So far, winter in the Shenandoah Valley is lackluster. Only one snow back in December. and a single decent rain, a week ago. We are in one of our dry spells and badly need anything wet to fall from the sky. ‘Maybe next week’ is my mantra while I scan forecasts. I’m amazed by how many perennials are still alive, given the dry conditions and sudden cold after days of warmth. It’s ‘right mixy’, to use a country expression spoken by an Old Order Mennonite woman when asked about her toddler. That saying perfectly captures the various moods of a toddler and our weather shifts. I’m ‘right mixy’ myself. My mother-in-law (Nana) used to say she was ‘onery’, and no, I didn’t misspell it. I’ve come to see ‘onery’ means not feeling like doing much of anything, just because. You don’t need a reason for laziness and sloth. I have several, but mostly, I’m deep into hibernation mode. I’ll perk up, like a mole exiting its burrow and sniffing the air, when I catch a whiff of spring.
I’m also hiding from the sickness flooding the valley, though my efforts haven’t been entirely successful. A heavy snow might freeze or bury the germs. For centuries, folk sought cures from herbal teas, infusions, tinctures, salves, poultices… Some ingredients strike us as questionable, but imagine a time before modern medicine. Remedies during the bubonic plague included adding blood, pounded toads, excrement, (not sure whose) to compounds. And they favored chopped snakes, plucked chickens (dead or alive) bound to the buboes to drain the poison. I’m inclined to omit those ingredients. Of course, then the cure won;t work. It usually failed anyway. I’m drinking hot Earl Grey tea and herbal varieties like mint, far more pleasant, but I’m also on an antibiotic.
In earlier valley days, country people used what they had. Nana praised the effectiveness of mustard plasters, made with lard and mustard powder, laid on the chest between soft flannel. This plaster had to be checked often, as heated mustard could burn the skin. I’ve read of using sliced onions in the same way. She raved about Vicks Vapor Rub, incredibly popular since its introduction. I like Vicks and I’ve used it for heavy colds (broke out in hives when I neglected the cloth). I put it under my nose every night and breathe it in. Any of these treatments might help break up chest congestion. Hot tea brewed from catnip is a valley treatment for respiratory ailments. Catnip grows wild here. I have lots of plants in my garden, if you want a start in the spring.
As Prince of Wales, he was destined for the throne, but forces were already in play that would delay that destiny for some time.
One Writer's Way 
