Welcome to Tephyr's Garden!


Tephyr passed from this world in 2015 after a 13 year struggle with LMS: Leiomayosarcoma.
She encouraged me to start Alternative Nature Online Herbal in 1997 and contributed as long as her health allowed.

Conscious Harvesting

Copyright: 1994, 2012 S. Tephyr Burgess

There is the potential for great harmony on this planet. We had it once.. we can only hope we can obtain it again. One of the reasons for dis-harmony is Mankind has forgotten his place on the planet. His place being a part of the whole. One who gives as much as receives.

The Earth understands that Her gifts are here for all of us, She also understands that our gifts are or should be for her. Her gifts to us are obvious: the air we breath, the ground we walk upon, the water we drink, the plants and animals that sustain us. As I mention in the article about Thanks, I have never come across a Religion or Culture that didn't have some form of Thanksgiving. How we do this is as individual as we each seek out and define Divinity.?

The important thing is we remember to give it. To remember not to take Nature for granted or to think that as a human you have it all coming to you with no need to return. This concept would be unacceptable in most neighborhoods throughout the world: it is equally unacceptable with our relationship to Nature/Mother Earth/The Goddess/God how ever you perceive the ultimate Divine.

Eventually we all return to The Earth. That is our final gift. But in the mean time we are taking a lot and we should remember to at least give Thanks in what ever form feels comfortable to you.

Harvesting:

I always let The Garden Devas know ahead of time before I plant on doing anything, at least the night before or sometimes early morning I will sit and see how my plans are received. Sometimes I am told not to do anything, including Harvest. Other times I am guided to a plant that I should take at that time.

If I receive a positive response then I sit with the individual plant(s) a while. When I feel that I am in tuned and my activities are understood and excepted then I begin to harvest.

Here are some rules of thumb: