Welcome to my Quest
Hello, I am Laura and I am taking you on a journey into my (other)world: Mythology, Transformation and Leadership are my day to day topics.
Expect Magic in the Mundane and Real Life as Dream Life.
Part of my life’s mission is to Surrender to the Unknown and how to stay embodied and live fully, without the need to dissociate. Guiding through integration, congruency and possibilities over worries *waves-anxiety-goodbye.
Mom of one, pregnant with number two, self-employed, working in my passion fields of ceremonial grade cacao, Avalon and Priestessing. I train and mentor space holders and guide through inner alchemy and courage for change.
I am originally from the Black Forest area in Germany, next to the French border, with Eastern and Southern European ancestry, underpinning my passion and research into pre-patriarchal ancient Europe and Celtic traditions. I have lived in Iceland, Guatemala before moving to Glastonbury, UK in 2020 UK. My dream has always been to live in Scotland and this year it finally comes through. Expect some Highland magic coming your way soon.
My profession is teaching, I have an academic background in literature, language and visual arts. My natural talent lies in communication, honest and transparent straight-to-the-point-solutions and perspective-inclusivity Ceremonies and story telling comes naturally to me and I particularly enjoy holding space for others and guiding them to integrity and alignment. My biggest frustration can be when someone does not want to recognise incongruencies but due to my passion for inner work and subconscious reprogramming I am working on that trigger myself for more compassion, lightheartedness and joy - mainly to let my loved and closed ones chill a little before I bombard them with tips and tricks ;)
As much as I have lived in several spiritual hub spots I actually resist them. I found it to be a major challenge to be surrounded by channels, light language speakers and what seemed to me: ungrounded dissociated escapists who bypass their responsibility to live in genuine relationships. With Self, others and the land. But I also have benefitted greatly from the openness, spontaneity and alternative lifestyles. Without the local pregnancy group in Glastonbury I would have never considered freebirthing my son (meaning without midwife or medical care providers) and am forever grateful for the sovereignty it helped me reclaim.
Now I am looking forward to stepping under waterfalls, visiting sacred (and wild, unrestricted) springs and learning more about Scottish folklore and legend - alongside sipping specialty coffee in my fave roasters up there and serving cacao to friends and community. And writing. Simply writing.
Sovereignty is not dominance or separation. It’s the power to choose, to inhabit your truth, and to enter into reciprocal relationship with self, others, and the world. It's the foundation for authentic love, secure relating, and embodied leadership.
I invite you wholeheartedly onto your quest for sovereignty and self-empowerment. Which unlike governmental institutions and societal conditioning wants us to believe is NOT about hyperindividualisation, independence and the power to rule over others.
Sovereignty will guide you back to your own truth, the un-distilled version of yourself that you can choose to inhabit and embody at any given moment and in any area of your life. It is thus that you engage in relationships more confidently, interdependently, securely attached and find your authentic voice in your expression amongst others, the joy of being alive and in reciprocity with your environment.
Enchanted by life, you will step forward facing installed fears and make outdated beliefs conscious to alchemise and evolve.
Mythopoetic Alchemy is the red thread that weaves its way through my work, be it for Sovereign with Laura Durban or my educational work with ceremonial grade cacao for
.We have all to some degree suffered from trauma, fear conditioning and disconnect from our true nature - nature both as the living earth and our own, human and divine soul embodied.
We all feel a strong longing to return home, that sometimes shows in a strong sense of “there must be more”, a pull towards magic, rituals and mystery or the subtle whispers that crave belonging and integration.
This for sure was my journey and combined with a decade of severe medication following a mystery dis-ease I found myself burned out, depressed and fully numb to whatever my body was telling me. To the point that I doubted I would be capable to access any form of intuition or inner knowing.
I relied on external forces, followed expectations and struggled to find what truly lit me up. To be honest, I didn’t know what brought be joy other than being with other people, which created a codependent and people pleasing behavioural pattern. But alone at home? I felt out of place, distracted, lonely, anxious and tried to avoid sitting with my feelings out of fear that I simply wouldn’t find any solution.
And the worst about it all? I considered all of the above to be utterly normal.
I was not aware that I was numb, I just thought that’s what life feels like.
