Lavender, a friend in ritual

Lavender has been a good friend of mine for a long time. I harvested this adorable little bunch from the gardens in my front yard where it grows.

Lavender brings me soothing and grounding. They teach me to soften and slow down. Every week in my ritual bath lavender essential oil and Epsom salts make up the magic that clears my energy field and helps me release.  

​As one of the plants which guide my business and are part of my plant bouquet logo, lavender reminds me 

to move slowly and to reject the hustle culture that's common in entrepreneurship.

I also often use lavender as an offering, setting it gently down on the ground or in the water with a prayer. I do this as a gesture of gratitude at forests and rivers I know, and also when I am going to a new land or body of water I don't know and wish to introduce myself. Lavender in those moments teaches me humility as I relate to the elements, ancestors and spirits of a place. 

When you bring plants you already have a relationship with into ritual, you are bringing your network of allies and friends with you into ritual work. Ensure the plants you work with are sustainably and ethically grown, harvested and acquired, and preferably from an ecosystem you have lived in. 

So which plants are you already friends with? How do they support your ritual work? How do you in turn nurture the relationship and tend to what the plant needs and requests of you?