West Meets East©

By Caroline Patrick BorNei

Certified Red Ribbon Professional of the International Feng Shui Guild

Foundation of Harmony and Balance

Walking from the front of the property, to the left (middle) side dwells the area of the ancient Chinese Bagua named Family and Health. This extended living space provides a perfect side yard to enhance your family’s vitality. Blue and green florals with a touch of yellow are excellent choices for this gathering place.

According to the I-Ching (or Book of Changes, an ancient text used by the Chinese to lay the proper foundation of harmony and balance in their environment), this trigram of the eight-sided octagonal grid placed over the dwelling was given the name ‘Shocking Thunder.’ This action relates to the growth and expansion of changes which sometimes come quickly. Having a solid family system gives the individual comfort and nourishment during good and bad times. The color green is assigned to this Gua, and is a healing color.

Columns, pillars and cones, trees, posts and poles are the shapes associated with the Family and Health section of the Bagua. From bird houses to fences or a garden of healthy green beans and peas growing on the trellises to a swing set, tennis or basketball court and/or workout bench will invite the family to this side of the house. A picnic table covered in a striped cloth would carry out this theme. Animals are also welcome here.

For those health-conscious individuals, include an herb garden. Plants and trees are of the Wood Element. To enhance and support the Family Gua, plant a garden on the left side of your home. The energy of 'Shocking Thunder' explodes seeds of new growth, giving green vitality and health to your family. Dandelions are a nuisance for some, but for me they represent health on many levels. Think before tossing this power-packed weed into the trash. Be careful to harvest only plants that have no pesticides. The yellow petals can be harvested and sprinkled in muffins, pancakes, cookies and salads to provide your body with beta carotene. The roots are best dug in the fall since the rich vitamins and minerals are stored deep in the root system. I use them year round to make tinctures (liquid drops). The leaves can be eaten as a cooked vegetable in many dishes. Whether dried or fresh, used as a food or medicine, this simple weed can clear the skin or heal the liver. Acting as a mild diuretic, the dandelion removes toxins from the body, but Mother Nature, the miracle worker, replaces these toxins with potassium, a much-needed mineral.

Coltsfoot, a small plant with a leaf the size and shape of a colt’s hoof, hovers close to the ground. It’s a friendly little addition to the garden and seems to have a perky personality! Used in teas and tinctures, I pick two or three leaves on my morning tea trek and add it to my Lemon Balm and Thyme when my throat is strained and scratchy. Lemon Grass, Lemon Thyme and Lemon Balm, with a few leaves of Nettles, makes a wonderful morning drink to get your motor running.

Mints are my very favorite. My grandmother grew peppermint next to the outside water spigot. She would send me outside for a fresh sprig to ‘snap off’ and add to her zingy lemonade with a red cherry sitting on top. The pink color would run down into the liquid and rest against a squeezed lemon and color the whole glass pink. Other mint flavors I enjoy are Chocolate, Pineapple and Spearmint. A mint tea poured into a foot bath will perk up those tired feet! Be sure to pot the mints in separate containers as they will gleefully mix when your back is turned.

Bamboo trees are a sacred tree which represents longevity. Millenniums ago the bamboo trunks were the first known firecracker. When groves were set afire to expand the crop spaces, the sealed bases exploded … in fact, the very name originally appropriated to it because of such a loud noise was BAMBOOM, later shortened to bamboo.

Enjoy activating this side yard of your home. Make it a gathering place for fun, love and support to nourish the family.

Caroline Patrick Bor Nei is a certified Feng Shui Practitioner and a Red Ribbon Professional of The International Feng Shui Guild. Her abilities as a consultant and artist are widely known in the US and abroad. Caroline has completed over 5000 consultations for individuals, large and small businesses. Return clients appreciate the value of her suggestions both mundane and transcendental, providing support on multiple levels. As a college art instructor for many years, Caroline understands the power of color; its symbolism and the visual effect images have on individuals in their surroundings. Her home base is Portland, OR where she continues to write, teach, paint, do illustrations and give herbal medicine making classes. She is available for Feng Shui consultations; Feng Shui art consultant, advises builders, architects and mentors a few serious students.

Call (503) 208-2960 or email caroline@fengshuiartistry.com.

Any suggestions given in this column are only for entertainment. Please contact your physician for any medical or herbal advice or diagnosis. Caroline Patrick is not responsible for any misuse of her advice or suggestions.

Caroline’s “West Meets East” weekly newspaper column can be read from archives on her website www.fengshuiartistry.com.