Over the past few years my life has taken some rather dramatic turns.  I’ve learned things about the way the world works that I never would have imagined.  My eyes of pure optimism have been shown depths of dark murky truths, hatred and greed.  I’ve been on a roller coaster of emotion, with seeds of my true nature peeking through moments of despair to remind me – this can all work out – this can all become just the bumps on the path to an amazing future.  Consequently, I’ve been walking a fine line.  Knowing that broadened awareness is the key to turning things around, but simultaneously not wanting to engage the fear and despair that I have experienced, within others.  As the extent of the deception continued to be revealed, I was intimately connected to days of grief and feeling powerless like never before.

Food had become almost an obsession as I worked diligently to protect my family from all the evils of genetically engineered (GE) crops, yet the harder I tried to avoid them, the more pervasive they seemed.  They were turning up everywhere; in the carefully selected items from the health food store, the feed from some of the local farms where we had been so proudly purchasing our meats and eggs, even raw milk wasn’t necessarily immune.  I started to feel defeated.  If I couldn’t avoid gmo’s how could I, in good conscience, go out and tell others to avoid them?  I even started to feel poisoned.  I began to think back to a prior idea that had plagued me.  I’m always on the look out for people handling life situations better than me, so I can learn from them and implement any tools that I deem beneficial to my situation.  One faction of people who I had taken note of along the way were those who were extremely selective when it came to food, I had failed to jump on board during many prior exchanges with them, because along with their improvements in some areas I had also noticed an increased sensitivity to those foods that they deemed ‘bad’.  I perceived that as a weakness.  Now, even after all my great successes through food with my health and happiness, I’d found myself in the same place.  Some minor food indulgence that at one time would have been no big deal now fraught me with an extreme physical (and inevitably emotional) response, but why?  Had I become more susceptible to the potential harm of these foods?  And if that was the case, was this a better situation?  My mind spun and twisted about trying to find the meaning and purpose of this whole journey.

It was just as I was digesting this food for thought that I was re-acquainted with one of my favorite areas of scientific study: epigenetics.  I was first introduced to this ‘new biology’ at a conference in Boston where Dr. Bruce Lipton was speaking about Epigenetic Control.  After being completely captivated by his presentation, I immediately bought his book ‘Biology of Belief’.  His theories enthralled me at the time, but as the years had passed the imprint had begun to diminish from my psyche.  When I began to remember all the possibilities that came to light through my understanding of epigenetic control, I was filled back up with personal power.  The basis of his work is that our genes do not have omnipotent control over our lives and traits, as we were taught in school, but instead it is our mind that tells each of our genes to either function or be turned off.  Dr. Lipton recounts data showing that anywhere between 33 and 66% of all healing can be attributed to the placebo effect.  A potent fact that displays the capacity of the mind in health and healing.  (A fact that is often glazed over by the medical profession. Why would medical professionals ignore such powerful information?  It’s not in the financial interest of the pharmaceutical industry which currently runs the medical community.)

So, what does epigenetic control and placebo effect have to do with eating gmo foods?  Well, I realized that I had fallen out of balance when it came to food; and remembering the power of the mind brought me right back to my center.  Now I could value the information I had gained about food and work toward improvement both at home and out in the world, but I could also shed the fear and the guilt – those aspects that were not serving me positively.  I again began recognizing that my mind has the ultimate say on how my body responds to any stimuli or situation.  This is not to be confused with simply enacting positive thinking, because as Dr. Lipton expanded on, it is the subconscious mind that is in the drivers seat 95% of the time.  A subconscious mind that was programmed through it’s environment, from conception until about the age of six.  These are deeply ingrained beliefs, that operate most often without our conscious knowledge and can profoundly affect our perceptions of any circumstance.  Where does this leave us?  Usually with a driver headed in a direction that may or may not be in direct opposition to your conscious desires.  Five percent of the time saying, ‘hey this is what I want’ and then banging our head against a wall two weeks later when we ended up in a divergent situation.  With this new-found integration, along with some tools to correct limiting beliefs held in the subconscious, I was able to function and be happy with my progress without having to be perfect in every moment.

So why am I sharing all this with you?  Because I want you to be empowered and I want us to fix this planet together.  It can happen and it will happen, the speed of which will be determined mainly by the number of human beings that are willing to participate.

