This episode is all about goldenrod, giizisomashkiki which means sun medicine in ojibwemowin, the Ojibwe language. I picked this plant for this week because I'm enjoying just a smidge more daylight each day past the solstice, and I like to use goldenrod in herbal tea in the winter (which I try to remember to drink more often). 

See my many goldenrod photos on Instagram by looking at #giizisomashkiki and learn more about this plant medicine by checking out a couple of books:
Plants Have So Much to Give Us, All We Have to Do Is Ask by Mary Siisip Geniusz
Strength of the Earth by Frances Densmore

That reminds me, I should have broken down the word parts of the name, giizisomashkiki. Giizis is the sun (and dibiki-giizis is the moon, so you might recognize the ending 'giizis' from ojibwemowin month/moon names). Mashkiki is medicine, and mashk- as a root word refers to strength, like mashkawizi (s/he is strong). Some people say mashkiki, medicine, means strength of (or from) the earth, since aki is the earth - and this refers specifically to plant medicine. Pretty cool, huh? 

Check out more ojibwemowin (including audio) at the Ojibwe People's Dictionary.

The intro/outro music in this episode is royalty-free music called "In the Forest" shared on Pixabay by username Lesfm.