EP. 20

[00:00:00] Kelsey: Welcome to Planet spoonie, the podcast for lymies and spoonies healing themselves and the world. In this compassionate and collective space, we explore traditional nutrition, herbal medicine, and nature connection as tools for empowerment when living with chronic Lyme and chronic illness. These are the same tools that helped me rediscover the magic, wisdom, and innate healing capacity of my own body and the body of the Earth.

[00:00:26] Even while living with chronic illness in the time of the climate crisis. I'm your host Kelsey the herbalist. Let's dig in Hello everyone. I am so grateful to once again be gathered in this collective virtual space with you Today I have the honor of interviewing and absolutely Beautiful, heart centered, wise attorney and earth ceremonialist Camille.

[00:00:55] She has so much to offer and share with us in today's episode. I am really thrilled for you to hear it. I think that some of the messages she shares are just so incredibly needed at this time in our lives as a culture and community. So yeah, I'm just really happy to be sharing this episode with you and that I had the chance to sit down and talk with her.

[00:01:21] so much for watching. It is rare that I get to speak to people who are somewhat local to my area as well. But lately I have had a few interviews with people who are somewhat local to my area. So this has been fun, but Camille just has such a wonderfully poetic way of speaking that is so eloquent and yet deeply relatable.

[00:01:45] So without further ado, let's go ahead and listen to this conversation. Welcome to the show, Camille. I'm so excited to have you on. 

[00:01:56] Camille: Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. 

[00:01:58] Kelsey: So I found you through Instagram. I think that's how we met. Your account is just so beautiful and lovely and always gives me like this wonderful dose of just calm and reminders to take deep breaths and spend some time outside.

[00:02:15] And I feel like that's so needed by everyone. Thank you Tell us a little bit more about yourself and who you are and what you do. 

[00:02:24] Camille: Yeah, so I I have two things that I'm exploring professionally. I work full time as an entertainment lawyer, and I represent artists and musicians and producers.

[00:02:38] And I also facilitate spaces as a ceremonialist, particularly with cacao, but also with other plants. Really just to create containers for people to connect with their heart and explore what that integration looks like for them as they're weaving plants and meditation and poetry and all of these different modalities into their daily lives.

[00:03:00] I I show up in more of a mental capacity in my role as a lawyer, and then in my role as a facilitator, it's more of a heart centered space. 

[00:03:09] Kelsey: That's so beautiful and sounds very grounding that you're able to weave these different sides both into your life. 

[00:03:18] Camille: Yeah. Yeah. And I was, it's funny because I was just talking about this with someone and I was explaining how they don't drain each other because they really are like coming from different energy centers.

[00:03:30] So like the work I do when I'm facilitating a space, it's. So heart centered it's grounded, it's emotional. And my work as a lawyer is very intellectual. And so even though in both capacities, I'm showing up for people and meeting a need for them to express themselves authentically, it's coming from a very different energy center.

[00:03:52] And so together actually feels really balanced. 

[00:03:56] Kelsey: I love that. That sounds really wonderful. How did this kind of come about? How did you find the plant world and earth ceremony and herbalism? How did this kind of start for you? 

[00:04:09] Camille: So during the pandemic, I was in my last year of law school at Harvard. And so we actually were fully remote the last year.

[00:04:17] So I moved to Hawaii. And I finished law school living on Maui, and that was when I first started to drink ceremonial cacao. That was when I really started to dive into earth medicine, as broadly as that is, and using plants and ceremonially working with plants in order to create that inner sense of common peace.

[00:04:43] And when I was in law school, Harvard is The students are so progressive, which was amazing. And everyone was talking about abolition. And in that context, it was really prison abolition, but more so if we were starting from today, how would we imagine our systems? How would we deal with harm? How would we deal with conflict?

[00:05:06] And it was. Really easy to go down these intellectual pathways of how we could solve that. And that's what we would always interrogate in classes and figuring out different systems and different ways of organizing ourselves that may be so radically different from the one that we have. And it was really interesting because.

[00:05:30] It was in my last year of law school that I really started to explore restorative justice and transformative justice. And that was when I was living in Hawaii and I was working with Kakao. And there was just this moment where I realized that, for me, abolition is not further intellectualizing Systems, it's opening our heart.

[00:05:50] That's where we can really shift the way that we're relating to each other, the way that we're relating to ourselves, the way that we're dealing with the discomfort of life, the suffering of life, and so all of that intellectual inquiry and going through that program, which was so intense. I arrived at this place of, okay, if I want to create a world where our justice system reflects my values, we need to connect authentically.

