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The problem is that frankincense resin is almost never distilled in the country in which it is harvested, such as in Somalia where violence and political instability are rampant. Instead, bags of resins are exported from Bossaso to other locations where they may be mixed and extended before being shipped off to anonymous third-party distillers in Europe or India who have little interest in guaranteeing raw ingredient integrity.

As long as these frankincense essential oils pass an organoleptic review and even Gas Chromatography analysis, they are labeled as 100 percent pure Boswellia carterii frankincense. Unfortunately, these low-grade substitutes are light years from a true therapeutic-grade frankincense essential oil.

Interested in true frankincense oil?

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Learn more about YLTG Frankincense!

Hier ist ein köstlich erfrischendes Partygetränk, das bei Young und Alt beliebt ist. Dieses Getränk ist nicht nur erfrischend und köstlich, es ist auch gesund mit viel frischen Früchten, Young Living Produkten, und absolut keinem Zucker!

REZEPT:

1-3/4 l Wasser

1/4 l Zitronensaft (frisch gepresst)

1/4 l Blue Agave (nach Geschmack)

6 Tropfen Zitronenöl

3 Tropfen Lavendelöl

1-2 Esslöffel konzentrierter Zitronensaft (falls erwünscht)

Mische die Zutaten. Gieße über zerkleinerte Eiswürfel. Verziere mit einem Lavendelzweig. Macht ca. 2 Liter Limonade.

Fortunately, the Boswellia carterii resin purchased by Dr. Osman and Dr. Haq is carefully inspected prior to distillation. They rarely find problems because of their policy of only dealing with trusted tribal sources that have longstanding ties to the community and an impeccable history of wild-crafting high quality raw materials. Dr. Osman avoids buying resins in open markets or bazaars where adulteration with bark, dirt, fillers, and unrelated resins is always a risk.

“European tourists to Africa and Arabia are easy marks for buying so-called “frankincense” resins that are actually blends of Boswellia papyrifera and other species,” Dr. Osman noted. “They obtain these resins from local merchants or peddlers, take them home, and show off this “frankincense” to their friends.”

And it is not just tourists who are fooled. Many wholesale buyers from America or Europe buy up inferior grade frankincense essential oils and never know the difference. They have almost no knowledge of gum resin varieties and have never personally inspected the gum resin before it is processed by distillers thousands of miles away.

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Learn more about YLTG Frankincense!

I asked Dr. Haq about organic certification for their frankincense essential oil and she replied that while certification is less than a few months away, this is not a pressing concern. “Almost all frankincense resins are wild-crafted and therefore organic. Being organic is the least of our worries.” I was surprised to hear this.

“Raw material variability is always a challenge,” Dr. Osman pointed out. “And the worst type of variability is adulteration. For example, many frankincense suppliers mix in resins from related species such as Boswellia papyrifera and bill the blend as “pure Boswellia carterii.”

While the Boswellia papyrifera resin is a beautiful amber and translucent, it produces only a small yield of inferior-grade oil. Sometimes up to 20 percent of a sack labeled as Boswellia carterii resin may be a jumble of dirt, debris, and distantly related species.”

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Learn more about YLTG Frankincense!

In it’s simplest form, a tradition is something we do, either individually or collectively in a group, each and every year around or on a specific date or time. And, because of this, we call it a “tradition”, because it’s something we, and everyone who knows us, knows we do. Year in and year out. Without fail.

Of course, in this instance, we’re talking about Christmas as that specific time or date when we do these things. Hence the term “Christmas Tradition”.

Some people may give presents to one another. Others may take gift giving to a whole new level and only give gifts to those that are poverty stricken. Still, others may not give any store-bought gifts and have gift qualifications of those that are only “hand-made” by their loved ones.

Every single family has their own rich, historic, family traditions that go back generations. And others make up their own for a new generation to enjoy.

All traditions whether new or old, are practiced greatly upon what each individual family, or person, feels should, or likes, to be done.

Traditions can be simple, or they can be complicated. Say, for instance, that every year, you and your family decides that there should be one new Christmas tree decoration purchased to mark that year. To preserve that moment in time when your family was together and things were at their best.

In other cases, it can be a bit more complicated. Almost like a ceremony if you will. Take this example:

One family may have lost a dear loved one 2 days before Christmas, or maybe even on Christmas, so every year, before doing anything else, they drive out to visit the cemetery where their dearly departed has been placed. They purchase new flowers, or a grave blanket and place it on the grave, paying their respects.

