In the middle of Washington, D.C., behind a simple Cape Cod-style house, not far from North Capitol Street, my grandmother’s backyard was a wild, generous thing.
The heat of June and July coaxed everything into overdrive. Basil and mint climbed the chain-link fence. Rosemary spilled over the steps. Zucchini blossoms flared open like little suns. There were grape arbors that stretched across the yard, rhubarb and tomatoes crowding each other for space, and once, even peanuts that probably sprouted from something tossed in the compost. Between concrete and clotheslines, it thrived like a postage-stamp-sized Eden.
I spent a lot of time in the garden with my grandmother. Long afternoons of cutting, weeding, pulling, tasting. We didn’t call what we were doing “ritual,” but there was a rhythm to this time of year: tying up bundles of basil, thyme, rosemary and parsley before the plants bolted in the heat; placing flower crowns made of garden roses on the heads of every Blessed Mother statue in the house; laying herbs at Mary’s feet on a small plate in the kitchen; whispering Hail Marys in the hot stillness of the afternoon.
I didn’t know then that any of this had a name. I didn’t know that there was an entire Catholic tradition, rooted in German folk practice, called the Blessing of the Herbs, held every year on August 15, the same day as the Feast of the Assumption. I didn’t know that we were participating in a centuries-old practice that honored the ripeness of the season, the healing power of the Earth, and the quiet strength of Mary.
The Feast of the Assumption is a major celebration in the Catholic Church that honors the belief that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was assumed, body and soul, into heaven at the end of her earthly life. While the Bible doesn’t explicitly describe this event, it’s been part of Catholic tradition for centuries and was formally declared dogma in 1950.
But well before that, in rural communities across Europe (especially in Germany and Austria), August 15 became the day when the herbs of the growing season — plants used for medicine, cooking, healing — were gathered, bundled and blessed. People believed that herbs collected on this day held special potency, made stronger by the summer sun and Mary’s protection.
They would be used throughout the year for everything from healing teas to blessings in the home. Tucked into cabinets, crumbled into soups and hung above doorways. These bundles were more than decorative. They were reminders of the abundance that surrounds us, even in times of hardship.
Sobriety has made me crave ritual. Not in the performative sense, but in the way you crave structure when the old scaffolding has been stripped away. I want to mark the days. I want to honor what’s growing in and around me. And I want to remember the hands that taught me how.
The Blessing of the Herbs feels like the most natural thing in the world now. It folds my recovery into something green and living. It reminds me that healing isn’t just something I do. It’s something I tend, harvest and share.
A Ritual for August 15: The Blessing of the Herbs
You don’t need a garden. A few sprigs from the farmer’s market, your windowsill or a neighbor’s pot will do. The point is not perfection. It’s presence.
Step 1: Choose Your Herbs
- Basil for steadiness and fierce sweetness
- Thyme for resilience
- Rosemary for remembering why you started
- Parsley for fresh starts and clearing bitterness
- Mint for clarity and cool-headedness
Tie them into a bundle with kitchen twine or ribbon. Let the stems breathe. Let them be imperfect.
Step 2: Set a Space
This can be as simple as a plate on your counter, a dish towel laid out on the porch, or a spot on the windowsill with a candle, a glass of water or a photo of someone who taught you how to care.
Step 3: Say a Blessing
You can write your own or borrow this one, written in the spirit of my Nana’s alleyway garden:
May these herbs carry the strength of summer,
and may I carry that strength in my bones.
May the green things growing remind me
that healing happens in heat and in stillness.
May the scent of basil call me back to what matters.
May this moment root me in enoughness.
May I be a good steward of the joy I’ve grown.
Sprinkle a little water on the herbs. Place them on your home altar, hang them by the door or give them to a friend. This is not about magic. This is about memory, meaning and the dignity of noticing.
A Mocktail for Mary
If you want to sip something bright while your herbs rest and your evening cools, try this one. It’s my favorite nod to basil and summer heat.
Basil Lime Cooler
- 4 fresh basil leaves, muddled
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 tsp honey or agave
- Club soda or lime seltzer to top
- Optional: a frozen blackberry or slice of cucumber for garnish
Serve over ice. Sip slowly. Let the basil hit your tongue and call up something good from your memory. You don’t need to be Catholic to appreciate the herbs. You don’t need to believe in the Assumption. You don’t even need to call it a ritual.
But if something in you longs to mark the heat-heavy days where everything is ripening… if you crave a moment to pause and say this matters — to your sobriety, to your recovery, to your summer self — then let this be your gentle invitation.
Bundle some herbs. Light a candle. Say a few words to the sky or to the Blessed Mother or to the version of yourself who didn’t yet know how much could grow in this season.
Let the green things guide you home.
THIRSTY FOR WONDER: at The Sober Curator, led by Anne Marie Cribben—a passionate recovery coach and spiritual companion based in Washington, DC—offers 1:1 coaching, spiritual guidance, and recovery support rooted in compassion and empowerment. As the creator of The Wellspring: A Celtic Recovery Journey, Anne Marie blends the Celtic calendar with sobriety, connecting participants to ancient wisdom and the rhythms of nature.
A fierce advocate for sobriety as liberation and self-love, she challenges the targeted marketing of alcohol to women and champions authentic, joyful living. Her work goes beyond addiction recovery, fostering a life of vibrancy, purpose, and connection.
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