Here are some ways you can work on fixing your subconscious belief patterns, helping you to stay positive in uncertain times:

1. Meditation

2. Hypnosis

3. Emotional Freedom Technique

4. Consciously Connected Breathing/Rebirthing Breathwork

Here are some ways we can help clean up the food system:

1. Buying locally (decrease the use of fossil fuels)

2. Buying organic or cultivated without chemicals (decrease the use of pesticides)

3. Recognize the differences between the terms “local”, “organic”, “biodynamic”, “raw” & “non-gmo” – they are not synonyms, though each have their benefits.

4. Be willing to pay more to a farmer who is going the extra mile – that is what makes it possible for them.  (we can pay now and feel good about our contribution or we can pay later, through medical expenses, tax money for subsidizing gmo crops or for environmental cleanup that will inevitably be required down the line)

5. Get involved in sub-presidential politics and elections.  (change needs to start from the bottom up – elect officials that share a feeling of urgency with these topics)

This is a fantastic movie.  Absolutely amazing and, life changing really.  A glimpse into the real control we have over our lives.

Think about the implications if we use this knowledge to improve the lives of living things on our planet.  Think about how simply you can begin to affect change in your life just by utilizing the power of positive energy recorded in water.

All water is not equal – ever wonder why your pets would rather drink rain water from a filthy puddle than a nice clean bowl of tap water?  They can sense the innately beneficial qualities of living water.  Even if you’re not ready to make the full switch to spring or well water, how about taking a moment to energize the water you are about to drink with positive thought.

The experiments have been successfully conducted by reputable scientists – they are repeatable.

Love & Gratitude…

Water – The Great Mystery from Ritchy Niburu on Vimeo.

Nothing in the world

is as soft and yielding as water.

Yet for dissolving the hard and invlexible,

nothing can surpass it.

The soft overcomes the hard;

the gentle overcomes the rigid.

Everyone knows this is true,

but few can put it into practice.

Therefore the Master remains

serene in the midst of sorrow.

Evil cannot enter into his heart.

Because he has given up helping,

he is people’s greatest help.

True words seem paradoxical.

- Lao Tzu

My husband took the kids to the store last night to get some groceries.  He’s pretty amazing, and brave to take a 1, 3 AND 5 year old by himself.  Anyhow, we were out of salt so he grabbed some.  We’re usually very careful about checking ingredients, but when you’ve got all three kids by yourself – all bets are off.  Besides it’s sea salt right?  Why would you add anything to it?  Apparently, if it is a packaged food product, we have found a way to contaminate it.  The specific product is Balenine Fine Crystals.  Ingredients:  Sea Salt, Magnesium Oxide and Yellow Prussiate of Soda.  A quick look at the MSDS for Yellow Prussiate told us this:

Potential Acute Health Effects:  Extremely hazardous in case of ingestion. Hazardous in case of skin contact (irritant), of eye contact (irritant), of inhalation.

Potential Chronic Health Effects:  Extremely hazardous in case of ingestion. Hazardous in case of skin contact (irritant), of eye contact (irritant), of inhalation.  CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. MUTAGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. TERATOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available.  DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY: Not available. The substance is toxic to blood, lungs, mucous membranes. Repeated or prolonged exposure to the substance can produce target organs damage.

Section 4: First Aid Measures

Eye Contact:  Check for and remove any contact lenses. Immediately flush eyes with running water for at least 15 minutes, keeping eyelids open. Cold water may be used. Do not use an eye ointment. Seek medical attention.

Skin Contact:  After contact with skin, wash immediately with plenty of water. Gently and thoroughly wash the contaminated skin with running water and non-abrasive soap. Be particularly careful to clean folds, crevices, creases and groin. Cold water may be used.  Cover the irritated skin with an emollient. If irritation persists, seek medical attention.

Serious Skin Contact:  Wash with a disinfectant soap and cover the contaminated skin with an anti-bacterial cream. Seek medical attention.

Inhalation: Allow the victim to rest in a well ventilated area. Seek immediate medical attention.

Serious Inhalation: Not available.

Ingestion:  Do not induce vomiting. Loosen tight clothing such as a collar, tie, belt or waistband. If the victim is not breathing, perform
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Seek immediate medical attention.

Serious Ingestion: Not available.

