And then I happened on sweet basil. Not because I had read in advance that it would be so beneficial to me but rather because it was growing out of control in my garden here in Florida.
I put it in every single thing possible in cooking to the point that I was like 'Uh a little heavy on the basil, girl' and then 'Ugh not basil AGAIN!'. I just felt SO bad letting it go to waste. Even drying it made me feel bad because those succulent, fragrant leaves just seemed to be bursting with Something really, really good. I just didn't know what.
And then I stumbled on an article that described the medicinal benefits of basil and I read that modern NSAID anti-inflammatories were designed to block the same pain pathways as - you guessed it - basil.
While I have it fresh I am chewing on the leaves. I've also made a tincture out if dried basil and vodka and an essential oil base if basil and extra virgin olive oil.
The tincture is taken orally - a teaspoon under the tongue every few hours and the oil is massaged into the painful area on the skin.
I will continue to dry my abundant basil harvest while the Florida weather makes me look like an expert in growing basil in my Back To Eden/Biochar garden. If you check out this lengthy article you will see that I am a basil novice in every sense of the word and that I have many personal discoveries with basil yet to come. http://humaneliving.wordpress.com/2013/05/01/basking-in-the-glory-of-basil/
