Image:sxc.hu

Then he opened his fingers and dropped into my hand three dandelion heads.  I knew from his grin, he thought he was giving me a treasure.  This reminded me of the dandelion bouquets my brother picked for my mom.

Brother was the kindergartner’s age or younger.  He’d roam around the large front yard of our farmhouse during dandelion season in spring.  Then he’d bring Mother a bouquet…a mass of golden dandelion heads.  No stems, just the heads.

Mother poured water into a cereal bowl and placed the heads there.  Once I asked her, “Why do you keep them?”  (I was only five years older, but thought I had the wisdom of more years.)

“Because they’re a special gift he picked for me,” Mother replied. 

I remembered this over the years, when my daughter brought me dandelion heads, as did my two grandchildren…and now the kindergartner.

What special floral gifts do your children bring to you?  Treasure them and tuck them away in your memories.

Post from: Blisstree

Dandelion Treasures from a Child

Turn this nuisance into dinner!

Ok, maybe not. But my father’s wife Anni did. No kidding. A couple weeks ago they were in town and Anni asks me if I was going to use my dandelions. Really, it looked like we had a garden of them out there. (And it dawned on me our fruitful supply was likely due to Truman’s love of plucking them when they spout their fuzzy spherical heads and blowing the seeds about.) Anni said she wanted to pick them and I told her to have at it. Maybe, while she was out there she could pluck some crab grass and whatever other weeds were out there keeping company with the dandelions. Maybe she could mow and edge, too.

She plucked a generous amount – it was the leaves she was after – enough to fill a plastic shopping bag. She said it would make a nice side dish to their dinner that night. This is what I love about Anni. She isn’t afraid to try her hand at any dish. And she is a brilliant cook. She grew up on a farm in Germany and has an understanding of food that fascinates me. She tells us how as a kid her family would grow their own vegetables and render every ounce of a pig for months’ worth of meals. The original Slow Food, right? My father says the animals would live under their house in the winter to keep warm – which he said, in turn, would keep the family’s house warm. I’m not sure how much of the latter part of that statement is true, but it sure is fun to hear my father’s elaborations as if he were right there living with the livestock.

Dad and Anni said the Homewood, Alabama-dandelion mashed potatoes were fabulous. (Official name – Green Potatoes From Liguria.) Really, I’m looking at the Mark Bittman video and I’m thinking I might just try it myself. Rick’s game and Truman will try just about anything we put in front of him. It could be our salute to Earth Day later this month. (April 22.) Want to give it a try, too? What? Don’t have dandelions in your yard? I’d be happy to send you some, or no-freaking-sheet, you can buy them on E-bay!

Check out the recipe here:

Mark Bittman’s Green Potatoes from Liguria (New York Times)

(photo, Flickr, q8)

Post from: Blisstree

Eat Weeds for Earth Day!

Let’s glance back at some of the topics I covered this week here at Mental Health Notes. I shared pictures during Sunday’s Brain Break, mused on the mental health repercussions for the FLDS religious sect children, explained why being kind to the earth (and not just on Earth Day!) was good for our minds, offered tips on how to nurture your mental health after a cancer diagnosis, honored National Poetry Month by recognizing famous poets with mental illness, and reminded you ALL that This Is Why I ROCK! is still accepting entries.

What are some of the big mental health advocacy groups up to lately? Well, Mental Health America is “calling on presidential candidates to emphasize mental health in [their] health policy plans,” as well as urging the rest of us to contact our senators about cosponsoring two bills to block harmful Medicaid regulations.

Want to know what’s going on in the world of scientific-, research-, and government-related mental health news? According to an independent study by RAND Corp., about half of the 300,000 American troops returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan with mental health problems are receiving treatment, while 320,000 American troops have sustained brain injuries. The Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) in Rock County, Wisconsin is looking for new ways to address the issue of folks who are arrested and sent into the criminal justice system. Dr. Michael J. Rivkin of Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston led a study that suggests mothers who drink, smoke, or use other drugs during pregnancy put their babies at risk for being born with smaller brains.

And finally, what’s going on around the rest of the b5media Health & Wellness Channel? Well, aside from the fact that we’ve changed our name to the Health & Wellness Channel (remember, it used to be Science & Health Channel?), tons!

Scott over at Health and Men offers up two very important posts for consumers of any gender: First, he gives us tips on how to get the most out of health-related Web sites while still protecting ourselves with The Internet And How It Has Changed Health; then, he highlights a quite in-depth health resource with which many of you may not be familiar in Taking Steps Towards A Healthier Lifestyle With SmallStep.Gov.

Liz over at Alzheimer’s Notes offers up a nice collection of personal stories about Alzheimer’s Disease, while Kristina at Autism Vox lets us know what she thinks of Adam Jasinki, the Big Brother finalist who called autistic children “retards” (why haven’t I given this punk an A.S.S Award yet?!).

Laura at Baldiness reminds teenagers that managing stress and learning to chill out can help prevent hair loss, and Elaine at Genetics & Health tells us about the connection between doggy DNA and human psychiatric problems.

Ruth at Eating Fabulous points out the importance of Vitamin D regarding brain function, and Liberty over at Healthbolt explains how dandelions can help relieve stress.

That’s all for this week! As always, if you have any Saturday Sanity-worthy news to share, send it my way!

Image sources and credits here, here, and here.

Post from: Blisstree

Saturday Sanity: Gathers No Moss