[00:06:22] We need to open our hearts. And so that was when I started to facilitate meditations and spaces where people can really feel and feel seen and see others. And that as a really core part of creating this world, that is. Harmonious and the plan has such an important part of creating that. And so that's how I started to leave working with the plans and facilitating into my life, even while being a lawyer and having this other part of myself that is more intellectual.

[00:06:57] Kelsey: That is so incredible and so well said. I love that you use the word radical also, because I think sometimes if we think about the etymology of that word, it comes from. Radical radix, which means rooted like a radish. It's root. It's being rooted. And what you're speaking of, really reminds me of rooting back into our bodies and into our communities and into our more than human communities into the plants.

[00:07:28] And that's so that's just such a beautiful path of how you found that and That we can have all the intellect, but we've got to have the heart too. And that body sense as well. Did you find that the communities you were in were open and receptive to this kind of more somatic and heart centered piece of visioning and planning and making change?

[00:07:53] Camille: Yes, I. I did because I finished Harvard and I moved to LA where everybody is so into it. It wasn't like I was going back to Harvard and like holding cacao ceremonies. That would be amazing. And I would love to do that. But I was already on my way into this new space. But I do get inquiries from people from school and people who are so passionate and hungry to learn and to integrate different tools.

[00:08:24] And so I do get messages from people from Harvard being like, what is this ceremonial cacao thing? What is this herbalism thing that you're doing? And I think that, One thing that I like to share with people is you can integrate it into your life. Yes, if you want to have a radical rooted life change and, leave that profession and do something totally different.

[00:08:45] Of course, listen to that calling, but you can also be like me and have a full time job and be really connected to plants and be really connected to the earth and feel grounded and centered while you show up. And that in itself Is an offering into this new way of relating that we might want to create.

[00:09:04] And so I think that there's ways to make plants and herbalism, which can feel super intimidating. It's just funny because it's like the plants, but they can feel intimidating. They're right there. They're right there. They're like what we eat every single day. But it can feel intimidating. And I think just reminding people that like, it's super accessible.

[00:09:26] It's intuitive. Like you can, there's no script. And I try to share that with people. 

[00:09:33] Kelsey: I love that so much because I completely agree. It does feel very intimidating and it felt that way for me as well, when I first started. And I'm curious if there are any like little bits of advice or things that you wish.

[00:09:49] other people knew when starting on their journey with herbal medicine. If they're budding herbalists also, and they're like really curious about this, but scared or intimidated, I feel as a side tangent, one of the things that I've seen with people so many times is when you're on like a plant walk, and you offer them something, you're like, try this chickweed, or try this wild blackberry, They're like, Whoa, I can't wait, eat that.

[00:10:15] That just came off of the trail. You know what I mean? Like, how can we demystify this? And yeah. What do you wish people knew if to get started? 

[00:10:26] Camille: That's such a good question. I think that what's coming up right now is just like slowing down because I think so much of the barrier with.

[00:10:35] Connecting with plants and seeing the plants that we see as herbs and medicine that we can be working with. It's we live in such a scheduled life where like, when we're working and then when we're at the grocery store, that's where we buy our food and then this and that, and we live in such a time reality.

[00:10:49] And so I think that the space of the magic of the plans, like it doesn't exist in time. It exists when we're just fully present. When we're aware of our surroundings, when we're Our mind has gotten quieter. And so I think practicing that, like practicing, just scheduling, like sometimes on my calendar on Saturday morning, I have a four hour block where I'm just going to go outside and I don't have a plan and I'm just not bringing my phone, I'm just exploring outside by myself and seeing what I feel.

[00:11:22] And I think just scheduling like unscheduled time to connect. With the nature around you and be in that organic communication, I think really helps to remember Oh yeah, we all have this capacity. Like we all inherently have an ability to connect with the earth. And it doesn't necessarily mean that every single person is going to go out and hear, a plant talking to them in this very human way.

[00:11:48] Like it doesn't have to be like that, but even just going outside. And seeing a flower and finding it beautiful and taking a moment to look at it and appreciate it. That is a communication that you're having with the plant. And so I think just letting it happen organically when we're fully present.

[00:12:07] And not looking for a particular experience to happen, I think is really beautiful and like with springtime now we have all the flowers, which like I love flowers because they work in their subtleties like it's not like some of these plants that we hear people taking that are really intense and Really powerful and take over your consciousness.

