There was magic, she said, in the plants we gathered from the mountain. Magic plants had three reasons for living: They gave us food, they gave us medicine, and they gave us beauty. She said yarrow was truly magic because it was also a plant that could live with very little water. To me, the very best part about yarrow was that it was so old it had a story to tell. That made it even more magical. I loved Aunt Bett's stories.