A witnessing of the slow return to feeling after a Long Winter. A reminder to stay present through the pins and needles as the numbness fades. It can be a slow and painful awakening, but the return of sensation means pleasure is waiting for you, too.

Were there really nine muses in ancient Greece? Where were they worshipped? And what do their stories tell us about artistic inspiration and the Greek landscape? In this episode, meet the Muses of ancient Greece and learn more about their special relationship with music, winged messengers, springs, and the Greek gods of prophecy and sleep.

Epirus (‘Ηπειρος) is a region in the northwest of Greece. It is bordered to the east by the land regions of Thessaly and Macedonia, to the west by the Ionian sea, and to the north by the country of Albania. Read more about Epirus's geography, sacred sites, and ancient temples.

I've recently returned from a 10-day trip to England with my older sister. We rented a car and braved the roads to visit Cornwall, Devon, Dartmour, and the Cotswolds. Some of the highlights were meeting Larkin, a Harris's hawk, on the streets of Holsworthy; seeing The Rites of Dionysus installation at The Eden Project; and wandering the Lost Gardens of Heligan.

These are the Greek medicinal herbs I reach for most often when First Aid or acute health issues arise…

Oh, the famous “Mountain Tea”; every Greek villager seems to know the power of this herb! Also known in English as Ironwort or in Greek as τσάι του βουνού, this herb is high in antioxidants and is traditionally drunk as a tea to support…

Music accompanied most, if not all, rites of passage, communal events, and private life in ancient Greece. Below are a few of the most well-known and important instruments of the ancient Greek world. I’ve also included origin stories and myths for some of the Greek instruments — the gods, places, and plants that were connected to the sounds of the ancient landscape.

I recorded this last October, when the Bees were pollinating the Ivy and the Pomegranates were ripe on the tree.

The lyre, kithara, aulos, frame drum…ancient instruments that create a sound so earthen, it makes the hairs on my arms stand on end.
Here is a curated selection of modern artists playing the ancient Greek sounds, as well as modern interpretations of the ancient Greek songs.

What are the trees and herbs sacred to the Moon in ancient Greece? The answer might surprise you! In today’s episode, we meet the three moon goddesses of the ancient Greek world — Selene, Artemis, and Hekate — and discuss the plants, stones, and other entities to invite into a Moon Garden in honor of ancient Greek lunar power.

The Minotaur is a creature born from a king’s hoarding greed and a mother’s cursed lust, used as a weapon to (quite literally) cow foreign powers. This led me to consider the ways we suffer for our ancestors’ mistakes and false beliefs, how inherited shame manifests in self-betrayal. I hand-crafted both the mask and the labrys in this self-portrait series, a meditation on natural beauty turned self-destructive.

Named for the gorgeous Boeotian youth who fell in love with his own reflection, Narcissus is a perennial bulb in the amaryllis and daffodil family. The flower blooms in late winter and early spring, reminding us of its connection to youthfulness and the awakening of desire after the numbness of winter. Although all parts of the flower are toxic to ingest, the Narcissus can be used in ceremony to awaken desire and bring awareness to our capacity for self-love.

A playlist inspired by the myth of Narcissus — the youth cursed to fall in love with his own reflection — and Echo — the nymph whose obsession with Narcissus led to her own dissolution.