Of herbs.

The way the day started off for me is quite unusual: My uncle giving me an unexpected call telling me he wanted me to get some herbs for my sister and cousin who happened to have fallen sick at the same time and are now living with him. He's an old man, the traditional kind. To him, no matter the advancement of orthodox medicine in the future, it can never wipe away the great significance of traditional drugs. I agree with him on this one although I kinda have a problem with him when he opts for traditional drugs when the sickness could be easily cured with some tablets.

Okay so, he called me this morning about getting some herbs which include Neem leaves, mango leaves and lemon grass. These herbs can be found near a construction site in our area so I set out after doing some chores and got to the site after a short while. They've got guards there who look over the whole place, I sought their permission and set to work. I had difficulty procuring mango leaves because of how tall the tree had grown and there were no drooping leaves which I could pluck. With their help I finally succeeded in getting all the required leaves and I set off home, then transported myself to his house.

These took me quite some time to acquire. The trees are so dusty, so were the leaves. I thank God that I hadn't taken my bath before the call otherwise I would have to postpone it or riun my afterbath sparkle. I looked so dusty after the whole thing.

Normally, this is something a guy should do but ever since I went voluntarily with my brothers to one of the herbs hunting spree, I plucked better looking leaves than them. I was praised of course and my ego was massaged. I was still a little girl at that time. Ever since then it became my task. 😂😂

This is how he prepares it:

-He washes the leaves in a big bowl, making sure that the dusts and sands are off. He puts them in a big pot, depending on the volume he wants to cook.

-He then washes moringa leaves bought from the market(we don't have the trees around otherwise I am sure I would be the one to pluck them), mixing it with the Neem, mango and lemon grass leaves in the pot.

-Water is then applied adequately and this is then cooked on the stove or gas.

-After about thirty to forty minutes, when the leaves extracts have all boiled out and is well cooked, the pot is brought down and the mixture is left to cool.

There you go!

Do you know that I dislike the medicine despite being the one to pluck the leaves? It has a taste which is a mixture of bitter, sour and a kind of lingering taste that I have no words for, note that "sweet" is not part of it lol.

Whenever he succeeded in cajoling me into taking it I gulp it all at once to avoid savouring the taste. I am quite sure it has a lot of health benefits because of the leaves involved. Moringa on its own is something else.

What do you think about herbal medicines? In Nigeria, they have recognition not only within the locals but also in our hospitals. In our teaching hospital, there's even a department for herbal medicine where you find herbal medical prsctituonals . This is to acknowledge that sometimes herbal medicines can succeed where allopathic medicine fails. Indeed! God never creates an illness except that he creates the cure of that illness first. It is up to us to discover it.

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Today is world water day!

Celebrating the importance of water in our lives.

_#worldwaterday_

*Tips on drinking water. *

💧Carry a water bottle with you and refill it throughout the day.

💧Freeze some freezer safe water bottles. ...

💧Choose water over sugary drinks.

💧Opt for water when eating out. ...

💧Serve water during meals.

💧Add a wedge of lime or lemon to your water. ...

💧Make sure your kids are getting enough water too.

_Please rebroadcast to your respective MSAs, WhatsApp statuses, group chats_ e.t.c

Thank you🧡

SCOPH-BUMSA.

Yours Layly,

💛💛💛💛💛💛