About Me
Rites of Passage
A wise friend taught me that every woman goes through three stages in life... the young maiden, the middle aged woman, and the old crone. Each one comes with its own rites of passage, initiations into the mysteries, and deep scars that carry and build on the wisdom of those who have come before. We stand on the shoulders of giants, and can merely look ahead, hoping that our shoulders will be strong enough to carry those who come after. And so my story continues onward towards becoming the old crone elder... hopefully with some wisdom!
On Becoming the Old Crone
In many African traditions, an introduction cannot be done without acknowledging your heritage, honouring the place in life where you stand. And so my story was shaped and honoured by many, starting on the borders of the sacred forests in Venda, through the hills, rivers and forests of the Eastern Cape, the urban jungles and ancient mountains of Gauteng, the dark mines and factories of Africa, and the natural beauty of Cape Town. I carry the lineages of my mother Amalia, who sang my life into being with the music that shaped especially my early years; my father Willem, who planted a forest in my heart with a life filled with waterfalls and ancient natural beauty.
My teachers were many, but a few stood out on my path as a medicine woman. Marensia Ayinreed, who kept reminding me that love always conquers the dark, and showed me the ways of the hollow reed bending in the wind as taught to her by Vusamazulu Credo Mutwa and others. Lyn Spirit Eagle, who taught me about practical earth magic, shamanic journeywork and soul retrieval in the ways of the Cherokee shaman as taught to her by Ai Gvadi Waya and others. And Peter Zanemvula, who took me into the shadows and back, to know myself at new depths of wisdom and knowledge of healing practices as taught to him by Traditional Doctor Phillip Kubukeli and others.
My early career was built on the foundations of clinical psychology and philosophy, where I explored psychoanalysis and existential therapy to understand the workings of personality and relating to the world. I am a trained NLP practitioner and hypnotherapist, CPA practitioner and registered with the HPCSA as Clinical Psychologist. A shift towards business and leadership took me down a road of practical understanding of corporates, organisational effectiveness, and how leaders and organisations impact on the world. This was supported by studies in business leadership and administration, and organisational development. I came full circle to my roots, when my path took me into sustainability, ESG and climate change, where my consulting work continues to make impact. A martial arts background, together with a love of nature, dance, music and art, inform my approach to therapy and life in general. Working through the different directions of the medicine wheel in a psychoshamanic way, I continue the work to keep the warrior, the lover, the sage, the elder and the axis mundi in harmonious balance. I am certified as a Shamanic Counsellor with the Crows Nest Centre for Shamanic Studies in South Africa, and was honoured with the name of Liezel White Tiger Moon by my teacher Lyn.
As a therapist and coach, I use my experiences and knowledge to allow clients to let their story come out, to be shaped and strengthened, for the road ahead, with full knowledge of who they really are. As we reclaim our deepest soul parts, we remember our soul's song and how to dance to the rhythms of life.
