Author : grieffriend

Hello loves, I recently traveled to Dano, Burkina Faso, in West Africa to visit the land of my grief mentors-Sobonfu Somé and Elder Malidoma Patrice Somé.  In this blog I begin to share what I learned and I also have new offerings of grief coaching/counseling packages which include my online grief relief course. Also, I’m[…]

I wrote this blog prior to my African trip inspired by realizing that I’d return home in the wee hours on February 2nd.  February 1st and 2nd are known as Imbolc, Candlemas, or Groundhogs Day here in the USA. It’s halfway between winter solstice and spring equinox.  It’s also a day in honor of the[…]

As you read this, I’ll be deeply immersed in ritual in the village of Dano, Burkina Faso, West Africa! Dano is the village of my mentors—Sobonfu Somé and Elder Malidoma Patrice Somé.  It’ll be a trip of a lifetime. There will be a deepening and widening of my work and offerings. And I excitedly await[…]

I hope you’re settling into this new year well. And if you’re struggling with this new beginning-remember it’s only a calendar, (the Gregorian calendar) and New Years festivities are just modern ways of marking time. Time that we’d prefer not to march on if we’re grieving… In this culture there’s such a focus to let[…]

Merry Yuletide and Happy New Year, in the Gregorian calendar anyway. I wish we could have a holy pause; take two weeks off, get cozy, go inside and review our year and look ahead to 2023. But how do you do that if you’re in deep grief? Recently one client was invited to a solstice[…]

Yesterday I asked my client how they were doing with the holidays approaching, now that it’s December. After a long sigh they replied, “Honestly, I’m dreading it.” So, welcome to dreaded December especially for those of you in acute grief going through your first holiday season without your loved one. Or perhaps you’re deep in the[…]

I continue my deep dive into ancestral grief and I invite you to do the same.  Why? Some of our emotional issues and even our grief may not be ours-it’s passed down from our ancestors to us. Sometimes this shows up as addictions and physical illness. So we do this for our health and the[…]

Happy new moon and many blessings to you at this sacred time of year when the veil is thinning between our world and the next.  In my last blog I wrote about how to set up a simple ancestor altar, but now what do you do there and what does it mean to have an[…]

It’s October and there’s still so much going on in the world. There’s more and more grief to process with the aftermath of hurricane Ian as well as all that’s happening in Iran right now, etc.  How are you doing these days? Here in the northern hemisphere we’re getting closer to the darkest time of[…]

Happy Fall Equinox and almost New Moon to you all.   A year ago I became an official Cowry Shell Diviner from my mentor and now beloved memory, Elder Malidoma Somé. I was honored to attend one of his final year long divination trainings as he transitioned to the ancestor world in December of 2021.[…]