My grandpa Natale would call me Nat-lee and always said I looked like a young Kirstie Alley from the TV series Cheers.
He also always said I would be great on tv…
Today, Samhain (a Gaelic festival) is a day to make peace with where we come from, where we have been and who we are today.
And so, I am trying something new; exhilarating, terrifying and deeply healing.
You wouldn't necessarily know this, however I am quite shy. I had a traumatic public speaking experience during the 3rd grade. It was the first time I learned that my body could do things I was not in control of such as move my hands uncontrollably or make my voice sound like I was about to cry. All while standing in front of my classmates dressed like Dorothy Hamill with a homemade Gold Medal around my neck and a red blinking light reminding me that I was being recorded. This day kept me away from the spotlight all these years.
It's time to move on… The opportunity is to accept our wounds and allow bravery to be our shield. - Rumi
It’s an idea I have had that combines my love of being in the kitchen with my love for conversation and guiding others candidly using the wisdom of the solar system.
No matter who, when and where, we all tend to end up in the kitchen. It’s where moments meander into conversations that often span many meals.
I am considering calling it ‘Soul-Her Chef’ - Get it? Solar Chef;)
It is remarkably vulnerable and unlike my very Virgo (slightly perfectionistic;) ) tendencies to share this exceptionally homemade
video link. This was my first attempt to record in my home kitchen using my iPhone. It's by no means good quality sound or picture, however, I showed up, left the tarmac and am now free to fly. You may need to flip your phone horizontally to watch and really turn up the volume… Oy vey
Since recording, I have reached out to a professional studio in Napa as my goal is to enter the next season ‘arriving and being unedited' as the star that I am. The studio is incredible and the female founder was very open to my culinary cosmic wisdom as a potential line up for their members- stay tuned!
My second to last ‘announcement’ before I get into my monthly message for November, is that La Saison will be participating in
MARCHÉ : A holiday marketplace in Oakland on November 16th featuring women owned brands that I LOVE. I am deeply honored to be invited. Check out their site through the link and grab your tickets! We will be serving up beautiful salads, cheese boards and more!
I am halfway through my apprenticeship with
Mama Medicine which has been an extraordinary container of deep nurturance, returning me to my original essence.
One of the main questions throughout the apprenticeship is to consider what the roots are to our original essence.
We all have roots that were here long before we were. And we all have spirit that moves through us just as the wind moves through the trees.
Everything we do is built on the shoulders of those who came before us, our ancestors.
My ancestors have been visiting me lately. My cousin Jessie who I only met once who passed when she was 21 years old. My cousin Sean who also passed when he was in his twenties. My dad's dad, Pop-Pop and my husband’s grandmother, Babcia, a holocaust survivor who I loved into her nineties. Babcia told me the day before I married her grandson that I would be famous. She loved me hard; Always critiquing my perogies and loving me even more for eating them.
When I was younger I really wanted to be a model and perhaps it was because I was surrounded by women that I looked up to. My mom and her sisters and their mom were/are all knock outs. I was enamored with beauty. My natal Venus is in the sign of Taurus after all. She (me/we) loves all things sensorial including food, wine, travel, beauty, luxury and philosophy. Napa Valley suits me!
I have never wanted fame though, rather local respect. And at this season in my life, it has arrived and I feel so grateful.
Spirit is everywhere and in every element- the wind, fire, water, earth. And the elements are in each season. And within each of us are each of the elements and all of the seasons.
This time of year brings forward the mysterious; the intersection of intimacy which I have previously dissected as 'into me see'. This intersection is where I have found my roots; the burning embers within my being that is my life force energy. Connected to the circuitry of life through the act of love (Fire) and devotion to the Earth (Food) and my place within the deep mystery of time (Spirit). In many ways, this is my vocation; to be an alchemist of fire, food and spirit.
The Moon represents our emotional body and governs the tides of water here on Earth. Tears have been studied more recently under a microscope to be as unique as snowflakes holding all emotions. Which makes me think that water in many ways is spirit in motion and may even hold the memory of time... Instead of wiping away our tears or handing someone a tissue, what if we practiced teaching our children, friends, parents and elders to allow the miracle of water to pour out from the windows of our souls, onto the mountains of our cheeks, to roll down to be tasted by our lips, remembered, cherished and held as the story of our ancestry?
This life is a miracle. Once you realize the miracle it is, daily living becomes a sacred ceremony of being present.
My last announcement is that I renamed my guidance practice to
Natal Nourishment with Natalie Niksa as this is really what I am gifted with- the ability to nourish the roots of our very being.
To build roots, it takes a lot of consideration, focus and patience. As we go down into the roots, there is a deep connection.
Thank you for meeting me in the depths of my essence; where my roots are deeply devoted to the miracle that is life through food, friendship and free flowing conversation.
