JIA

Medicine Retreat for AAPI Women – Autumn 2024

An intimate spirit medicine retreat that honors the season of death and our ancestral roots.

JIA is mandarin for “family” and “home”.

In this time of upheaval and incredible change, authentic heart-centered connection and a sense of belonging are topping many of our priority lists.

We witness those we call family move through life transitions and transformational portals. Within our chosen families, we seek safety and a sense of belonging. We seek nurturing, compassionate presence in our life celebrations, as well as our grief when we experience destabilizing change and death.

In this intimate 4-day, 3-night retreat, we gather to receive the invitation of winter – the season of death – to witness each other as we honor what is changing and dying away, and to hold one another in spacious presence as we welcome what is unfolding and becoming.

Ancestral healing through rooted connection.

I created this retreat specifically for AAPI women because of the ancestral connection that exists between our bodies and our motherland. Many of us have grown up in the West, an ocean away from our ancestral roots. And we are connected by our experiences of being othered.

This is something that I realized when I was facilitating a monthly breathwork journey called Motheroot for AAPI women/femmes. The intention behind that offering was to reconnect with our well ancestors and our roots. It was through this experience that I realized that the disconnection within our bodies echo our disconnection from our ancestral roots.

We embody the stories of these ancestors – their sacrifices and triumphs. These experiences live in our DNA and tissue. When we heal, we are learning to love all parts and versions of us back into wholeness. This includes the part of us that we have inherited.

Ceremony + Integration.

We will partake in a ceremony with the sacred mushroom, while anchored by the trees and mountains surrounding us.

Three weeks before we embark on this journey together, we will meet virtually as a group to share our intentions for our journey. You will also be guided in the preparation of your physical body, emotional body and spirit body in the weeks leading up to the retreat.

Integration is as important as the spirit medicine journey itself. The day following the journey, we will spend the day integrating both as a group and individually. You will be guided in a breathwork journey and legacy writing exploration.

Food as an offering of love.

Food is my love language. It’s something I inherited from my mother. It gives me great joy to not only companion beautiful souls into the underworld through medicine journeys, but also to nourish their bodies with simple dishes created from the heart, inspired by the Asian diapora.

Each meal will be lovingly prepared with organic locally grown produce. We will eat together as a family each meal.

On our last evening, we will co-create a feast together – folding dumplings and sharing stories, filling our bellies and hearts.

Nature as Medicine.

We will be held in the nurturing arms of the San Jacinto Mountains in the small, quaint town of Idyllwild, CA – the ancestral home of the Cahuilla people.

When I first visited this place in 2019, I fell in love with the beauty of the pine forest, the majestic mountain peaks surrounding the town, the charm of the local artisan shops (no chain stores are allowed here).

I spent a month here in November 2020 during the elections and experienced a deep spiritual growth spurt as I sat alone with the sacred mushroom weekly under the stars, meditated daily, worked with a quantum healer, and studied psychic development and shamanic healing arts.

I was divinely guided to move here with my partner the following January 2021 as the quantum healer I was working with was also relocating. We moved into her home where we now live most of our year.

I share this because this JIA retreat has been in the making for years, even a lifetime. I was guided to this very mountain to step into my life of service as an entheogenic death companion. And it’s my profound honor to share my gifts with you and invite you to experience the magic of Idyllwild.

The retreat will take place in a tranquil hilltop home backing onto the open forest of the San Jacinto Mountains. Enjoy sunrise to sunset views from the wraparound deck, including striking views of Tahquitz Mountain.

Modern amenities including a wood-burning stove, newly updated kitchen & two bathrooms, a Softub hot tub, and fire pit.

Guests will stay in one large bedroom with four double beds.

Itinerary.

  • day 01 ~ land

    Late afternoon arrival.

    Orientation.

    Dinner.

    Opening ceremony.

    Meditative practice.

    Rest.

  • day 02 - journey

    Movement.

    Light breakfast.

    Medicine ceremony.

    Dinner.

    Rest.

  • day 03 - integrate

    Movement.

    Breakfast.

    Group integration.

    Lunch.

    Breathe / Write.

    Private integration.

    Co-created dinner.

    Closing Fire Ceremony.

    Rest.

  • day 04 - return

    Movement.

    Light breakfast.

    Final shares.

    Late morning departure.

Space is limited to four guests.

There are only four spots for this medicine retreat to intentionally create an intimate space for deeper presence and connection with one another. If you’re interested in participating, book a free 25 minute discovery call to discuss if this opportunity will be supportive for you.

Those who are ready can pay a $250 non-refundable deposit to hold their spot. The deposit will be applied towards the total cost of $1500.