WElcome KiN

As the folk tale sees, I see.
As the folk tale lives, I live.
And the path to my door, that too is folktale.
Coming here, you either undergo what people undergo in a folktale,
Or you’ll never lift my latch.

Little wonder I so rarely hear my latch being lifted.
Little wonder I so rarely hear my latch being lifted.
Little wonder I so rarely hear my latch being lifted.

— John Moriarty, Invoking Ireland

A WILD HEART

A lifetime of translating scientific, spiritual, and ecological concepts led her to this work. Inspired by her Celtic ancestors who lived closely to the land, waters, and seasons, she lives as an animist.

Spirit, grace and a deep, unyielding love of the Earth is at the heart of all she does and her work tends to contemplate the myriad aspects of a sovereign life, seeking to reveal the wonders of the etheric in service of connection, reverence, and deep, honorable communion.

She has been communing and partnering with the unseen world her entire life and she is one who is called to honor, protect, and venerate the wild, fierce, and untamable heart of nature. She has been called a ‘Rosetta Stone for the soul’ and her natural practice is that of an oracle or seer. She has been taught the ways of curse unraveling, Earth healing, and story weaving by her dearly departed Scottish ancestors and considers this path to be one of a Celtic mystic.


A SACRED PLANT

Heather (Calluna Vulgaris) is one of the sacred plants of the Druids and is sacred in Gaelic and Celtic Lore.

White Heather is thought to bring luck and protection from harm, the ‘four leaf clover’ of Scotland. Beloved by the bees, honey from Heather is prized and unique. A medicinal plant, resilient and rugged, with petite and delicate flowers, and is one of the plants thought to open portals to the faery realms.

Bundles of Heather are burned to (sain) purify spaces and cleanse them of evil spirits and Heather is associated with solitude, admiration, and beauty. Heather has been used for thousands of years in homemaking and was commonly used as a broom and is thus associated with cleansing of space, healing, and homelands.

Ruled by Venus, sacred to Isis and the Gallic Heather Goddess - Uroica (pronounced OO-rah), Heather is associated with The Melissae Priestesses, mountains, and bees.



ON SHADOW & PAIN

“I have walked the dark paths. I have befriended death.

My origin (childhood) was a journey of immense suffering, experiencing years of abuse and neglect. I understand what hopelessness and deep, desperate, loneliness and the depths of depression feel like. I know what it feels like to be so close to giving up, that the thought of taking another step, or breath, is as painful as having your skin torn from your body.

I know what the atrophy of sadness can bring.

And slowly, intentionally, and with deep care and support, I've also healed. I’ve grieved. I've explored. I've learned. And I have loved. I now offer myself, and my life forward, humbly, wildly, and softly in service of the path.”

- Heather Louise Porter

A Prayer

Refuse to fall down
If you cannot refuse to fall down,
refuse to stay down.
If you cannot refuse to stay down,
lift your heart toward heaven,
and like a hungry beggar,
ask that it be filled.
You may be pushed down.
You may be kept from rising.
But no one can keep you from lifting your heart
toward heaven
only you.
It is in the middle of misery
that so much becomes clear.
The one who says nothing good
came of this,
is not yet listening.

— Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Women Who Run With the Wolves

APPRENTICING TO EARTH & SPIRIT

In all her studies and training, from formal academic degrees in environmental science and environmental law to meditation, psychology, myths, tales, Eastern spiritual practices, and ancestral Celtic wisdom traditions, she has found that it is the other-than-human world, the spirits of nature herself and the gods and goddesses of old, that have been her most profound teachers, companions, and guides.

Each element has held her, guarded her, broken her open, and been a compass of connection. The trees and the bees are her kin, just as the stars and the stones. Her ancestors are fierce, extraordinary, compassionate, and wise, and she bows to them daily for holding, guiding, and reminding her of the continuum of existence. The Celtic pantheon of ascended masters, goddesses, gods, druids, witches, healers, and teachers hold her hand and steady her gaze, especially with regard to her word, movement, and song.

In the human realm, she’s guided with grace directly by Rachel Weitz and Jen Murphy, and indirectly by the works of many including Glennie Kindred, John Moriarty, Sharon Paice MacLeod, Mary Oliver, Dr. David Suzuki, Dr. Martin Shaw, Dr. Sharon Blackie, and Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés.

The vessel that she inhabits (her human skin) is a profound guide and through dance and song reminds her daily that this short human walk on this magnificent planet is truly an expression of the divine.

THE ANCESTORS & SPIRITS OF THE LAND

Her bloodlines are of the Gaels, Picts, and Insular Celts.

When not exploring the lands of her blood ancestors (Alba and Éire) she spends time between her birth country of Australia on the unceded ancestral lands of the Cammeraygal Clan of the Eora Nation as well as the Bundjalung Nation of the Arakwal, Minjungbal, and the Widjabul people.