I was not aware that I was anxious, I just thought, that’s what minds are like.
I was not aware that I had a choice, I just thought that relying on systems/institutions/society was the only responsibility I had.
It was all so nice and quiet, so peaceful and comfortable within the prison of victimhood and unawareness. Until suddenly, some force stronger than my captivated mind stirred awake and remembered its longing, its power and its nature. And I slowly - oh so slowly, and quietly - peeled back the layers of distrust in myself. The explosion that followed was an unravelling and years of discovering that magic truly exists. And sovereignty is a goddess within myself. As well as she is in you. In all of us. And only when we realise our sovereign choices and take responsibility for the consequences of our actions (including the choice to outsource responsibility!) will we enter into true relationship with Self, this planet and our community.
Since childhood I have explored mythology and was particularly fond of Celtic fairytales, European folktales, Norse Tradition and Greek deities. Throughout my art and literature studies (2012-2018) I got to weave these themes together academically, professionally and later also personally within my spiritual practice. When I studied the Arthurian legends I had no idea what potency and hidden magic would await me.
I got since initiated in the Avalonian Tradition, trained with incredible scholar and fantastic priestess Jhenah Telyndru and have several certifications from Gabor Maté (Trauma Informed Healer Course), Nordic Celtic Shamanic & Runic Studies with Jeremy R White, Seidr, Nordic Spirituality and runes with Naomi Mirkrida Rowaan. Not to mention my work as Cacao Ceremonialist and Teacher Trainer for Sacred Leaders and Space Holders. Special thanks to my mentor and friend Keith Wilson who taught me about cacao, energetic work and inner child work. Alongside my personal interest for everything personal development, Jungian and narrative psychology, alchemy and magical practices.
I invite you to step forth onto your quest.
FREE Subscribers
… receive emails about the background of my Archetypes of Avalon Series, the upcoming price change and previews of the archetypal posts and pregnancy/birth posts.
There are plenty of free articles for you already available organised in these themes:
PRIESTESS PATHWAY PRACTICALITIES SERIES & EMBODIED LEADERSHIP
FROM MYTHOLOGY TO MODERN MAGIC, AVALON, THE FAERY ACCORD AND CELTIC BACKGROUNDS
PERSONAL ESSAYS AND HOW INNER ALCHEMY CAN LOOK LIKE
Paid subscribers
(£22/month or £55/year, price doubles next week)
… receive the monthly Archetype of Avalon teachings (The Lover and May Queen next week, the Magician and Enchantress in June and the Mother and Great Goddess in July) and believe me you will want to take time for these as they are packed with stories, self inquiries and a big load of real magic.
The price will double as half of the course is already accessible and the June post fuses together so many valuable teachings and applicable lessons in how to craft your own magical practice that goes beyond candles and essential oils and has you harness your inner power to truly understand what society nearly eradicated out of us (but which we can still counteract when we start now!)
You also have access to my Grail Workshop, a two hour deep dive into the Grail myths, the real meaning and form of the grail (no, not a cup, not a womb either, maybe s tone but for sure something far more relatable to our life now!)
Join us for this enchanted and empowering year by managing your subscription and upgrade to paid!
All previous archetype posts can be accessed here and for more information about the offer check out the post:
Mystic Members
(£80/year, price doubles next week)
… receive (additionally to the archetype posts) exclusive updates about pregnancy, birth and baby once we crossed the threshold.
This is the space for my more intimate shares for those interested how I personally use magical practices, alchemise inner blocks, resistance and self-sabotage to earth my vision and live this life I am just infinitely amazed and enchanted by. With all its mundane perks of shitty toddler trousers and tantrums.
Mystic Member exclusive posts like the BTS of conception magic (1), our daily work and parenting schedule (2) and our recent move with images of our dream home (3) are here:
As I mainly write educational content (which I totally adore as it feeds my obsession for learning and puzzling pieces of various knowledge together), I hope to deepen my semi-fiction writing and mythopoetic approaches as I started last year in the adult fairytale called “A Nymph’s Tale”, based on the Elucidation of the Faery Accord and the Well Maidens as a creation story, leading to our time, now. You can find it within the pages of Rebel Ma Rising: Healing in the Time of the Feminine and learn more about my Why for crafting such stories here:
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