Rosemary for Remembrance

Rosemary, Rosmarinus officinalis

Rosemary’s message is memory, making it the premier herb in our Memoir Garden. The essence of a memoir is the life story unfolding through memories that are well recounted. When we first sit to write, we have certain memories that we want to include, to share, to evaluate, to understand. The surprise is that recalling memories, even a single memory, uncovers more memories. It is as if we cannot take just a single step on the Memoir Garden path for each brings into view new details that draw us farther along.

Rosemary’s association with memory is centuries old. In ancient Greece, students kept sprigs in their hair when studying, believing this would help them remember the information. The plant, a native to the Mediterranean area, was eventually cultivated in many countries. Shakespeare, in Hamlet, even retells its meaning when Ophelia says to Laertes, “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance.”

I have about a quarter acre of rosemary in my garden. The long season of tiny blue blossoms on the plants keeps the bees busy for months. As I walk the paths, I hear the industry of the bees as they fly around the plant’s flowers taking the nectar that soon becomes honey. Bees, it turns out, are the only insects that produce food for us.

But it’s rosemary’s aroma, released with rubbing or chopping its narrow leaves, that is most associated with memory. As I stand cutting fresh rosemary for my roasted Yukon potatoes, I remember times in the kitchen with my father as we cooked together. He considered food one more way to connect with people and he used it often — baking a loaf of bread for a neighbor, making cookies for his Sunday School class, fixing pancakes for his grandchildren. We can think of rosemary’s message often when writing our memoirs.

Visit our Writer’s Store with its products for encouragement and sharing that feature many of the herbs from our Memoir Garden.

While at our Writer’s Store be sure to check out our Rosemary Tea Mug. This mug says “Rosemary for Remembrance … Remembering and Telling My Story.” The design, created by Suzanne for us, depicts a garland of flowering rosemary wrapped around the mug. Sip a cup of your favorite tea, or try one of our Evocative Teas, while you commune with your memoir.