St. Hildegard of Bingen

A German Abbess who lived from 1098-1179, Hildegard (follow link to learn more) was given to the church by her parents as a tithe because she was their tenth child. In her many volumes of works produced over the course of her life as a nun, Hildegard recorded mystical visions, music, poetry, medicines, and botanical observations.

Several years ago I ran across the information that one of Hildegard's recorded cures, using goats fat and sweet violets to cure cancers was being investigated. I haven't been able to find any follow-up information on the scientific study that was being conducted (last I heard it had run out of funding) but anecdotal evidence abounds, like the 1901 New York Times article. Not to mention the fact that the Greeks as far back as 50 BCE were curing skin cancers with a poultice of violet leaves.

Could the cure for cancer be right under our noses, in this sweet smelling spring flower? I can't know for certain. But even if the violet is just another pretty flower, I believe it is still worth growing in my garden. How could you not love these pretty purple drops of happiness?