The first thing I felt after a long day’s journey was ease. That would be a common theme experienced throughout her five-day stay on the breathtakingly beautiful Dutch island of Curaçao. There’s something innate about the island’s healing energy. Life feels slow. Nature surrounds you and roots you. And you are asked to reflect your surroundings in a way that brings peace and flow. The environment itself is healing, and if you surrender to it, you will be blessed by its effects.
Aside from the glowing faces of strangers, the warm, hot heat of the island climate and the navy and turquoise gradations of the vast southern Caribbean were an undeniable waypoint for self-care. Deeper than that, self-care is community care, and it has never felt more pronounced than when I was in Curaçao. The healing power of the island is complemented by an element of local community that nurtures and nourishes you alongside the island’s bounty.
Upon arriving at Universal Alchemist, a recovery space offering high vibrational wellness and lifestyle products, my travel group and I were greeted with a hug from Ellie. That warmth pales in comparison to the workshops she hosted for us, and the final sense of how much each of us lived, saw, felt, and embraced by the end. Little did we know it would become.
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
Marerie “Ellie” Sambo pictured at The Bar at Universal Alchemist.
Marerly “Elly” Sambo, owner of Universal Alchemist, is a woman of many hats: microbiologist, alchemist, clinical and community herbalist, and yoni steaming expert. As she shows us around the farm and we sit in a circle under the large mango tree on the property, we learn about the many plants she grows there and the healing and earthly products she cultivates. I could see the intention she put into what she did.
For Ellie, the earth not only roots us, it creates us.
The 150-year-old mango tree that we harvested under it is also our ancestor. She encouraged us to look at all plants that way. The warmth she felt in her first greeting to Ellie continued after they shared their stories as a group and experienced a similar embrace with each other. Ellie revealed to the group about her life-changing journey to return to her home in Curacao after years away.
The situation involved a health scare in which she was diagnosed with two benign tumors in her breasts. She refuses to undergo treatment to remove them and instead decides to make a “medicine” using fruit and ginger to make them smaller. But within three months of relying on her holistic approach to healing, she found that her tumor had completely disappeared.
She found that the more she focused on healing her physical symptoms, the more her emotional and mental symptoms healed as well. “I think the tumor disappeared because it went so deep into my core,” Ellie explained to the group.
She also shares the importance of community care and kinship with other souls in healing, saying that the more connected you are to yourself, the more connected you are to others, and the more connected you are to others. He said his connections with other souls will also increase. herself. It was the art of happiness. Although she left Curaçao to pursue a career as a microbiologist in the Netherlands, her healing work on the island inspired her to expand, self-cultivate, and pursue a business rooted in high vibrational healing. created a path. She co-founded Universal She Alchemist with Femi and has been there for eight years.
Along with her story, our truths have all too easily left each of us with too much candor and vulnerability. So much so that you’d think we’d known each other for years instead of just one night. The end result felt liberating, and the leaves on the trees swaying in the wind around us seemed to confirm it. And after each person shared their story, Ellie stood up and pulled each of us into a hug, reinforcing the release with a tangible act of safety.
Without realizing it, the workshop with Ellie had already begun and it was the first way to tap into our happiness hormones. Through hugs, we unlocked the love hormone oxytocin.
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
Through Ellie’s guided meditation practice, we were able to effortlessly tap into the happiness hormone serotonin. Soon after, we enjoyed a healthy and hearty snack inspired by happy hormones prepared by Femi under the mango tree. That was the start of several other farm-to-table snacks shared that morning, each inspired by the hormones that inspired our activities. Between meals, activities, and closeness, mornings are the epitome of mindfulness. Balance was divine.
The next workshop was MOOD Table Elly, which was created with the theme of fun. It was more hands-on and involved making DIY happiness-infused oils that incorporated essential oils. Mandarin and Lemongrass impressed me the most so I used that in my body oil blend. Through essential oils, we were tapping into endorphins. An important aspect of creating “Potions” was to name our creations with the intention of speaking to them, and thus to ourselves, each time we use them. .
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
Sheriden Chanel/xoNecole
One of my favorite parts was the tea making workshop. There, we made our own tea blend from seven different herbs to provide the various physical and emotional benefits she provided us with. The name of the game was to cultivate what makes you feel wanted. By completing tasks and engaging in self-care activities, I was able to access my dopamine sensation.
Some of the herbs that stood out to me the most were the Melissa plant, also known as lemon balm, which is known for its ability to restore clarity and reduce stress and anxiety. Moringa has mood-enhancing effects that promote harmony, and Ellie calls it a “master healer.” Raspberry leaf is a hormonal balancer and can also be used for emotional disturbances. I named each of her three teas “Eternal Sunshine,” “Heat,” and “Everything in its Place.”
Provided by Universal Alchemist
We ended the MOOD Table session by taking turns expressing gratitude for the transformative time we spent together that day and the healing we cultivated. We each answered for ourselves the question: “Are you happy?” We shed tears, hugs, and created a safe space where each other could always feel safe. Additionally, it cemented the repeated message that an important aspect of healing is as much about the people outside of yourself as it is about doing the work within.
By the time we left the MOOD table organized by Ellie and the Universal Alchemist, we were no longer strangers, but sisters. It has been renewed. We were healing through each other, and it was wonderful.
Make your inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter to get daily love, health, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Featured image by DragonImages/Getty Images
