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The holiday season is hard on our beloved planet. We throw away 25% more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year’s than at any other time of year.1 And about a quarter of the gifts we return can’t be resold, resulting in five billion pounds of merchandise in landfills.2 There’s a lot you can do to reduce waste – while simultaneously giving people more meaningful gifts.
We’re big fans of consumable gifts. There’s minimal waste involved (ideally the packaging is recyclable or compostable) and recipient gets to enjoy eating it, drinking it, putting it on their body, etc. The gift may prompt the recipient to do more cooking; to eat or drink something outside their usual box; to relish goods of higher quality than they’d typically buy for themselves; or to give themselves some loving self-care.
Since we started making our own Dragontree lotions, shower gel, massage oil, and other body care products, we’ve gifted a lot of it to our friends and family. (Check it out!) We also love making homemade goodies as gifts and putting our own labels on them. It’s a fun project, a unique gift, and people will love getting to see your label or a cool bottle in their cupboard. It doesn’t have to be your own secret recipe – even if you just find one you like online, people will appreciate that you made it.
Here’s a list of some of our favorite consumable gifts:
Bath Bombs – Help making bathing more fun and better smelling; great for those friends who need a little reminder to bathe. A real win/win gift.
Body Scrubs – These are a fun home project. You can make the scrubby part from all sorts of things, such as salt, sugar, coffee, cranberry seeds, or ground shells.
Lotion – Many people put it on their skin day in and day out or keep a bottle next to the sink to use after hand washing during these dry winter months. If you give them something new and lovely to try, you know it will get used.
Tinctures – We make some Dragontree tinctures that are very popular, or you can try making your own by soaking dried herbs in 80 to 100 proof alcohol for a week or two (shaking frequently) and straining and bottling. A few years ago we made our own blend of bitters (for use in cocktails and for upset tummies) and bottled it as gifts in old style apothecary bottles.
Spice Blends – I love getting exotic spice blends to add to my cooking. I have many different curry powders, several garam masalas, Moroccan ras el hanout, za’atar, harissas, and more. You can blend your own and create a cute label, or find some at a gourmet ingredient store.
Sauces – I also love trying new sauces. So often the sauce makes the dish. If you have a recipe you enjoy, consider making a big batch and canning it. Or send a favorite local sauce to friends across the country. Some friends gave us a jar made from their tomatoes and it was better than anything we’ve ever bought in a store.
Salsa – One of the best gifts we receive each year is the salsa Briana’s father makes from his own garden vegetables. One opened, the jar usually lasts no longer than an hour.
Desserts – Several years we’ve made salted caramels, which is a fun project. Briana’s family has a longstanding tradition of baking pfeffernusse cookies and peanut brittle. There are all sorts of lovely chocolates available these days. I prefer contributing to a less sugary end of the year, but I know everyone appreciates these goodies.
Natural Cleaners and Fragrances – Help your loved ones have a less toxic home by giving them room and clothes spritzes, soaps, and cleaners that are free of synthetic fragrances and harmful preservatives. Many of these are easy to make yourself.
Various Gourmet Groceries – There are all sorts of interesting salts, artisan honeys, dried mushrooms, vinegars, aged cheeses, nuts, smoked fish, jams and chutneys, and so much other delectable fare that’s fun to give as a gift.
Whether or not you have the time and creativity to make your own, you can know you’ll be helping to reduce holiday waste by giving consumables. Another option we urge you to consider is to fill a bag with various foodstuffs the next time you’re at the market and give it to your local food share or a family that needs it. I like to share some organic foods because I feel everyone deserves to have high quality food and one of the main ways people cut costs when they’re poor is by purchasing lower quality goods.
Wishing you true connection this season (and always),
Peter
1 https://lbre.stanford.edu/pssistanford-recycling/frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-holiday-waste-prevention
2 https://money.cnn.com/2017/12/26/news/retail-returns-landfill/index.html
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I was in a little gift shop with my kids last week, browsing through some funny cards, scanning the shelves, wondering where we’d go next, when I suddenly found myself in an altered state of consciousness.
I set down the card I was holding and looked very closely at the wooden box it came from and the table it rested on. I noticed the windows, the walls, the paint, the scuffs, the nail holes. . . I’m in someone’s space, I thought. Someone chose everything around me.
It’s hard to explain the experience, but the crux of it was a poignant recognition that I was standing in a space that someone knows intimately and has given substantial energy and attention. I move through such spaces all the time, rarely registering this. When I stop and notice I feel awe and gratitude.
Then I thought of our spas and wondered if anyone has had a similar experience while in them. I hope so.
This month marks 18 years since we opened our doors, and Briana and I know these spaces like our own home. We’ve painted, cleaned, and repaired them. We’ve chosen all the lights and furniture. Our kids have grown up in them, and we’ve taken more than a few naps in them.
