With cooler weather and shorter daylight hours, we have begun to usher in the delights of Fall. From hiking to Halloween, bonfires to deliciously-spiced pies - there is much to love about the fall season. Today we’re highlighting a few of our favorite fall activities and the vibrational essences that support them so that you can have the best autumn yet!

Hiking

Hiking, one of the most beloved fall activities, is a fantastic way to enjoy the outdoors even as the weather cools down. It allows us to stay active, have fun in our bodies, and bask in the natural beauty of fall. From foliage to scurrying animals, hiking is a magical way to connect with nature.

To support your beautiful fall hikes, reach for our Nature Communion and Spunky essences. Nature Communion is a hike in a bottle that both enhances connection to nature and to the physical body, allowing for hikers to tune into their physical bodies while connecting with nature. Spunky is a fantastic essences supporting physical stamina and endurance, as well as adventure and courage, making for incredible fall hikes.

Basking in Autumn Aromas

There are few things more enjoyable that the comforting aromas of hot apple pie, spiced orange tea, and the gentle burn of pine. For many folks Fall is defined by mom’s apple pie, spiced tea in the morning, and the soothing scent of pine trees. While flower essences do not carry the scent of the flowers, they do carry the powerful energy of the flowers. This fall try coupling autumn aromas with the energetic power of flowers. Head outside, gather some pine needles and make a few pine smudges for a natural pine-scent indoors. Simultaneously use our Pine essence to access the self-acceptance and self-love powers of the pine tree, while basking in the soothing aroma of your very own pine smudge.

Bonfires

A fan favorite of fall is gathering with loved ones around cozy, warm bonfires as the sun sets. The bright red flames, roasted marshmallows, and shared laughs that take place around a fall bonfire are one of the most joyful aspects of the season. Embrace the heat of fall bonfires by adding the Red Sardonyx gemstone essence to your wellness routine, allowing you to stoke your physical fire and feed emotional warmth.

Design Awesome Halloween Costumes

Another incredibly fun, fall activity is to design halloween costumes for yourself and your family. Most of us get caught off-guard in early October and find ourselves with absolutely no idea on what to do for a halloween costume. Feeling uninspired and lacking creativity, many folks forego the joy of dressing in a halloween costume all together.

This year can be different. Grab our Artistic Inspiration and Project Catalyst to boost your creativity and drive to dream-up, craft, and carry out your halloween costume designs.

Travel for the Holidays

As mid-fall approaches, we begin to gear up for holiday travels. We become reliant on planes, trains, and automobiles - perhaps, more so than any other time of the year. Rather than dreading delays and jet lag, embrace your travels this year with our Travel Solution essence blend. Travel solution increases adaptability and coping mechanisms, allowing you to work through travel delays and unexpected changes with patience and ease. It also offers relief of motion sickness and jet lag.

The female body is powerful and complex, capable of completing a monthly cycle of life and death right before our eyes. Keeping our hormonal cycles regular and balanced is crucial not only to healthy menstruation and pregnancy, but to overall female health. It is our hormonal cycles that regulate temperature, hair growth, supple skin, energy levels, moods, and more.

We’re living in a time when the production and use of hormone-disrupting chemicals is at an all-time high, making it ever more important to support our hormonal systems. Today, we’re bringing you 7 hormone balancing essences to support the female body and keep hormonal systems healthy and balanced.

7 Hormone Balancing Essences for Women

Bushilla

Female Reproduction; Processes & Issues

The Bushilla Peruvian flower essence is a powerful essence for female reproduction at any stage. It works to balance and heal relationships with the females in our lives, including mothers and female partners. This essence is featured in our Magnificent Moontime and Glorious Menopause constellation blends.

Divine Goddess

Intuition; Deep Issues

Divine Goddess is an Andean orchid essence that supports birthing, anchoring, and balancing the divine energies. This is a great essence for increasing one’s self-esteem, as well as managing PMS and hot flashes.

