by Jacqueline Chu-Montell

“Growing up, I was convinced that I was an alien.”

“I was chased by a hippo in Africa.”

These personal reveals emerged during a dinner party that I hosted some 10+ years ago. We were a close group of friends – all yoga teachers and their partners – who gathered regularly. But I’ve always loved silly party games, particularly those that ask you to disclose something about yourself that even your close friends don’t know…

By Tom Sandonato

How it came about?

Well, like everyone else, whatever plans we had. . .to visit friends, travel near and far, attend a concert or a good friend’s wedding…were suddenly and dramatically put on hold. Life as we knew it…reimagined.

By Betsy Harden, Sierra Nevada Sisters

At long last, the rains are bringing much-needed water to the Sierra Nevada. Perhaps this is a beginning to the end of a devastating two-year drought. These storms are a real blessing to everyone: the land, the plants, the animals, and the people of central and Northern California.

By Elaine Tajima, Saffron Communities Visionary

Let me tell you a bit more about our shared platform, Saffron Communities.  It has been a vision of mine for over two years, during which I was prompted by my inner voice to build a barn on my beautiful property in Sonoma County.  Many ideas came from the circumstances of the pandemic — I was hanging with a small pod of friends and spending more time in one place than ever before, constantly examining and redefining what was most important to me.