Emerging from the shadows of a failed marriage, Mary embarks on a decade-long transformative journey. Across varied terrains, she encounters teachers and healers who help her mend her emotional wounds, and who lead her to discover that the love and liberation she was searching for, were always within her. With this new found strength, a sharp intellect and considerable wealth, Mary commits herself to aiding other women on similar quests. She creates The Orchid, a secluded 400-acre sanctuary in Northern California. Blanketed by a lush forest and cascading waterfalls, this haven offers women of all backgrounds, tools, resources and healers akin to those pivotal in Mary's own journey. Our story follows the experiences of five women: Nicole, a young, closeted Italian-American Catholic lesbian from Texas, navigating the maze of love and self-acceptance; Olivia, a distinguished African-American NGO leader from Mississippi, bearing childhood scars and the hefty mantle of responsibility; Jennifer, a White American mother from Illinois, wrestling with abandonment, neglect of her children, and work woes; Stephanie, a former top model from Singapore, confronting eating disorders and haunting memories of sexual abuse; and Sofia, a cunning businesswoman from Mexico, whose aggressive tactics hide a traumatic past and a quest for genuine connection. The Orchid's week-long program centers on five vital teachings: Awareness: Recognizing and observing oneself and identifying limiting beliefs; Gratitude: Valuing oneself and the world; Forgiveness: Releasing lingering bitterness; Acceptance: Welcoming life's narrative; and Intention: Channeling desired outcomes. Mary, a beacon of tranquility, serves as the primary mentor for these women. She assembles an elite team of female professionals: coaches, therapists, and healers, each renowned in their respective fields. From western medicine to shamanism, they collectively merge a diverse range of healing practices, seamlessly blending age-old traditions with contemporary insights, offering a holistic approach that spans the wisdom of different eras and cultures. At its core, The Orchid underscores a pivotal truth: while external circumstances shape life, the soul and power of existence is internal.

A heart-stirring journey about discovering inner peace, strength and self-love. Join Mary, as she unveils a profound truth: the real treasures of true love lie within. The Orchid is a peaceful and luxurious retreat founded by Mary and nestled in picturesque Northern California. Its unique healing and empowerment program, featuring invaluable lessons and exercises in awareness, gratitude, forgiveness, acceptance, and intention, are designed to ignite a transformation from within. It is in this holistic wellness setting where Mary and her team combine ancient wisdom with modern practices, creating a school and spa for the mind, body and soul which guides these women on their journey of introspection. Weekly, for over two decades, Mary and her team of expert teachers and healers, welcome 30 women each searching for a life-changing experience. Our story follows five closely: Nicole, battling societal pressures; Olivia, overcoming childhood traumas; Jennifer, seeking renewal after betrayal; Stephanie, a ex-model healing from pain; and Sofia, a business owner dealing with ethical challenges and anger. At its heart, the story is a celebration of emotional resilience, female solidarity, and the power of self-reflection. As the characters navigate their personal growth and transformation, you will too, becoming an active participant in their journey and process. The Orchid is an uplifting festival of emotions, a testament to life, growth, hope and self-love. Come and spend a week with us at The Orchid and prepare for an experience that will ignite your imagination, stir your emotions, and awaken the powerful goddess within you. What our advance readers are saying: “Each character´s personal journey reflects somehow a woman we know. In more than one case, I found myself mirroring my own wounds.” Adriana | Mexico “From the first few chapters, I found myself stopping to reflect on what was happening and the emotions the characters felt. It was as if I were going through the journey with them.” Amy | Ithaca “The Orchid changed my perspective, illustrating that anyone can view life through the eyes of love. It teaches that regardless of past challenges—be it personal struggles, trauma, or guilt—we can choose to forgive and move forward with love and understanding.” Charlotte | Los Angeles “The book is a life changing experience altogether. It really gives the reader a perspective on life and how to make it a better journey from within. It makes you feel happy and lighter because it helps you to navigate through this great gift we all have called life!” Claudia | Italy “A great fiction novel that is easy to read and will make you smile, possibly cry and root for your fellow women friends. You will see some aspects of yourself in the characters and end up loving them. The message is always positive - there is always calm after the storm even if one has to work through some challenges. The reward is worth it.” Claudia | Puerto Rico “The Orchid is particularly beneficial for anyone struggling to cope with their current life situation. It’s an ideal first step for those not open to or unable to seek professional help. It’s also suitable for anyone looking to improve any aspect of their daily life and aspiring to live their best life.” Denise | New York “The Orchid is not a book to be consumed quickly; it is a rich source of wisdom and insight that demands to be savored, contemplated, and internalized. It’s a timeless companion on your quest for self-discovery, offering solace, inspiration, and a roadmap to inner harmony. Allow this book to be a constant source of guidance, a wellspring of empowerment, and a reminder that the journey towards self-love is both infinite and profoundly rewarding.” Fernanda | Mexico “The Orchid changed my life. Ever since I opened it, little by little, it was like seeing the world through a different lens. I could understand the details, the changes, and adapt to them. And it left me with precious things like meditation and the awareness of being part of something bigger.” Marisol | Mexico “This book will give you an amazing and accurate view of what each and every one of us can do to exist with ourselves and each other in the most positive of ways. Even if you’re not a believer YET!” Michelle | Los Angeles “At the intersection of fiction and self-help, The Orchid does a great job of encouraging female empowerment delivered in a compelling storytelling style. Those who enjoyed the inner thoughts of the women in ‘Three Women’, or the empowered protagonist in ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ would really enjoy this book.” Sonya | Boston “A real-life story book full of honesty and reality wrapped with warmth and love. An emotional and spiritual opener with the goal of finding love, acceptance and growth…a joy to read. The writing is simple and clear. The detail and imagery is beautifully crafted to transport you to the literal landscape of the heavenly place called The Orchid where the story takes place. The story, the characters and the teachings lead you through an emotional journey of self-discovery always ending in a place of empowerment and love.” Vanessa | Hong Kong