Uh, yeah, we’re gonna take it back.

I have to begin by admitting to being a former sugar addict.  Never having dealt with weight issues, I felt I had a free pass to eat as much sugar as I wanted, whenever I wanted.  I consumed sugar daily and more often than not, all day long in some form or another.  Dessert was a must.  A full package of cookies in a sitting was no big deal.  I wasn’t consciously aware of any guilt. I thought I was a healthy person.  I was fit, I was active and I ate what I thought was a pretty healthy diet, besides the sugar of course.  Luckily, my body finally gave me a reason to look deeper into how I had been treating it.  A lot of things have changed for me now, my life has improved dramatically and I owe most of this to what I have learned about sugar.

Sugar, it’s seemingly sweet and simple, but this kitchen staple has a dark side.  Besides fake (chemical & genetically altered) and cruel (factory farms) food, this is one of the most damaging ingredients you can consume.  I could go into depth on the ways sugar harms the body and mind, but Vin Miller at Natural Bias has already written an excellent and thorough article on the topic here, which I highly recommend.

With a history steeped in unconscionable crimes against humanity and the environment along with a present day ‘Big Sugar’ lobby in Washington, sugar has more than it’s fair share of injustices.  Sugar has it’s roots in slavery and today still relies heavily on indentured servants.  One example of the grave mistreatment of human beings in the cultivation of sugar are the Bateyes (sugar workers’ towns) in the Dominican Republic.  Haitians are often bribed to take ‘jobs’ with the promise of a better life for their families.  They are trucked into the DR and then after confiscating their documentation (so they have little means for escape) are forced to live in police states.  They are expected to work 12 hours of hard labor each day for the average pay of two dollars…per day.  The work is some of the most labor intensive still performed by humans today and the conditions are harsh.  With extreme temperatures, clouds of dust and working mostly with machetes and bare hands, illness and injury runs rampant.  The workers have no access to medical care and very limited access to food.  Families are forced to purchase food from the stores erected in the bateyes at costs double and triple that of what is available in local towns.  Families caught growing their own food have their gardens destroyed, forcing many to go hungry or subsist chewing on canes of sugar.  You can imagine the damage this causes for their bodies and teeth, especially in growing children.

Everglades and Turner River by Chauncey Davis

Environmental damage is of great concern, especially here in the US where the ecologically important Florida Everglades is being destroyed by sugar farms.  Efforts to protect the environment and place taxes on sugar production have been futile as the Big Sugar lobbies hold huge power in government.  Two years ago the governor of Florida proposed a $1.75 Billion deal to buy out the 180,000 acres of Everglades land currently owned by the sugar elite, however this deal has been dramatically scaled back during negotiations.  Just last week the state voted in favor of a plan to purchase 27,000 acres for $1.97 Million.  Even though it sounds like a small victory, it is US Sugar who benefits the most from this deal.  The acreage is made up of six disconnected parcels, much of which has been devastated by plant disease and toxic chemicals such as DDT and arsenic.  US Sugar let go of some unusable and contaminated land and gets paid far above current market value.  The Everglades are in a critical state and this purchase has actually stopped the restoration work that was in process as available funding will now be appropriated to the sale.

Seek out healthy substitutes for sugar.  Cutting out sugar doesn’t mean never having a sweet again, once you re-balance your tastes a little sweetness goes a long way and it can be achieved through more natural and nutrient rich sources such as dates, honey, stevia, molasses, coconut sugar or maple syrup.  It is time for us to cultivate awareness and take action.  We need to inform ourselves because, currently, there is a carefully placed veil between us and the most basic things in our lives.  Information is readily available on most every topic, most times at the touch of a button.  Question, explore and find more meaningful ways to find joy than the fleeting euphoria of a sugar high.

Over the past several months my eyes have opened to the carefully crafted lies we’ve all bought into about our food, our water, our consumerism, our energy consumption and our ‘health’ system. Our entire culture has been brainwashed over decades by a system based on greed and suppression.  For a time, we didn’t even notice it was happening.  However, now the math is beginning to sneak into our psyches.  The calculations have been running quietly in the backgrounds of our minds, beginning to make us uneasy, even when we didn’t consciously know why.  The stuff from which our stuff is made is running out.  The soil is dying, we’re running out of forests, we’ve devastated the landscape and destroyed the water.  All of this ecology is also habitat and the life within each has been direly impacted.  The bottom line is, it’s bad, it’s really bad.  There is a reason that we are looking for sustainable answers to today’s problems, because the way we have been living is not. By definition our UN-sustainable lives, practices and energy sources [oil] are seeing their limits and, it seems, they’re just beyond the horizon.  The sun is about to set on this illusion and we are running out of daylight.

