My thank you to aloe for soothing stinging sunburns.

Although I was raised in the panhandle of the Sunshine State, I have to admit, I've never really considered myself a true Floridian. After all, I don't like oranges (not even orange juice), have recurring nightmares involving alligators, and definitely don't fit the part of a beach bum. But, since the Gulf was out my back door, I took many childhood trips to the oceanside where I built elaborate sandcasdes and buried best friends and uncles up to their necks. If you were to dig up one of the photo albums my mother dutifully kept over the years, you'd be sure to find a picture of a scrawny me wearing her straw hat, which completely hid my face, in an effort to protect me from the sun. Or, you'd see me standing there, embarrassingly smiling at the camera, with stripes of sun block on nay face looking like a linebacker. Lo and behold, in each of these instances, even with the proper precaution, I always headed home bright red and crisp to the touch.

Fortunately, my mother always had answers to ease the pain a seemingly innocent trip to the beach could cause: meat tenderizer for a jellyfish sting and trusty aloe vera for a sunburn. The first time my mother suggested using the gooey substance from a scary looking plant, I was a bit skeptical. But sure enough, it cooled the bum, and with each trip to the beach, I became addicted to the instantaneous relief the plant could provide. Even when I moved out of my mother's house and into my first apartment, I went out first thing and bought myself a trusty aloe plant for the back patio.

Whether it's aloe vera, which these days doesn't necessarily require the traditional hands-on relationship to obtain its medicine (a quick trip to the drugstore will put you in front of an abundance of lotions and gels), or lavender, or ginseng, or nettles, or dandelion, the medicinal power of herbs is undeniable. Today, like in the not-so-distant past, more and more consumers recognize the incredible capability of herbs to heal, mad, like aloe, many herbs are becoming more accessible and widely used.

This popularity puts herbalists and herbalism as a practice at a crossroads today. We are honored to bring you interviews and articles this issue with several influential herbalists, including Eliot Cowan, Rosemary Gladstar and Phyllis Light, who speak to the changing political climate of herbalism, as well as comment on where the practice is heading for the future and share remarkable stories of their relationship with herbs.

And be sure to check out a variety of articles from local herbalists, caterers and gardeners to learn how to harvest your own medicinal herbs as well as bring their healing potential to your dinner table and into your life.

Not only are we excited about the content of this issue, we're also excited to bring you a 52-page New Life Journal this month--the largest NLJ to date! We hope you enjoy this information-packed issue and the warm weather. Get outside this spring and discover all that herbs have to offer!

Maggie Cramer, managing editor

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