Table of Contents

• Audio of this letter

• Peace

• Shop body by ululeko

• No. 50: After the Soak, We Wrote

• Events & Opportunities of Interest

• Shop body by ululeko

Audio of this letter

Peace

Said with the openness of my heart to yours - Good people of the earth, good day—peace to the peacemakers, peace to the warriors, peace to all,

I’m sharing below a recap of our soak on Sunday, which is also a letter to one of my godmothers, Mama Nia, along with a few photos from the gathering.

I share this letter (No. 50 in our series) because Mama Nia has, in many ways, been a godmother to our soak experiences. She has held the space of the soak alongside me, embodying and teaching awareness, presence, care, and concern.

We continue to gather birth stories, memories, poems, recipes, and art in honor of the Mama Nonkululeko MemoryStory Project. Join us in sharing an audio, text, or video submission here.

So, enjoy these shots, and join us! We’ll gather again on Sunday, November 2.

Soon,
N

p.s. Our #summer gifts to our #leko supporters will go out next week [before the equinox, zing]. Become a monthly or yearly supporter today.

Shop body by ululeko

Our shop is open! Head over to ululeko.com to pick up natural and organic body, creme, hair products.

No. 50: After the Soak, We Wrote

September, 2025

To my dear Mama Nia,

It's Nzingha writing 🙂. I'm here today at the cafe you like, 9TAILS ☕. John is with me today; I believe he's designing something, likely a part for his RCs to send to the 3D printer at home 🛠️🖨️.

We had the Corn 🌽 Moon 🌕 soak just yesterday. I was supposed to call you afterward and while I didn't get to that call 📞—I thought of your words and your question you had posed a few days earlier.

You shared with me a link to the meditation by Don Miguel Ruiz's son, Miguel Ruiz Jr., in their book The Mastery of the Self 📖. I actually could not access the link, but again I remember your question: what energy do you want to hibernate, or sit with, over this new season 🍂?

I think you wanted us to meditate with this question during the soak 🛁, and since I read the post-it where I jotted down your question 📝, it was on my mind that day. We had a beautiful soak, Mama Nia 💖.

As people came in we encouraged them to wash their hands 🧼 (I mean, we still in COVID times, sister 😷!). And then we offered them a cider 🍎 mixed with fresh lemon juice 🍋 and diluted with water 💧.

Mama Glenda and her son Zuri were the first to arrive 👩🏾‍🦱👦🏾. Oh, Zuri is growing so beautifully 🌱. When I asked him, this beautiful boy of seven years, if he would like some apple cider – he says: "Yes, thank you. Thank you for asking." The children will have you at hello 💕!

Once everyone was there, we encouraged them to a "herbal book mingle 📚🌿" where they pulled out an interesting or helpful note from one of Mama Nonkululeko's health, pregnancy, and parenting books.

I started us off with sharing a few tea infusions 🍵 good for the common cold, like yarrow, elderflowers, and two more that are escaping me right now.

After Shelley shared, and Jess offered a note on how the content or percentage of water in our bodies changes based on the moon phase 🌑🌒🌓, and the other participants shared – we listened to a meditative video 🎧 by the Buddhist teacher Kaira Jewel Lingo on embracing the unknown 🕊️.

We discussed it for a second – Kgantsi shared that it took her a moment to get into the peace ✨, but when she began to settle into the message—which offered considering our questions or indecisions as seeds 🌱 that need time to sprout 🌸—she was able to appreciate it.

We counted off by four, so four pairs of two 👥👥, and our question in partnership was to think of the many places our people are from 🌍 and to find a point of commonality or interest. My partner was from Gullah Geechee land ✨ which I found really cool.

We did a fun writerly music trivia 🎶✍🏾 with questions like, naming the author of the novel Mama Day 📚, or who were the members of TLC 🎤. The partners really were created because of lessons I receive from you and Sis Aziza 🌸, which is to create a soak model where we are all assisting in the making of the soak experience 🙌🏾. Just to make it easier on the organizers (me!).

We did a pre-massage 💆🏾, using the body by ululeko products 🧴 to moisturize. I had already made the soak tea 🍵 and had warmed it up. Each partner got a bit of the tea, a lavender-oatmeal-cornflower-chamomile mix 🌼, and then they selected a few other things that they wanted to include in their soak container like rose petals 🌹, almond flour 🌰, vinegar 🧂, and baking soda.

The containers were looking real rich, earthy 🌿🌎, you know. We soaked 🛁, heated up more water, and I went with the flow 🌊. Usually, I'd have us silent through the soak and walk us through a music meditation 🎶🧘🏾‍♀️.

But we chatted 🗣️ and began a short memory conversation on Mama Nonkululeko 💜. I think this was while folks were drying off their feet 🦶🏾 and moisturizing again 🧴.

And basically that was it. Sis Ramona offered a prayer 🙏🏾 and we ate the greens 🥬 that Nef put her foot into (pun intended 😂), the wings 🍗 I made, and the Dan Dan noodles 🍜 – that were truly yum 😋.

I couldn't have done it without John 💕, and I remember you again here in our need to acknowledge 🌹.

In any event, I love you ❤️; I love the stirring you create in my mind ✨; I love the place you hold and make in my heart 💞. I am everyday grateful 🙏🏾 for this, our opportunity to be in good, beautiful, funny, graceful relationship with each other 🌺. Giving thanks always 🌞.

Love you Mama Nia 💖,

Nzingha T.

Events & Opportunities of Interest

(Image and captions from IG)

Shop body by ululeko

Our shop is open! Head over to ululeko.com to pick up natural and organic body, creme, hair products.

We’re also sharing complimentary body butters and products to elders in our lives. If you know of an elder that would appreciate a gift of body butter, please reach out to Nzingha and let us know.

ShortReel Soak Recap