Moonstone, Blue Rainbow

Mystical Insight, Peaceful Cocoon

This beautiful, iridescent moonstone offers mystical insight, clarity, and enhances intuition. The physical benefits of the blue rainbow moonstone essence are felt in the head, throat, and sinuses, essentially targeting the pineal and pituitary glands. Moonstones are also beautiful connections to the goddess energy; supporting conception, pregnancy, birth, and the female hormonal system.

Pink Tourmaline

Hospice Work, Protection; Endocrine System

Pink Tourmaline works to soothe the emotional body. With its gentle, feminine qualities, it is incredible at addressing hormonal imbalances, especially as they relate to the endocrine system.

Glorious Menopause

Fun, Empowering Time of Life; Balance Metabolism/Temperature

With the Glorious Menopause essence women experience a fun, gentle, graceful, yet empowering menopause. Use this essence blend to balance metabolism and temperature during this deeply profound and powerful time of life.

Magnificent Moontime

Honor, Enjoy, and Tune into Your Feminine Cycles and Rhythms

Experience graceful menses by honoring and enjoying your body’s cycles and rhythms. Mood swings, cramps, bloating, and cravings can all be addressed with this supportive, feminine blend. Using this essence will support you in remaining balanced during your cycle, aligning you with your feminine energy for a gentle, comfortable flow.

Begin taking a few days before moontime begins and continue taking throughout your cycle.

Hessonite

Free-Flowing Creativity, Energy; Abdominal Discomfort

Hessonite, a variety of Garnet, is used to regulate hormone production, stimulate metabolism, and fortify the immune system. This balancing essence calms the nerves, quiets the mind, and can relieve symptoms of depression. It is a great essence for supporting the feminine sexual organs and discomforts related to bloating and cramping.

Chakras are energetic centers in the body. There are seven main chakras in the body and many more secondary chakras that make up our bodies and energy systems. The chakras assist in moving prana, or the life force energy, throughout the body. Keeping the chakras clear and free from blockages allow for this vital energy to flow freely throughout the body. As the chakras become blocked the body has a harder time moving this energy, resulting in stagnation, dis-ease, and ailments.

Oftentimes, we require a bit of assistance to keep our chakras open, clear, and best able to move prana throughout the body. There are many forms of chakra support including: meditation, pranayama (breathing exercises), yoga postures, essential oils, and more. Of course, our favorite way to keep the chakras open is through the use of gemstone essences.

Today we’re bringing you the inside scoop on our Chakra Gem Collection, featuring gemstone essences for each of the seven main chakras and a few other important chakras, as well.

Let’s bust through those blockages and return our chakras to their full, glorious potential!

The 7 Main Chakras

Root (Muladhara) Chakra - Ruby

Intensifies Life Force Energy

The root chakra, located at the base of the spine, serves as the energetic foundation of the body. It is from this chakra that we develop a sense of groundedness and security. When this chakra becomes blocked, issues surrounding money, financial independence, and food tend to arise.

Being that the color associated with the root chakra is the color red, it comes as no surprise that the Ruby gemstone essence is the essence used to address imbalances at the root chakra. Ruby allows us to open to the infinite source of divine love, raising the vibration of the physical body and promoting the courage to express our highest potential. Ruby promotes an open root chakra so that energy can move up and throughout the body.

Sacral (Svadhisthana) Chakra - Carnelian

Associated with creativity, the female reproductive system, and the prostate

The sacral chakra, located in the lower abdomen, relates to our ability to form connections and accept others and new experiences. When experiencing a blockage of the sacral chakra one often struggles with finding a sense of abundance, well-being, pleasure, sexuality, creativity, and accepting change.

The color associated with the sacral chakra is orange, making the carnelian gemstone perfect for a sacral chakra essence. Carnelian increases access to prana by clearing energy paths and promoting motivation and vitality. This gemstone essence stimulates and awakens creativity, while cultivating harmonious thoughts. In fact, orange carnelian enhances attunement with the inner self, further supporting abundance, well-being, sexuality, and embracing change.

