My Baba’s Garden Ritual Seed Box ~ Baba’s Last Blossom

DescriptionMy Baba was an amazing lady. When people would ask about her, I would always say, “Oh she’s good; she’s a brick shithouse!” I know that sounds kind of glib, but she was a powerhouse of a woman. Bordering on 6 feet tall, she could and would do anything she set her mind to. She would speak to me in slurred Ukrainian English, and it was not till later in life while sitting in Ukrainian school that I realized I understood more than I thought.“Don’t sleep in the moonlight! It will make you strange!” she would tell me, though I continued to inch forwards towards it. “Figoosmakam!” she would yell in slurred Ukie-English, meaning “a fistful of poppyseeds” when something was worth nothing.I love her and miss her so much.She would craft, garden, & bake like you wouldn’t believe—ice cream pails full of perogies and cabbage rolls. It didn’t matter who you were; if you came to her home, she made sure you were full of food and drink. I want to share her struggles, strength, and fortitude with you all. This is my magical tribute to her created for her birthday month. (she would be 104 on March 23rd ). 2024’s Baba’s Last Blossom offering is a beautiful handmade and hand painted vessel from Ukraine and it contains some very special items.These wood boxes come from Ukraine are beautifully painted and carved by hand. Wood carving (різблення художне; rizblennia khudozhne) is a major decorative art in Ukraine and has been done for many centuries. The painted flowers covering the box are known as Petrykivka painting.This decorative art form has distinctive features of flower patterns and brush techniques. The earliest known examples date from the 18th century, but it continues to thrive and develop as a modern art form.Nestled inside these boxes are packets of seeds. They don’t appear to have a rhyme or reason to them.. But they do. They were all growing in my Baba’s Garden, and this is where I played when I was a child. Now my Baba always believed that seeds and plants grew better if they were  either raised by you or… let’s say “liberated”. Every seed contained in this set has either come from a plant grown by myself, which are always lovingly whispered to with spells and prayers or some of the seeds may or may not have been stolen from an alleyway…..Also included is a magical ritual oil that has been made for my Baba’s Birthday. Only one Mother bottle of the EOs has been mixed, no recipe has been written.Only 16 of these magical boxes exist. When they are gone they are gone.