Your Custom Text Here
2019: A Recap Of Our First Full Year Of Business!
Y'all 2019 was WILD. We have so much to be grateful for and that is all because of YOU. Before we launch into our tirade about how terrible weight loss results are (because you KNOW that's coming) we wanted to take a look back at our FIRST YEAR of business because we believe in celebrating the hard-won successes:
We hosted TWO weekend-long retreats
We threw a 400+ person festival
We were on Channel 5 THREE times (and another coming out in January)
We brought on many incredible corporate clients
We grew our team by 17 amazing teachers and healers
We established some truly great partnerships with other local small businesses
We hired our first employees
We had 34 events. Yeah, you read that right: 34
We launched memberships
We found a home
We would be lying if we said it wasn't incredibly hard. It was. But you all came out to support a mission of more inclusive wellness. You SHOWED UP. You invested your money into building a supportive community. Every ticket you bought, every t-shirt you purchased, every donation for a community event you made is helping us to build a better version of wellness for this city. THANK YOU. We hope each and every event was as healing for you as it was for us. We are forever grateful.
A Gift Guide That Doesn't Suck (Or Kill The Planet or Support Shitty Companies)
We often poll the audience during our holiday workshops and ask what the most stressful part is for them. What we hear most often: money. Money for travel and decorations but mostly for presents. And while we would love to be able to get rid of the tradition of consumerism during the holidays, we have a feeling that some mothers-in-law, siblings, friends, and grandparents might not be too keen on that idea. So we’ve put together a better shopping list. One that supports small business, helps the environment, costs less money, and makes you the family favorite.
Make it yourself! This one is almost always a winner and typically our go-to. Here are some of our favorite ideas: herbal bitters, candles, bath bombs and salts, herb-infused body oils, and even...gourmet marshmallows.
Gift a service. Want to know one thing we all have in common? We are busy AF. Want to know something that is universally helpful? Services that make our lives easier and help us take care of ourselves. Rather than buying something else that will clutter their home, give them the gift of TIME. Time to themselves? How about a home cleaning service. Time for rest? Massage. Really want to give them a boost? A consulting service for their business or a life coach to get them unstuck. A gym membership and a promise to go with them? Bonus points: an inclusive gym like getFIT615. (If you’re a big TRILUNA fan you can even gift them a private party from us.) Think about what they most need. This isn’t the cheapest option but it’s always appreciated. Need it to be cheap? Make the gift from you--like a coupon good for three hours of your time to clean, organize, and declutter with them.
Support your local makers. We are huge fans of this one. Find a local jewelry maker (like Undercurrent Studio or Jennie Okon) or clothing maker (like LoveFitness or Eric Adler). TRILUNA even has a few of our long-sleeve “Wellness Community Magic” t-shirts left…😉 (shoot us a response to this email if you want one). Go to a local makers market (Nashville’s Porter Flea Holiday Market this year is on Dec 13th!) or craft fair. Go to a local art studio like The Studio 208! Or shop from Etsy. Supporting local small artists is incredibly important. You get to make a small business owner’s dream come true…how cool is that??
Give the gift of new worlds. This is also my favorite suggestion for a baby shower...but go to a used bookstore and, for the price of one new book, you can buy an entire series. McKay’s has almost the entire collection of Illustrated Classics which is perfect for children and nostalgic book collectors alike.
Grow it! Support your local garden center (like Gardens of Babylon or Moore & Moore) and give the gift that keeps on growing: a plant!
Buy it used. If you’re set on buying clothing, furniture, or toys try buying them used first. Extra points if it’s from an organization that gives back (like GoodWill).
Know who you’re buying from. Okay so this one might be a little controversial and we hope we don’t take down your favorite brands BUT…we vote with our dollars so it’s important to be aware before you shop. For example, did you know Lululemon has a long history of fat-shaming? Or that the clothing industry is one the most polluting of all industries (here’s a list of ethical companies working to change that)? Look at the social media of the companies you want to shop from. Is every model thin and white? Maybe look for one that is more inclusive (if you’re in the market for some fitness apparel try brands like Superfit Hero). We don’t claim to know everything we should about this but crafting some awareness is the first step and we’ll all be better off for it!
