Day Four~A Mother's Memories

Joshua in His Home Made Farmer's Outfit

A Mother’s Memories

I met a kind herbalist lady when Joshua was almost one year old.

We were downtown at a street fair. We slowed in front of the herbalist’s booth. She looked at his eyes and said, “That baby’s sick.” She handed me her card and told me to call her anytime.

How does she know this? I told her thank you, and hurried on. My son still hadn’t stayed well for more than two weeks at a stretch. But I didn’t know a thing about natural healing, and I sure wasn’t going to allow her to use Joshua as a guinea pig. DON’T USE

A few weeks later, Joshua came down with what I thought was bronchitis. His fever rose during the evenings, and I grew worried. After walking the floor with him for two nights, I remembered the herbalist’s card. I looked at the clock: midnight. What do I do? It was either take him to the emergency room or call her. I prayed first, then I dialed her number.

I told her my name and where we’d met. “I’m sorry it’s so late, but my baby probably has bronchitis, and his fever is high.”

The herbalist said, “Do you have any cabbage?”

I went to my refrigerator and looked. “Yes,” I said when I came back.

“This is what you do, Jean. Place several leaves of cabbage on his bare chest. Wrap his chest with plastic wrap, going around several times. Keep him in a warm shirt. It could take up to eight hours, but that will break up the mucus. Let me know when it does.”

I did as she instructed, wrapping Joshua with the cabbage and plastic. All the while, I was thinking, Am I stupid to try to heal my baby with a vegetable? I kept asking God if I was doing the right thing. As I finished slipping Joshua into his pajama top, I sensed God’s peace. I lay down with Joshua in his trundle bed, and we fell asleep.

At eight that morning, I awoke to Joshua’s gagging coughs. I grabbed him around the chest and hauled him to the bathroom. I situated his head over the commode. He vomited.

Stunned at how much mucous came out of my small child, I held his heaving sides. Thinking Joshua would be exhausted and ready to go back to sleep, I gave him a bath and dressed him in clean pajamas. But, oh no, he had other plans. Joshua wiggled out of my arms and toddled into the toy room. In awe, I followed him. I found the thermometer and took his temperature. Normal. Cabbage leaves healed my baby.

When I called the herbalist and told her, she said, “I’m not surprised. What I’m surprised about is that you had cabbage in your refrigerator.” We both laughed.

From that day on I used a select few herbs the herbalist suggested for whatever illness Joshua caught. He no longer took the antibiotics that caused his stomach cramps. As a result he stayed well longer, with no unwanted side effects.

Thank You, Lord, for creating foods that can heal our bodies. In Jesus’s holy name, I’m grateful. Amen.

Reader Journal

~Your Mother Memories~

~Your Prayer of Praise~

~A Scripture of Encouragement~