Poem: "To Be Soothed and Healed"
This poem came out of the November 2021 ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
crowdfunding Creative Jam. It was inspired by a prompt from ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
fuzzyred. It also fills the "torture" square in my 11-1-21 card for the NCIS Bingofest. This poem has been sponsored by Anthony & Shirley Barrette. It belongs to the Rutledge thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.
"To Be Soothed and Healed"
[April 2014]
Mentha Burbank never meant
to work with torture survivors.
It just sort of happened.
Some of the Syrians found
Athelas Herbarium by chance,
while others were sent there
by medics or counselors or
social workers or whomever.
Many of them were malnourished
and most of them were traumatized,
and herbs could help with all of that.
Mentha's older sister Myrtle was
kept busy making batches of tea,
as Mentha told her which ones
were selling out the fastest.
There was Mood Booster for
depression and anxiety,
Heartsease for sorrows,
Stress Less for nerves,
and Nightlight to bring
peaceful sleep or soothe
traumatic nightmares.
"We're out of chamomile,"
said Myrtle. It went fast.
"I'll order more," said Mentha.
They'd already gone through
what they had stored, and
couldn't harvest more until
later in the growing season.
Myrtle's husband Lalam
made nature-themed jewelry
and prayer beads for the store,
now with some worry beads
for people who needed to fidget.
Sabra Mamoud came inside
with her two grandchildren,
Afina and Hamal. Afina had
little interest in anything, and
Hamal was afraid of everything.
"Come here," Mentha invited
the children. "Let me show you
the things on our nature play table
while your grandmother shops."
It had baskets full of seeds, leaves,
twigs, pinecones, seashells, and
all sorts of interesting things.
Mentha showed the children
some of the printed pages with
patterns to copy, and how you
could make funny faces by
putting loose pieces together.
It took a long time before
Afina would touch anything,
and even then, she just
poked at the pieces instead
of arranging them in shapes.
Every time something clicked
or rustled, Hamal jumped back.
"It's okay," said Mentha. "Nothing
here will hurt you, it just makes
little noises while we're playing."
Myrtle's daughter Clary came out
and saw them. She started making
intricate mandalas of leaves and seeds.
Mentha left the children alone and
went to make sure that Sabra
was doing all right shopping.
Mentha's daughters Salvia
and Rosamunda were supposed
to be restocking the shelves, but
Rosamunda was helping Sabra.
The Syrian woman seemed
to read English, but not very well.
Mentha brought out the picture binder
of plants and their applications that she
used to teach people about herbalism.
That made it much easier for Sabra
to recognize the herbs, and Mentha
got an impromptu lesson in Arabic
of plant names that she jotted down.
She'd need to ask one of the translators
to give her a hand making a mini-guide
to herbs in English and Arabic, but
at least this made a good start.
Ghada Jomahl Nasim came in
looking for Tammy Brassart, but
the counselor was on lunch break.
"We have nature books for all ages,
if you'd like to sit and read or look at
pictures while you wait," said Mentha.
"Gardens?" said Ghada. "We used
to have a big garden at -- before."
"We have books on herb gardening,"
Mentha said, helping her find one.
When Tammy came back from lunch,
Mentha whispered, "Gardening," and
pointed out Ghada in the chair.
On weekends, Sabra brought
the children to craft classes
that used natural materials
to make artwork or toys.
Mostly they just watched,
and Mentha assured them
that it was okay, and they
could watch as long as they
wanted before joining in.
Tarek al-Khair was too thin
by half, a gay man who had
survived all manner of torture.
The first time he came in, Mentha
steered him right to Myrtle, who
specialized in herbal nutrition.
The next time, Tarek admitted,
"Sometimes it's hard for me to feel
what's real, my body or the world.
Do you have anything to help that?"
"Ask Tammy about herbs for the mind,"
said Mentha, "but I know some things."
She led him to the nature table and
handed him a sweetgum seedpod.
"Feel that. Texture is grounding."
Tarek ran his fingers over the points
of the seedpod. "I can feel this,"
he said, almost smiling at her.
"That's good," said Mentha.
"Do you like arts or crafts?"
"I used to draw," said Tarek.
"I wanted to learn painting,
but never got the chance."
"Try this," Mentha suggested,
handing him a book on how
to paint flowers and plants.
"Go out in the woods and
draw or paint what you see.
It will help you remember
where you are, and learn
about your new home."
"Do you do that?" he said.
"Yes, crafting keeps me steady
when life gets bumpy," said Mentha.
"I go to nature to be soothed and healed,
and to have my senses put in order."
"Thank you," said Tarek. "I'll try it."
Mentha passed the word to Lalam,
too, and he made worry beads
with more textured styles for
people seeking sensation.
Over time she learned
what flavors of tea were
popular in Syria, and
which spice blends
the refugees liked, so
she could stock those.
They were quite fond
of hibiscus and mint teas,
along with black teas
either plain or spiced.
Mentha tried baharat
and za'atar blends, both
of which proved interesting.
She was even more intrigued
by the idea of using fenugreek
for flavor instead of just healing.
Sometimes she got groups of
people together for arts and crafts
in one of the nearby parks, or taught
basic herbalism classes at the farm that
supplied most of the herbs for the store.
Even if Mentha couldn't erase the torture,
she could offer tools for coping with it.
Nature was a healer in more ways than one.
