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Ghost Pipe

On our walk through the park in the neighborhood last evening, saw a strange looking thing growing under a clump of pine trees. Had to check it out on Seek  and it was a Ghost Pipe. Supposedly a rarity these days but used to be a common sighting in earlier times. Given its mushroom-like looks and the fact that was growing right next to a Fly Agaric, I thought it was of another variety of the same thing. 

Turns out that there is a relationship but not the one I expected. Ghost Pipe can be used to calm down a person who has been through a rough trip from consuming the cubenis or agaric mushroom maybe. After we got home, I wondered what the sighting of this plant meant if anything. It is supposed to help cope with emotional and physical pain but the manner in which it works is unique

..it doesn’t make the pain go away. Pain serves a purpose. It alerts us to what needs our attention. With the aid of Ghost Pipe we don’t deaden the pain, but rather distance it so we can work with the pain without being overwhelmed by it. Ghost Pipe puts the person beside their pain, so they can see it and deal with it. It is not your normal analgesic. In the words of Herbalist, David Winston, “…you know it hurts, but simply don’t care.” It reduces sensitivity to painful stimuli and raises the pain threshold. It can help a person feel more grounded and present rather than overtaken by overwhelming pain.

For the moment, I think sign was meant to remind me to put distance between that produces negative feelings in me without being overwhelmed by the feeling . It seems like that is what nature would do so maybe that was the call to action for me - to learn and follow that same model in my life. 


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