Herbal Magic

By Donna and Ev

The wonderful odors coming from the kitchen where Katherine was helping Carol and Marie can some of the bountiful food that their gardens had produced proved too much for Pascal.  He hobbled down the stairs and parked himself at the table, giving them his best poor starved puppy dog look while he maneuvered a rod inside of his cast to scratch the itchy spots that were driving him crazy.

Carol smiled and kissed him on the cheek.  "Pascal, honey.  I know you feel miserable, but I really need to be able to work around this end of the table.  Can't work on this spaghetti sauce without a place to work.  Think you could find a different place to park?"

He looked to Marie, who was stirring a pot of beans on the stove.  "Don't look at me!  Maybe if you go work on the spinning I showed you, it would get your mind off your leg.  You were doing pretty well, you know." 

He sighed deeply and moved to the back of the table, but smiled happily when Marie grabbed a herb biscuit from a plate and came over and stuffed it into his mouth.

Kat chuckled. "Isn't it about time for that thing to come off your leg?" she asked.

"Yes.  Then maybe it won't itch anymore."  He slid the rod inside the cast again.  It just didn't reach all the places he wanted it to. 

"I have a special ointment that will take care of that itching for you," the midwife said as she continued to chop up vegetables.  "There is even some of it in my bag so you can have it handy when the cast comes off."

He looked up, interested.  "This is more of the medicine from herbs?"

Carol grinned at him.  "You see?  Not everything requires technology.  Marie, are you using all that garlic?"  She reached over to the pile on the table, her eyes already watery from the stuff she had chopped. 

"I have some here if you need it," Kat said, passing her a couple of cloves.  Wiping her hands, she went over to her bag which was next to the little cradle where her baby was sleeping away and took out a little tub of ointment. "Here, Pascal," she said as she gave it to him.  "This is good for all sorts of skin conditions, especially dry, itchy, irritated or scaly skin. It has calendula, comfrey, pokeroot and slippery elm powder in it, among other things."

He opened the container and looked at it.  He sniffed it thoughtfully.  After a few moments watching Carol, Marie, and Kat all bustling around the kitchen, he finally asked.  "How would I learn about this?  Could you teach me?"

Carol and Marie both turned and smiled.  He was finally showing some interest in something on his own!  This was a first! 

"Of course," Katherine said.  "Once your cast is off, you can come with me on my herb gathering trips.  I'll show you want to look for, and how to prepare them.  The residents of the Singing Creek Camp could help you learn as well."

"He's supposed to be getting it off this afternoon, as soon as one of the docs shows up."  Marie paused as she was adding salt and herbs to the bean and bacon soup she was making.  "Somebody is supposed to be here any time now." 

A short time later, Lassie and her rowdy litter of pups let them know that the good doctor had arrived.  "Get down, dogs!"  Helm complained as they all tried to get petting from him at the same time.  Carol rescued him, and escorted him into the house, where in no time at all, he had Pascal's cursed cast off.

Pascal looked down at his leg in dismay.  It was skinny, hairy, and scaly underneath the cast.  It looked like it belonged to someone else.  "Is this right?"  He looked up at Dr. Helm and at Kat. 

Carol looked at it from behind him where he couldn't see and made a face. It did look pretty gross. 

"The ointment will see it right," Katherine assured him. Dr. Helm agreed, and told him that he should exercise it gently to start building up muscle tone in it again.  Taking him by the arm, he helped him stand up and asked him if it hurt at all.

Pascal stood slowly, a smile spreading across his face.  There was just the slightest bit of an ache, but the leg was working.  "Just a little bit.  What is the word......  an ache.  Is that how it should be?" 

"It is.  Just walk on it for awhile, resting if it begins to ache more. No running till the ache goes away, understand?"  Dr Helm ordered.

"I understand.  I can take a bath again!"  He smiled.  "Why so much hair and itch?"  Pascal very carefully took a couple of steps, still smiling.  "I feel so good with that off!" 

The ladies all laughed, and told him to go take a bath then!  So, with a happy grin on his face, he did just that.  He was mobile again!  And to top it off, he was going to learn a new vocation!