Sick In The Head? There's A Pink Cure!

"A lady who has been troubled with the neuralgia in her head, used a bag of hot oats at night as a pillow.  She says: "heat the oats in a kettle over the fire, or in a pan in your oven.  I have never been troubled with neuralgia any place but in my head so I cannot say how beneficial it would be for neuralgia in other parts of the body."  Another cure is drinking hot lemonade."

{An Army Wife's Cookbook with Household Hints and Home Remedies}

Yes, I was an Army wife, and some might have said I was 'Sick in the Head', but a couple of Tylenol sure worked better than a 'Bag of Oats Pillow'.  Sure makes me glad I was a 20th Century Army Wife and not a 19th Century Frontier Army Wife.

You might be wondering what 'Sick In The Head' has to do with my Pink Saturday Post about Valerian!  Well, I found this stand of Valerian growing in The Frontier Army Wife...Mrs. Alice Grierson's Herb Garden.

The Herb Garden is located just out the back door of Mrs. Grierson's Frontier Fort Kitchen...see post below.  Alice Kirk Grierson was the wife of Commander Benjamin Grierson who organized the 10th U.S. Cavalry, one of two mounted regiments composed of black enlisted men and white officers, called the Buffalo Soldiers at Fort Davis, Texas.  

HiHoney and I visited the National Historic Site of Fort Davis, and of course I had to find a bit of Pink to share for Pink Saturday.

Little did I know that this bit of Pink was one of Alice's Home Remedy Herbs.  I was just so amazed it had survived the Boots of the Buffalo Soliders, the Comanches, the summer of  1875, and this summer's wildfires which burned thousands of acres in the Davis Mountains and came very near Old Fort Davis.

Okay...back to 'The Pink Cure'... here you see a pan of dried Valerian on the kitchen counter, and although Alice didn't include the Valerian Neuralgia Cure Recipe in her Cookbook, I'm sure it was grown and used for that purpose or perhaps for her Homemade Perfume.

That's right Ya'll...Homemade Perfume...one whiff would 'Cure Ya or Kill Ya"!

It is said that the 'Root of Valerian' produces an Oil that attracts Cats and Rats!

What a versatile Herb

...headache, perfume, catnip and rat trap bait...

no wonder Alice grew it in her garden.

You will notice, though, that it was not grown in the same part of the Herb Garden

 as the Lavender, Sage, Parsley and Lemon Balm.

So there ya have it...A touch of Pink from the Wild West Frontier!

Be sure and stop by Beverly's

How Sweet The Sound

and get a

Whiff of her Pink Roses!

And As Always...Thanks Beverly for

Making Saturdays Pink!