Flower Sense

In this world of round-the-clock mass media, ‘experts’ are routinely created and presented as pundits on everything from sports to health to politics. Naturally, one becomes suspicious of the term ‘expert’ because it is bandied about so ubiquitously and so casually. However, in the case of Clare G. Harvey, when journalists describe her as a world authority on Flower Essences, they are not for once gilding the lily. Claire Gillman catches up with the woman whose career spans more than 25 years. She has written several books on the subject, is a teacher and lecturer on flower essences and creator of the International Flower Essence Repertoire and the first International Professional Flower Essence Training School in 1988. Deserving qualifications, you’ll agree, for the title of flower essence ‘expert.’ So how did she come to be a leading specialist on flowers? You might say it was predestined since she is a third generation healer (she was trained by her grandmother – herself taught by Dr Edward Bach, creator of the famous Bach remedies – and her mother Eliana, founder of the holistic residential Natural Healing Centre) but Clare suggests that in her youth, this was a powerful reason to do anything but become a healer. She says, ‘It’s that desire to be different from your parents. I decided to go to art college; I was accepted at St Martins (only 12 places on offer) to do fashion. It was me being a rebel – I wanted a couple of years being in the world and experiencing myself.’ At that time, she was studying with Jiddu Krishnamurti, one of the greatest philosophical minds of the 20th century. She spent two years learning from the great man, of whom she says, ‘Krishamruti told me, "Lead an ordinary life in the most extraordinary way possible." And that’s been the backbone of my life. I have been in the world but not of it.’ The people that she met during this fascinating period of her life obviously had great influence over how she would develop both personally and professionally. She says, ‘I had a strong connection with David Bohm and Rupert Sheldrake. They were extraordinary thinkers. So from the age of 17, I was exposed to extraordinary ways of thinking and perceptions which coloured my life.’

by ks
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