The Twisla Homestead

Classes and consultations are held at my home in Hope, Maine. My partner, Ryan, and I share a deep commitment to the land where we’ve made our home and we are building our homestead in alignment with that commitment. We respectfully acknowledge that we are residing on Wabanaki land. Part of the way that we honor this is by allocating a portion of all class fees for an annual donation to organizations supporting indigenous sovereignty.

Ryan has been researching and working with alternative building materials and methods for over 20 years. My consultation and classroom space resides in a timber framed building with straw bale insulation and a large sub-foundation climate battery to store solar hot air collected from the south side. Other features in the buildings on our homestead include passive solar design, active solar heat collection, composting toilets, a rocket mass heater, the use of oat hulls as insulation, earth berming, south side greenhouse design and lime cement plaster. Experimenting with low impact materials and methods is important to us and is in alignment with our values and respect for ancestors, land and all beings.

IMG_7829We have large herb and veggie gardens, which we have designed and manage according to permaculture principles, using organic and biodynamic practices.

Together we are slowly rehabilitating the surrounding 30 acres of forest by managing growth and succession, introducing under-story plantings and encouraging healthy fungal growth. We are especially focused on re-introducing native species and endangered medicinals. We work with biodynamics and foundational forestry practices to improve the health of the land where we live.

Goals for inviting others to our home for classes and consultations include:

  • To provide a safe, sacred and inclusive space for individual and group learning, healing and development.
  • To offer facilitated learning and healing experiences focused primarily on herbal medicine, but also including Earth-based spirituality, other healing therapies, land healing practices, permaculture, sustainable living practices and homesteading.
  • To inspire, empower and support our human community in deepening a connection with land, all other beings and spirit.