At the beginning of this year, I did what many of us do when preparing for another trip around the sun. I set about visioning, but also taking real stock and looking at the reality of the health of my enterprises, my finances, and my body. My approach to the known challenges, I decided, was to bring in freshness of perspective, make some pivots, and then put my head down and work it. My retail business and its educational programming are currently at a critical juncture, and they really needed my undivided attention and energy. Therefore, plans for personal development (i.e, retreats, trainings, coaching), travel, or casual socializing were put on hold. I felt good about this plan. I love my work. I want my business to thrive, and I needed a big turnaround in terms of finances. So, I grabbed my oar. However, a naughty word kept creeping into my thoughts…Sabbatical.*
Tantre Farm Honeybee Nut Festival A Fall Celebration of Nature’s Bounty
If you’re looking for a fun, free, educational, and delicious way to celebrate fall, the Third Annual Tantre Farm Honeybee Nut Festival in Ann Arbor is the place to be on Sunday Ocotber 8th.
In Pursuit of the More Perfect Apple at Amrita Farms
Amrita Farms is the only organic apple orchard within over a 50-mile radius for U-Pick apples. The farm was started 27 years ago, on a 54-acre parcel, in order to combine sustainable farming and education in pursuit of an eco-friendly lifestyle. The owner’s first initiative was to help mother nature by planting several hundred evergreens. The farm struggled since its start to find its identity, milling through multiple products with a revenue stream not taking root because of the clay soil. Kymal, known in business circles as a serial entrepreneur, refused to accept failure
Book Review: A Lantern in the Dark: Navigate Life’s Crossroads with Story, Ritual, and Sacred Astrology
Danielle Blackwood meets readers at life’s crossroads–a space of “betwixt and between”–where she guides and inspires through story, ritual, and sacred astrology. Infused with myth, folklore, and the hidden wisdom in stories, A Lantern in the Dark, provides insights to readers of varying ages and stages of life while they stand at a juncture often riddled with confusion, dilemma, and restlessness.
Out of My Comfort Zone: Sometimes I Fall: The Discomfort of Asking
In response to your kind inquiry, ‘Would you be interested in writing?,’ right off the bat, I’ve been transported a few miles, to the outskirts of the town of Discomfort. I stare at its welcome sign. Founded: at the beginning of human time. Population: countless.
Astrologically Speaking: Sheer Lunacy: The Moon’s Journey Through the Zodiac Signs
While the sun reflects our personality, the moon reflects our emotional self. It can reflect the mother archetype and how we are cared for as well as how we nurture. It can also represent the health of the entire body. This means our feelings or how we react to things can be more steady, less intense or more amplified depending on where the moon is.
Joyful Movement for Complex Healing
The Nia technique is a somatic movement practice that combines dance, martial arts, and healing arts to promote holistic fitness and well-being. Developed by Debbie Rosas and Carlos Aya Rosas in the 1980s, Nia is based on the belief that movement is medicine and that the body’s innate wisdom holds the key to healing and vitality.
Urban Ashes: Triple Wins for the Economy, People, and the Environment
Paul Hickman is one of a number of individuals and companies nationwide, who have a better idea—actually a number of better ideas—about ways to put those 600 trees, and the many thousands more every year throughout the US, to better uses and to sequester their carbon. Hickman is founder of Urban Ashes, a local company that, since 2009, has been using salvaged wood to produce furniture and picture frames, and has done it primarily by employing formerly incarcerated people, a frequently marginalized population.
Cooking with Lisa: Cozy Soups for Fall
As the crisp autumn air sets in, it’s the perfect time to indulge in comforting and nourishing fall soups. From hearty stews to creamy bisques, these seasonal delights capture the essence of fall flavors and warm our souls. Here are two easy and delicious fall soup recipes that use seasonal ingredients and will keep you cozy and satisfied throughout the season.
Sustainable Health: Fall Allergies (please pass the tissues)
Autumn is a welcome change after the hot and humid days of summer. Cooler days and nights, leaves changing colors and falling from the trees, pumpkins, bonfires, hayrides, and flannel invite us to get cozy and enjoy the transition to winter. However, for the folks who suffer from seasonal allergies, autumn isn’t such a cozy time and winter can’t get here fast enough!
Singing and Listening with the Heart: A Therapist’s Journey
Jessica Ryder’s business card lists her credentials (MS, LLPC, NCC) as a professional mental health counselor, yet, she also has printed on them “MM” or Master of Music. Ryder’s academic training for her work as a therapist has been typical, though her life experience prior to was anything but. For twenty years she was a full-time professional musician working in some of the highest tiers of classical music.
The Witches of West Michigan Offer Spiritual Community for All
Just a decade ago, being casually invited to such an event would have been unthinkable to me. There were no public-facing witchcraft groups within easy reach of my Michigan hometown at the time. Even though I knew many local people had an interest in the Pagan spiritual arts, practice groups were generally underground and by invitation only.
Herbs for Your Garden: Yarrow
Yarrow is an indispensable herb that you’ll always find growing in my herb garden. Its versatility is formidable, making it an excellent tool in your herbal medicine kit. If you asked an herbalist what single plant they would bring with them to a deserted island, their answer will most likely be “Yarrow!”
Leaps of Faith--Fall 2023, London Beauty & Misfit Coffee
This column is a look at brave souls who have taken a leap of faith to open their own businesses in and around Ann Arbor. Business owners who are following their dreams and thriving despite the odds.
Screen Time Solutions
As an elementary school teacher for almost three decades, I’ve witnessed a dramatic shift in recent years in the behavior and habits of children. Further, I’ve seen an alarming rise in obesity and violent tendencies during that time. I attribute these changes, in part, to excessive screen time as well as a lack of parental involvement.
A Walk in North Bay Park in Ypsilanti
I stood near the entrance to a boardwalk watching an egret do very little. It was nearly motionless amid a cluster of pond lilies that covered the water’s surface. Its shape—long, slender neck, bulbous body—reminded me of the glass beakers we used to mix potions in high school chemistry, it’s white plumage radiant in the afternoon sun.
A Life of Cat Companionship
Giant ears disproportionate to the rest of his tiny body, beady eyes, a thin mousy tail, and tiger stripes. His name was Peppy, and he was the first kitten I ever called my own. My parents got him from a pet store, probably to quiet my constant nagging. I'd always loved cats.
Healers of Ann Arbor: TheraSupport for Neurolpgical Conditions
About seven years ago, I fainted when sick and hit my head. I sustained a concussion, but it was on the severe end of what is considered a concussion, right before you get to a moderate traumatic brain injury. I was sent to neurology and then neuropsych for a support group to teach me how to cope with the effects of the injury and how slowly the healing happens. Unfortunately, I was let go from the group after six months.
Namaste, Katie: OUr Fall 2023 Yoga Column
Whether you're a seasoned yogi or getting ready to roll out your mat for the first time, here you'll find a variety of useful tips from local yoga instructor, Katie Hoener.
Now That Was a Great Funeral
Lisa’s funeral was three years, almost to the day, from when she was first diagnosed with stage four colon cancer on March 17, 2020. She was my friend, my colleague, a woman I admired, respected, loved. From the day she was diagnosed, she wrote daily in her Caring Bridge online journal. Throughout the pandemic, her chemo, and the unmentionable discomfort she endured, Lisa wrote. She told us the ugly truth of her experience and the beautiful hope and moments of joy that met her on her journey through life to death.