[00:12:28] Like flowers are so gentle. And so if you're new, it's go and just look at the flowers with spring. There's so much to appreciate that doesn't require you to have this like deep education of plant herbalism. You can just intuitively experience the medicine of plants through being outside and being present with them.

[00:12:50] Kelsey: Again, that's so well said. And it's really true because I think almost part of what we have a tendency to do is over intellectualize and we build it up to be this crazy fancy thing in our minds when it really is as simple as. Even just if, if just sitting sounds really difficult or slowing down, cause I, I have been there.

[00:13:13] I know sometimes slowing down can be so hard, just tapping into our senses and like smelling and touching and looking and feeling. And tasting if we know what we're identifying, it's safe to taste. Those can be such powerful ankle, anchors for getting back into our body and into that experience, especially with seasonal plants, like you're saying with the flowers, they're so ephemeral and.

[00:13:40] Yeah, spring is a beautiful time. 

[00:13:43] Camille: It's so great because everyone's like alive, like all the plants are blooming and alive and wanting to be seen. And so it's of course we want to be outside and hang out with the plants and see flowers and pick flowers and bring them into our homes. There's a natural, it's like X like flowers are very extroverted.

[00:14:06] Kelsey: It's so true. Actually, they really are. And they really call in attention in a way, like whether that's with us or with other types of pollinators there, I don't know if you've ever seen the images of what a flower looks like to A honeybee or different bees and it's almost like they have bullseye targets on them.

[00:14:25] They're just like, right here, so it's so cute and cool that camaraderie and collaboration that happens. That leads me into, you've alluded, and I know we've talked about this before, but tell us about how you met Kakao. 

[00:14:41] Camille: So I was living on Maui where cacao actually does grow in Hawaii. It's not native there, but it grows really well there in the tropical climate.

[00:14:51] And I was in a ceremony with a person who had spent a lot of time in Guatemala and trained, so to speak how to facilitate cacao there. And so it was really beautiful because a lot of people consider Maui to be like the heart shocker of the world. And then I'm living there, and then I'm meeting cacao, which is this heart opening medicine, and it was very, speaking of flowers and the subtlety it was a very slow process of getting to know this plant and working with this plant, and in my first, probably two months of working with cacao, it was only ever in ceremony that was led by someone with so much intention, so much presence.

[00:15:32] And then slowly I started to work with cacao on my own and facilitate my own experiences with cacao. And I was doing that for two to three years. And then just in the last year, I went to Guatemala myself and I did a cacao training and now I facilitate for other people. But I really took my time getting to know that plant and understanding like when it felt right to connect with that plant.

[00:16:02] And. I'm so grateful that I met cacao in this beautiful ceremonial way. And with so much reverence. And I, when you were saying also like, how can people connect with plants? The other word, in addition to slowing down, I was thinking of was just like the intention. If you really want to experience the medicine of a plant, where's your intention, like where's your presence and your energy, and so being able to get to know cacao through.

[00:16:31] A ceremonial context, I think, allowed me right away to just experience the vastness of the medicine and then slowly start to weave it into my life as I started to work with it alone and then eventually facilitate. 

[00:16:47] Kelsey: That is so beautiful. How, and can you talk to, for some of the people who maybe are less familiar and are curious, what is it like developing a relationship with a plant like this?

[00:16:59] And why is that important? We're very much raised in this culture to think we just go to the store and buy it. You don't ask permission, there's nothing more to it than I want chocolate. I'm going to buy chocolate, can you speak to that a little bit?

[00:17:13] Yeah. 

[00:17:14] Camille: I feel that taking cacao, for example, like we all know the chocolate industry and every industry with plants, every industry on this planet, there's a trade off between like commodity and economy and like intentionality and slowness and medicine. And we see that in the chocolate industry.

[00:17:36] And then specifically with cacao, ceremonial cacao, a lot of people are like, what's the difference between cacao and chocolate? And it's really integrity and intention and quality. And when I purchase ceremonial cacao, I'm purchasing from farms where they're praying for permission to plant the seeds of the cacao tree on this mountain.

[00:17:57] They're every single step from the heart, from the planting of the cacao pod to the, Watering of the seeds to the harvesting, to the processing, to the packaging. There's so much intention. So by the time you receive your ceremonial cacao, it's already been prayed upon and blessed and has so much intention from the humans that have co created this medicine.

[00:18:22] And so it's what my teacher from my herbalism school of the sacred wild Marisha, she says, like, when you meet a plant, It's like you're meeting an elder, like how would you approach, a grandparent that you were meeting or, an elder in a community you would be present, you would have respect, you would have reverence, you would you would be respectful.

