear.
What an interesting article, especially the sacred plant medicine reading sounds very mysterious!
Thank you so much for visiting my blog and leaving a kind comment
Glad you stopped by Gabriele – happy GIT!
I haven’t thought of the term tussie mussie in such a long time! I used to be given the satin ribbon bows from discarded florist bouquets. From these I made miniature roses to wrap in tissue and doilies. I kept the nosegays on hand for little gifts! I used to teach how to make the roses. Hmmm…I should do that again!
You’ve piqued my interest to go back to study the Victorian floral meanings.
Thank you.
How fun Ruth – I’m sure those nosegays were delightful. And now you’ve piqued my interest. 😉
A plant reading…how fascenating! I can see you are in a blooming mood. After this winter so am I : )
Lynn
YES – bring on Spring with all its blossoming, blooming, sprouting, expansive energy! Happy Spring Lynn.
This is a wonderful post from the beginning collage (I LOVE a good fortune) to your compilation of flowering literature. I plan to check out at least a couple on your list. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the kind words April, and I’m delighted you stopped by. A good fortune IS a thing of beauty isn’t it? I like to think I do my fare share in uncovering them by the number of cookies I manage to indulge in. 😉
What a fun way to review the books you’ve read! Tussie Mussie, love it. I’m thinking of other ways to apply that, how fun.
LOL – glad you like it Sue. I have to say it makes me smile as well.
I loved that book, The Language of Flowers, too. You have a couple others there that I’ll have to put on my list.
I’m thinking you’re mentioning the book on your blog is what put it on my pile. 😉
I loved The Language of Flowers so very much. I’d never heard of the concept of flowers having meaning at all before then. Now I have you so I’m set for life!
LOL – sounds perfect Naomi!
How fun… a flowery post! While you just stopped by mine, where I state that I am more a ‘power’ than a ‘flower’ girl (but I DID work in the flowershop of my uncle as a vacation job when I was in my teens – and I love the symbolic of flowers, their ‘language’) I enjoyed this post very much, thanks!
How fun to have first-hand flowershop experience Marit. I totally respect your preferred leaning towards “power” rather than “flower”, so to honor that I might present you with a Ginger flower. I couldn’t find an exact flower language match for power, but I’m bending Ginger’s “strength” to meet my requirements. 😉
I think I’ve heard about that first book before. I’ll be looking for it. And you’re so right, May is the month for flowers. I have to think about that while I’m gluing. Like the fortune, and your reading sounds very mystical! {:-Deb
Flowers, cookies, fortunes, books, paper and glue, mystical stuff – yep, I think you’ve got my number Deb. 😉
beautiful, bloomy collage! thanks for the book recs!
I love GIT Aimee – thanks for opening the lounge. 😉
I so appreciate your book reviews. I love to read and am always looking for books (although I do now have a policy about new one in…old one out so my collection doesn’t continue to grow out of control)!
Seriously Michele that’s a brilliant policy I hereby claim as well. I’m crazy behind in my reading. I wish I could figure out how to stretch time so there was an additional eight hours a day for reading. That would help with my backlog.
Thanks for the book reviews, I am definitely interested in a few. I’ve noticed that so many of us have used flowers in this week’s GIT, it must be in the air. I also enjoy using essential oils which come from our wonderful plant friends. The sacred reading sounds intriguing!
I noticed that too Betsy. Those May flowers must really want to be celebrated. 😉 Thanks for stopping by – I appreciate it.
Deborah – Thanks for playing along this month. I am learning so much from you! I think that I might need to get the Flower Therapy book. I am a little intrigued. Love the collage! – Lori
I’m having so much fun Lori – it’s a merry month of May indeed. Celebrating flowers is such a delicious thing!