Snow, cayenne pepper salve, and tai chi
The magic of experimentation
I don’t know about you but I adore winter. I really do! But wait, not all kind of winters. I love the winter with lots of snow, cold nose and freezing fingers, winter hats and warm gloves, low heels boots, ice staring at me from the top of the buildings as stalactites in the caves … that kind of winter. Is this something I will experience again? Who knows! It remains to be seen. For the time being I have the memory of the snow, the sound of the snow under my feet, the taste of snow and even the smell of a quiet winter day after a big snow storm when everything is silent. The silence of the snow! The silence of white! This is what I miss.
What I have instead is grey in abundance, torrential rain and no, I do not live in a tropical country, lots of potholes full of water and dark, very dark mornings.
But, but, but let me tell you that there are rare moments when the sun is shining, yes a sun with sharp teeth (a Romanian saying) but boy of boy it makes a huge difference. Nature suddenly comes alive and one discovers colour in a space where the eye was used to seeing nothing but shades of grey.
On one of those very special days I went to my regular tai chi class and enjoyed twisting and turning the sabre imagining for a few minutes that I am far, far away on a special tai chi retreat, on the WU DANG mountain, training with the monks, conquering my fears and finding that elusive state of mind called balance.
It is easy to push yourself just a little bit too much and to have some painful knees or arms or legs. It is easy especially when one is out of shape so I accept the pain with grace :)
However, this was a great moment to make a cayenne salve recipe. I did not want to pop up a pill in my mouth and numb the pain but decided to make a natural recipe, one I have noticed a few month ago on my favourite herbalists’ youtube channel.
Making one’s own healing potions, creams, salves is something I’ve been doing for the last 5-6 years. One could say it came out of nowhere but who knows maybe I have opened a channel with my ancestors, maybe this is my way of connecting with the ones I know so little about. Both my grandmothers lived in the countryside and made their own healing recipes using natural herbs and plants growing in abundance around their houses. This was normality at that time and it made perfect sense.
So, here I was, watching the video and getting ready to do my own version. It is not difficult and the feeling of satisfaction when one holds that pot of goodness in ones hand is priceless. This is what I did and how I did,
just in case you might be tempted to try it yourself!
Step 1 infuse the oils. I wanted to make the salve in the same day so I went for the quick infusion. Very simple really - adding oils (olive oil and grapeseed oil in my case but you can choose the oil you have at hand) in a glass jar, 1/3 cup cayenne pepper powder, get it in a double boiler and be patient. It takes about 5 hours to infuse or even 6. You only need to keep an eye on the water levels - top it up from time to time and … read a book or do a yoga class or a tai chi class in front of the tv.
6 hours later you are ready for the next phase. Make sure to sieve the oil as you only need the oil and not the powder. You will notice the colour change in the oils. It is a beautiful orange colour. Depending on the intensity of the cayenne pepper the colour might be a dark orange.
Now, take a bit of beeswax (1/4 cup), add it to the oils and let is melt nicely and gradually. You are almost there. The only thing left is to add some essential oils if you want and you are done! I still have some small pots from the time when I was making and selling natural products but a glass jar will do the job just fine.
So, I did my batch yesterday, started to apply it on the same day on my painful muscles and … yes .. I need to be patient and apply tomorrow some more but believe it or not the pain was not the same. Placebo effect? Maybe but maybe not!
Let me tell you a bit about the cayenne pepper. What is cayenne pepper and what are why is it good not only in your food?
Cayenne pepper comes from the capsicum family and it is one of hottest chillies known, it has a high content of capsaicin and a tiny bit goes a long way. It is known that cayenne pepper helps to reduce both short term and long term pain by depleting a neurotransmitter called substance P. When substance P is reduced it is harder for the brain to send pain signals to your body.
So next time you have painful joints and muscles why not make your own cayenne salve and help your body heal. Actually the best thing is to make it before you need it as the shelf life is 1 year minimum so you have nothing to loose. One last thing … the salve can be a lovely hand made gift for your loved ones.
Remember also to add cayenne pepper into your regular diet.
Until the next time stay safe, stay curious!