Solar (Manipura) Plexus - Citrine

Clears and expands; Promotes healthy kidney and digestion

The solar plexus chakra, located in the upper abdomen, is related to self-confidence and a sense of control over one’s life. As you might have guessed, when this chakra is out-of-whack one often struggles with self-worth, self-confidence, and self-esteem.

With the power of the yellow citrine essence, we can clear old thought patterns that lead to a lack of self-confidence. This gemstone essence serves as a bridge to the divine. Citrine is useful for intellectual communication and balancing the rational mind. It resonates with sovereignty, courage, confidence, and self esteem. The sunlight it represents is uplifting and helps us to recognize beauty and joy.

Heart (Anahata) Chakra - Emerald

Love, understanding, compassion, forgiveness

The heart chakra, located at the center of the chest, is associated with our ability to love. It is also the center from which we are able to extend compassion and forgiveness. When experiencing a blockage of the heart chakra one can often expect to feel as though they are lacking love, joy, or inner peace.

If this is the case, reach for the emerald gemstone essence to re-activate the heart chakra and explore empathy, unconditional love, and the expansions of universal love energy. Emerald supports all forms of communication through the heart, as well as healing with love.

Throat (Visuddha)- Blue Sapphire

Associated with communication, authenticity, and the thyroid gland

The throat chakra, you guessed it - located at the throat, is linked to communication and self-expression. Blockages of the throat chakra hinder communication, self-expression, and honesty.

To embrace authenticity and speak your truth, harness the power of the blue sapphire gemstone essence. This essence opens and heals the throat chakra by addressing issues with communication and self expression. It relates to listening as well as speaking, mental discrimination, enlightened intuition and language mastery. Blue sapphire aligns energy with purpose and assists one in staying on their spiritual path.

Third Eye (Ajna) Chakra - Transparent Indigo Sodalite

Big picture visioning, intuition, and decision making

The third eye chakra, located between the eyebrows, is associated with one’s ability to focus, embrace intuition and inspiration, and see the big picture. Those experiencing a lack of imagination and inspiration, or finding themselves indecisive and unable to harness their intuition may have a blockage at the third eye chakra.

The powerful indigo gemstone essence addresses big picture visioning.  It also enhances intent, focus, and clarity. Through the third eye chakra and the energy of the indigo essence, we receive intuitive commands to move forward, make decisions, and explore our visions.

Crown (Sahasrara) Chakra - Amethyst

Promotes serenity and spiritual connectedness

The crown chakra, located at the very top of the head, is associated with one’s ability to connect spiritually. As this chakra becomes blocked, it brings a lack of spiritual connectedness and pure bliss.

With the support of the amethyst gemstone essence, we are able to rid our lives of negative energy and cleanse our auras. This essence also opens the crown chakra to receive energy from higher chakras, spiritual insight, divine love, and mastery of thought and inspiration. As we regain clarity in the crown chakra, we begin to see the divine perfection in all things. The amethyst gemstone creates a truly visionary essence.

The Other Chakras

Thymus (Higher Heart) - Aquamarine

Shields and Protects; Promotes patience, compassion, and joy

Located between the heart and throat chakras, the thymus chakra promotes the processing of higher vibrational energies and helps with integrating prana into the physical and soul body systems. When this chakra is blocked, one often lacks the ability to experience higher spiritual connectedness and incorporation of higher vibrational energies.

The aquamarine essence opens the spiritual high heart, the thymus chakra, and quiets the mental body to become receptive to transmissions from higher realms. It has humanitarian qualities as well as serenity, peacefulness, balanced emotions and abounding patience.

Zeal Point (Ascension) Chakra- Rhodolite

Promotes peace and understanding; Linked to the heart, lungs, and Voice

The zeal point chakra, located at the back of the head at the base of the skull, is related to higher states of peace, compassion, and empathy, as well as supporting one’s authentic voice. As imbalances occur at the zeal point chakra, one often struggles with self-expression, inspiration, and experiencing peace.

