By: Hettie Basil Lighttower

Thank you all for the encouraging feedback I have received about my writings. I am so glad you are enjoying the show. It is good to uplift each other and learn from each other. I particularly like to pass along useful and helpful information that I have gleaned from life. Today we will be talking B.S.!!! Don’t worry dad, not that BS…. The other B.S. ……baking soda!!!!!
When I was a kid, I remember my mom talking to me about baking soda. I was slightly annoyed and didn’t understand her enthusiasm about how you could brush your teeth with it, scrub your tub, use it for deodorant and BAKE with it. All that seemed pretty far fetched to me. Sorry Mom, I hope my change of heart these days about Baking Soda helps you to rest in peace a little easier.
Somewhere in my late 20’s one day, I recall actually taking the time to READ the label on that orange box with the big strong arm on it while whipping up some cookies that required baking soda. I was surprised and intrigued by all the uses listed on there. Okay, so mom was right. And I remember the 3 living grandparents I grew up with, occasionally getting a glass of water before bed and tossing a spoon of baking soda into it and drinking it right down. I was offered more than once to try it but declined the offer without a second thought. You see, I had dipped my finger into the powder when using it for baking, just to try it and I already knew how salty and terrible it tasted. NO THANKS. I’ll keep the belly ache or the chance of indigestion while sleeping, thank you.
The decades have passed by, grandparents and mom have passed on, but yet here I am….. still attempting to make friends with this baking soda. And in the most recent years I admittedly have to say “a home is not a home without baking soda”. You literally will have less quality of life and even suffer without it!!! In some (cancer) cases you may even unnecessarily die without it! Baking soda is pure alkalinity. Which reminds me of my sweet memories of Roseanne Lemasters the “fish store lady” and cousin to my mother, telling us kids how to make the pH just right by adding a little bit of baking soda to the fish tank. The water was healthier and cleaner for the fish that way. And we had this magic(or so it seemed at the time because it would go from clear to a color) liquid to drop drops to test the color to see if the water had enough Baking Soda in it or not.
Did you know that cancer cannot live in alkalinity? FABULOUS!!! I won’t get into that whole story here, but one day I might. It is definitely in my book and workshops (Cancer. Set. Go.) on how to cure yourself of cancer. Baking soda is the main ingredient of my cancer story. But moving on, instead of using sprays that you inhale while you scrub your tub, sink, stove, pots, pans or counter….. Baking soda does the job. As a matter of fact, it does a BETTER JOB than those ammonia and bleach ridden sprays and cleaners without making you feel sick or have raw sinuses afterwards. And for the fact that NOTHING can live in pure alkalinity, the Baking Soda is antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal and antitoxic.
And is it cheap!!! I buy it in bulk. I never want to be in a situation where I run out of BS. Did you know that even folks on food assistance can buy baking soda with their food cards? Because you use it for baking.(wink, wink) It is very accessible. So, when you are on a fixed income or a tight budget and you have to decide to buy cleaning products or shampoo or toilet paper….. don’t forget to use your food money for the cleaning product…..aka BS and your cash for the toilet paper or shampoo (but actually baking soda can be used in place of shampoo). It won’t bubble up really nice but it absorbs oils and dirt and deodorizes.
If you mix up some in a cup with just enough water, you can make a paste with it. That paste can be used for cleaning as we mentioned, but also for a dab on your skin like a poultice. It will quickly clear up the itch or sting of any insect bite or bee sting! Dab it onto poison ivy, hives, other rashes on your skin. Voila’!!! Relief. Sprinkle some on your carpet before you vacuum, you don’t have to buy the fancy high chemical smelly carpet fresh….. It will work by itself or help you to use LESS of the expensive fancy version of perfumed-up carpet powder. Sprinkle it in your cat’s litter box…..ahhh…. fresher longer….. Or soak your feet in a nice soothing soak of very warm almost hot water, baking soda and sea salt. It will literally pull toxins out of your body and make you feel better all over, not just on your feet. Take a bath with it, throw a cup into your laundry load…. I could talk hours about this. Thanks, mom!
Have you been using BS in these ways? Or have you committed the sin of forgetting about it and weighted your self down with chemical burdens? Repent dear loves….. make friends again with Baking Soda and live HAPPIER, HEALTHIER, and LONGER. As always feel free to send in your notions and comments to [email protected]. I will include them in the next available column as per their arrival relative to the publication deadline of Tuesday by noon of the same week. If you wish to be anonymous let me know. Kindness is contagious~*