Rants + Raves: Should Herbalism be Legalized?

Love can’t be standardized. (photo from WeHeartIt.com)

“’Tis mine to be in love with life,
and mine to hear the robins sing;
‘Tis mine to live apart from strife,
and kneel to flowers blossoming.”
–Alex Posey, 19^th century Creek Poet

The more I study herbs and their uses throughout the ages, the more I am convinced that the whole “legalism of herbalism” dilemma is somewhat of a microcosm of our society’s state of affairs. It is another example among the millions of contradictions that are our reality these days. We are somehow made to believe that we are a separate entity from the rest of the web of life, and that falsity is furthered by our fierce consumerism and our dependency on man-made “solutions” that are really more problematic than the maladies they claim to heal.

As I make these beautiful, simple remedies that not only “work,” but bring with them a sense of oneness and connection to the planet, I am constantly in awe of just how disconnected from ourselves, our world, our neighbors, we as a people truly have become.  Watching television, you are inundated by this powerful force that seeks to convince you that you are missing something that only a product at CVS or Target can return to you. It seems as though our society is obsessed with final products, things we can buy, things that are packaged for us, everything in a convenient little box. That goes for products, value systems, entertainment, education, medicine, and just about everything else.

It follows that there seems to be a general lack of appreciation for anything that doesn’t fit into a box. When I went to NYU back in 2003-2007, the east village of New York was still lined with little sweet independent shops, including Aphrodisia, an amazing herb shop. Just a few years after graduating, I returned to visit my favorite places, but to my dismay they were mostly replaced by name brand stores because the shopkeepers couldn’t compete. It was so sad, but something I would find myself getting used to. I just never thought it would happen in the East Village. I think that if herbalism were to be standardized, it would be the same sort of thing.

We’d be selling out.