Waking up to all of this knowledge, seems overwhelming.  We feel powerless and we want to put our blinders back on.  We stare straight ahead, afraid of what else we may uncover if we begin to believe the editorials of the horrible crimes that have been perpetrated against us.  We lose hope knowing that in turn, we perpetrated horrible crimes against other cultures, innocent beings and the earth through our support of this system.  I am guilty.  It feels bad and I’m sorry, but instead of dwelling there, I want to fix it.  This is an opportunity.

I am ready to do what it takes to end this war on life.  It doesn’t have to be a difficult process.  We can have grand plans about a perfect system that seems impossible to employ, but it can be much easier than that.  We can worry individually about the things that we don’t want to do and the skills that we don’t have, but when it boils down to it if we embrace unlimited compassion within our hearts and let our egos dissolve, the world will begin to right itself.  By this I certainly don’t mean we all sit around with our fingers crossed waiting for some magic fairy to come, wave her wand and restore everything.  When we begin to rebuild from a foundation of love, things have a way coming together.  It means we all do the things we LOVE and we commit to them.  It means we put forth honest effort.  Instead of slackly doing something you dislike for someone you don’t respect (which will inevitably wrap you in a downward spiral of discontent), figure out what you love, stop worrying about money and just do it.  Do it morning and night, with passion, for days until the brilliant ideas start forming in your head.  Don’t be scared along the way by what the television says, or by what the billboard says or even by what your friend or relative says.  Just keep moving steadily forward.  Trust yourself and listen intently for your intuition.  Don’t be easily discouraged and maintain flexibility.  One of my favorite pieces of advice from the Dalai Lama is this:

Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

Instead of immediately complaining about how you didn’t get what you wanted, be open to the possibility that this is the best thing that could have happened.  This could be clearing a path to an amazing future.  Let go of your grasp on how things should have been and unlock your potential for progress.  Be honest and loving with others and you’ll no longer have to worry about others’ being honest and loving with you.  Drop your ego and it won’t matter what anyone else thinks of you.  You become free.  When you become free, you become happy.  When you become happy you become more productive, more creative and more resourceful.  We are beautiful spirits, capable of amazing things, all we need to do is trust ourselves.

Here are some important changes to make in your life (if you haven’t already) that can make this transition flow more smoothly:

• Look behind the scenes to see where things are originating and the processes that created them.
• Eat nutritious foods; source (non-genetically modified (GMO), no pesticide) whole foods from real people.  Talk to the farmer about how the food was grown.  Eat healthy saturated fats like coconut oil and/or grassfed butter & raw milk and avoid unhealthy vegetable, canola and hydrogenated oils.  Taste the difference and feel the changes in your body.  GMO foods do not have to be labeled.  If it’s in the grocery store, has corn or soy in it and it isn’t labeled ‘organic’ or ‘non-gmo’ then it’s a pretty sure bet that it is gmo.
• Cut as far back on sugar as possible.  This is easiest to do by eliminating all sugar (including most fruit) for at least a week.  Then stay away from all processed sugars including (GMO) high-fructose corn syrup as much a possible.
• Seek out clean water.  When fluoride is artificially added to our drinking water it is a toxic poison.  It is not helping our teeth and even if it were, topical applications would cover us – we shouldn’t be drinking it and bathing in it on a daily basis.  Harvest spring water from a local spring (check out www.findaspring.com to see if there is a spring listed near you, even if there isn’t that doesn’t mean you don’t have one locally).  Install a Reverse Osmosis filter or if well water is clean and available switch over.
• Enjoy the outdoors, take a little time each day to appreciate all the beauty and wonder that nature has to offer.
• Make more connections with people.  This can be as simple as striking up a conversation with the guy standing next to you in line.
• Limit mass consumerism to the best of your ability.  Fill the void with love instead.  When you are about to buy something ask yourself if it is really something that you want or need and how long it is going to be of use to you.  When you do shop seek out local, independent retailers.  If you need a gift for someone else consider lessons or classes, purchase them rights to a streaming movie from amazon, some used books you know they’ll love or buy or make something handcrafted  & from the heart.
• Avoid chemicals whenever possible.  Read the ingredients on everything and research alternatives.  A simple example of an eco-friendly alternative to the toxic soaps we use in the shower – try a local soap from a farmers market or Dr. Bronner’s available at many natural food stores.