[00:18:44] And so I think we forget that, the Mayans, which is. where cacao is, comes from that culture, they see the earth as our mother and as our relative, and so it's the whole earth body is a parent and a relative and we gave us life at, in this whole experience. And so I think just remembering that, and it doesn't have to become a super Witchy, like personified thing, if that doesn't feel natural for someone, but it's just the reality. Like we are of the earth. And so when we're sitting with any plant, remembering that they are a relative on some level, however, you choose to look at that and just introducing yourself the way you would to anyone that is new in your life and in your community, you would be present and respectful.

[00:19:33] And so I think I think it just, it should be for everything. And we move so fast that we don't have the time always to sit and be grateful and express that when we eat and when we're drinking a tea and whatever, but I think if we're developing a relationship with a plant, we want to work with that plant in a medicinal way, whether it's cacao or lavender or chamomile any plant to just go slow, to build trust.

[00:19:59] And to be in reverence when we are working with that plant. And I do think the medicine, both the physical medicine of the plant and the spiritual emotional medicine is so much stronger when we approach it that way. 

[00:20:13] Kelsey: I completely wholeheartedly agree. And I love that you brought in that metaphor of plants as elders, which really isn't even a metaphor.

[00:20:22] It is what it is. It's the truth. Like we evolved within the context of plants and I had a friend recently that we were just chatting and. It was like, what, what who was that first person that ate a plant that one time? There was no first person. There was never a first time. It's just always been, we've never not eaten plants in any form going way, way back.

[00:20:45] So I love that you said that. And it makes me curious too. We talked about this previously. Why do you think people in our culture right now? Are feeling so called to some of these stronger more psychoactive plants like, cannabis ayahuasca, psilocybin and cacao even, which you met, people might not think of cacao in that way, but.

[00:21:10] There's lots of neurotransmitter activity. It really is a very biologically active plant. And I'm curious, what are your thoughts on that? Why do you think that people in our culture are often initiated into the world of herbalism and earth medicine first with really strong, powerful plant medicines?

[00:21:32] Camille: Yeah. I feel that it it's again, this time thing, right? Like I can't remember if we talked about this, but someone was saying, ayahuasca will shoot you to the top of the mountain and meditation will like slowly take you up there step by step. And so I think that people are, it's coming from this place of I want to connect with plants.

[00:21:54] I want to feel free. I want to feel peace. And there's these. Two three day experiences where you can blast your heart open blast your mind open and have this really deep transformative experience and it's fast And there's nothing wrong with that. And those plants are beautiful plants and I haven't worked with ayahuasca I haven't worked with some of these plants, but I know that they're they're plants.

[00:22:18] They're of course here for us and But what we've also spoken about is the integration and the weaving of our consciousness with the plants that are around us. Like I don't live in the rainforest. I don't live where ayahuasca grows. I don't live where cacao grows. So I don't feel in this moment called to work with cacao every day, but I work with oat straw every day because I can harvest oat straw on the trail behind my house.

[00:22:44] And so I think that, just, Weaving ourselves with what's around us like that oat straw somewhere deep in the root system is all the way connected to the rainforest where cacao all these other plants are growing. And so when we really work deeply with a plant that is abundant and is a wild weed, ideally, we are weaving ourselves into the entire ecosystem, the entire web of plants.

[00:23:13] And we are getting the medicine of all of those other plants, but in an integrated way where we can still work and meet with people and do all these other things that when you're working with a plant like ayahuasca, you're fully embodied in that plant. And so I think I see it as a yes and sure, if you feel called to sit with ayahuasca.

[00:23:33] I don't have any judgment of that. I also encourage you to find nettle or find oat straw and work with that every day and integrate yourself into the plant so that you can actually embody the medicine in your life and not just have these like transformative peak experiences that are hard to integrate because.

[00:23:52] We don't have the plant foundation in our daily life, if that makes sense. 

[00:23:58] Kelsey: A hundred percent. And it keeps bringing me back to the idea of being rooted and really working with, that local ecosystem. And that's what bioregional herbalism is all about, is like learning to work within your local ecosystem.

[00:24:11] And that's such a beautiful thing. And we're also very fortunate to live in Coastal California, where we have a lot growing all year round. So we're a little, we're a little bit spoiled in that regard. I must admit, but it's there is such an awakening, but a very rooted one that happens with that because It's so grounding and I talk about belonging a lot on the podcast, but I think that's, it's important because I don't know if you relate to this.