We even feel a similar kind of intimacy around our books, courses, and wellness products. We know them so well and chose everything about them, too. In a way, sharing them with others is like giving someone a homemade present. You hope they’ll see that it’s as well made as something from a big store, but that it also has a personal quality and is infused with love.
To be honest, I didn’t know if we’d make it to this anniversary. The past year was our hardest by far. We had to lay off almost all our employees and had several mandatory shutdowns. We had to make the sad decision to permanently close our Portland Airport location. But we adapted and persevered, and I’m happy to report that we’ve pulled through.
So, from the bottom of our hearts, we want to extend the deepest thanks and gratitude to everyone who has continued to support us through this unprecedented time. I wouldn’t have asked for it, but I believe we’re stronger because of it.
Thank you and take care,
Peter, Briana, and everyone at The Dragontree
[post_title] => Sliding into Home
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Are you someone who sets ambitious goals at the beginning of the year but then struggles to follow through on them? We’ve been there. It’s one of the reasons we created our Dreambook – to teach people how to set goals, how to break these goals down into simple actionable steps, and how to get them scheduled. But there’s one critical factor in the achievement of goals that’s a lot more difficult to teach or impart, and for most people it matters more than all the other skills.
That factor is a commitment to have personal integrity, specifically around keeping agreements. If you are driven to be utterly dependable – to always follow through on your agreements, both with yourself and with others – then tremendous power will be at your disposal.
It takes sustained energy to lift ourselves out of inertia. Physics tells us that inertia is “a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line, unless that state is changed by an external force.” Or in Isaac Newton’s words, “a power of resisting by which every body … endeavours to preserve its present state."1 The first definition states that inertia must be changed by an external force, but when we’re talking about objects with volition (humans, for example) that force can be an internal one.
How can we strengthen the force to change our course? It can be fortified in multiple ways. One is the vision which inspires us. It’s important to make yourself remember why you want to make a change. What gifts do you have that yearn to be awakened and shared? How will you and the world benefit from this change? I recommend that you practice remembering your inspiration throughout the day in a multisensory way, ideally in a relaxed, meditative state. What is it going to feel like? What will it look like? What things will you hear people say? Take a breath, tune in, and embody the change. Each instance need not take more than a minute or so.
Because such inspiration can wax and wane – and inertia can be exceptionally strong, like the body’s resistance to changing its weight – it helps to have another power to sustain the impulse to change, and that’s what integrity can do. Sometimes it’s conflated with what we call “willpower,” but using willpower implies a fight. (Since time immemorial that struggle has been between human willpower and “temptation,” which is defined in the Bible as “one quarter-cubit [roughly a pint] of the Benjamin & Jeremiah brand of ice cream.”)
In contrast, aligning ourselves with virtue of integrity is simply strong and clear. It can help us through conflict, but it doesn’t imply conflict. Coming from a nature-based spirituality, I see the earth element as the ideal model of integrity.
In nature earth embodies integrity in that it holds its form with great consistency. The plates of the earth will barely move within our lifetimes. Neither will our mountain ranges change. Healthy land resists erosion, and strong riverbanks contain the rushing water in a path that hardly varies from century to century.
Integrity in earth and humans implies great stability and reliability – even predictability. We all trust in the solid ground beneath us. In the same way, a person with integrity is predictable in that they can be counted on to act in accordance with their word. Thus, the trustworthy, consistent feeling we have about the soil under our feet is something we embody when we cultivate integrity. Likewise, it’s how people feel about us when we embody integrity. The expression “you are my rock” speaks of this virtue. Imagine being that for your loved ones. Imagine being that for yourself.
If you’ve made commitments for change in the coming year, I recommend tuning in to the earth element to experience a felt sense of this integrity. There are many ways to connect to it. Here’s one.
Stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Have a slight bend in your knees, as if you were sitting on the edge of a high stool (you’ll feel it in your thighs). Engage your inner thigh muscles to bring your knees out so they are aligned with your feet. Straighten your spine by slightly tucking your tailbone forward and drawing your chin slightly back. Imagine that your spine is a clear vessel between the earth and the sky.
Bring your arms out in front of you as if you were resting your palms on a giant round belly. Your palms face your body, and there should be a bit of lift in your elbows, an openness in your armpits. Let your chest and heart relax.
Imagine there’s a string attached to the very top of your head and it’s lifting you to the sky. Imagine there’s also a string attached to the tip of your tailbone and its pulling you to the ground, prompting you to remember to stay in a slight squat. These two opposing forces make you stretch in both directions.
Now bring your attention to your feet and your connection to the earth. See if you can feet each of the nine points of contact shown in the diagram above – the five pads of your toes, the two balls of your feet, the outer “blade” of your foot, and the pad of your heel. Try to distribute your weight evenly between these nine points of contact. As you do so, imagine that a strong root of energy is emerging from your sole and growing deep, deep, deep into the earth.
