One of my most exciting achievements of 2023 was leading what is known as a homeopathic ‘proving’ or development of a new remedy, made from the ash of the Whiteleaved Oak.

Whiteleaved Oak

The southern end of the Malvern Hills was home to a very special tree for hundreds of years. Sadly it burnt down in 2020, marking the end of a long era of being a sacred spot for many people who came to make offerings, give thanks, pray, meditate, ask questions and find comfort. It was also a beautiful place so always attracted picnickers and those who just wished to spend time, play or socialise around it. When it burnt down, I went to the site expecting to feel a huge sense of grief. This was, after all where I had come with my childrens’ father when we first met, where I spent my first Mothering Sunday as a mother, where I had come to think and find stillness, where my children and I had played and climbed. What I found when I arrived was a smouldering dragon, the air full of ash and the ground hot from the fire that still burnt underneath the soil and the rocks.

I also felt a great sense of peace, completion and a feeling that, although it was the end of an era, it was the right time for that ending. My children and I stayed for three hours (which felt like one) and during that time, many people came and went. Some I knew and some I did not but there was a great sense of community, of sharing and connection. It was a humbling and very nurturing day. The energy of the place spoke so deeply to me that I took some of the ash with the intention of making a remedy from it. For many reasons, it was not ‘proved’ until the last weekend of the homeopathy college I was teaching at in July but when the use of the remedy became apparent, it all felt incredibly synchronous. During a proving, no-one knows what is being tested but all homeopathic remedies reflect the material they are sourced from. It was fascinating to see how the substance translated into symptoms. There are too many to list but some that stood out were:

• Heaviness, weariness, needing to rest or put the head down, exhaustion.
• Marked difference between left and right – strong urge to lean head to one side, tension on the right side of the head, neck and body, joint pain. The right side felt tense and painful, the left side expansive and more relaxed.
• Coughing and needing to clear the throat. Dry throat and thirst.
• Eyes sore, tense, itchy and watery.
• Heat followed by cooling and chills.
• A feeling of being present and observing with less thoughts than usual.
• Strong need to connect and find community to heal and go forward.
• An awareness of burdens that needed to be shed in order to go forward.
• Themes of transition, clearing out, going forward, new ways of being.