The essence that addresses the zeal point chakra is Rhodolite, a variety of the garnet gemstone. Rhodolite is a stone of inspiration, encouraging contemplation and intuition in balance with action and intellect. Its gentle, supportive energy also assists with enhanced self-worth and can heal old wounds related to guilt or shame. With this essence you can own your gifts and share them with the world. 

Halo Chakra - Yellow Sapphire

Express Your Life Purpose; Activation at the solar plexus and pituitary gland

The halo chakra, present as an aura around the crown chakra, represents the highest activation of the crown chakra. The halo chakra is a result of an abundance of energy and brilliance from the crown chakra. When fully activated, the halo chakra represents and understanding of higher divinity and wisdom.

The yellow sapphire gemstone essence brings in the gold light from the halo above the head. It resonates with cosmic truth and love for others. It speaks of the wise counselor who brings warmth, nourishment, empathy and inspiration. Gold is a master teacher, teaching through grace, so that one can express the soul's beauty in words, thoughts and communications. The yellow sapphire essence has been infused with the frequencies of wisdom, exaltation, and illumination.

Light Body - White Topaz

Reverses Aging; Promote unity

The light body chakra exists as a gridwork of energy and sacred geometry that unites the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual beings. This is the chakra that unites your many beings with the infinite universe.

The white topaz gemstone essence feeds the light body, resonating with the source of universal energy. It rejuvenates the etheric body and aligns it with the physical body. White topaz essence also assists with travel to other realms. This gemstone essence is great for conscious connection and manifestation of wisdom.

All Chakras - Clear Quartz

Protects and Heals; Stomach, Pituitary Gland, Intestinal Tract

New to flower essences? Wondering how flower essences differ from essential oils and aromatherapy? You’ve come to the right place. There are a few things you will need to know as you embark upon your love affair with flower essences.

Today, we’re bringing you 4 truths about flower essences to clear confusion and ignite your passion for the vibrational healing of flower essences!

4 Truths About Flower Essences

1.    Flower essences do not have a floral scent.

When most people think of flowers, they think of beautiful, breathtaking aromas. We can’t walk by a gorgeous flower without stopping to sneak a sniff of its scent. The truth is, however, that flower essences do not carry a scent. An essence in its pure form contains the powerful, vibrational signature of the flower without having a floral aroma. In fact, most flower essences have a faint smell of alcohol from the preservative used to guarantee quality and cleanliness. Some essence blends, like our Angel Spray, carry a scent because of the addition of essential oils. The essential oils on their own possess powerful healing properties, so when combined with the powerful, vibrational energy of flower essences we can create a transformative healing blend.

2.    Flower essences are different than essential oils and aromatherapy.

Quite frequently flower essences are confused with essential oils and aromatherapy. The truth is that they differ in a number of ways. As mentioned above, essential oils carry a strong aroma, while flower essences do not. Because the work of flower essences is performed on an energetic level, they do not need to carry the aroma of the flower in order to provide their healing benefits. Essential oils and flower essences also differ in that essential oils require a large amount of the plant to create an oil, while flower essences only require as little as one flower to craft an essence.

3.    There are no adverse side effects of taking flower essences.

Ever watch a prescription drug commercial and find yourself completely perplexed and utterly frightened by the never-ending list of negative side effects from a drug for relieving eczema? Is silky, smooth skin worth the risk of depression and blood clots? Luckily, with flower essence healing, you don’t have to make that choice.

With flower essences, users cannot overdose. They also are free from possible adverse side effects. When using flower essences, the worst that can happen is nothing. The best that can happen is a magical miracle. Now that’s a risk worth taking!

4.    Flower essences will transform your life from the inside out.

Flower essences carry the energetic signature of flowers, allowing them to perform their healing work, not on a the physical level, but on the energetic level. The energetic properties of the flowers interact with your body’s energetic system, enacting change from the inside out. When using flower essences, you begin to transform the energetics of your body, which in turn transforms the energetics of your life!

It’s that time of year again - the dog days of summer are coming to a close and the new school year is just around the corner. With the back-to-school frenzy upon us, it is easy for parents to feel overwhelmed by all there is to do to prepare their kiddies for the new semester ahead.

