Who's going to love this opportunity?
*Folks who identify with feeling Outside. I'm a little like if "out of the box" had an "out of the box". I am a unique person and something of an acquired taste - and why do I start with this? Because I feel it’s important to know where your teacher/mentor is coming from. Not everyone jives with everyone else, and you know what - that’s ok. I’ve had a very colorful existence, spending the first few years of my life in the projects and then the next fifteen or so in a very strict religious sect {yes, you’ve seen the documentary on Amazon} before entering The World At Large when I was in my late twenties. My background is one of persistent resilience in the face of repressive systems. Connecting with plants saved me as a teenager by both giving me purpose and connection within community and being the main form of healthcare that was available and accessible to me. My relationship with plants is rooted in survival and deep trust. I consider the weeds to be my kinfolk, and have been adopted into their families. I describe myself as being a very passionate and relatively intense, pg-13+ teacher who isn’t afraid of the Dark. One of my favorite places of organic growth in this program was the initiation of “Swamp Time”, when folks would come to class heavy with life burdens and we would, as a group, hold them and weep with them and get shit off our chests before attempting to move on and focus on the subjects of the day. It was messy and gorgeous. 

*Folks who believe they'd benefit from a more hands-on approach to learning, beyond taking notes and listening to me rant excitedly, may find this right up their alley. If you want to take away things to do, formulas to use, experiments to conduct, *and be required to participate* -hearken unto me - you may want to apply.

*Folks looking for a community to learn within, a secure place to grow and stretch, iron to sharpen yourself against and so on - you're going to appreciate this. It is my expectation and hope to have each participant feel supported and challenged by the unique, individual brilliance and engagement of their peers. The expectation is also then that we are able to sit with and hold space for each other during tension, disagreements and dissonance without immediately falling to policing, canceling and exclusion. Being in community means learning to work through the knots, committing to non-violent communication, shifting our perspectives and beliefs as needed, and approaching each other with compassion and curiosity. 

*Folks who work well within a mentorship model. I'm here to share information through a lens created by my own life experiences, social/economic background, unique opportunities and even more unique education. It's my hope to support you, not only in learning important facts and necessary information, but in finding YOUR perspective. To me, that's part of the COMMUNITY aspect of this. We all have to add something. Everything is Dynamic - your relationship with the Plant and Person community is going to be different than mine, and that's gorgeous. Finding YOUR voice, YOUR cunning, YOUR Place, is part of becoming an Herbal Heathen.