In 2 Kings chapter 4 , there is a report we just lived through ourselves :
“ 38 And Elisha come again to Gilgal when there was a dearth in the land . And as the Son of the prophets were sitting before him , he said to his handmaid , “ Set on the large pot , and boil sweat for the sons of the prophets . ” 39 One of them run out into the field to foregather herbs , and set up a wild vine and assemble from it his lap covering full of wild gourds , and came and reduce them up into the pot of stew , not knowing what they were . 40 And they poured out some for the men to eat . But while they were eating of the fret , they cry out , “ O man of God , there is death in the pot ! ” And they could not eat it . 41 He said , “ Then impart flour . ” And he threw it into the tummy and said , “ Pour some out for the man , that they may eat . ” And there was no harm in the pot . ”
Yesterday I had big program .
I was going to end up glade and planting garden bed , string crop around my pumpkins down the hill , digs some new bed to plant life yams … all kinds of wonderful thing .
Instead , I stop up poison .
How , you may expect ?
Luffas . I was envenom by luffa gourds . And so was Rachel .
I read off the luffa vine grow wild down the hillin a recent video on my YouTube channel :
When I was down there a few days ago harvesting chocolate , I snagged a duet of the new fruit to eat . Luffa are edible – and delicious when stir - fry – so long as you run through them young .
Or such has always been my experience .
On Saturday morning Rachel strip and chop them up with park , corn beef and testis to make a hash for breakfast .
Then we sat down to eat .
“ Wow … this is bitter ! ” Rachel read . “ Could the moringa be bitter ? ”
I sample mine . It was torturously bitter in flavor .
“ I do n’t love … I do n’t think moringa ever gets acrid like this ! Anything else in it ? ”
Rachel frowned . “ A few other greens … I do n’t love … ”
I try out another chomp . It was awful .
“ Wait , ” I say , “ did you put the rag gourd in it ? ”
“ Yes ! ” she said , “ that must be it ! But they were never acid before ! ”
That ’s true . We ate loufah sponge back in Florida and it was delicious . Nothing like this .
I put raging sauce and ketchup on my portion and ate a few more bites . I ’ve had acerbic gourd before and figured this would n’t hurt us . I got about half - elbow room through before give up , but Rachel choke down her total plate of food . We both hat to waste the ballock and corned beef , especially since I have to take the air about 4 miles to go shopping .
This was a severe error .
After breakfast we go outside and got to work on the garden . Rachel weed and till up a layer and I took out a moringa tree which was growing in the wrong space .
By about 11AM I was feel kind of weird and Rachel was ready to go inside .
Then as I tried to get a niggling work done at the electronic computer , the nuisance hit . wrench tum pain , and the bitterness of the sunrise ’s breakfast was back in my mouth . I experience nauseating .
Breakfast was killing me .
About a half - time of day after I got ominous , Rachel started to get disturbed as well .
We speedily deteriorated , take alternate trips to the bath as everything in our systems was emptied violently from our dead body . I tried grind and eat up some charcoal but that did n’t seem to help .
I rest in bed and was bust up with iciness despite the strong tropical breeze coming through the window . The older children were recite to make their own luncheon and dinner and share with the little 1 , as Rachel and I could scantily stand .
My head aching , belly clenched , I explore the cyberspace on my phone , looking for an solution . “ Luffa intoxication ” brought me to an article on poison created by member of the cucurbit family , more specifically courgette and cucumbers .
“ Occasionally , a nurseryman will find a courgette growing in their garden that isextremely biting , as was the suit in 2003 for one Dodge county , Nebraska gardener . feed these vegetable do spartan belly muscle spasm and diarrhoea that lasted several Day . These symptoms were standardised to 22 case of human intoxication by acid courgette reported in Australia from 1981 to 1982 , and in Alabama and California in 1984 . ”
go on to chase this hare yap downwards , I fare to another article on the topic , this time a womanhood ’s narrative that wasway too similar to our own :
“ I had been baffled by several of my repast being destroy by an awful , bitter gustatory perception – so blistering that a tiny fleck leave alone an awful taste in my lip for quite some time afterwards . I wondered if the oil was rancid , I question what component could perchance try so awful .
Then lastly , the culprit was revealed – the last ingredient was grated courgettes , and the looker went from lovely to appallingly bitter .
abominate to befuddle out a big pan of intellectual nourishment , I essay to consume around the courgettes and pick out the blanket noodle , but I had to admit , it tasted bitter beyond anything I want to eat up , and eventually gave up . My partner reject to contact it .