Relax in this posture, remembering to lengthen your spine, soften your chest, keep your knees and elbows open, and maintaining evenness on the nine points of contact. Meanwhile, imagine these roots from your soles are powerfully connecting you to the essence of the earth. Ask to be nourished. Ask to be taught about integrity. And see what happens.
You can hold this standing meditation for as long as you like. When you’re done, lay your palms on your lower belly and feel your strength consolidating there for a few moments. Try doing this on a regular basis. Over time, stand for longer and deepen your squat. Your legs and your focus will become stronger. Notice how this fortifies your commitment to integrity. And feel free to share about your experience with our community.
Be well,
Peter
- Andrew Motte's English translation: Newton, Isaac (1846), Newton's Principia : the mathematical principles of natural philosophy, New York: Daniel Adee, p. 72
[post_title] => Sustaining Your Resolutions: Inertia, Integrity, and the Power of the Earth Element
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The holiday season is hard on our beloved planet. We throw away 25% more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year’s than at any other time of year.1 And about a quarter of the gifts we return can’t be resold, resulting in five billion pounds of merchandise in landfills.2 There’s a lot you can do to reduce waste – while simultaneously giving people more meaningful gifts.
We’re big fans of consumable gifts. There’s minimal waste involved (ideally the packaging is recyclable or compostable) and recipient gets to enjoy eating it, drinking it, putting it on their body, etc. The gift may prompt the recipient to do more cooking; to eat or drink something outside their usual box; to relish goods of higher quality than they’d typically buy for themselves; or to give themselves some loving self-care.
Since we started making our own Dragontree lotions, shower gel, massage oil, and other body care products, we’ve gifted a lot of it to our friends and family. (Check it out!) We also love making homemade goodies as gifts and putting our own labels on them. It’s a fun project, a unique gift, and people will love getting to see your label or a cool bottle in their cupboard. It doesn’t have to be your own secret recipe – even if you just find one you like online, people will appreciate that you made it.
Here’s a list of some of our favorite consumable gifts:
Bath Bombs – Help making bathing more fun and better smelling; great for those friends who need a little reminder to bathe. A real win/win gift.
Body Scrubs – These are a fun home project. You can make the scrubby part from all sorts of things, such as salt, sugar, coffee, cranberry seeds, or ground shells.
Lotion – Many people put it on their skin day in and day out or keep a bottle next to the sink to use after hand washing during these dry winter months. If you give them something new and lovely to try, you know it will get used.
Tinctures – We make some Dragontree tinctures that are very popular, or you can try making your own by soaking dried herbs in 80 to 100 proof alcohol for a week or two (shaking frequently) and straining and bottling. A few years ago we made our own blend of bitters (for use in cocktails and for upset tummies) and bottled it as gifts in old style apothecary bottles.
Spice Blends – I love getting exotic spice blends to add to my cooking. I have many different curry powders, several garam masalas, Moroccan ras el hanout, za’atar, harissas, and more. You can blend your own and create a cute label, or find some at a gourmet ingredient store.
Sauces – I also love trying new sauces. So often the sauce makes the dish. If you have a recipe you enjoy, consider making a big batch and canning it. Or send a favorite local sauce to friends across the country. Some friends gave us a jar made from their tomatoes and it was better than anything we’ve ever bought in a store.
Salsa – One of the best gifts we receive each year is the salsa Briana’s father makes from his own garden vegetables. One opened, the jar usually lasts no longer than an hour.
Desserts – Several years we’ve made salted caramels, which is a fun project. Briana’s family has a longstanding tradition of baking pfeffernusse cookies and peanut brittle. There are all sorts of lovely chocolates available these days. I prefer contributing to a less sugary end of the year, but I know everyone appreciates these goodies.
Natural Cleaners and Fragrances – Help your loved ones have a less toxic home by giving them room and clothes spritzes, soaps, and cleaners that are free of synthetic fragrances and harmful preservatives. Many of these are easy to make yourself.
Various Gourmet Groceries – There are all sorts of interesting salts, artisan honeys, dried mushrooms, vinegars, aged cheeses, nuts, smoked fish, jams and chutneys, and so much other delectable fare that’s fun to give as a gift.
Whether or not you have the time and creativity to make your own, you can know you’ll be helping to reduce holiday waste by giving consumables. Another option we urge you to consider is to fill a bag with various foodstuffs the next time you’re at the market and give it to your local food share or a family that needs it. I like to share some organic foods because I feel everyone deserves to have high quality food and one of the main ways people cut costs when they’re poor is by purchasing lower quality goods.
Wishing you true connection this season (and always),
Peter
1 https://lbre.stanford.edu/pssistanford-recycling/frequently-asked-questions/frequently-asked-questions-holiday-waste-prevention
2 https://money.cnn.com/2017/12/26/news/retail-returns-landfill/index.html
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