Lilac Flower Essence: I Remember You

An old photo.  The familiar face of a stranger.  A faded street sign. A song.  A scent.   

Whatever it is, it brings you instantly into the past as a wave of nostalgia washes over you and memories bubble up to the surface.  Each memory asking us, as does this soulful song by Fertile Ground,  "Do you remember?"

 For me, it's the smell of autumn leaves that remind me, strangely, of football season and high school.   And Cupid by 112 takes me back to me back to my college dorm room every single time, like it was just yesterday. 

In a previous article, I've talked about how one of the gifts of the Metal Element is Present Presence- the ability to breathe in the wonder, beauty, and preciousness of each moment. And in last month's The Art of Letting Go, we explored how the Metal Element also supports us in releasing the past.  So it makes perfect sense that the bridge between the sacred present and the sacred past is also related to the Metal Element.  That bridge is our Soul Memory.

 This memory is different than the ancestral, generational memory associated with the Water Element.  Rather, it is the memory of the experiences in this lifetime that have profoundly touched our soul or inspired us.  Lilac is one of my favorite remedies to turn to when an aspect of our soul memory is lacking. 

Photo Credit: Richard Katz

Lilac is part of the Range of Light series of flowers essences offered by Flower Essence Services.   According to their website, Lilac helps us to tap into deep wellsprings of memory that rejuvenate the soul, and to stimulate memory forces  that connect the soul with joy and life meaning.  When out of balance, we experience  'Soul amnesia', or the inability to integrate or be nourished by past experiences of the soul.   

Clinically, I've found this flower very healing and useful when someone is going through a period of intense inner work.   This can be through spiritual training or practice that requires us to look closely

at our faults or mistakes.  Or this can be due to therapy or counseling, which often calls us to dig into painful memories of the past in order to understand our current situation.  This might mean exploring early childhood wounds in individual therapy, or exploring the root of the breakdown of a relationship in couples therapy.

Either way, the experience can be intensely painful as the repressed memories resurface, bringing with them tides of emotional and even physical discomfort.  Lilac serves as a benevolent gift to help us recall the good memories that were also suppressed.

It reminds me of that moment in "Eternal Sunshine in the Spotless Mind".  In this quirky Sci-Fi movie, Jim Carrey's character is having his memory of his 'relationship-gone-sour' erased.   The memories at the beginning of the process are the most painful.  However, as he fast-rewinds through time to the beginning of the relationship, he find memories that he had long forgotten. Intimate moments, a laugh, a touch.  These moments appear like clips from a movie in his mind, very much the same way Lilac gently calls memories into our consciousness.

And just like in the movie, we often find that painful memories often trump pleasant ones.  They are calling our attention because they are trying to teach us something.  Lilac supports us in remembering the sacred, the beautiful, the inspiring moments and the magic they brought to our lives.  Those moments also, in their quiet way, have something important to teach us.  

Lilac helps us to integrate those memories,  teaching us that the our experiences can not be classified as  black and white, right or wrong, good or bad.  Instead, we come to understand that our experiences are just like the primordial forces of Yin and Yang-  both light and dark, forever dancing together,  weaving the rich colorful tapestry of our lives.

To learn more about Flower Essences, take my online course Flower Spirit: Healing with Flower Essences or schedule a personal Elemental Alchemy consultation.