Thyme for Chicken Soup

It's winter. It's cold. My throat hurts. My stomach's hungry. Grandma's dead and I want some chicken noodle soup. Mmmmm, chicken noodle soup.

Carrots, celery stalks, onions, throw in some parsnips and turnips. Chop everything. Add garlic, salt, peppercorns, a table spoon or two of olive oil, throw a bay leaf into the chicken stock, egg noodles and, oh yes... fresh thyme. I love thyme and use it a lot, but often forget to think about it's medicinal qualities. The healing properties of thyme have been know for centuries to the Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. Before antibiotics, it was used in bandages. It is also an antiseptic and used in teas to aid in the healing of cough, inflammation of the throat and bronchitis. It was used to incense temples and in the middle ages, it was given to knights because it was believed to bestow courage upon them. Why wouldn't you put this in your soup? I feel better already.