Maybe they have a family prayer or simply have a conversation with their loved one letting them know all the things that have happened throughout the course of the year.

Then, maybe they light a candle. After this is over, they leave the cemetery and return to another relatives home for a wonderful Christmas gathering to further celebrate the life of their loved one and also the birth of Jesus Christ.

Or, maybe a person who doesn’t regularly attend Church, or hasn’t done so for years, goes to Church only on Christmas Eve, or Christmas Morning.

The point is, a tradition is something that people do every year at the same time, no matter what that “something” is. In this case, we’re speaking of a Christmas tradition, which is something you specifically do around Christmas time.

This would be where things such as decorating the Christmas Tree, hanging stockings up, wrapping presents, visiting family and friends you don’t normally see throughout the rest of the year, going sledding with your children, going to school plays or pageants, going Christmas caroling, collecting donations for local charitable organizations, making cookies or home-made candies, drinking egg nog, and so on come in to the picture.

Obviously, some things we do are steeped more in history than others. But, every tradition has a history, whether it’s a new tradition or one that has been passed on from generation to generation. That’s the important part about Christmas traditions.

It’s not really the act of doing them that makes them an integral part of our lives. It’s how doing them makes us feel inside, and outside really.

Now, you may be sitting there wondering, “Why do I put up that Christmas tree every year?” It does seem silly to cut down a tree and bring it indoors. But, there’s a rich history behind this tradition. As well as several others that people all over America par-take in every year.

And, in the next chapter, we’re going to learn all about the history of some more well known and followed Christmas Traditions.

Celebrate Christmas with aroma-essence.com!

by Toby Palmer, Product Manager / Essential Oils

For essential oil enthusiasts, nothing defines the holiday season like frankincense. But some look at the different brands and species on the market and ask, “Which of these oils is best?” For Young Living, the answer to this question lay deep in the heart of Arabia, where a select group of people have made understanding this legendary plant their life’s work.

Young Living’s Founder and President, D. Gary Young, has made it his passion and practice to personally inspect the source, cultivation, and preparation of all Young Living essential oils. Gary’s most recent global tour took him once again to Africa and Arabia to examine our current oil preparation and investigate other frankincense supplier.

Not only do Young Living sourcing experts personally visit partner distilleries worldwide, but they are also in contact with other international experts, like Ahmed Warfa, PhD. Dr. Warfa recently visited our corporate office and took the opportunity to visit with Young Living Sourcing Manager Mary Lou Jacobsen and I. Dr. Warfa is a professor of botany and hails from Somalia. Dr. Warfa is the world’s preeminent authority on frankincense and has a decade of field experience studying the growth patterns of various species of frankincense.

I asked Dr. Warfa what he felt are the key elements of quality frankincense oil, and how he would respond to a question regarding Boswellia frereana frankincense reportedly harvested in Oman…

According to Dr. Warfa, proper resin identification and distillation are essential for production of therapeutic-grade frankincense oil. Grade 1 Boswellia carteri frankincense resin from Somalia currently sets the world standard for available frankincense, Warfa explains. Other frankincense resins may be comparable—such as those found in Oman—but these resins are scarce and not commercially available.

According to Dr. Warfa, Omani frankincense has not been exported out of Oman for more than 50 years. Dr. Warfa also emphasizes that Boswellia frereana is only found in Somalia and has never been cultivated in Oman. Boswellia frereana frankincense does not grow in Oman or in Yemen, explains Dr. Warfa.

Dr. Warfa’s statements correlate directly with Gary Young’s own observations and experience. Gary has toured Oman many times over the last 12 years in search of quality frankincense, most—recently in November to research and inspect locations in Muscat, Salalah, and the RubalKhali. During this recent excursion, Gary was told repeatedly that no one in Oman was distilling or exporting any commercial quantities of Omani frankincense. The collection of “Al hojari” and other grades is principally a sporadic, small-scale endeavor that yields resin for local use and sale.

Dr. Warfa’s insights into frankincense have helped Young Living define our Young Living Therapeutic Grade™ (YLTG) frankincense standard. With nearly 15 years experience sourcing frankincense, Young Living has compiled more than a decade’s worth of Gas Chromatograph and Mass Spectrometer analysis data to provide clear support for our YLTG standard. We continually compare our YLTG frankincense with competitor samples and have yet to find another that has the optimal levels of health-enhancing constituents.

