Demystifying Tea Ceremony with Mikki Sage
“The secret of life is to always leave a little room for poetry” – Massimo Bottura
You might hear of sound baths, reiki healing, or intimate women-only tea ceremonies and know nothing of this world. One that, once experienced, seems temporary – like a fantastical dream where Marilyn Monroe is your suburban neighbor and you two go to baseball games together (yes, I’ve had that dream, and recently). I’m here to tell you all-women tea ceremonies are very real, and flourish in a place that exists not within a lucid dream, but on the busy streets of Culver City, Los Angeles.
In April, I had the honor of being invited by my dear friend Joy Sangalang Smith, of Communion by Joy, to the WMN space in Culver City for a New Moon Tea Ceremony and Poetry workshop, with the soft- spoken Mikki Sage of @sagelove.
We were nurtured by Mikki with many small cups of steam and hot tea, poured methodically and with ease and delicate intention. Each sip, holding my hand-made cup with not one but both of my hands, eased memories from some part of my brain that only opens during a long walk, or in the steam of a morning shower, or listening to rain falling steadily. So appreciated after this long drought, rain like tea, nourishes the soul in unspoken ways.
Our intention for the evening was to open our hearts to poetry, a dedicated time to let words and thoughts condense on our tongues and drip forth onto pages of handmade mango paper. My own fascination with hand-made crafts was almost enough to buoy me on a blissful cloud of presence and appreciation. A witness to the intense beauty of tea ceremony and sharing space and time with nine other women is an experience as unforgettable and yet as hard to distill into words as the intimate properties of weather.
Social media has been a massive third-eye opener for me, and it’s with my whole heart that I invite you to witness what these practices, specifically tea ceremony, can bring to your present moment. Here, I share with you a poem writing in the afterglow of Mikki Sage’s meditative tea ceremony.
tears are returned to me in a cup
holding wisdom from a journey within
gathered with 9 hearts
the tapestry of love
reveals herself
like roots
we are connected to source
a divine entanglement
with yesterday
today
tomorrow
with more of ourselves
than we knew to exist
tears propel my journey
little spirits
my guide
-in happiness
WMN Space is a consciously curated endeavor, seeking to provide an experience of growth and healing for all women, located in Culver City, CA.
Mikki Sage resides in Topanga Canyon with her husband, Chris Sage. She is a writer, poet, photographer and practices a poetry-infused tea ceremony.
