Greetings from the Midwest! Where the fields and roadsides have given way to gold, and thick air smells of thick water, full of humming. I’ve been quiet as I’ve traveled around my home state of Wisconsin, not knowing quite what to say, no need to say much of anything, anyways.

Yesterday I sat beneath a Mulberry tree and tried not to stain my pants with the purple bruise of the berries. My dog and I were in a tall grass prairie of Goldenrod and Elecampane, Echinacea blooms and Blue Vervain gone to seed, the green pods of Milkweed, and dry Monarda, baking in the midday sun. The occasional Yarrow, the less than occasional Queen Anne’s Lace, and a Plantain pillow for every step and seat. In the woods we found Motherwort and Elder, berries ripening a deep shade of blue. From a small bluff we watched as a massive turtle swam just below the surface of the lake, then disappeared.

Like the air, there is a thickness to late summer that falls heavily on the mind and body. Words are hard to come by amidst the constant drone of cicadas by day, crickets by night. Movement is slow, like swimming. The season, like the Elder, has ripened into something sweet and tart, and in it’s fullness must be plucked from the bush lest it join it’s bushmates, rotting on the ground.

Do you ever feel as though your spirit is flung beyond your body, out into the places you know and love, where it moves around, almost violently, ricocheting from plant to stone to lake to tree, until it gathers itself together again, pummeling into the center of your chest, causing you to gasp and lose your breath?

That’s a bit how being home has felt.

But lucky for us, if we wait long enough, the breath returns, the body softens, and the air settles like dust on the skin.

With love,

Clare

ps- please read on for an exciting announcement!

That “back to school” feeling never goes away.

We’re steadily approaching my favorite time of the year: the slow turn of the wheel towards autumn that will soon give way to the quick rush of fall and descent into winter; when the world fades from green to gold to brown, from thick to thin to brittle, from humming to rustling to rasping.

As summer winds down, you (like me) may be feeling called to reorganize and refocus your time and energy. Personally, I’m looking forward to longer days in the apothecary working with clients, making medicine, recording astrology readings, and writing to you.

There are several changes on the horizon for Winter’s Sister Herbals but I’m not quite ready to share them. In the meantime, I’d like to tell you about a new offering launching in September.

Introducing. . .

13 Moons: Mini Astrology Readings for the Full Moon

Good astrology is non-prescriptive: each sign and planet simply describes a blueprint of possibility, but the way they manifest varies greatly from person to person. Every single one of us has a unique personal birth chart that tells us how the signs of the zodiac and the planets of our solar system were in relationship to one another the exact moment we were born. This chart can provide us with profound insight into certain aspects of our personalities, our needs, our inherent strengths, challenges we may face throughout our lives, and other ongoing patterns we experience. When used as tool of self-understanding and mythopoesis, astrology provides valuable nuance, meaning, and depth to life’s unfolding.

As the sun, moon, and planets move through space in real time, they activate different aspects of our birth chart. Because of this, each one of us will experience a full moon differently. Depending on our chart, some full moons may feel like nothing, while the following full moon might feel incredibly profound.

Starting the week of September 13th (the week of the full moon in Pisces), I’m excited to begin offering mini astrology readings that focus on the full moon. These readings are intended to be accessible, fun, easy, and meaningful. You’ll simply send me $13 along with your birth information, and I’ll send you a 20-30 minute recording all about you, your birth chart, and the unique way(s) in which the full moon is impacting your life.

Why focus on the full moon?

The sun and moon are the two main luminaries of our sky, and in astrology, are the two most personal “planets” (one is a star, the other is a satellite). The sun describes our outward personality and the moon describes our inner emotional landscape. When the moon is directly across from the sun in the sky and fully illuminated by it, we have the powerful opportunity to explore the polarity of our inner and outward experience–things that might otherwise remain hidden are brought to the surface to be worked with, nourished, explored, or let go. And who doesn’t feel just a bit more wild and alive the night of the full moon?!

Stay tuned, more details to come!

Working intentionally with herbs and food is an embodied way to move with the rhythm of the seasons, focus your energy, and fortify your health as we transition towards fall.

Curious what it’s like to work one-on-one with a clinical herbalist and nutritionist? Read about my approach to clinical herbalism here.

*Please Note: Statements made in this email have not been evaluated by the FDA. Products offered by this company are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent any illness or condition. Seek expert advice before using herbs during pregnancy, while trying to conceive or nursing, or alongside pharmaceutical use. The information provided by this website or this company is not a substitute for a face-to-face consultation with you physician, and should not be construed as individual medical advice.