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12/7/2025

Happy Herbal Sunday!

As I write this to you, I'm about 35,000 feet in the air, traveling to a business conference after being so blessed to have visited a couple of days with our newest grandson, Liam. He is 10 months old! (And yes! My heart felt like it grew three sizes!)

It was SUCH a great visit. We're trying to figure out how we can do this at least twice a year. It's a long flight, as they're back east, and we're way out west, but it is so very important. Little Liam met his Mimi and Grandpa Joe for the first time. Babies are miracles, aren't they?

But let's talk about a topic that's both important and hurtful that comes up ALL the time in our student communities....

And that topic is, how excited we are about learning herbalism, becoming more "natural" and healthy in the ways we choose to live......

And then?

The disregard, or the jokes, or the (even) anger or snide comments we receive when we mention how helpful medicinal herbs, essential oils, or other natural life types of topics might be directed at us....

Just for wanting to help.

I've learned a thing or two about this, my sweet friend.

Living the Natural Life Without Becoming “That Person”

There’s a quiet kind of courage that comes with choosing to live differently.

It’s one thing to grow your own herbs, blend your own teas, diffuse oils throughout the day, and nourish your family in ways that feel deeply aligned with your values. It’s another thing entirely to carry those same choices into other people’s homes—especially when they don’t share your worldview.

Here's where I need to get honest, and I'll do this with a recent story from our trip.

My son-in-law is a biochemist who works in a professional chemical formulation department. Brilliant mind. Deeply science-driven. And… not exactly a fan of natural health approaches. Not of herbs. Not of essential oils. And definitely not of unsolicited advice from his herbalist mother-in-law.

So I stay quiet.

Not because I’m unsure of what I know.
Not because I don’t trust the plants.
And not because I’ve stopped believing in the work I do.

I stay quiet because relationship matters.

Because I want to be invited back.
Because I want to hold that baby again.
Because trust is built slowly, not forced.

And here’s the beautiful part…

Even without me saying a word—without a single recommendation, suggestion, or “Did you know…”—I started noticing something.

They’re choosing more natural options.

Laundry detergent with no fragrance or colors added.
A few food swaps (Grandma Mimi checked the label).
Other small shifts here and there.

Nothing dramatic. Nothing announced. Just quiet changes happening on their own.

And I smiled to myself and thought,

There’s hope.

Babies in a caring and loving home tend to help make shifts within the family style.....

This is something I want to remind you of today, especially if you want so badly for your loved ones to get on board with your herbal, aromatic, and natural living ways:

👉 You don’t have to convince people to begin influencing them.
👉 You don’t have to argue to be living proof.
👉 You don’t have to preach to plant seeds.

Sometimes the most powerful testimony is simply how you choose to live.

Now, I have to admit: I have given them some tiny tidbits of advice in the past. My stepdaughter has received these gracefully, but I sensed not fully. My son-in-law seemed to take a bit of umbrage. So I backed WAY off.

But when we visited....I noticed.

The Tension of Being "Crunchy" in the Family

If you’ve walked this path for any length of time, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

You’re the one who:

• Reads ingredient labels at family dinners
• Brings your own tea bags, tinctures, and essential oils when you travel
• Skips certain foods without making a fuss

And sometimes… you’re the one who gets the side eyes.

The jokes.
The skepticism.
The raised eyebrows.
The “Is that one of your herbs again?” comments.

It can be lonely. For real. It can really make you feel bad!

It can make you question whether you should just “blend in” for the sake of peace.

And sometimes, to preserve connection, we do choose quiet. That doesn’t make us weak. It makes us wise.

But quiet doesn’t mean inactive.
Quiet doesn’t mean compromising your values.
Quiet doesn’t mean your choices aren’t making an impact.

It just means you’re letting your life do the talking.

Influence Is Rarely Loud

We live in a culture that equates influence with volume.

I really can't stand this, being a rather quiet person myself. After all...how do you compete with noise?

If you’re not posting it…
If you’re not proving it…
If you’re not defending it…
If you’re not explaining it…

Did it even happen? Does it even matter?

But real influence often just whispers.