virgin organic coconut oil
lots of garlic
celery
carrots
squash
zucchini
sea (Himalayan or other quality) salt
pepper
spring water (or well or reverse osmosis)
grass-fed butter (raw is a plus!)
sprouted beans (I sprouted garbanzos)
tomato

clean & rough chop veggies. saute celery, carrots, garlic in about 5T coconut oil, pile squash on top to steam a bit. fill pot with spring water. salt & pepper like wild. add about 3T butter and the sprouted beans cook until beans and squash begin to soften. taste, adjust salt, pepper, water ratio. serve hot or cold with fresh slices of tomato on top (delicious if the soup has good salt balance)

optional: most everything, get crazy

About 4 weeks ago I embarked on a new journey in my life.  Never having been on a diet before, my husband and I were looking for one that we could use to quickly shed a few pounds before walking in the Re-Vamp Fashion Show.  After a couple days of research we finally decided on the anti-candida diet.  If I was going to make this sacrifice and actually deny myself certain foods, I wanted it to be the most beneficial for our health at the same time.

I have done a lot of research on candida overgrowth over the past 4 weeks and it has been really enlightening.  It has sent me on a completely different path nutritionally and I have changed my family’s diet in many ways for life.  The best resource I have found for info is The Whole Approach .  I personally did not buy any of the supplements that they sell on the website, however, I am taking a high quality probiotic and rotating using oil of oregano, coconut oil, grapefruit seed extract, garlic and pau d’arco tea to fight the candida.  These are all available at natural food stores.

The gist of the diet is you want to re-balance your digestive flora (which takes time) by starving the candida (an opportunistic naturally occurring yeast that is normally a part of digestion).  Nearly 80% of the population suffer from an overgrowth due to widely prescribed antibiotics, birth controls and the Standard American Diet (SAD).  Within this population, range dozens of related health problems including allergies to environmental stimuli and food, behavioral disorders, learning disabilities, sinus and bronchial infections, skin conditions, digestive problems, brain fog, indecisiveness, joint pain etc.  In most cases doctors do not recognize candida overgrowth as the disorder and will attempt to treat symptoms only.  I really think that we are in the midst of an epidemic.  The rates of childhood illness, allergies and behavioral disorders is climbing at an alarming rate.  Most people have no idea that the majority of the food they consume is harmful and of little to no nutritional value, especially because of the way it is prepared.

Candida thrive on sugar and simple carbohydrates – so the first phase of the diet is eliminating those almost completely.  No sugars of any kind including fruit, honey and agave (we’ve still been eating a VERY small amount of green apple and berries from time to time), no refined flours or gluten – which means no bread, pasta, ect…  No milk (it has lactose, which is a sugar) and no alcohol.  The first phase is 3 – 4 months and then you move on to add more things back in in the 2nd phase.    The third phase is probably one that we will base more on The Weston Price Foundation and continue for life, after a couple months in this way of eating having some things that aren’t in the diet here or there don’t impact you as negatively as they do when you still have overgrowth, so it is ok at that point.

Another important factor in this new realm of nutrition is knowing where your food is coming from and how it is raised, treated and grown.  I  highly recommend watching Food Inc and Future of Food (this one is free on hulu).  The state of our nations food industry is absolutely appalling and it has really opened my eyes.  I now try to source as much of my food through organic and local sources as possible.  There are many excellent local farms in the area, many organic and even some that are biodynamic.

Chris and I have both lost more than 15lbs (and any trace of cellulite) in the past 4 weeks and it was not by starving ourselves.  It has been through consuming healthy, natural (responsibly produced) fats, such as grassfed raw milk, butter, meats and eggs, eating lots of veggies and preparing everything from scratch (no more packaged foods).  We’ve discovered lots of ways to create the tastes we used to love even within the somewhat strict boundaries of phase one.  In the process I have developed a new love for cooking and am really embracing domestic goddess-hood.

