about
Community herbalist, ritualist and death doula weaving heart and soul into the golden web of life through kinship with plants and trees, with inhabitants (seen and unseen) of the land where bare feet know soil, and with wisdom of the ancestors held deep in bones and blood. Curious exploration of herbs and simple acts of intent, a revelation: a particular light on skin to herald a shift of season. What of this season? Of birth and life and death, of bloom and seed, of love and grief, joy and celebration? Allies and acts to root heart and soul ever deeper so as to weather the glaring light, perhaps the crippling dark, the proverbial winds of change.
Offering of introduction and exploration, a spark of imagination, trusting wholeness sought and found in relationality – that sweet and slow connectedness of the living world. Starlight as soul-light above and within, heartbeat of wren, dawn’s lucent shine, first taste of bitter dandelion leaf, acorn’s final descent. Discovery of seed, of crystalline stone, of tiny mouse bones in upturned soil. And here, supplied with herbal and ritual remedies, a flower behind your ear and muddy feet, may you find heart alight.
I delight in the introduction of Earth’s crystalline light to grieving, broken, tired, hopeless, joyful, dreaming, lost, confounded and found hearts through herbs & ceremony. To plant hearts in the ground that they might flow and heal and fall in love, find their soul, and illuminate the holy and wild darkness with their own internal, wise and incandescent light.
Seeker, lover, and barefoot wanderer of the plant path. A heart light gardener, planting hearts in the ground, named Dana.
All of my herbs are of the highest quality I can find. Whenever possible, I grow my own herbs (always without the use of any herbicides, pesticides, or any other -cides), forage responsibly and with the land’s permission, and buy certified organic herbs from reputable vendors. My dream is to one day grow my own, forage, and buy from local growers exclusively and that is what I am working towards.
Always I endeavor to honor the land and the inhabitants of that land, both human and more than human. My herbal remedies and approach to herbalism and ritual is born of that relationship and respect. I honor my own ancestral traditions as much as I can know and am able, and my herbal remedies are reflected in that growing and knowing. From this place, I honor the plants on this land where my feet and heart live—currently called the front range of Colorado, this land has long been tended by people of the tribes and nations of the Nuche (Ute), Hinono’eiteen (Arapaho), Tsétsėhéstaestse (Cheyenne), Oceti Sakowin (Sioux) and more.
The more I get to know the plant people of this land, the more I endeavor to include them in my remedies and practices. Occasionally, there are plants who don’t fit neatly into “ancestral” or “land” definitions that want to work with me. I like to grow them myself, get to know them and as those relationships evolve, so do my remedies. And, because dogma is really not my thing, some plants fall outside all these parameters and luckily, the plants love for us to work and play with them. As with all parts of life, it is about being in relationship.
If you have a known allergy or sensitivity to any herbal remedies, please let me know and if possible, I will find a substitution for it. Specific ingredients can be found with the remedy.
I use alcohol and glycerin to tincture my plants and use in my herbal elixirs. Alcohol is generally a good quality whiskey or brandy, occasionally I use vodka. If you have any questions or concerns about the menstruums I use, please feel free to reach out.
I use the best oils I can find – usually olive, grapeseed and apricot kernel oil. Essential oils are used sparingly and with great respect. If you have any concerns, please let me know prior to ordering.
