Bloodroot

Sanguinaria canadensis

The red juice of its root has nothing to do with love & everything with war, caustic enough to leave permanent scars on the skin, burn out cancer, repel insects, & once to give Indian warriors their fabled hue. But it isn’t just the blood-red color; see how the anthers circle a pale heart. How the tender young plant embraces itself like a bat with its one green wing. Dig up a bloodroot & watch a tremor travel through the patch, connected by something far thicker than water.