Born from a moment of humility
In 2018, I hosted an event bringing several wellness modalities together — and I invited a cacao facilitator to lead a ceremony. I had never experienced cacao myself. But I knew cacao was a powerful tool for setting intention, becoming present, and amplifying what was already there. So I began sharing this plant before I ever consumed it.
Over the next few years, I returned to Guatemala again and again. At the shores of Lake Atitlán, I developed a relationship with cacao that I didn't fully have words for. I would order cacao before I ordered food. I would sit in stillness, witnessing life flow around me — people connecting, strangers meeting, nature breathing. Every time I sat in presence with this plant ally, things slowed down — deep connection, deep pleasure in the smell, the warmth, the flavor.
The day before I left Guatemala, I walked into a shop owned by a local cacao farm and asked for chocolate. They laughed and said, "We don't sell chocolate here." In that moment, I understood — this culture had a reverence for cacao that I had been brushing past. It brought me into a place of even deeper respect.
I kept sharing cacao because I wanted others to build their own relationship with this plant. Eventually I realized I was sharing so freely that I had to work with cacao more intentionally. That's when Ember Cacao was born — first sourcing directly from the farm at Lake Atitlán, and now also from the Sierra Nevada mountains of Colombia. Grateful to share this with you.