[00:24:37] I just feel like growing up and as a youth and in my teens, I felt so anxious and so confused. And so just like I did not belong and you just are left with all these questions about the why of the world and where we fit in. And I think that continues on for so many of us well into adulthood.

[00:24:57] And connecting with, what's growing in your backyard as food or medicine or fiber, if you're into weaving or crafting or whatever it might be. That's such a beautiful way to, to. Hop into these communities and the sense of belonging. And then especially if you can tie in cultural pieces, like either acknowledging the cultures who are indigenous to the place you live or your own culture and your history and what was growing in your people, wherever you're from way, way back when, and that's been such like a powerful tool for me in my life to really channel this sense of rootedness and belonging that.

[00:25:37] Yeah, doesn't have to be so extreme or crazy, but can really be as simple as a cup of tea from something in your backyard. 

[00:25:46] Camille: Yeah, it's the less sexy version of herbalism, but it's the herbalism that works, 

[00:25:51] Kelsey: it's so true. The cup of the humble cup of tea. That's definitely was something my first herbal teacher instilled in us was like that, that, that is the core of herbalism is just a simple cup of tea.

[00:26:01] Okay. 

[00:26:01] Camille: Yeah, and yeah, and like my herbalism teacher, like the wild weeds in particular, like we have, again, this consumerism mindset when it comes to plants. And so we really value the plants that are rare and only grow in this one ecosystem. And you have to get it shipped and traveled. And it's this like incredible resin or cacao or whatever.

[00:26:23] And if you look at it from, A conversation with the earth, the weeds are so abundant. There's so much, there's so much nettle. There's so much burdock. There's so much comfrey, right? Like they're everywhere. And if the earth is trying to tell us something, she's work with these. Look how much I've given you.

[00:26:43] They're everywhere. They're abundant. They're accessible. They're affordable. Like work with these plants. And so it's the opposite of capitalism. It's not this rare expensive thing, but it's like actually what's abundant is what we should be working with every day because it's abundant.

[00:27:01] Like it makes so much sense when you just take a moment, think about it. 

[00:27:05] Kelsey: A hundred percent. There's almost this Othering that happens where we like put something up on a pedestal because it's rare or expensive or from far away. I feel like we see that with the Himalayan salt thing right now where everyone's Oh, it's Himalayan salt.

[00:27:20] It's okay, lots of kinds of salt. That's one beautiful one. But then there's all these ethics that come into question when we're sourcing things from across the world. And we don't really know like the sustainability, how workers are treated. And so much comes into question versus. Sourcing locally has, it's so different and I completely agree that there's this beautiful way that the earth and the plants speak to us by having these certain plants stand out and we may not know why.

[00:27:49] And it may seem like this simple thing that, is whatever. But then when we dig deeper, it's wait, no, something's happening here. I remember one year, my grandmother was really struggling with shingles really badly. And she's always gardened. And she accidentally bought a bunch of lemon balm instead of mint to put into her garden.

[00:28:10] And lemon balm is very antiviral towards the herpes viridae family, which is the family of viruses that shingles is in. And it's not that the lemon balm was going to cure her shingles per se, but could it reduce her viral load for sure? Could it calm her nervous system down? Absolutely. Like I just see this happen all the time in my community and with clients and with myself where the plants we need most are.

[00:28:35] Right there. 

[00:28:36] Camille: Yeah. And I think also one thing that I was reading is like in a lot of indigenous cultures, the medicine woman, person, whatever, would only work with a couple of plants. And the idea being that if you really are connecting with the spirit of a plant. You're connecting with the earth, like you're connecting with everything.

[00:28:59] And so you can go deeper, just working with a few plants sometimes than having a hundred plants in your apothecary, because you have an intimate relationship with that plant. And so I think, again, it's just it doesn't have to be this. Super complicated thing. Just finding a couple of plants that you enjoy, that tastes good, that are abundant, that ideally grow in your same climate and just work with them consistently, like you're going to develop an intimacy with your, with the spirit of the plant, with the.

[00:29:29] Chemistry of that plant. That's going to be healing for you over time. 

[00:29:35] Kelsey: That's so true. You could work with, that's what's so addictive is not the right word, but alluring, can't keep coming back for more about herbalism is that you'll never learn it all. And that's so exciting because you can spend a lifetime getting to know one plant.

[00:29:53] You will never fully know everything there is to know. It's so multifaceted and so many different ways. And I completely agree that weeds are just such a fabulous place to start because one, they're abundant. Two, they're very often invasive or non native, which is great. We want to forage all of the non native things to help, clean up the habitat a little bit.