Real influence shows up when:

• A friend asks what lip balm you’re using because theirs stopped working, and they notice your lips are never chapped.
• A work companion notices you didn’t get sick when everyone else did.
• A visitor asks why your home always smells so peaceful and GOOD.
• A person close to you in (previous) denial of the wonderfulness of medicinal herbs quietly starts making changes without telling you why.

You may never get the credit.
You may never even hear the question.
You may never know which moment tipped the scale.

But plants work this way too, don’t they?

Slow.
Steady.
Invisible at first.
And deeply transformational over time.

For the One Who Feels Dismissed Right Now

Let me speak directly to you for a moment. I've been there. I KNOW that feeling very well. I've experienced it a thousand times or more over the years.

If you’ve ever felt:

• Mocked for your choices
• Dismissed by family
• Undermined by professionals
• Labeled as “too crunchy,” “too extreme,” or “not scientific enough”

You are not alone.

And you are also not wrong for caring about what goes into your body, your home, and your nervous system.

You are not foolish for believing that God designed plants perfectly and with purpose.

You are not naïve for wanting fewer chemicals and more wisdom.

You are not a weirdo because you won’t apologize for living in alliance with your values.

Here's what you ARE:

You are practicing discernment over what is good and bad for you.
You are choosing stewardship over your body and life.
You are walking a quieter kind of strength.

And it takes more courage than people realize.

Gentle Confidence Is a Form of Leadership

You don’t need to dominate conversations to lead.

Sometimes leadership simply looks like:

• Offering remedies only when asked
• Keeping your own peace instead of proving your point
• Letting curiosity grow naturally
• Modeling consistency, not confrontation

I didn’t need to convince my son-in-law that herbs work.

At one point, we ended up talking about skincare formulation, and he admitted to creating a wonderful formula for my stepdaughter for her stretch marks in the lab where he works.

Did he choose my formulation? Or even know about it?

Nope.

But his was a GREAT formulation, nonetheless. I simply said, "GREAT job!" And then I chose to feel joy. Joy that I really believe they will trend more and more natural as they raise this sweet little boy.

The moment will come when the plants introduce themselves better than I ever could.

Until then, I’ll be the calm presence, the safe space to ask, and then become the trusted grandmother.

If You Needed Encouragement Today, Here You Go:

🌿 You are planting seeds even when you can’t see the soil shifting.
🌿 You are influencing even when no one applauds.
🌿 You are creating ripples that move farther than you know.

Not every seed sprouts in front of the gardener.

But it still grows.

If no one has told you lately—I’m so very proud of you.

Learning herbalism, aromatherapy, and natural living can be tough, especially if you're surrounded by naysayers.

Keep on going! Do your GOOD thing. And they will (hopefully) come around. If they don't, it's ok. You get to do YOU.

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Articles and Videos You May Enjoy This Week:

1) What to Do About S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder)

I'm a person who suffers from SAD BAD. (Sorry, I had to do the rhyme thing, LOL).

Truly though. The dark days of winter affect me terribly. And guess what? So do the SUPER long days of summer. I'm one of those folks whose system is set off whenever the days are not balanced to an extent with the nights.

If you're like me (and many are), you may enjoy this article:

​Seasonal Affective Disorder and My Happiness Tea Blend​

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2) BEST Essential Oils for Cold and Flu...and How to Use Them

Using essential oils during cold and flu season is just plain smart. Here's a great short list, how and why they work, and some safety precautions too.

​10 BEST Essential Oils for Cold and Flu Season​

And, you may enjoy this quick video, or others on my YouTube channel!

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That's it for this week! If you're a new student and have any questions at all, please reach out to: support@healingharvesthomestead.com for help. We answer personally. You won't find a hopeless AI bot on our school.

Hugs, Health, and Herbs,

Heidi

P.S. Thank you so much for being here and supporting our small herbal school, the School of Botanical Arts & Sciences (SOBAS) by Healing Harvest Homestead. I love you. If this note was helpful in any way, please forward to a friend and encourage them to join us!

P.P.S. If you don't yet have my FREE Guide to Herbal Steams, it's a MUST have this time of year. Herbal steams can save the day when it's cold...or even hot! Here's the link to get yours free. Please use the same email address if you're receiving this note. If you're new here, use what's best!

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