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Margaret Waddell soaks in the sun and warmth as Hannah Satterwhite pulls back her mother's hair on their land at Crystal Lake on Nov. 3, 2019. The property has been in Waddell's family for 5 generations. "This is the first place I have ever truly felt at peace with myself," Waddell said. "Staying connected to nature and my ancestors is what makes me feel whole."
Margaret Waddell walks toward the camping ground on her land at Crystal Lake on Nov. 3, 2019. The one-room cabin with a screened-in porch originally built on the land burned down in a fire 13 years ago. However, Waddell has spent as many weekends as possible camping and working on the land in an effort to rebuild her favorite place by hand. “I have always wanted to rebuild the cabin in the spirit of my great-grandparents,” Waddell said. “It is the greatest goal of my life to create a place where family and friends can gather to spend time together in nature... which inspires music and storytelling and a sense of community.”
Margaret Waddell picks a wild blackberry plant on her land at Crystal Lake on Nov. 3, 2019. “Being out here reminds me of how connected everything is,” Waddell said. ‘Ancient wisdom describes human beings as having five layers of experience: the environment, the physical body, the mind, the intuition, and our spirit. If we surround ourselves with a healthy environment, it has a positive impact on all other aspects of our existence.”
Margaret Waddell sifts through a box of glass as she cleans out the shed on her land at Crystal Lake on Nov. 2, 2019. Waddell built the shed herself to store various supplies and a collection of remnants from the original cabin including glass, melted plates, and windows. “I want to incorporate these relics into my life as much as I can,” Waddell said.
Waddell leads a discussion on “non-western ways of processing grief” at Heart, Body, and Soul’s event called Coffee and Conversations on Nov. 2, 2019, in Columbia, Missouri. Community member’s discussed grievances that ranged from just getting older to the loss of a loved one. “Life is difficult to manage individually,” Waddell said. “Westen ways of handling hardships too often isolates people with their problems but that is a time we need to rely on community more than ever.”
Megan Sondgerath Hall is comforted by the simple touch of her friend Tawnee Benner during a discussion on grief on Nov. 2, 2019, at Heart, Body, and Soul in Columbia, Missouri. Hall’s mother was diagnosed with cancer in February and passed away in August leaving her with a large amount of debt and tasks to take care of while trying to process the loss. “It isn’t just this overwhelming sadness,” Hall said. “I am angry with my mother for leaving me like this. I can’t just mourn her passing, I have to relive it every day I pay the next bill.”
Margaret Waddell plays the steel tongue drum in a sound healing session for a woman suffering from excessive migraines at Hummingbird Studio in Columbia, Missouri on Nov. 8, 2019. Sound and music have been used since ancient times for healing and transformation. Everything is vibration and you tune your body like you tune an instrument - Sound healing allows your body to heal itself by slowing down your brain waves, which affect every cell in your body, shifting them from diseased to be in ease. “It is the most beautiful holistic experience,” the woman said, “I always feel so much more at peace after my session.”
Therese Folsom (left), Margaret Waddell (center) and AB Gerke (right) hold hands in the Full Beaver Moon Chant for Peace held on Nov. 12, 2019, at Hummingbird Studio in Columbia, Missouri. Chanting is an ancient technique for focusing and uplifting the mind and soul into higher states of consciousness free from worries and anxieties. The full moon intensifies the positive vibrations of chanting which magnifies the healing effect on participants and the environment. “Singing unites people everywhere,” Waddell said. “It is transcendent of time and place transforming it into a sacred space.”