[00:30:14] And it, it's also so interesting spray culture that, people, depending on where you are in the country or the world, that people will spray these weeds to eradicate them with these poisons, but there's no, there's this lost knowledge of actually this has a lot of medicinal uses.

[00:30:32] And then here we are herbalists or people somewhere else in the world, like where, where can I order passion flower online? And then in this part of the country, they're like spraying it because there's so much passion flower in the cow pasture. They don't want it. And it's this kind of Yeah, it's this really funny, interesting relationship but every plant has so much to offer.

[00:30:53] Are there any, I know you mentioned oat straw, nettle, and comfrey. Are there any others right now that you're feeling like, especially curious about, or called to, or just really noticing in your environment? The chickweed. 

[00:31:07] Camille: I love the chickweed. I've been making like a chickweed juice. Which is so great in the summertime.

[00:31:13] Like now that it's getting warmer. There's lots of sage in my environment and I don't harvest the white sage. We've been asked not to, but I do, I have been harvesting the flowers of the black sage to create flower essence, which has been incredible. Yeah. Yeah. Cause you only need a little bit and then it lasts you for so long.

[00:31:35] And then you have the vibration of those flowers. So yeah, I've been working with sage and roses like roses are everywhere and that's been amazing. But yeah, the oat straw is just so beautiful. Cause I started my herbalism training last, this past fall and the first plant I started working with oat straw, and then now it's springtime.

[00:31:57] And I'm seeing the oat straw looming and I'm able to harvest it and work with it. And it's just I feel like I'm coming like full circle with her.

[00:32:09] Kelsey: I love that so much. It's it really is like a relationship and they become. Dear friends, because it's, there's a comfort in just seeing them and then seeing how they interact with other beings in the environment, pollinators, or, like little rodents and ground creatures that eat them and, or birds that make nests with them.

[00:32:30] And then they're offering you this amazing medicine. And then you get to go and give something back by teaching other people or growing it in your garden space. They become truly dear friends. 

[00:32:43] Camille: Yeah. Yeah. And they become we're drinking a plant every day. They're gonna become part of our consciousness.

[00:32:51] Which I love. Like, when I make my ostra, I ask please. Enter my consciousness like allow your dreams to be woven in with mine Let's create together and they do and I'll have a thought like I was on a hike the other day and I was thinking about The prison system and this idea of like abolition as this, like burning of that system.

[00:33:15] And then I actually had this other thought was like maybe you are not burning it. Maybe we're just like allowing the vines grow over it and compost it and folding it back in. And I was like, Oh yeah, that, that makes sense. And then I was like, wait, that was Oatstraw. Like that thought came to me from Oatstraw 100%.

[00:33:37] Kelsey: Oh my gosh, that is so precious and magical and so important. We've truly not everyone, of course, but so many of us in this culture and the States who have lost this connection, finding it again is just bring so much meaning to our life. And I love that you're weaving in these ideas of. Re envision, re envisioning our future through this lens, because it's so important and so incredibly needed and again, your piece about we can intellectualize it all day long, but without that heart centered framework, there's always going to be something missing.

[00:34:16] How do you feel like, what are some of the ways that you feel like. Your life has shifted or your perspective has shifted in addition to what you've just shared since really tapping into the world of herbalism and medicine and getting to know your local plants and 

[00:34:34] Camille: terroir. Yeah I really feel the slowing down.

[00:34:39] Like the slowing down, it's I cannot rush anymore. I just can't do it. I'll just be late. I can't because I'm just, I'm moving at the pace of the plants that I'm working with. And it's not a 5g pace. Like it's a slower pace. And it's interesting because I actually can do more like when I'm rushing, I make mistakes.

[00:35:06] And I miss details and it actually ends up taking more time to get to the same place because I'm not fully anchored. But with working with the plants, like I move slower, but I'm so much more grounded and so much more clear that I still get everything done that I need to get done. Like I'm still, everything still is fine.

[00:35:27] And so noticing that and observing that has been really beautiful because I think like with the rushing. I don't know, cosmology, like whatever that is, there's this fear that if I don't rush, I'm not going to finish everything like, and things are not going to end up. Okay. And it's actually, I don't have to do that.

[00:35:45] Like that, I, that's not something that I need to do in order to honor my commitments and show up in the way that I need to. And so I think just allowing myself to read, take the time Is that an intention when I make a tea or I'm working with an herb taking the time to harvest a plant and process it and work with it.

