Arrival 2pm | Concludes 6pm
To live in a place long enough for it to shape you is a profound privilege.
This afternoon is devoted to belonging. Together, we will spend time with plants native to this region, exploring their medicinal properties, traditional and contemporary uses, and the ways connection develops through presence and reciprocity.
Regeneration on this land is visible and humbling. Native plants carry teachings of succession, resilience, and renewal that reveal themselves through direct encounter. What once feels like landscape becomes something lived and known.
Rooted in nearly two decades of tending our Nature Refuge, and shaped by years of study with Chumash medicine woman Cecilia Garcia, this gathering opens a relational way of learning grounded in continuity and respect.
Whether you have made your home in the Santa Monica Mountains for many years, are newly rooted here, or are simply exploring the idea of spending more time in nature — you are welcome.
The Flow of the Afternoon
Arrival + Tea Ceremony
We begin in stillness with a tea ceremony guided by April Zanot. Through intentional preparation and shared presence, we soften into the field of the mountains. Tea becomes a threshold, an attunement practice that brings us into a slower register of listening.
Native Plant Immersion
We will spend time with plants native to this region, exploring their medicinal properties, traditional and contemporary uses, and the ways relationship develops through reciprocity.
Seasonal Body Oil Crafting
Together we will craft a spring body oil infused with sagebrush and calendula. Through touch and scent, you will come to know these plant allies directly and take your oil home to use throughout the season as a continued act of connection.
Embodied Integration
In the final hour, we will move into a gentle yoga and embodied movement practice, allowing the teachings of the plants and the land to integrate through the body. This closing practice grounds insight into breath and muscle — carrying the experience beyond the afternoon.
Arrival 2pm | Concludes 6pm
To live in a place long enough for it to shape you is a profound privilege.
This afternoon is devoted to belonging. Together, we will spend time with plants native to this region, exploring their medicinal properties, traditional and contemporary uses, and the ways connection develops through presence and reciprocity.
Regeneration on this land is visible and humbling. Native plants carry teachings of succession, resilience, and renewal that reveal themselves through direct encounter. What once feels like landscape becomes something lived and known.
Rooted in nearly two decades of tending our Nature Refuge, and shaped by years of study with Chumash medicine woman Cecilia Garcia, this gathering opens a relational way of learning grounded in continuity and respect.
Whether you have made your home in the Santa Monica Mountains for many years, are newly rooted here, or are simply exploring the idea of spending more time in nature — you are welcome.
The Flow of the Afternoon
Arrival + Tea Ceremony
We begin in stillness with a tea ceremony guided by April Zanot. Through intentional preparation and shared presence, we soften into the field of the mountains. Tea becomes a threshold, an attunement practice that brings us into a slower register of listening.
Native Plant Immersion
We will spend time with plants native to this region, exploring their medicinal properties, traditional and contemporary uses, and the ways relationship develops through reciprocity.
Seasonal Body Oil Crafting
Together we will craft a spring body oil infused with sagebrush and calendula. Through touch and scent, you will come to know these plant allies directly and take your oil home to use throughout the season as a continued act of connection.
Embodied Integration
In the final hour, we will move into a gentle yoga and embodied movement practice, allowing the teachings of the plants and the land to integrate through the body. This closing practice grounds insight into breath and muscle — carrying the experience beyond the afternoon.