A couple of other things to note: Wrapping paper is pretty wasteful so try wrapping it in a cloth that can be reused. Here are a few cute ideas. Buying cut trees is also wasteful so add a little year-round greenery to your home with a tree still in its pot that you can decorate!
We hope this is both helpful and inspiring! Have some more ideas you want to add? Leave us a comment below.
Happy holiday season, friends.
Notes On Anxiety (Halloween Edition)
I thought a lot about whether or not to write about this openly. Because as the owners of a wellness company we’re supposed to have it all together, right? We’re supposed to have figured out how to beat anxiety, and depression, and loneliness. We’re supposed to trust the universe implicitly and use the law of attraction to bring to us everything that we want, right? Wrong.
We started this company because we wanted to see and show a realistic version of wellness. We found our way to the ownership of this company precisely because we didn’t have it all figured out. I found my way to a love of food and cooking via a decades-long battle with eating disorders. I found my way to yoga via back pain that made my 19-year-old body feel like it was 100 years old. I found meditation via crushing, debilitating anxiety and self-doubt. It’s been through our journey to understand ourselves that we’ve found healing. Yoga, meditation, and a healthy relationship with food are all just tools for that growth.
Sure, there are days when we nail it—days when the doubt falls away and we feel on top of the world. But there are also days when all of those things come back. Sometimes all at once. The headaches come back, and the fear comes back, and the anxiety takes over. This week was one of those weeks for me. I lost sight of the tools I’ve collected to deal with my anxiety and all the old bull shit came rushing back with a vengeance. And, to add insult to injury, they all came back on Halloween. In the interest of transparency, I wanted to share what a day in my life looks like when the old anxiety creeps back in.
Anatomy of a day with anxiety (Halloween edition):
Wake up at 7:30 am (despite having gone to bed at 9:30 pm)
Watch marketing videos in bed
Finally get out of bed 9:00
Make it to coffee shop at 9:30 to meet friend
Meet friend at 10 and feel like an ass hole because you’re mostly just sad and complaining
Feel better at 12 when you leave said friend because friends are often the best medicine
Watch a masterclass
Take a bath and write down everything you thought about during the master class
Type out 15 different version of “I’m having a lot of anxiety” to your business partner but ultimately never send because you “don’t want to be a burden”
Something in tv triggers you and from 3:00 until 5:30 when boyfriend comes home it’s mostly crying and drinking wine
7:00 get ready for Halloween party, cry the whole time
Stand awkwardly at Halloween party until someone dressed as a derby girl finally gets your twin peaks costume
Get a second wind, think you’re fine
Get halfway through a drink and then make your boyfriend take you home and talk about how he’s the best and why you love him the whole ride home
Finally fall into bed, cry a little more
Have said amazing boyfriend read you trivia questions until you fall asleep
Sleep poorly, waking up every couple hours with an embarrassing memory of the night before and wake up the next morning very tired
This quote is from an art piece I got for my parent’s which now hangs in their hallway…at the cabin in the woods which I escaped to this weekend. I needed beauty, and bread. I needed a place to play in and pray in. So I could be in nature. To heal and give strength to body and soul. I needed to be able to step away to get some perspective and clarity so I could clear some space for the tools I’ve picked up to work their magic. This is a privilege I have and I acknowledge it. But finding some space for true and real self-care is so important. What are your tried and true tactics for pulling yourself out of your own head and out of your own way? Therapy? Running? What are your favorites?
Cleansing Ritual For Clearing Negative Energy From Your Space
TRILUNA is an inclusive wellness company dedicated to making wellness accessible, sustainable, and enjoyable.. If you like this article check out our Podcast Wellness Community Magic.
One of my mentors recently said during an herbalism workshop, “the knowledge keepers are being called.”
And it moved me. It got inside of me and moved things around, shifted my understanding of the world around me, and my place in that world. What she meant was that much of the old knowledge (specifically of herbalism in this case, but also of magic, and community, and kindness ) has been lost. And now the knowledge keepers, the light seekers, and magic makers are being called to attention. We’re being asked to pick up the mantel and carry this knowledge into the future.