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I have posted this article here for all to know: Competing companies claim, they get their francincense out of Oman. Sorry folks, you’ve probably never been there.

When using essential oils, there is nothing safer than to know a company you can trust! This company is: Young Living!

Read more about Young Living Essential Oils!

You would think, after reading that most of our American holiday traditions stemmed from Europe, that it would only stand to reason that the tradition of placing Poinsettia flowers around our homes would also come from that region.

Well, if you thought that, you would be 100%. . . . .Wrong!

Actually, this tradition came all the way from. . . .Mexico!

That’s right. Mexico is the correct answer.

Our American tradition of displaying Poinsettias around our homes was the brain child of none other than Joel Roberts Poinsett. I mean, check out the name! You knew it was coming :-).

If it were not for Joel R. Poinsett’s love of botany, we may have never even known about this beautiful and festive flower at all. In 1825, Joel Robers Poinsett was appointed to the prestigious title of the United States Ambassador to Mexico.

On one of his journeys to Mexico, he discovered the vibrantly red flower. He immediately fell in love with it as a practicing botanist, and shipped some of them back to his home in Greenville, South Carolina.

After a short time of cultivating the flowers inside his hothouses, he began sending them to his friends and family as a Christmas gift.

Now, we display them within our own homes. And can purchase them from any greenhouse or corner shop.

Celebrate Christmas with aroma-essence.com!

No, Hallmark didn’t start this. It was an English man by the name of Sir Henry Cole in 1843. You see, Sir Henry needed a way to send out Christmas cards to family and friends to help the not so fortunate souls. And writing each one out by hand would be a tedious and timely task. Try saying that 3 times fast!

So, he hired a guy by the name of John Calcott Horsley to pick up the process. John set off to work and began hand painting an image onto a card that depicted the act of celebrating a joyous Christmas with family.

Under the picture read a caption that said, ?A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You?. While the idea wasn’t one that inspired Sir Henry’s friends and family to join in on his crusade, and he didn’t send any more cards out the following year, the idea of sending holiday wishes and greetings did.

Kate Greenaway, a prominent Victorian children’s book writer and illustrator, assisted with the help of Frances Brundage and Ellen Clapsaddle, designed the first popular Christmas cards during the late 1800’s into the early 1900’s.

Still, 30 years or so after this, Americans that wanted Christmas cards to send off, had to import them directly from England. So England is responsible for the creation and tradition of the Christmas card.

Until in 1875, a German immigrant by the name of Louis Prang, started his very own lithography shop within the United States. At first, Louis didn’t create traditional looking Christmas cards that we’re familiar with today. As more people requested wintry scenes and Christmas tidings, Louis came up with some of the most beautiful designs ever spied with the human eye. By the time it was 1881, Louis was creating better than 5 million Christmas cards every year!

Can you say millionaire?

Today, we can find all sorts of different Christmas cards sporting every Christmas greeting imaginable in shops all across the U.S.

Celebrate Christmas with aroma-essence.com!

The tradition of Santa Claus goes back centuries and is one of the reasons why we give gifts today. Even though no mention of this was made previously. That’s because the tradition of Santa Claus is a story that deserves a section all by itself.

Santa Claus, as we know and love him today didn’t start out that way. It all began in the 4th century A.D. With a man by the name of St. Nicholas.

What bridges the gap between modern day Santa Claus and the legend of St. Nicholas was his endearing acts of generosity.

It is said that in one particular act of kindness and generosity St. Nicholas save the lives of three sisters. The story goes that three sisters were to be sold by their father into slavery, or prostitution, because he was a poor, but God fearing man, and had no dowries to bestow upon his daughters to save them from this terrible future. St. Nicholas heard of this man, and so one night, St. Nicholas ventured off to his home.

Peering in the window, St. Nicholas saw the three sisters fast asleep in their bed. He noticed that they had just finished washing up their stockings and hung them to dry by the window and the fireplace.

As the story goes, St. Nicholas then took many gold pieces from his pockets and began throwing them through the window and down the chimney.

Amazingly enough, the gold pieces fell into the sister’s stockings, and when they awoke in the morning, they found their stockings filled with shimmering gold pieces that saved their lives from a destitute future.

That’s just one act of charity St. Nicholas performed. And it is the most well known and retold account. He performed many other everyday ?miracles? rescuing the poor from the fates that awaited them.