While parents are feeling a bit frantic and chaotic, the kiddos are often equal parts excited to see their friends and dreading the return of homework. For parents and children, alike, emotions are high and, in the blink of an eye, the easy, laid-back pace of summer has suddenly disappeared.

Now more than ever, it is important to come back to self-care - for mom, dad, kiddos, and all the great support persons going through the back-to-school transition. Yoga class, gym days, family bike rides, story time - whatever it is, prioritizing re-invigorating, rejuvenating activities for the entire family is essential.

Perhaps it goes without saying, but our favorite way to manage the potentially hectic back-to-school days is with flower and gem essences. Here are our top picks for a smooth, peaceful transition into the new school year - we’ve got essences for the kids, and a few for mom and dad, too!

4 Back-to-School Essences for Kids & Students

1. Brilliant Student

Snapshot: For studying, creativity, alertness, and public speaking

Support intellectual and artistic endeavors, while enhancing concentration and alertness with our Brilliant Student Constellation. With this essence blend, students can cultivate a greater sense of inspiration, passion, and clear direction. It is also brilliant for public speaking, test-taking, presentations, and artistic expression. Take on the new school year with vigor and heightened creativity!

2. Attention Formula

Snapshot: Improves concentration, assists with relaxation, and assists with ADD & ADHD

Remain attentive, focused, and relaxed this school year with Attention Formula. This blend has been shown to offer incredible support to children and adults living with ADD & ADHD. It’s Peruvian rose salt base helps to balance minerals, while its fava flower essence holds a connection with L-Dopamine.

No more drifting, nodding off during class, or fidgeting in your seat this school year!

3. Happy Kid

Snapshot: Nurturing, Balancing and Soothing. Contains no alcohol.

With its ability to balance and calm challenging situations, this gentle, nurturing blend is designed specifically for children. Its joyful, loving influence can inspire positive dynamics between siblings and playmates, as well as with parents and other authority figures. As the kiddos transition into a new school year, their relationships with their siblings and parents can become strained by the new schedules, obligations, and school yard dynamics. Children are especially sensitive to energy and respond quickly to this formula, making it the perfect solution to help the whole family get along during the back-to-school frenzy!

Happy Kid is available in both Constellation drops and Spray formats. Or pair them!

4. Celebration

Snapshot: Fun party essence, for ceremonies and unplanned jubilation

Support good vibes and celebratory energy this school year with the vibrant Celebration essence. Who says back-to-school time has to be all frenzy and no fun?! Infuse the transition into the new school year with joy and celebration. After all, the kiddos get to see their friends every day and return to their favorite after-school sports and clubs - there is fun to be had!

Celebration is available in both Constellation drops and Spray formats. Or pair them!

2 Back-to-School Essences For Parents and Support Persons

1. Mother and Child ReUnion / Mariposa Lily

Snapshot: Supports maternal bonding

Encourage mother-child bonding at any age with our Mariposa Lily flower essence. Embrace your mother-child relationship with tenderness, trust, unconditional love and gentle mercy. Facilitates deep healing and inner resolution when needed. This incredible essence even supports healthy female dynamics with family members of all generations (sister, aunt, niece, in-laws, grandmother). This one is for all the stressed out, back-to-school mamas out there who are missing their kiddos as they return to school!

2. Impatiens

Snapshot: Encourages patience, understanding and trust in divine timing

Moms, dads, and support persons, enter into the new school year calmly and gently with the Impatiens flower essence. This essence is perfect to those looking to go with the flow, create space for things to unfold, and have faith that things are working out just as they are meant to. With this essence you will remain calm, not frantically rushing from one thing to the next. Slow down, chill out, and enjoy the vibrant energy of the back-to-school season!

 All Back-to-School essences are 44% off thru the end of September.

The heat of summer is upon us and with it comes fatigue, crankiness, sunburns, and overheating. We dream of it all winter long, but when the heat of summer arrives we often find ourselves feeling like hot, sweaty messes.