[00:36:09] Like all of that, it's a slow working medicine that gets us so present and so clear that we actually can function in a very high capacity. And so I think not just knowing it, but experiencing that truth has been Really transformative. 

[00:36:33] Kelsey: That's that reminds me so much too, of what we were talking about with some of these kind of stronger plants that act almost as gateways, like cacao.

[00:36:44] Where, we've been so almost numbed out and desensitized to like bright colors and loud sounds and loud music and nonstop advertising and this go hustle culture that. Sometimes it's it takes this powerful medicine to shift our consciousness kind of back to maybe what it once was or what it's meant to be or what it can be, and it's like both an expanding, but then it opens the space and clears the space for us to ground down and start to become more aware of these subtle things, because if I think of myself.

[00:37:20] Gosh, I'm trying to think like way before I knew herbalism existed when I was a teenager or something and you gave me chamomile tea. I think I was so desensitized. Like I would have noticed nothing. Oat straw. Definitely not. You know what I mean? Like sometimes we almost need that powerhouse plant to come in and make the space for us to receive this more subtle medicine that you're talking about.

[00:37:47] Camille: Yeah, definitely. And I think that's okay if our gateway is a stronger plant. I think it was probably cacao for me that really taught me that I can work intentionally with a plant and weave that into my life. And then it got me curious about other plants and other ways of working with herbalism.

[00:38:07] And now I feel like I have a very grounded appreciation for cacao in this whole Cosmo vision of plants. But yeah, that was my introduction. And so I think that's beautiful. Like these plants are like, awesome. Like these really intense plants, like they're like cool kids, everybody's like curious about them and that's cool. And it's beautiful. If that gets you curious and then. And then I think it's just like the integration okay, you have this experience. You really open your heart, you open your consciousness with one of these psychedelic altering plants.

[00:38:41] How are you integrating it? And that's just like where the day to day weeds and plants that you can take every single day and that want to be worked with every day to receive the most benefit. Like it can just be a combination. 

[00:38:55] Kelsey: I love that. That integration piece truly is so important. So I appreciate that you keep bringing that to the forefront, because it's so like everything and so incredibly needed.

[00:39:07] I'm curious to if you can share a little bit with us about some of the things that you're currently doing in addition to what you've already mentioned Drinking tea and nature walks and unscheduled time outside. What are some of the things that you're doing in your community and offering to your community for anyone who is in the LA area or Southern California and is interested in and maybe sharing in some of these things that you're sharing?

[00:39:32] Camille: I have been sharing these cacao topanga hike experiences, which have been awesome because we Go on a trail in Topanga outside and see all of the plants growing and identify them and have a plant ID walk and then we sit and drink cacao. So by the time we're drinking the cacao, we've already connected with all of the plants in our ecosystem.

[00:39:55] And I actually have started to offer oat straw before the cacao because, cacao is this heart opener, which is amazing. But we want to feel rooted and grounded in order to safely open our heart. And so oat straw is such a beautiful herb for grounding. So I'll first share a nourishing herb and then share cacao.

[00:40:16] And the way I share cacao is influenced by my training in Guatemala and also the herbalism training that I'm in now. And then we get to walk back on this hike having filled up our cup with this nourishing herb and this heart opener. And just seeing how like the trail shifts and our connection with it shifts.

[00:40:36] And so that's been a really beautiful thing to offer with people. It's almost like a half day retreat, but you're just totally outside. And then I do offer cacao ceremonies that are very focused on offering cacao. And I do that in groups. I also do it individually for people who are maybe a little intimidated to go to a whole group of people sharing cacao and they're curious, but they'd rather work more one on one.

[00:41:02] And then I also do offer integration sessions for people who do work full time and have, a full schedule, but they're curious about integrating earth medicine into their life. I can share what worked for me and like how to be a high functioning person in this corporate world or whatever world that you're in, and also be extremely grounded and woven with the medicine of the plants.

[00:41:27] So yeah, I have a few different offerings. 

[00:41:31] Kelsey: That is so lovely. And for anyone listening, I'll definitely link that into the show notes so that they can find you if they're curious. And I know we're coming towards the end, but I have two thoughts left. And one is I'm wondering, do you want to maybe share a little bit about the medicine of oatstraw since that's been like the important part of it?

[00:41:48] The impromptu herb of the moment since we've been talking. 

[00:41:52] Camille: Sure, so oat straw, a wild weed with the doctrine of plant signatures, oat straw grows in these very long thin stalks with little kind of buds, like milky, we call them milky oat tops for the oat straw. And In the doctrine of plant signature is like the air element because she's like tall and thin.

