I’ve always wanted a little mystical, magical power. Bewitched was my favorite TV show. I would get all my homework done so I could watch it. Yes, I did hate Darin. But I so wanted to be like Samantha and twitch my nose — play a few tricks.

I have collected a lot of nature over the years and saved them in apothecary bottles. I have bottles from 30 years ago — glass jars of dried acacia leaves from the tree outside our first apartment, glass jars of herbs, essence, oils, and extracts, sea shells, rose petals, a peacock feather. I like to make my own body butters.

I never did get a jar filled with eye of neut though. Those cabinets in the Chinese herb shops, with little drawers that pull out, filled with magical herbs — I am envious of owning one of those. And yes, I do take herbs–schisandra, astragalus, echinacea.

 

When I was in sixth grade (1967),  I had built a fort-like apothecary under the terrace at our home. It was dark, made of wood, had a door, and I had my uncle put a long board up to make a shelf. I collected a lot of bottles and filled them with household items, to look like Dr. Bombay’s “drug store”. My friend and accomplice,  Mary Lee,  and I got into trouble for taking her mom’s spices to add to our collection. My neighbor, Greg MacDonald ventured in there once, I think. I’m pretty sure we tried to get him to take some herbal potion.

 

Mary Lee contributed some licorice root, which was my favorite. They were actual roots  —  like I had dug them up from the garden. We chewed it.  (There is some medicinal use for that, though I did not know at the time.)
Licorice-root

We mixed up some brew in my dad’s old dilapidated wheel barrow and poured it into gallon-sized glass milk bottles. It was a strange decoction. I guess I lost interest, because I left those bottles brewing and bubbling for some time, until my dad found them and kicked them over. They were filled with a fermenting pinkish brew.

Maybe I missed my calling — making beer.

 

Mary Lee, Elaine, and I are standing on the terrace, but by this age, I had abandoned my under the terrace apothecary.
Above the Terrace