With 90 degree weather and 100% humidity, the sun-kissed skin and beach days start to lose their luster. We trade outdoor adventures for indoor refuge in front of our air conditioners. The carefree and excited energy we had at the start of summer quickly fades to overwhelm, lethargy, and and slugging through our days in a sun-drunk haze.

It’s time to emerge from the haze and reclaim our joyful summer energy. Today I’m bringing you 7 Star Essences to cool down, reinvigorate, and harness the playful spirit of summer.

1. Cool Flash Spray

This first essence spray is a serious summer must-have. Our Cool Flash Spray works wonders at balancing body temperature, allowing us to cool down on those  hot summer days. You will want to have this essence on hand for those times when you are, quite literally, ready to chill out.

Our Cool Flash Spray is also excellent for the skin, making it a great addition to your summer skin care routine. It will help cool down and replenish sun-drunk skin. With a hint of sage, lemon, and geranium essential oils, this essence blend has a wonderful, uplifting scent.

2. Clear Head

The Clear Head, feverfew essence, is another great flower essence for keeping your cool. It helps release tension, especially in the head, making sure we stay cool and relaxed all summer long.

This essence is also great for  addressing headaches, migraines, and fevers.

3. FAB Spray

Get your hands on our FAB Spray to promote clarity, alertness, and enthusiasm this summer. This essence blend features invigorating essential oils of rosemary, peppermint, and lemongrass that support focus, inspiration, motivation, and stamina. When you are feeling sun-drunk and your energy starts to fade, reach for FAB Spray and you’ll be feeling reinvigorated in no time.

4. Sunstone

Okay, so I’m cheating a little bit with this one, but we can’t talk about overcoming summer fatigue and sun-soaked skin without talking about the Sunstone gemstone essence. This essence increases vitality and nourishes our sun-dried  sun-kissed skin. As an added bonus, this essence is great for encouraging independence, promoting worldly success, and finding a job. It’s win-win really.

5. Solar Power

Our Solar Power flower essence featuring the gorgeous summertime favorite - the sunflower - is perfect for channeling your inner power and strength when it begins to fade in the hot, summer sun. This essence helps us reflect the energy of the sun and embrace the power of solar consciousness. It’s a sunny, summertime delight!

6. Soul Force Balance

Another summertime favorite, our Soul Force Balance aloe vera flower essence is essential for keeping our spirits ignited and balancing energy input and output. In fact, it’s a great essence for workaholics, busy parents, and those of us trying to experience all of the summertime activities before the Fall rolls around. This aloe vera essence is also great at addressing skin concerns, making it a happy addition to our summertime skin care routine.

7. Wild Rose

Last, but not least, we have the Wild Rose flower essence for promoting optimism and wonder this summer. When the heat of summer bogs us down and leaves us feeling sluggish and tired, it can be a challenge to feel optimistic and full of wonder. The Wild Rose essence is your personal pair of rose-colored glasses, allowing you to live a summer full of joyous expectations.

There you have it - 7 flower essences to keep you calm, cool, and collected this summer. Now go out there and have the best summer ever.

What if being at your perfect weight was a state of mind rather than a physical goal? What if looking and feeling radiant in your body came from a place of self-love and appreciation, rather than a place of bland diets and strict exercise routines? What if having the perfect weight came from a place of liberation, rather than rigidity?

Ahh, that would be a welcomed change of pace.

The truth is that all of this can be true. We can reject strict body goals, harsh diets, and rigid exercise routines and have a radiant body at its perfect weight. We can experience self-confidence and love without any of these things.This is what our Perfect Weight flower essence formula is all about.

With our Perfect Weight blend, the perfect weight is a state of mind rather than a physical goal.

This essence blend allows you to feel blissful and confident in your body, releasing anything that no longer serves you. It allows you to, quite literally, drop emotional weight. The essence blend frees you of unhealthy stressors, granting you the ability to experience your perfect weight - emotionally and physically.

