Cover art by Carolyn Cochran Karinen
The Healing Woods
by Blanche Day Manos
Long, long ago in the forest, in quiet and shadowy hills,
The Cherokee used roots and berries and leaves to cure their ills.
There was blackberry tea for the stomach, and yellow dock for a cut toe,
Sumac would soothe poison ivy, and wild rose would make toothaches go.
With ginger that grew in the woodlands, and mint, with its sharp, pleasant smell,
Buckbrush and yarrow, called squirrel’s tail were used in making folk well.
Now the knowledge is all but forgotten, the secrets are blown in the breeze.
But the plants, with their powers of healing, were known by the wise Cherokees.
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