Beyond the weight loss, I have experienced a tremendous increase in energy and clarity, the dark circles under my eyes are diminishing and I’m more driven and optimistic.  I’m looking forward to seeing what other benefits the diet brings me in the future.

The current controversy over the fluoridation of public water supplies doesn’t really leave my thoughts much these days.  This is a practice steeped in deception and elaborate marketing.  Shouldn’t we all have the right to choose whether or not we want to ingest this chemical additive, without having it quietly injected into our drinking water?  A quick check of your local Consumer Confidence Report will show if your town is fluoridating like the majority of towns in the US.  If you currently have fluoridated water here are some simple solutions to get clean drinking water:

• Check out Find a Spring to see if there is a local spring where you can harvest your own spring water.
• Install a reverse osmosis home water filter.
• Install a well if you have clean water at your home or reconnect old wells after testing water.

Whatever the reasons actually are, I think we need to act now to eliminate this practice as soon as possible.  For more information on why you should oppose fluoride in your drinking water check out what these folks have to say here:

10 Fluoride Facts

50 Reasons to Oppose Fluoride in Drinking Water

To find out the levels of Fluoride in your own town’s drinking water call town hall (or go to their website) and ask for a copy of the Consumer Confidence Report.

Building a Green Smoothie

I recently became hooked on green smoothies as a delicious and efficient way to eat raw greens.  Greens provide so many essential nutrients for every part of the body, they can even help to remineralize your teeth and reverse tooth decay.  It hasn’t always been easy to consume the recommended daily amount, especially if you are trying to get your kids to eat them.  Well, it can be easy – enter the Green Smoothie.  When I started making these smoothies for my family life became easier, my children got healthier and I felt good about the level of nutrition my children were getting.

Kai Likes to Push the Button

What is a green smoothie?  A green smoothie is really any frozen blended fruit beverage that you add greens to and no, it isn’t necessarily green in color.  It is also a great place to hide other superfoods like chia. There are hundreds, probably even thousands of combinations out there that you can suit to your own tastes, but I have a very basic recipe that I work from most of the time.

1 c frozen blueberries

1 banana

1 c plain yogurt

1 c fresh or frozen strawberries (mango, peaches, blackberries, raspberries all work great too – don’t be afraid to experiment)

3 hearty handfuls of fresh greens (i often use baby spinach, mesculin greens, kale, it’s best to rotate through your greens so you’re getting a good variety)

1/4 c chia seeds (you can also use flax if you have a powerful blender)

2-3 c orange juice (again here you can mix it up, I sometimes use pomegranate or cranberry, really whatever I have in the house)

The measurements are all approximations as I usually just dump them in and eyeball the amounts.

Ready to Blend

Throw everything into your blender (I swear by this blendtec) blend it up until smooth and you’ve got a megadose of delicious nutrients ready to go.  There is something so satisfying about drinking my smoothies through a straw that makes it almost a requirement – so keep that in mind.

Dried Calendula Flowers

The more I see pharmaceutical companies advertising their latest fad drugs on television the more research I am drawn to doing on herbal and homeopathic treatments.  I am a strong believer in healing yourself from within and think that in the majority of cases, the body has what it needs to heal without any magic pill.  By the same token, if I am miserable due to some acute condition, and there is something that will help me get relief faster, I will take it into consideration.  When there is a natural remedy available the choice is much easier for me as I prefer to leave man-made chemical concoctions as a last resort.  So I would like to offer up the information I have gleaned from my own experience, one herb at a time.

The first herb I want to talk about is calendula.  The flower of the calendula plant can be used for several different applications.  It boasts anti-viral, anti-genotoxic (fights against cell mutations or tumors), antibacterial, immunostimulant (boosting the immune responses) and anti-inflammatory properties. The dried flowers can be prepared in many different ways including as a tincture or a cream, though for my uses I made tea and infusions, by just boiling the flowers in some hot water. I’ve sipped the tea when I was feeling a cold coming on and the infusion I have used for my family to aid in relief of itchy skin. I’ve seen the infusion work almost instantaneously for allergic reactions and it is also highly touted for immediate use on bee stings. I personally feel it is one of the best herbs to have in your natural healing arsenal.

Calendula in My Home Apothecary