Our Perfect Weight blend is the exact opposite of harsh diets, strict exercise, and rigid body expectations. It is about liberation. It is about feeling healthy, confident, and full of love each and every day.

This essence blend features our Freedom/Libertad essence with 24k gold to promote freedom on all levels. It also features our Let Go and Trust essence for letting go of attachments and things that no longer serve us. And, if achieving a more comfortable physical weight is something that would allow you to feel more radiant in your body our Perfect Weight blend is here to help. It contains our Inocencia Coca essence for balanced appetite and metabolism, as well as increased stamina - hello, sweaty workouts!

Oh, and there’s chocolate. That’s right, we put cacao flower essence in our Perfect Weight blend because it’s hard to achieve perfection without chocolate - am I right?! The Perfect Weight blend contains our Sublime Chocolate cacao essence, which harnesses the healing power of the cacao flower to balance the metabolism and increases appetite for healthy foods. It’s a win, win.

Perfect Weight is the - ahem - perfect essence blend for transforming your wellness habits, promoting a healthy lifestyle, and releasing any excess emotional and physical weight that has been holding you back. Some folks say it takes 21 days to form a habit, we say it takes a few flower essences, a tiny dropper, and a warm bath.  

Other fun ways to use the Perfect Weight flower essence blend includes adding it to your laundry water, beauty products, yoga mat cleaner, and smoothies.

Have you ever been in a moment so magical you had to stop and ask yourself, “How is this real life?” You look around and wonder “How did I get so lucky to be alive participating in this incredible experience?”

I had one of those moments two weeks ago at Wanderlust Stratton. I was surrounded by friends and complete strangers dancing to a live performance by Michael Franti when I looked up and noticed that the entire crowd was dancing while waving peace signs high above their heads. As I soaked in the sea of peace signs, I realized that these are my people and together we are changing the world. It was magical.

Wanderlust Stratton is one of many Wanderlust festivals that take place around the world. Each festival is an all-out mindful living celebration featuring yoga and meditation workshops, live music, group hikes, standup paddleboarding, inspirational speakers, renowned chefs, and amazing vendors. I might be biased, but it seems to me that Wanderlust festivals are where some of the greatest people in the world come together to wave peace signs in the air in the name of love, compassion, and joy.

I spent 4 days taking super fun yoga classes, meditating, basking in the sun, relaxing in hammocks, eating local foods, dancing fiercely, and meeting some of the most incredible people. I absolutely loved the playful vibe of MC Yogi’s workshops. They mixed traditional yoga and philosophy with storytelling, live music, laughter, and dancing. I was moved to tears at Gabrielle Bernstein’s workshop about surrendering to the power of the universe. Her beautiful words exposed a personal struggle that I had been ignoring and opened my eyes to the freedom that lies on the other side of surrendering gently to the bigger plan - the plan of the universe. And the evening concerts, they were incredible. I’ve never danced so freely in a room full of strangers. There was lots of hugging, singing, and peace sign-waving.

As my time at Wanderlust Stratton came to a close, I began asking myself What does it mean to wander?

Here’s what I came up with:

To wander is to…

Roam without searching, with no true destination

Roam simply to roam

Live for the journey

Desire to move, witness, experience, act, embrace, revel, cherish, and see

Be curious

Sometimes to wander is to be lost. Perhaps, those are the times when we need to extend roots and ground down. However, when we feel the yearn to wander stemming from a place of curiosity, we must find the courage to get up and roam.

That is what wanderlust means to me. What does wanderlust mean to you?

To support yoga and wandering goodness, get 11% off the following essences:

Yoga Mouth Mind Mist, Light Navigator, Soul Family, Travel Solution, Wild Oat, and Wisdom of Bliss

Offer valid through the end of July 2016. Discount Code: WANDERLUST . Access these featured products here.