[00:42:15] And so for those of us, including myself, who tend to be anxious, like who tend to be high strung, she's such a great plant ally and super grounding. And also straw also has a slight antidepressant quality to it, which is really great when you're drinking it every day. It's not gonna, she's not gonna change your mood, but she helps you.

[00:42:36] She's grounding. But also allows you to stay balanced, which is really nice. And because she's the nourishing herb, she's full of vitamins, full of minerals, building to tissue, building to blood safest cat in the safest category of herbs. So for someone like new and curious about working with an herb every day, oat straw is a really great plant to consider as a first option.

[00:42:58] And yeah, she grows in California. So if you live in California, you'd be working with a plant that grows in your ecosystem, which is great. 

[00:43:06] Kelsey: It's so true. It is everywhere, like from everywhere, southern most border to the northern most border oat straw is everywhere. Oats are everywhere. And it's such a lovely plant too, because it really is such a great example of a plant that's like both food and medicine where like you have the nourishing straw and then like the soothing milky tops.

[00:43:26] But then if those tops go long enough, you get the seed and you get oatmeal, which was like wonderful and goopy and. Again, safe for everyone. So it's it really is such a fun, fun plant to get to know. And the last kind of question I have for you before we close out is what's next for you. I know that you have maybe a trip coming up out of the country.

[00:43:47] What's coming up for you. 

[00:43:49] Camille: Yeah. So I'm planning to go back to Guatemala sometime in the next month and continue to deepen my relationship with cacao and the plants there. I would love to be able to spend even more time in Guatemala and really connect with the Mayan culture that holds the medicine of cacao.

[00:44:06] And so I'm finding the way to weave that into my life. And like I mentioned before, cacao doesn't grow in California, wouldn't grow in California. And so I feel that in order to really develop the type of intimacy that I want to develop with cacao and work with cacao every single day.

[00:44:25] There's just going to need to be a chapter of being living where she lives and being fully in that environment and meditating with the cacao tree and with the actual living plant and really developing that intimacy. So I'm finding the time to carve that out, but I'm definitely going back for just a journey and continuing to build that relationship with cacao.

[00:44:46] Kelsey: I can't wait to see your updates. Hopefully you'll be able to share a little bit still on social media so we can follow along and see how that's going. And I appreciate so much that emphasis on building that relationship and intimacy because it's such a different experience when you get to know a plant in person, like the living, breathing, being of a plant.

[00:45:10] And then versus, if all you have access to is ordering it online or buying it at store, that's totally okay. But it really is such an intimate experience to get to know these plants in person and develop that relationship. So I'm very excited for you to go and do that with cacao. That sounds just absolutely magical.

[00:45:28] Camille: Yeah, I'm really excited. 

[00:45:32] Kelsey: Thank you so much for coming on the show. It has been so much fun to have you, Camille. Truly, you, the way you speak is so poetic, and I'm really excited for people to listen because Yeah you just talk about this in such a beautiful way. Like you were just a born herbalist.

[00:45:49] I love listening to you. I could listen to you all day. Oh my gosh. Thank you. It's the plants. We'll credit the plants. I hope that you found this episode and conversation to be as a magical as I found it, if you don't follow Camille on Instagram, go ahead and check her out. Because truly it's just like a breath of fresh air.

[00:46:11] If you. Love seeing kind of nature based content that reminds you to sit still and embrace the quiet and Tap back into your heart and your body and your soul and to really get connected Then her page is perfect for you. And as she mentioned she leads beautiful plant walks in Topanga Canyon So if you are in the LA area definitely sign up for one of those I am, as always, so grateful to be here in this space with you.

[00:46:42] Thank you so much for listening and continuing to download these episodes. It means the world to me because it allows me to continue doing what I love most, which is sharing education about how we can all get more deeply connected into each other. All right, I The natural world and to learn about plant medicine and traditional nutrition and different ways of reconnecting to nature and our culture and ourselves.

[00:47:10] So thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much for being here. I love you all. I truly hope that you walk away from this episode feeling inspired and realizing that we're all herbalists at heart. We are all Plant people, we are all connected to Earth and our ecosystems around us. The Earth is just waiting for us to reconnect and to re weave ourselves into this wider web of being and of life that we have really become disconnected from, and the plants are waiting.

[00:47:47] As always, please know that it is such an honor to be here in this space with you, and Our bodies are a direct reflection of the ecosystems we inhabit, and just like this earth, our bodies know how to heal. Until next time.