We recently connected with Tara Benmeleh and have shared our conversation below.

Tara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear the story of how you went from this being just an idea to making it into something real.

When the idea for my children’s book, Gracias Madre came through I was doing a mommy and me program in the forest, called Wisehearts with my first son, Max Aero (now 8 years old). The program was in Spanish and we often sat in the earth in circles and honoring mother nature and her rhythms. Every day, we said a prayer thanking all of the elements before eating the snack we prepared together with the children. I was improving my Spanish (I am a Miami native from a non Spanish speaking household), connecting to nature in a whole new way that I never had, and growing as a mama together in a magically community of families that I will hold in my heart forever.

At the same time, I was reading tons of children’s books at home with Max Aero and I noticed that there were beautifully illustrated and conscious books in English, very few books that were Bilingual and the conscious books in Spanish were not so beautiful. I felt there was a need to share it all in one complete package.
I wrote the book as a gratitude prayer for Mother Earth, and shared the idea with some friends and my friend and very beautiful artist, Agustina Woodgate translated it for me.

I found an artist whom I loved her work that was connected to nature and she had the project in her hands for quite some time and it did not work out. Shortly after this, I was introduced to Tierra Armstrong who illustrated Gracias Madre. As soon as we connected the alchemy began, we co created the vision for the illustrations and so much love and care and magic and beauty was put into sharing this beautiful creation together. It showed me clearly that when love and energy are not aligned the magic cannot always happen. In the end, Tierra was the perfect person who totally understood what was being poured out in the universe, and into children, parents and caregivers consciousness. After all, we can’t ignore the fact that her name means “Earth.”

When the project was ready to release I was pregnant with my second son, Bodhi Hy. I was having lunch with one of my dearest long time friends, Octavia Yearwood. She coincidentally was also friends with Tierra and had seen some of the illustrations and found out about the Book. Octavia wrote and self published her incredible book, “How the Hell did you do that?!” which in my opinion is one of the best self-help books I have read to date. Octavia is a public speaker and life coach and when she asked if she could publish my book under her Publishing house “The New O Publishing” I was elated. I coined her my book doula as she gracefully guided me to release this book the same month Bodhi Hy was born and I was ready for both of them together.

Luckily, I already had a website with e-commerce as I have a lifestyle brand, espiritútara, and through the instagram community we were able to pre-sell the entire first run of the book.

Soho Beach house hosted the Book Launch party and I did a reading and tea ceremony at PAMM art museum in Miami as well as at The Plantisserie in Little River and a reading and celebration at Burberry Kids in Aventura Mall.

You can currently purchase Gracias madre book at PAMM shop, Dale Zine in Little River and https://www.espiritutara.com/store-2-vhUbF/p/gracias-madre

Tara, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I began my career in the Fashion Industry which makes aesthetics really important to me. I am a lover of all things beautiful which is why I am so fascinated with Nature.

My intuition, creativity, and over two decades of spiritual practice inform my ceremonial work, which includes the art and ritual of tea, jewelry, and my book Gracias Madre.

Through my daily practice of tea as medicine I have been able to connect deeper to self and others. This practice has deepened my connection to nature as tea is a plant and through this ritual I offer my gratitude every day to all elements, the universe, my family and blessings. I offer tea ceremony to private clients and groups regularly.

The book was an idea that moved through me as a creative and it really was a group effort. I was creating design objects but I never knew that a children’s book would move through me. I did not even know the steps to take but my team really helped make it happen. I have so much gratitude for Tierra Armstrong, Octavia Yearwood and Agustina Woodgate. Without them it would still be a vision but now it is materialized to share. I am grateful to everyone who has supported and purchased this offering as the message has been shared and gifted by so many.

I’m grateful for my family who inspired me to write this book

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I am grateful to live as a creative. It allows me to bring my visions to life and live in a state where my ideas can be reality. However, by being my own boss, I have to find ways to create structure and form to my day to day flow so that I have time for everything that needs to be done. As a mom, I have to constantly let go of being stuck on a rigid formula but by scheduling in time for meditative practices, body movement, tea ceremony and self care, I find that I have time to allow flow and play and in that realm I can allow for the creative juices to fly.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

The comment I hear most is that “I don’t have time….” to do what they dream of doing or even to meditate. In order to create, you must create time. Meditating for 3-5 minutes daily and consistently is highly beneficial. Drinking tea or even coffee in silence instead of scrolling on your phone creates space. Waking up 5- 15 minutes earlier than usual will create a pocket of magic. Once you step into a space of time feeling abundant, you can create anything you want in this time. I love to free flow journal- it lets out what doesn’t need to be stuck in my subconscious, allows me to write down ideas and manifestations. It starts with small simple steps.

Contact Info:

• Website: espiritutara.com
• Instagram: @espiritutara @graciasmadrebook

Image Credits
Emma Del Rey, Lazaro Llanes