But what does this have to do with clearing negative energy? Everything. What it means is that we have the ability to create new rituals, new magic, but also to rediscover what’s been lost, and uncover what has been buried. If you’ve been living under a rock—or, for self-preservation reasons, decided to stop watching the news—you might have missed that there is a lot of negative energy moving around in the world right now. And it’s heavy. It sticks to your bones and weighs you down. Keeps us small. Our energy dark. And so it’s time to create our own rituals for clearing this energy both in our homes, our bodies, and in the world beyond. It’s our job to spread the message and bring this knowledge to light.
There are many ways to perform cleansing rituals. The form you chose it to take is entirely up to you. This is one of our favorites. Put your own spin on it. Clear out some of the negative energy so you can make room for the light.
It’s INCREDIBLY important when you’re doing a ritual or using sacred plants to support that ritual that you are aware of social implications of it. Please don’t use wildcrafted white sage. Please be cautious of where you buy palo santo. If you already have it, use it, but show gratitude for the tree or plant it came from and the Indigenous peoples that created that ritual before you. You can read more about that in our other article here.
If you’re interested in learning more or if they phrase “pro-donut, non-diet, anti-racist wellness” is appealing check out our inclusive wellness community here.
Burn That Sh*t Up (A Ritual):
What you’ll need -
Cinnamon Stick
Crystal (I prefer Manipura chakra crystals for this one like citrine or sunstone or just standard clear quartz but choose the one that speaks to you)
Candle
Paper
Pen
How to do it -
Before you begin, write down on a piece of paper something you’re ready to release, some negative force in your life that needs to be burned away. Fold it up and put it in front of you.
Light your candle, and from that your cinnamon stick, and trace the lines of your body, over your head, around the arms, down the length of the body with the smoke (you may have to light it a couple of times). Cinnamon is great for burning that sh*t up. It’s spicy and warming, just like we want.
Put your cinnamon stick down in something like an ashtray, on the side of your candle, in an incense burner (*note: please do not burn your house doing this, we don’t need THAT MUCH clearing).
Put your crystal in your hand on your lap. Close your eyes or stare into the flame of the candle and try to slow the mind. Take three deep breaths, breathing into the belly, taking in as much air as you can, and releasing it.
Imagine what it would be like to release this negative energy. Imagine it as a black cloud of smoke rising out from inside your body and up into the air, out past the earth, and into space where it just disappears. Over and over again until it feels real.
Then burn that little piece of paper and be done with it (at least for now). You don’t need it anymore.
If you want to go one step further you can put your new intenion, something you can to bring in, into your crystal and use it as a talisman or reminder of you new vision for the future.
CONGRATS you did it! And now that you know how you can be a knowledge keeper, light seeker, magic maker yourself.
We don’t claim that rituals like this will solve your problems. But they can give you some perspective and some space. It will help you see the negative impact that energy has had in and on your body and it will give you permission to process it.
Let us know how it goes! What ritual do you use to keep your energy clear?
Want more? Check out our membership for only $12 a month here.
White Lies, White Sage: The Truth Behind Endangered Plants & Their Sacred Rituals
TRILUNA is an agency focused on event enhancement via wellness and mindfulness. We help organizers craft meaningful experiences to increase focus and engagement at conferences, retreats, and summits. If you’re interested in adding wellness to your event reach out to us at hello@TRILUNAwellness.com.
Throughout the health, wellness, and spiritual community there has been a new topic of concern: ethics. Specifically, the ethics surrounding the plants we use in our rituals to cleanse and protect and the cultural appropriation of those rituals.
In most esoteric and new age bookstores/shops, you will find sage and Palo Santo sold as tools to cleanse spaces, releasing negativity, and create an environment free of toxic energy. While they do both have the ability to heal, these plants have been subjected to modern practices that have changed and even destroyed some of their intended purposes. The Palo Santo tree is currently endangered and is on a watch-list. According to The United Plant Savers Medicinal Plant Conservation, there are less than 250 mature adult trees in the wild, and still, numbers are declining. While the tree is not yet nearing extinction, it has been added to the International Union of Nature Conservation’s list due to its over-harvesting which can lead to extinction. While some information circling the internet is ambiguous (in some regions it is difficult to keep clear records), we should still be mindful and careful when it comes to using sacred plants and endangered plants because it has become trendy to do so. In Peru and Ecuador, it is illegal to cut down Palo Santo trees, but it is not easy to enforce such a law. According to the sacred beliefs and in order to gain the actual benefit of the tree, a Palo Santo tree should never be cut down, and it should not be sold as a commodity. The only true way to get the highly therapeutic oils from the tree is by letting it rest on the forest floor to age for four to ten years. Many of the benefits are lost when the tree is cut down prematurely, in fact, the greatest portion of benefit is not to those who care for its sacred properties — but rather those that care only for its profits. Indigenous communities across North America agree that Palo Santo, along with White Sage, should not be sold as a commodity, but rather be given to you by a shaman or someone within the community to ensure it actually has the sacred benefit that it is being used for.
