2. The Land Match
Finding a land to steward in late stage capitalism wasn’t going to be easy.
But it kind of was. It was never a question of whether this would happen, it was a question of when.
I moved back to the Bay Area in 2017, because a family member got diagnosed with terminal cancer. She was born and died in the Bay Area. And while with her during chemo or at home resting, I was dreaming of the land and tiny home. I would show her images of Pinterest boards I had collected. As she was dying before me, something was being birthed through me. I couldn’t deny the dream.
Around this time, I also met an intuitive cartographer at the recommendation of a friend. He was a healer located in Mt. Shasta. During Covid I spoke with him about my dream and asked him for help, showing me a map of where this place was. He told me about moon lines. Basically, the strongest land tie you have is in the place you are born or directly north or south of it. The Bay Area was a strong and healthy place for me to birth my dreams.
After my family members deaths and this session, the search for land began. I looked on Zillow and Redfin and drove around with an eye on vacant lots. I visited many plots, ranging from vacant lots costing $1 million to ones that were almost unlivable for $20,000. I was patient, persistent, and was surprised when the opportunity arrived. During the pandemic, my financial situation changed, and I found myself with the resources to purchase- with cash. I was also quarantining in a 250 square foot apartment near downtown Oakland and desperately craved space to be outdoors.
I connected to BIPOC femme realtors I felt safe meeting in woodsy places alone. One day, a vacant lot I had my eye on dropped significantly in price. I texted my realtor and she recommended I go see the site. Lucky for me, I went on a very rainy day. And the moment I drive in towards the land, I knew it was special. I felt a calm. When I got out in the rain and I placed my hands on the wet mud on the lot, it felt the warmth of clay between my fingers. It was as if the land itself was welcoming me, pulling me in deeper- holding my hands. The first hand shake. I felt a spiritual connection—like we were one. This was more than just a plot of land; it was a sacred place. It had never been built on before. I began to see the land not just as a place to build but as an altar. A space where I would honor my journey as a land steward, a healer, and a community builder.
I should mention that I’d had a vision some years before of this place, during a meditation session with a friend, Mario Pineda, a graphic recorder who resides in Spain. We did a spiritual training together and I told him I had this pull to land steward but had no what it would be. He guided me to explore what my future home would look like. The vision included a hill with a view of the ocean, rooted in the Earth’s energy. When I touched the land that day, everything lined up. It felt like coming home. It was the vision he’d drawn for me years ago.
The timing was right. I had the cash and my deep longing to commit. I prayed and meditated for 10 days straight to be clear on this decision, by sitting at my altar each morning. I wrote a letter when I made the offer telling the current owner my plans. I bought the land in cash in 2021, knowing it was the foundation for something much bigger than I’d ever been a part of. The video below is of me completing a walk thru with the realtor and a friend who bought me a mini champagne bottle to celebrate.