accountability

An obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one's actions.

What do you want to be accountable for in your life?

What are the things that you are accountable for that bring you joy?

What did you learn about accountability from your parents?

What are you needing to let go being accountable for?

I no longer pray—

now I drink dark chocolate

and let the moon sing to me.

I no longer pray—

I let my ancestors dance

through my hips

at the slightest provocation.

I no longer pray—

I go to the river

and howl my ancient pain

into the current.

I no longer pray—

I ache, I desire,

I say “yes” to my longing.

I no longer pray as I was taught

but as the stars crawl

onto my lap like soft animals at nighttime

and God tucks my hair behind my ears

with the gentle fingers of her wind

and a new intimacy is uncovered in everything,

perhaps it's that I’m finally learning

how to pray.

Chelan Harkin

Notes Rose hips

by ANA

Rosehips are the red and orange berry-like flowers that grow on rose bushes.

Wild rose flowers bloom in the spring and summer, while rose hips begin to appear in early autumn and throughout the winter. Generally, the best time to harvest them is after the first frost

We’re conditioned to want everything to look perfect, especially when we want to consume it, but with rosehips, they’re best when they’re a little wrinkly and somewhat darker. That’s when they’ll have their full beneficial powers

The cold tells her to put the last of her power into her hips in hopes to cultivate a new plant

If you harvest at the right time, the Vitamin C content nearly triples!

Compared to one orange, which has ~50mg of Vitamin C, one cup of rosehips has ~540 milligrams!

Beyond Vitamin C, partially because of it, rosehips is super helpful in resolving inflammation, especially in joints.

She is super high in antioxidants and therefor a powerful immune system support

She supports mucous membranes in the gut, which helps support regular bowel movements

She’s a mild diuretic, which means you’ll pee more when you consume her, but this can help support kidney function and cleaning the lymphatic system

And topically, due to her high vitamin c content, she helps tighten, tone and stimulate collagen production

You can consume rosehips by drying and making a tea infusion, tincture or syrup, such as home-made cough syrup or oxymel

You can also infuse her in the your oil of choice to make an oil for your skin. I like using this as a base and I usually like kukui nut or almond oils

If you have your own rose bushes, just remember that hips will only form where the flower was, so don’t cut off the flowers if you want rose hips.