* * *
Notes:
This poem's notes are long, so the character, setting, and content notes appear separately.
crowdfunding Creative Jam. It was inspired by a prompt from fuzzyred. It also fills the "torture" square in my 11-1-21 card for the NCIS Bingofest. This poem has been sponsored by Anthony & Shirley Barrette. It belongs to the Rutledge thread of the Polychrome Heroics series."To Be Soothed and Healed"
[April 2014]
Mentha Burbank never meant
to work with torture survivors.
It just sort of happened.
Some of the Syrians found
Athelas Herbarium by chance,
while others were sent there
by medics or counselors or
social workers or whomever.
Many of them were malnourished
and most of them were traumatized,
and herbs could help with all of that.
Mentha's older sister Myrtle was
kept busy making batches of tea,
as Mentha told her which ones
were selling out the fastest.
There was Mood Booster for
depression and anxiety,
Heartsease for sorrows,
Stress Less for nerves,
and Nightlight to bring
peaceful sleep or soothe
traumatic nightmares.
"We're out of chamomile,"
said Myrtle. It went fast.
"I'll order more," said Mentha.
They'd already gone through
what they had stored, and
couldn't harvest more until
later in the growing season.
Myrtle's husband Lalam
made nature-themed jewelry
and prayer beads for the store,
now with some worry beads
for people who needed to fidget.
Sabra Mamoud came inside
with her two grandchildren,
Afina and Hamal. Afina had
little interest in anything, and
Hamal was afraid of everything.
"Come here," Mentha invited
the children. "Let me show you
the things on our nature play table
while your grandmother shops."
It had baskets full of seeds, leaves,
twigs, pinecones, seashells, and
all sorts of interesting things.
Mentha showed the children
some of the printed pages with
patterns to copy, and how you
could make funny faces by
putting loose pieces together.
It took a long time before
Afina would touch anything,
and even then, she just
poked at the pieces instead
of arranging them in shapes.
Every time something clicked
or rustled, Hamal jumped back.
"It's okay," said Mentha. "Nothing
here will hurt you, it just makes
little noises while we're playing."
Myrtle's daughter Clary came out
and saw them. She started making
intricate mandalas of leaves and seeds.
Mentha left the children alone and
went to make sure that Sabra
was doing all right shopping.
Mentha's daughters Salvia
and Rosamunda were supposed
to be restocking the shelves, but
Rosamunda was helping Sabra.
The Syrian woman seemed
to read English, but not very well.
Mentha brought out the picture binder
of plants and their applications that she
used to teach people about herbalism.
That made it much easier for Sabra
to recognize the herbs, and Mentha
got an impromptu lesson in Arabic
of plant names that she jotted down.
She'd need to ask one of the translators
to give her a hand making a mini-guide
to herbs in English and Arabic, but
at least this made a good start.
Ghada Jomahl Nasim came in
looking for Tammy Brassart, but
the counselor was on lunch break.
"We have nature books for all ages,
if you'd like to sit and read or look at
pictures while you wait," said Mentha.
"Gardens?" said Ghada. "We used
to have a big garden at -- before."
"We have books on herb gardening,"
Mentha said, helping her find one.
When Tammy came back from lunch,
Mentha whispered, "Gardening," and
pointed out Ghada in the chair.
On weekends, Sabra brought
the children to craft classes
that used natural materials
to make artwork or toys.
Mostly they just watched,
and Mentha assured them
that it was okay, and they
could watch as long as they
wanted before joining in.
Tarek al-Khair was too thin
by half, a gay man who had
survived all manner of torture.
The first time he came in, Mentha
steered him right to Myrtle, who
specialized in herbal nutrition.
The next time, Tarek admitted,
"Sometimes it's hard for me to feel
what's real, my body or the world.
Do you have anything to help that?"
"Ask Tammy about herbs for the mind,"
said Mentha, "but I know some things."
She led him to the nature table and
handed him a sweetgum seedpod.
"Feel that. Texture is grounding."
Tarek ran his fingers over the points
of the seedpod. "I can feel this,"
he said, almost smiling at her.
"That's good," said Mentha.
"Do you like arts or crafts?"
"I used to draw," said Tarek.
"I wanted to learn painting,
but never got the chance."
"Try this," Mentha suggested,
handing him a book on how
to paint flowers and plants.
"Go out in the woods and
draw or paint what you see.
It will help you remember
where you are, and learn
about your new home."
"Do you do that?" he said.
"Yes, crafting keeps me steady
when life gets bumpy," said Mentha.
"I go to nature to be soothed and healed,
and to have my senses put in order."
"Thank you," said Tarek. "I'll try it."
Mentha passed the word to Lalam,
too, and he made worry beads
with more textured styles for
people seeking sensation.
Over time she learned
what flavors of tea were
popular in Syria, and
which spice blends
the refugees liked, so
she could stock those.
They were quite fond
of hibiscus and mint teas,
along with black teas
either plain or spiced.
Mentha tried baharat
and za'atar blends, both
of which proved interesting.
She was even more intrigued
by the idea of using fenugreek
for flavor instead of just healing.
Sometimes she got groups of
people together for arts and crafts
in one of the nearby parks, or taught
basic herbalism classes at the farm that
supplied most of the herbs for the store.
Even if Mentha couldn't erase the torture,
she could offer tools for coping with it.
Nature was a healer in more ways than one.
* * *
Notes:
This poem's notes are long, so the character, setting, and content notes appear separately.