Three Words with Maggie

(Or, How My Spirit Guide Bullied Me into Believing in Myself with herbs and vegetables)

My nightly meetings with Maggie usually begin in her kitchen — with me settling into the same worn chair, saying hello and waiting for her to start talking about herbs.

This little ritual started as a game. A training exercise, really. Maggie would give me three words — three quick impressions or phrases — and it was up to me to listen, interpret, and follow the thread. It was practice for building trust and communication. For sharpening the connection.

But lately… Maggie's been getting chatty.

The lines started to blur a few nights ago, when her usual three words turned into six. Then ten. Then an entire conversation. It wasn’t long before I found myself sitting at her heavy wooden kitchen table, writing “Three Words with Maggie” at the top of an imaginary page like I was an excited student.

I glanced up, proud of my heading, and met an incredulous look.

She raised a single eyebrow, the kind that says: Three words? Really? That’s what you thought we were doing here?

Meanwhile I'm sitting here talking to a SPIRIT

"Touche", her eyebrows say.

Maggie gets up from her seat at the table with an exhaustive flair and makes her way to her cupboard.

"You remind me of my grandmother... Aside from the fact that she was *not* great in the kitchen."

Maggie smiled as if to say "you have no idea about your grandmother"... And she's absolutely right. My grandmother was an icon of the highest order. As kids, my sisters and I put her on a pedestal but it wasn't one built of "proper ways of doing this and that" it was built of her sense of confidence, the way she was so sure of who she was. It made losing her to Alzheimer's all the more sad.

Maggie snapped me out of my thought tornado by plopping a few small bags onto the kitchen table in between us.

The first item she started to handle came out of a small, white linen bag. "This", she said with a flair, "is Cordova"

And pulled out a stack of leaves that looked similar to spiky bay leaves.

This one is great for rooting you in place.

Next she pulled out and stringy white substance that reminds me of enoki mushrooms.

This one feeds many, but remembers to take a bit for himself.

"This," tipping another linen bag over and pouring out it's contents, she said "is great for when you just need to get away." She stopped what she was going and looked me square in the eyes. "That's normal, you know." She said, in a gently tone. "Wanting to get away for a while is needed sometimes. Staying in the same place with the same routine sounds suffocating."

I sighed and offered a hint of a smile. "Thank you for saying that." She gets it, I thought. She understands.

"These", she said, bringing my attention back to her table, are plum radishes." She picked one up and held it between us. It was a small root vegetable, about the size of a marble and it blended from red at the top to white at the bottom. "They'll help you get yourself out of trouble if you find it.... Or if it finds you."

I looked over the items on the table.

✨ Cordova (this name could be wrong) looks like bay leaves

✨ Enoki mushrooms

✨ Plum radishes

"Are these three items meant to work together for any specific intentions?" I asked.

"Yes," she said. "They're meant to guide you toward believing in yourself"

I blinked.

"Go ahead. Look them up."

---

Cordoban herb, also known as Cordovan or Rhoeo spathacea: cleansing, strengthening and protecting, especially those intended to be difficult to remove

(Rooting you in place)

Enoki mushroom: Unity, collective strength, resilience.

(Feeds many but remembers to take a bit for himself)

Plum radishes: royalty and luxury, hope, good fortune, patience.

(When you just need to get away and also it'll help you get outta trouble)

---

"Wow," I said, stunned. "And you'd like me to create this spell the way I've been creating them? Using metal and engraving symbols?"

"Absolutely." She'd leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, looking pleased with herself.

"Maggie. This is wonderful. Thank you! " I said.

She smiled and started to busy herself with cleanup. "It's that placebo effect you were talkin about, dearie. It doesn't matter how it works, it matters that it works."

I chuckled at that and said, "Thank you for being patient with my typing this all out."

"Oh please," she scoffed, "this is an excellent use of my energy. Look at you! You're doing so well! You found a thing that works for you and you're utilizing it!"

"Than---"

"Honey, if you keep thanking me....."

"Right," I interrupted. "You're right. I'll stop. It's just that I'm so grateful for your time-" Maggie's eyebrows drew together and I caught myself. "I mean, Maggie!" I said pointing both index fingers at her, "You-da-best. wanna hang out?" I was grinning at her now.

"Yeah," she scoffed again. "Tomorrow night. Now get outta here!" She waved me off with a tea towel but I could see her grin as she turned away.

I chuckled and stood up holding my paper and pencil to my chest. "K love you BYEEEEE" I shouted to her as I dashed out the door with a huge smile on my face, excitement thrumming through my body.

I was just validated massively and I have a "Maggie-led" charm that she wants me to use for my own self that will work!

This was time and energy well spent, indeed.