The Pretty Green Leaf
You smoke marijuana for medicinal use, and you grow it, yourself? “Hell yes!” was the response from many members of this meeting. I was dreading this fourth Monday of the month. I was just too curious to pass it up. I knew I had to be there to find out how this subculture really was. I kept reminding myself, of how I grew up. In foster homes, you see a lot of terrible things. This can’t be that bad.
The meeting started. The members the members sat casually and socialized, and discussed ways to make each other’s lives better. I was sitting and listening, grateful the welcoming I received. The whole room was chatting about their cultivation. It was already evident that they all have the same belief. The marijuana helps their ailments. As the night went on, my curiosity grew stronger. My thirty-seven-year old mind was hooked on the fascination of it all. Speakers rotated and gave advice on many topics. The first speaker spoke of the laws and regulations. Next, there was a young woman who explained some of her new organic soil. The tw- hour meeting seemed to fly by, as each person spoke.
As I listened to each person, I encountered several different ailments. The range was quite extreme. The most common seemed to be migraines. I heard many different stories. I recall a few the most. One of the conversations I had was a nice lady who explained to me why she uses it. She described the excruciating pain in her legs, due to her diabetes. She expressed her reasoning. The pain was too much to bear. The marijuana made her relax and feel less pain. This hit home for me. I suffer from rheumatoid arthritis and also have severe pain at times. Another discussion was with a nice gentleman who told me he uses it for his cancer of the lungs. He had trouble eating and keeping food down because of the chemo treatments.
I was listening to every word as the sincere man spoke to me. “I love it when the sun shines bright and my plants lean towards it,” the middle-aged woman said to me. I replied as nicely as possible, “please explain.” The woman went on in great detail of the behavior of the plant in the sun. It sounded as if it was really alive. I listened and started to feel respect for the plant. She carried on about the growing of this plant, and everyone agreed.
All different types of our community were in this room, talking of the same exact things. How can this be? The respectable businessman who stated, “I need to protect my crop with all the means necessary!” What did he mean? With great unease, I had to ask. I softly whispered to the lady next to me, “What does that mean?” She replied, “Guns in October, sweetie.” She continued and explained briefly of the pulling of the plants in October, and how they can easily be robbed. It was obvious; each member had a similar story. They had a strong belief in this miracle plant! Though, the ailments were very different, the belief still rang true. The pain and suffering was relieved! They all believe that the marijuana is a true, natural treatment to their ailments.
The folks of this almighty, natural remedy had me really thinking. What were the statistics on this? How many people partake in this subculture and are not even aware of it? Do the members of this subculture really all feel the same? If this is such a miraculous drug, why isn’t it legal all over the United States? The marijuana plant does grow from the ground, as does the vegetables we eat. Does that make it natural? Do they use pesticides like the farmers do? Some believe this marijuana is the greatest. To me, it is a controversial issue. I have never tried it to ease pain. I think of marijuana and think of a comatose teenager lying on a couch, eating bon-bons. No ambition or nothing better to do. Always in fear that my teenage girls do not get wrapped up in a culture of this sort. I am also concerned for the children I teach. As a teacher assistant I see many things. I am fortunate that I work at a wonderful school in which the parents are involved. However, after seeing how common it is, I wonder if these parents also using this medicine? Are they hiding it? What have they taught their in regards to keeping quiet?
I tried to wrap my uneducated mind around it. What was the actual use of this marijuana? Did they say they grew it in their backyard? How many plants are in their yard? They all repeated the same type of materials to grow this? What kind of music is best for the plants? They feel like an outcast? Misunderstood? They needed to worry about the safety of their family? There are children watching them do this? My mind could not keep up. I kept thinking of my three children at home. How could my husband and I do this in front of our children? How could we act as though it was so natural.
Now, it was time to put it all together. What did I really learn about this interesting subculture? The members seemed so nice. They seemed normal. What is normal, anyway? There is a lot more to be learned of this great medicine. I am in search of individuals to appease my curiosity until the next meeting.