In this third Blossom Note, host Kimberly Bryant shares a contemplative meditation inspired by the recent Cancer new moon—exploring how lunar cycles guide us toward rest, renewal, and emotional healing for women of color changemakers.

Guided by the haunting beauty of "River" by Ibeyi, she weaves together personal memory from her Memphis birthplace, Yoruba spiritual traditions honoring Oshun (goddess of rivers and sweet waters), and Black Christian baptismal practices—tracing a powerful lineage of water wisdom and sacred rest. From the Mississippi River's teachings about flow as survival to her Oakland garden sanctuary, Kimberly reflects on how rest becomes resistance and stillness becomes strength.

This gentle meditation offers three lunar invitations: surrendering to deeper rest, recommitting to sacred solitude, and grounding into emotional truth without overexplanation. With journal prompts and garden wisdom about roots growing even in stillness, this episode reminds us that "rest is a radical chapter too."

Perfect for listeners seeking:

• Mindfulness practices rooted in lunar cycles and moon phases

• Black women's wellness wisdom and ancestral healing traditions

• Garden meditation and nature-based spirituality

• Leadership strategies that honor rest and sustainable activism

• Cultural connections between Yoruba traditions and African American spiritual practices

• Permission to rest as part of changemaker wellness

🌑 A contemplative bridge between full episodes of The Inner Garden Podcast—where we explore healing through gardening, rest, and reconnection to land.

What if healing doesn't start with a plan—but with your hands in the soil?

In this debut episode of The Inner Garden Podcast, host Kimberly Bryant shares stories of land-based healing, ancestral wisdom, and emotional restoration from women of color. From Memphis to Nigeria to the Canadian coast, these voices reveal how tending the earth can become a radical act of self-love, grief work, and spiritual grounding.

Listeners will hear:

• Chioma Aso reconnecting with childlike joy in her grandmother’s Nigerian garden

• Louise Adongo embracing “riotous” bloom as a form of creative and emotional freedom

• Mona Doggett Wilson reflecting on her grandfather’s legacy in Orange Mound

• Karla Monterroso slowing down to find clarity and calm amid chronic illness

• Rhoda Hickman honoring her mother’s memory through a sacred garden

• Jenn Ponder sharing ancestral gardening wisdom and the power of community food growing

This is not a podcast about hustle. It’s a space for healing, memory, and ritual—offering grounding practices and gentle reminders that growth begins underground.

✨ Produced by The Roots & Resilience Studio
🎧 Length: 22 minutes

Keywords: healing through gardening, ancestral wisdom, women of color stories, land-based practices, emotional resilience, burnout recovery, Black women and land, community healing, spiritual restoration

In this second Blossom Note, Kimberly shares a soulful reflection on the albums that have been flowing through her writing days—and into the garden. From Stevie Wonder’s The Secret Life of Plants to Minnie Riperton’s Come to My Garden, these musical classics aren't just nostalgic—they’re sonic seeds, rooting her in memory, creativity, and care.

This short audio meditation touches on vinyl records, maternal influence, and the quiet lessons that emerge when we move between the page and the soil.

Tune in for a moment of pause, a bit of warmth, and an invitation to consider what’s flowing from your own speakers as you grow.

🎙️ A tender prelude to the upcoming launch of Inner Garden Podcast—a series about healing, land, and legacy.

Discover beauty in unexpected places with this first Blossom Note—a living audio garden journal entry about finding black swallowtail caterpillars in my Oakland garden. This intimate reflection explores how transformation begins in the overlooked and cast-aside, revealing profound lessons about growth, change, and second chances.

Blossom Notes are short garden reflections that capture real moments of discovery, offering gentle wisdom for busy changemakers seeking rest and renewal through nature connection.

Perfect for: gardeners, wellness seekers, women of color leaders, and anyone curious about finding healing through plants and seasonal rhythms.

🎧 Part garden story, part meditation on change—just a quiet moment to pause, listen, and tend to what matters. 🌱 The Inner Garden Podcast full episodes available wherever you listen to podcasts.

What if healing doesn't look like pushing through—but like pruning back? Welcome to Inner Garden Podcast, where host Kimberly Bryant (founder of Black Girls CODE) explores how women of color find renewal, wisdom, and power through gardening.

This season trailer offers a preview of our audio sanctuary featuring stories of healing, land connection, and ancestral wisdom. From urban rooftops to ancestral homesteads, discover how gardens become spaces of restoration, resistance, and collective care.

Perfect for: gardeners of all levels, wellness seekers, women of color leaders, environmental justice advocates, and anyone curious about finding healing through nature connection and seasonal rhythms.

Inner Garden Podcast isn't about hustle—it's about healing. Each episode features intimate conversations with changemakers who are growing back to themselves and their communities through the sacred act of tending the earth.

What to expect: Stories of transformation, practical garden wisdom, ancestral plant knowledge, and gentle invitations to slow down and reconnect with what matters most.

🌱 Host: Kimberly Bryant - tech leader, author of Ascending, and garden healer 🎧 Format: Seasonal episodes + weekly Blossom Notes (audio garden journal entries) 📧 Learn more: rootsandresilience.substack.com

This isn't just gardening content—it's a movement toward sustainable activism through rest, renewal, and earth connection.