His legend spread throughout Europe like wildfire, and hopeful children would leave their stockings hung beside the chimney. And in some cultures, their wooden shoes sitting on the hearth. They would awake in the mornings to find all sorts of presents and goodies filled their empty stockings, or shoes.

What is of important significance about Nicholas was at the time he was performing these acts of kindness, he was not a Saint. He was an ordinary man with an extraordinary heart. He cared for his fellow man and was a devout follower of Christianity modeling his life around it. Because of his good deeds and acts of charity to the less fortunate, he ascended to Sainthood.

But, the then St. Nicholas looked nothing like the Santa Claus we are familiar with in today’s American society however.

This new vision of Santa came long after, but his character was based on the legendary St. Nicholas. And what a wonderful person to base a figure loved by children the world over after!

Around the 17th century in Britain, there was a notoriously jolly man that delivered gifts to children across the country on Christmas Eve, lovingly referred to as Father Christmas. He wasn’t exactly our vision of Santa Claus, but it’s pretty darn close.

Father Christmas was a somewhat portly fellow, had a white beard, an older gentleman with a cheerful face, and dressed in a green robe trimmed in white fur that carried a staff. Basically, he looked like an older Christian fellow. Or maybe “Gandalf” from the Lord of the Rings? Yeah. You get the picture.

If you watch the classic Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”, and spy the “Ghost of Christmas Past”, well that is similar to what Father Christmas looked like. With the white beard and hair of course ;-).

But, how did Santa get is name?

Chalk that one up to the Dutch. People from the Netherlands also had created their own version of Santa. But to them, he was called by the name “Sinterklaas”. Sounds a lot like ?Santa Claus?, right?

It doesn’t end there though. Wonder where all Santa’s little helpers came from? Yep, I’m speaking about the elves. Well, those were a contribution of the Dutch too!

The story goes that St. Nicholas set free a little Ethiopian boy named “Piter” from a Myra marketplace where he was to serve indefinitely throughout his life. Because of this, Piter decided to devote his life to his savior, St. Nicholas, and help him out with his work.

Later on, the one “helper” became many. And so we have Santa’s helpers, the elves, helping Santa get ready for the biggest night of the year, Christmas Eve.

On an interesting side note, “Piter” was give this name to represent another saint that went by the name of Peter. You may have heard of him ;-).

So, we know where Santa came from, and how he got his name, but how did he go from the look of Father Christmas, to jolly old Saint Nick?

That one’s easy.

On December 23, 1823, the Troy, New York local newspaper called the “Sentinel” released a moving Christmas poem entitled “A Visit From St. Nicholas”. But, we know it today as “The Night Before Christmas”.

As we all know, from our own childhood’s, Santa is portrayed as a portly old fellow with a red nose, white beard, and fur trimmed outfit. We also know from the poem that Santa is equipped to do his nightly rounds with a sleigh and eight tiny reindeer. What, not 9?

Nope. Rudolph wasn’t thought up until a little bit later.

Santa began donning the red outfit sometime later in 1863 when an American cartoonist by the name of Thomas Nast that appeared in “Harper’s Weekly”. Since then, Santa has been, for the most part, looking the same. Later on, in about 1885, Santa made his first appearance on a Christmas greeting card wearing his traditional red clothes and looking mainly as he does, still, to this very day.

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Would you believe that the Candy Cane as we are familiar with it today, was actually invented as a tool to keep children quiet?!

It’s true.

Back in the 1670’s, a choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral in Germany, took a well known candy, a ?sugar stick? and bent one end to resemble that of a Shepherd’s staff during the long church Christmas ceremonies. This new idea quickly spread over to America and churches then began performing the same tradition within their midst.

Candy Canes, in their infancy, were mostly reserved for Christmas themed religious ceremonies. But, there was one documented case of someone decorating their own Christmas Tree with the traditional ?white? candies.

A man by the name of August Imgard, a German immigrant, displayed candy canes on his family Christmas tree in Wooster, Ohio, in the year 1847.

At first, the Candy Canes were all white, void of any other color. Until in the 1920’s, a man by the name of Bob McCormack began making the Candy Cane as we know it today, with the red stripes included, for his family, neighbors, and friends. Bob did this process, every year all by hand.

That all changed when his brother in law, a Catholic priest by the name of Gregory Keller, invented a machine that automated the Candy Cane creation process in about 1950.

Now, we all enjoy Candy Canes, from the traditional red and white striped peppermint candies, down to the multi colored fruity flavored ones.

Celebrate Christmas with aroma-essence.com!