I woke up around 3 am with stomach cramps , diarrhea , the same bitter gustatory modality in my rima oris , and a pounding heart . I was quite worried , and my partner allege I should wait at the research he had done on bitter courgette – it turn out they can arrest a poison phone Cucurbitacin E , which can develop if the plant life is hybridised and/or water - stressed . ”
Cucurbitacin Poisoning Nailed Us
That was it – curcurbitacin poisoning . obviously , many of our cultivated vegetables from the wide cucumber family ( which admit melons , squash and yes , luffa ) have had the bitter toxins bred out of them .
Not so my jungle luffa .
And we were so dazed as tocontinue eating and trying to pick around the second of luffa despite breakfast ’s pitiful flavor …
We paid for it . Though Rachel and I feel well today , we are by no agency sound again . Cucurbitacin poisoning is nasty stuff .
I always enquire about the floor of Elisha and the toxic soup . The idea of there being a vicious gourd hit me as peculiar , as I had never read anything about toxic penis of the cucumber kin . peradventure it was a geographical mile - translation or something , I thought .
No , it was almost for certain cucurbitacin intoxication . Rachel and I had a mild case , compared to some that have occurred .
Curcurbitacin Poisoning Claims a Life
Peoplehave actually fail from curcurbitacin poisoning :
“ Ludwig A. died in hospital two weeks after eat a courgette stew tainted with poison , Bild reportedon Wednesday .
The courgettes were home - grown , and had been give to the pensionary and his married woman Inge by neighbours at their Heidelberg home .
But neither the yoke nor their neighbours were aware of the dangerous toxins shroud within the plant .
“ The swither did try bitter , ” Inge A.told Bild . “ But we ’re used to bitter . We grow radishes in our garden , which also have this sulphurous perceptiveness . ”
But shortly after eat the repast , the couple began to experience unwell .
“ I had diarrhea , and had to be sick , ” 80 - year - old Inge said .
For her husband , things were even bad . “ His facial expression had turn completely yellow , ” Inge remember .
The pair were rushed to hospital , where they were diagnose with severe intoxication .
80 - year - one-time Inge step by step retrieve , and was released from infirmary after a few days . However , her husband had ingested so much of the poison that he later on die . ”
Cucurbitacin Poisoning in India
Another horror chronicle comes from India , this time related to bottle gourd succus :
“ KL Dargar , a 60 - year - former native of Mehasana did not have anybody to warn him when he drink a Methedrine of brisk nursing bottle gourd ( doodhi ) succus . Dargar , had no reason to distrust the innocent looking doodhi , for he had been drinking a glass of doodhi succus on an empty belly every morning for the last twenty years . But this time the healthy drink almost got him killed for he ignore the fact that the doodhi succus tasted bitter when he drank it .
In fact , experts say one call for to stay aside from bitter nursing bottle gourd , cucumber , squash , pumpkin and melon . These veggie , which are regard one of the healthy , belong to to the cucurbitaceae phratry .
Cucurbitacins are complex compounds get in plant belong to cucumber fellowship .
The tetracyclic triterpinpoid cucurbitacins compounds are responsible for for its jaundice and are highly toxic . A 1.2 milligram Venus’s curse of these toxic compound is open of killing a black eye . It can cause humans to vomit line . ” The last time when I drank new extract feeding bottle gourd juice , it tasted quite acerbic . Usually the succus has no gustatory sensation , ” allege Dargar . “ Within minutes , I had austere belly ache , and I set out purge ancestry , ” he said . Dargar said that the nursing bottle gourd used for extract the juice was as unobjectionable as any other . Within second of consuming the blistering juice Darga felt sweaty , dizzy and collapsed . He was rushed to the Apollo infirmary ’s emergency section .
Dr Shravan Bohra , master gastroenterologist , at Apollo Hospitals , Ahmedabad , said , “ We address Dargar for a case of bottle gourd poisoning . He was also plow for blood vomiting . ” Bohra said that an endoscopy revealed that his stomach was found to be bleeding extravagantly . “ Some swelling and hemorrhage was also noticed in the upper small intestine . The nation of the stomach was such as one would get to see if a somebody consumed acid used for toilette cleaning , ” he said . ”
Conclusion
Once I finish up this post , I ’m going back to bed . Rachel is already lay down again , after getting up and making some burnt umber .
This is miserable material . I never mess around with plants I believe are potentially poisonous – and I ’m very careful with my mushroom cloud hunting andhave a whole stack of books on the subject .
Yet I poisoned myself with luffa . Luffa !
And I did n’t even have a prophesier to execute a miracle .
