Gratitude
I give thanks to the myriad seen and unseen beings that have shaped my world, and this work I share. Some, but not all, of my teachers, mentors, colleagues, and other influences are named here.
I give thanks for this land of the Chumash where I currently inhabit. Shisholop, now known as Ventura CA, is the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Chumash people. Gratitude for their ongoing presence and resilience. Having been here for thousands of years, the Chumash continue contributing to the cultural, social, and environmental richness of this region. I acknowledge the complex history of colonization, displacement, and forced removal of this and other lands. I strive to educate myself and others about this history, along with the ongoing struggles faced by indigenous communities. We have a responsibility to work towards dismantling structures of oppression and colonization, advocate for justice, and honor indigenous ways of knowing and being.
I give thanks for this "North America" land mass, Taiwan, China, and all the indigenous botanical, animal, human, and other life forms whose bodies and stories have created my own.
Gratitude to my herbal mentors & colleagues: 7song, Lucy Mitchella, Lisa Ganora, the Mountain Rose Herbs team, the Midwest Women's Herbal Conference team, and all other who have inspired and keep inspiring this botanical journey. Honoring some key textual guides and influences: Jillian Stansbury, Rosemary Gladstar, Thomas Easley, David Winston, and Maria Noel Groves.
A deep bow to my East Asian medicine mentors & colleagues: Dr. Lee and Randolph Ma in Taiwan. Steve Gomberg and Lorraine Wilcox in California. Heiner Fruehauf, Sabine Wilms, Michael McMahon in Oregon. Andrew Nugent-Head, Lorie Dechar. All of my professors at Alhambra Medical University, National University of Natural Medicine, and Academy for Five Element Acupuncture.
Love and gratitude to my wild outdoor education teachers & mentors: Justin Pegnataro, Bill Fischer, and all my beloved Two Coyotes Wilderness School colleagues. Lesley and Bear Two Bears. Luz Elena Morey and the Vermont Wilderness School. Tamarack and Lety at Teaching Drum Outdoor School. David Holladay in AZ, and Doug, Julie McIntyre in NM. John Young of Wilderness Awareness School.
Bows to my yoga teachers & spiritual mentors: Heather Sullivan, Jana Kilgore, Paula Wild, and team at Balanced Rock Foundation in Yosemite, CA. Babuji, Murtiji, Krishna, and other teachers at Yoga Vidya in Kerala, India. Ancient Chinese classics of 道德經 Dao De Jing, 易經 Yi Jing, 内經 Nei Jing, 神農本草經 Shennong Ben Cao Jing. Teachers at Spirit Rock. Tara Brach, Jack Kornfield, Martin Prechtel. Suiko McCall of the Art Monastery.
Special loving gratitude for my creative mentors: Cynthia Winton-Henry at InterPlay. Day Schildkret with Morning Altars. All of my UCLA art professors, most notably Amy Shimshon-Santo and my Transformative Action professors. Natalie Goldberg: Zen and writing practice. Lynda Barry and Austin Kleon. Going way back to high school, Mr. Bibeau and Burgan.
I give thanks to my movement expression mentors & colleagues: Contact improvisation at Earthdance. Gabrielle Roth and Five Rhythms. Contemplative Dance Practice at Naropa with Darlene Lorrain, inspired by Barbara Dilley and Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Ecstatic dance, contact improv, and other experimentation in Northampton, Boulder, Los Angeles, Taipei, Ithaca, Portland, Moab, and more. Delicious Movement with Eiko Otake. My old dance partner Eric Nordstrom. Every human, plant, mineral, wind I have ever danced with.
I give thanks to all the communities I have taught at and learned with, and continue growing together. Esalen, Omega, Green Gulch, Spirit Rock, a plethora of yoga studios.
The Earth is my teacher. My ancestors. The plants. The more-than-human world. My body.
I give thanks to all who remain unnamed, yet felt. Thank you. My patients and students. My family. My surfing, dancing, hiking, backpacking, verb-ing human and more-than-human family. And to all the teachers that keep revealing themselves in mysterious and beautiful ways, in the unraveling and renewing of this glorious life gift, a deep bow. This infinite list of gratitude is just a beginning, a taste of all who came before, stand with, created, and continue creating, "me." The deepest of bows.
This acknowledgement is an attempt to thank and describe so many. So you, reader, can better understand my roots. Know where this material arises from. The starlit sky of inspiration under which I walk. Find more resources in my library and links list. As this particular gratitude list keeps growing, I realize I must stop somewhere. Acknowledge that my gratitude is infinite. Close my notebook and move on. Smile with love and thanks. Proceed.