When in the USA she stewards space on the traditional lands of the Ute Peoples (Nuche), the Arapaho Nation (Hinono'eiteen), and the Seven Council Fires (Oceti Ŝakowiŋ).

In solidarity, I humbly acknowledge that the land that I currently live and work on, the land that holds me, is land that holds structures of lore and maintains knowledge through oral traditions that have been practiced for thousands of generations by indigenous first peoples.

I honor their lore and their laws.
I honor their strength, wisdom, myths, customs, and cultures.
I honor their ancestors and their living children.
I honor their elders and their teachings.
I honor their spirits and animal allies.
I honor their love of our great mother Earth.

I live as their humble sister and human ally who is listening, who is sorry, and who offers her hands, ears, and heart in service of healing and moving forward, together.

If you feel so called, you are warmly invited to connect.

“The secret and the sacred are sisters. When the secret is not respected, the sacred vanishes. Consequently, reflection should not shine too severe or aggressive a light on the world of the soul.”

— John O’Donohue, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom

Training & Influences

According to the mystical teachings of a 7th-century Irish Filidh, three cauldrons are born in every person.

Rather than distill the winding river of Heather’s life and training into a single list, a small sampling of experiences and influences is offered below inspired by the Three Cauldrons of Poesy.

What is not included below is her resume, which has also deeply influenced her walk. For the past decade, in addition to her spiritual and creative callings, she has walked in two worlds, working in private and public philanthropy as an advisor and administrator, overseeing social programs in disaster relief, global health, medical education, the arts, scientific research, and contemplative practice, amongst other things.

Prior to philanthropy, she was the director of a sustainability and resiliency consulting practice, and for a couple of years after corporate burnout explored film and television acting. She still occasionally acts and does voice work for film and television. She has never stopped defending the wild wonders of the Earth.

Balancing power is at the core of her work. It always has been, and always will be. It feels like both an inherent and learned trait, initially influenced by the pain and angst she experienced as a child witnessing the destruction, manipulation, and disregard of the natural world by humans, equally reflected in the violence and abuse of her childhood. In her estimation, there is no healing, no harmony, when power is skewed, corrupted, and misused.

She will always be a voice for the voiceless and in service of this undertakes continued studies with the Right Use of Power Institute including the Right Use of Power for Spiritual Leadership program (currently underway).

THE CAULDRON OF celtic MYSTICISM & ANIMISTIC PRACTICE

  • Jen Murphy | Áes Dána Incubator

  • Member (current) | The Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids

  • Rachel Weitz (current) | Animistic, ancestral, and plant relationships

  • Danu Forest | Celtic priestess, wise woman, and fae traditions

  • Jane Burns | Celtic rituals, myths, and virtues

  • Dr. Sharon Blackie | Celtic folklore and mythology

  • Kris Hughes | Celtic Mythology

  • Sandra Ingerman | Shamanic journeying with the spirits of nature, medicine for the Earth, and healing with spiritual light

  • Graduate of a Three-Year Shamanic Healing Practitioner Training (2017-2019) | divination, curse unraveling, cord removal, de-possession, psychopomp and the wild hunt, soul retrieval, soul contract revision, power animal retrieval and relating, akashic record reading, protection, cloaking and sovereign reclamation. To learn more about this training, connect with Heather here.

THE CAULDRON OF THE ARTS, MOVEMENT & CREATIVE INSPIRATION

  • Jen Murphy (current) | The Celtic Creatives

  • Nao Simms Dance | SWAN STORIES & The Myth and the Muse

  • Danielle Dulsky | The Witching Hearth: Story-Keeping for the Wise & Wicc'd

  • Dr. Joanna Gilar | The Fairytale Atlas

  • Truthful Acting Studios | Master Meisner Program

  • 40-year practitioner of yoga (hatha/vinyasa), 30-year modern/contemporary dance practitioner

THE CAULDRON OF knowledge in pursuit of EARTH & HUMAN HEALING

  • University of Sydney | MEL, Master of Environmental Law

  • University of Sydney | BScEnv(Hons) Environmental Science & Human Geography

  • US Green Building Council | LEED A.P.

  • Shauna Janz | Sacred Grief

  • CTAA | PTSD Counseling Diploma

  • TPA | Solution Based Counseling Practitioner

  • IAOT | Stress & Anxiety Management Certification

“One blessing of this human walk is that we can reclaim our own sovereignty with each dawn that rises.
It is our divine birthright to live in harmony with ourselves and the world around us.
This pursuit of sovereignty lays no claim over any other being; this is not about the pursuit of control and condemnation of humans or the Earth.
This pursuit lays claim to all that is yours; every piece of your heart and mind, every word you speak, every action you undertake.
To live a life replete with sovereignty is to live as a whole human in full accordance with the splendor of one’s soul.
This reclamation of self results in inner peace and prosperity that begets outer respect, contemplation, patience, and honor.”

— Heather L. Porter, On Nature & Sovereign Authority