In addition to Palo Santo, White Sage was never meant to be used as a tool to cleanse, but rather for fierce protection! Because this herb has received a great deal of attention and has become a trend (even being picked up at one point by brands like Urban Outfitters), profiteers are cutting down the plants for immediate economic gain while westerners buy it in droves without knowing or caring about the sourcing or ethics of its harvesting.
The use of these herbs again broaches the codes of ethics when viewed under the lens of cultural appropriation.
When we use these sacred rituals without consideration for their creators we are actively choosing parts of Indigenous cultures that we like while turning a blind eye to the things we don’t.
Additionally, by using these rituals without context or respect it undermines the actual importance behind the practice and gives “westerners” the idea that they can commodify other cultures beliefs for their own personal gain. This is harmful for a slew of reasons including:
That it means we have turned something sacred into a commodity for personal gain (which has, as a result, become endangered).
That we lose the actual value of the sacred herb/ritual.
And that by stealing the ritual — which other cultures have been practicing for hundreds of years — we further perpetuate the divide between us by bastardizing their honored traditions.
When it comes to something like White Sage, which North American Indigenous communities have been using for years, our appropriation of it is hurtful because these very communities were banned from practicing their religious beliefs for decades by white settlers and government bodies. To suddenly mark it as trendy and want to use it means we are only taking what we like or find nifty from the aspects of Native culture that we want for ourselves while still ignoring the history and atrocities the Indigenous Communities had to endure.
Certain Herbs and Plants that are sacred to Indigenous communities that we should not use for commercial profit when it comes to smudging (or cleansing) include:
Palo Santo
White Sage
Sweetgrass
Cedar
Tobacco
There are a few alternatives that can be used for space cleansing, however, the best thing to do is find plants local to your region or… grow your own! Growing your own ensures that you are consuming within a boundary that you’ve set and that no communities or wildlife gets hurt in the process. The benefits of growing your own herbs are many and have huge therapeutic elements. It reconnects you to the earth and nature, and affects your mind in a positive way, giving you benefit beyond just the smudging or burning aspect of the practice. Nurturing and growing a plant is a form of self-care, giving you balance, grounding you and providing purpose, similar to what burning a bundle would do. You can grow herbs with limited resource and even do so in the comfort of apartment city living! Additionally, some sage can be found that is grown, sold by, and directly supports Indigenous Communities so make sure you do your research.
Some alternatives to Palo Santo and White Sage are:
Juniper
Lavender
Vervain
Mugwort
Pine
European Sage
Rosemary
Mint
Dill
Cinnamon
The answer is not to stop using cleaning rituals altogether, but rather to learn about their origins and the communities that created them in an effort to better support the Indigenous Communities from which they came. Go out of your way to learn about the history and culture. Use alternatives to the sacred, and now endangered, varieties of White Sage and Palo Santo. There are many ways you can support Native cultures, for more information please see this article by The Guardian entitled: “Nine ways to support the rights of indigenous people.” We are huge fans of celebrating different cultures and encourage you to embrace and learn as much as you can while working to protect the precious plants of their sacred rituals.
About the Author:
T’Lark, both Choctaw & Mayan Indian, with a wild spirit and the heart of a wolf, is a 300 hour RYT yoga instructor specializing in primal and intuitive movement. She also utilizes intuition to deepen her gift as a medium and intuitive tarot reader. She uses her connection with the spirit of the wolf to teach the ways in which we were once closer to the earth, to connect us to the teachings of the moon and her phases, and to pull together a community of wild hearts and souls sharing wisdom and knowledge and creating a Wolfpack of magical beings! She is a valued member of team TRILUNA and can be found on Instagram @tlarksongbird.