"The face of the divine feminine can be found everywhere in Mexico. One of the most striking features of Mexican religious life is the prevalence of images of the Virgin Mother of God. This is partly because the divine feminine played such a prominent role in pre-Hispanic Mexican religion. Goddess images were central to the devotional life of the Aztecs, especially peasants and those living in villages outside the central city of Tenochtitlan (present day Mexico City). In these rural communities fertility and fecundity, more than war rituals and sacrificial tribute, were the main focus of cultic activity. Both Aztec goddesses and the Christian Madonnas who replaced them were associated, and sometimes identified, with nature and the environment: the earth, water, trees and other sources of creativity and vitality. This book uncovers the myths and images of 22 Aztec Goddesses and 28 Christian Madonnas of Mexico. Their rich and symbolic meaning is revealed by placing them in the context of the religious worldviews in which they appear and by situating them within the devotional life of the faithful for whom they function as powerful mediators of divine grace and terror"--Publisher.

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National Book Award Finalist: “This man’s ideas may be the most influential, not to say controversial, of the second half of the twentieth century.”—Columbus Dispatch At the heart of this classic, seminal book is Julian Jaynes's still-controversial thesis that human consciousness did not begin far back in animal evolution but instead is a learned process that came about only three thousand years ago and is still developing. The implications of this revolutionary scientific paradigm extend into virtually every aspect of our psychology, our history and culture, our religion—and indeed our future. “Don’t be put off by the academic title of Julian Jaynes’s The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind. Its prose is always lucid and often lyrical…he unfolds his case with the utmost intellectual rigor.”—The New York Times “When Julian Jaynes . . . speculates that until late in the twentieth millennium BC men had no consciousness but were automatically obeying the voices of the gods, we are astounded but compelled to follow this remarkable thesis.”—John Updike, The New Yorker “He is as startling as Freud was in The Interpretation of Dreams, and Jaynes is equally as adept at forcing a new view of known human behavior.”—American Journal of Psychiatry

Unlock the lost and hidden meanings of the world's ancient and modern signs and symbols with the latest in the hugely popular series of 'Element Encyclopedias'. This is the biggest A-Z reference book on symbolic objects you'll ever find.