The Prairie Crocus: An Emblem of the Craniosacral Rhythm

The Prairie Crocus is Manitoba’s provincial flower, I just (re)learned this. It has become one of my favourite flowers, after all, purple is my favourite colour. The Prairie Crocus also contains the colours of my business branding, purple, yellow, and, green. Is this a coincidence? My subconscious seems to resonate with this land, with this field within which I presently inhabit.

Despite being born on a tropical island, after growing up in Winnipeg and the wide-open spaces of the prairies, I have long thought that I could not live on a small island, even one that is perpetually summer. I must say, however, after 30 years in the subtropics, I look forward, less and less, to the long Manitoba winters. Spring always seems so far away during the winter, especially when it’s still snowing in April. At Spring’s earliest signs I’m out the door in search of the warmth of the sun, and signs of Nature’s rebirth.

It so happens that the Prairie Crocus is one of the first flowers to bloom after winter. It is known as a harbinger of spring and its buds emerge as soon as the last snows have melted. They, too are eager to greet the sun and to be renewed.

Just as the Prairie Crocus rises from the stillness of the frozen Earth, Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy, BCST, invites the body to emerge from patterns of tension and trauma, and to allow itself to follow the rhythms of its own innate healing. The ability of the Prairie Crocus to thrive in the cold early spring mirrors life’s challenges and our aspirations to overcome the challenges, to be renewed.

The “Long Tide,” a foundational concept of BCST is reflected in the seasonal rhythm of the Prairie Crocus: slow yet driven, delicate yet steady. The Long Tide is the essence of the Breath of Life; the primordial ebb and flow of the Vital Life Force that arises from our very core and is the deepest source of our healing.

Just like the Long Tide is healing in nature, the Prairie Crocus has its healing properties and is highly regarded in the spiritual and medicinal traditions of many Indigenous cultures. Considered a plant of purification, the Prairie Crocus is used to cleanse the body and spirit. Similarly, the cerebrospinal fluid, as it rides the tidal waves of the body, as it creates its unique Craniosacral Rhythm, it cleanses and revitalizes the body.

Found in expansive fields, where it grows in the open, windswept prairies, the Prairie Crocus represents quiet strength, resilience, and immutable force. So, too in the wide field, in which we all exist, we BCST practitioners sit and welcome the Long Tide, the healing tide of the body and the spirit. I invite you to come join me in The Healing Field, maybe we’ll spot a Prairie Crocus.