Welcome to Sunflower Pickle 

Hello, my name is Marija, and I've spent over twenty years explaining to my English and American friends that my unusually spelt name is pronounced just Maria :) Welcome to Sunflower Pickle, dedicated to my love of herbs, plants, home to my thoughts on naturopathic health solutions, ways to stoke our vitality naturally, reduce stress, etc.

 

I was raised by three women who instinctively practiced herbalism every single day of their life, sadly though as a child growing up in the '80s I was infinitely frustrated with my family's odd ways. While my friend's parents would offer us yummy sodas, at our house we drank sour cherry or elderberry cordials (insert two child emoji eye rolls). Other kids would get normal medicine from a doctor and we got Marshmallow root on our chest, or Linded tea in our cups. And that's not the worst off it! When my brother suffered with an ingrown toenail, he didn't get to go to a chiropodist like a normal person, he got to sit around with rabbit's fat wrapped around his foot! Needless to say his ingrowing toenail was resolved, but all I could think was "Can't we just be normal?!". It took me growing up to truly appreciate the gifts of our growing up the way we did. 

 

For the last twenty years I've been drinking teas and decoctions and taking tinctures not because I thought they were good for me, rather out of habit. I'd go to farmers market to grab some greens and without even thinking about it throw Dandelion root into my bag. Decades after I moved away from home I am sat in my kitchen looking at countless jars, filled with roots, leaves, berries and mushrooms of all kinds. I woke up this morning, brushed my teeth, scraped my tongue, and made myself a large decoction of various roots known to be beneficial for female health, plus some Turmeric from the garden to stoke my digestive fire, and thought about my late beautiful, grandma and how I wished she was here sharing a cup of tea with me and witnessing how much of her is in me. 

 

I have enormous respect for traditional, allopathic medicine and believe that there is a need, a time and a place for it in our lives. In my heart, however, I am a plant lover and an herbalist. 

 

Cooking gives me joy, and so does sharing knowledge and continuously learning. I am returning to school to, this time around, study Integrative Health. I believe in keeping the mind sharp, connecting with others and leading a life of purpose. Eating for our health, finding joy in preparing variety of nutritious meals for yourself and your loved ones and incorporating medicinal plants into your everyday life with an aim to not only "cure" or simply manage symptoms, rather looking to prevent and in turn achieve optimal health. Surviving is not a goal. Thriving and living a full, and long life is. 

 xx

M