My recent trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas was life changing. Seriously life changing. A few months ago a friend forwarded a couple of links to some YouTube videos (see links at bottom). I watched them and immediately felt I needed to get to Hot Springs and get in the water there. Hot Springs is adjacent to several lakes, one of them being Lake Ouachita (pronounced wash-ah-taw). It is considered one of the cleanest lakes of its size in America. It also has one the largest veins of Quartz crystal in the world running under it. The gist of the videos was that the crystals in Hot Springs, Arkansas (as well as Brazil) were being activated at a new level beginning in 2015.

My feeling was get there, get in the water, receive the transmissions and get back to my lovely Santa Barbara. 4 days would be plenty. I remembered I had a friend, Kayse, there, and made some calls, and ended up putting a trip together with her called "Arkansas Crystal Adventure." 8 Women came, in addition to Kayse and I.

People would say to me, “ I can’t make it this time, and I want to go with you next year” or, "Do you think you will be doing this again?" Inside my head I was saying, No way: I’m going to make a quick trip to Arkansas for 4 days- receive the transmissions, and go home. The words that came out of my mouth were, “ You never know."

It feels like every single thing that happened was a divinely guided blessing.

We made our itinerary- which was amusing, since I had never been there. We scheduled a day with Kayse’s husband Gary. My feeling was that I didn’t want to hear someone talk all day, when I could be outside. I was saying maybe 1/2 day. Kayse assured me we would need at least one day. We agreed on a full day because  it is very experiential- with a trip to the lake after.

Oh My!!! How right she was!!!! We did not want to tear ourselves away. Gary is a Guru. A devoted meditator and devotee of yogananda for over 40 years, and a crystal wizard since he was 9 years old. He is a mining engineer, who immediately shifted to crystals after some amazing experiences with the crystal beings. Crystals are his life work and he has worked with every aspect of them.

His stories go on and on and we were all mesmerized- as well as activated by the crystal grids that he and Kayse set up for us. This is a very condensed version of what happened. Someday (soon) he will create a crystal temple with crystals he has been collecting for this purpose for the past 40 + years.

We began our journey with a despacho (offering) at the lake to bless our journey. It was beautiful.

Another divine thing that happened is that the week before we arrived there was a Kryon event right in Hot Springs, featuring Greg Bradden, Joe Dispensa and Bruce Lipton. There were 600 light workers there. Very interesting… Some of our participants went early and attended some of the events, and Kayse volunteered, so she knew what was happening, knew that the next week- the week myself and the others arrived, many of the light workers would still be there. She knew the Crystalline Choir would be singing special tones, and that they allowed an audience to attend. There were around 300 choir members. They sing what they call the Pineal Tones once a year, in different places on the planet. This year the chosen spot was Hot Springs, Arkansas.  I and several others in our group attended this.

Beyond words… Yes, way beyond amazing.

After that we really wanted to get back into the lake! Which of course we did.

And so the week went. On our last day beautiful Sandy Rose, who had been preparing all of our delicious, organic, vegetarian, blessed meals, invited us to go out to have our lunch on her boat, which would hold all of us. (Kayse’s boat is smaller, so she would shuttle us back and forth so we could hang out in the deeper water with foam noodles in the special places on the lake that she is aware of- after being there for almost 20 years.)

Sandy Rose wanted to take us to see a bald eagle nest, and perhaps, if we were lucky, we would catch a glimpse of an eagle. What happened thrilled and amazed us all. Not only did we catch a glimpse- We saw FIVE of them! First we saw the nest...

 Then we saw them flying...

Then we saw 3 of them on the beach (they really are there)...

Then we saw them landing in the trees…

Someone mentioned Eagle Essence- and everything inside me lit up.

I remembered that I had brought my empty bottle that day, to get some lake water. I had brought it to Arkansas thinking that I would make some crystal essences, and that wasn’t happening. And EAGLE was! I fetched my bottle from the boat, all the time asking for signs, and the Eagles would fly by. I got the bottle, went back to where they were on the shore, and made the essence. I then asked if I really had their energy to give me another sign. I was swimming back with the bottle, wondering- and all of a sudden it was like the finale at the fourth of July. They were all flying around, seemingly buzzing us. Giving me signs. Saying Fly Like an Eagle.