Amethyst Touch Holistics

10/07/2025

🌿 Plant of the Month: Camphor 🌿

Introduced from Asia in the late 1800s, camphor trees are now common across Central Florida… so common that they’re officially invasive! 🍃

Crush a leaf and you’ll smell that unmistakable menthol-like aroma that’s made camphor prized for centuries. Birds love its small black fruit (and help it spread), so planting new trees isn’t recommended. But harvesting from existing stands? Totally fair game.

For herbalists, camphor is a fascinating ally: its essential oil has been used to relieve muscle aches, support the respiratory system, and help calm spasms. In Ayurveda, it was burned as incense and used as a natural insect repellent. ⚕️✨

💡 Herbal tip: Camphor can be toxic in large doses, so stick to external applications like salves, steams, and aromatics—and always practice safe identification and preparation.

🌱 Curious to learn more? Head to our website to read the full Camphor plant profile!

10/07/2025

10/02/2025

DESIDERATA

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should. Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

09/29/2025

09/28/2025

Whether you’re foraging in the woods or your own yard, Ohio has an awesome variety of edible plants that are easy to identify and rewarding to harvest.

09/26/2025