Guatemala and My Source Journey 

My year started off with a beautiful adventure to Guatemala! It was my first time in the country, and the closing of a loop for me. After I lost my dad in my 20s (the reason I ended up in Vallejo), I took a trip to Belize for a Permaculture Design certification course. I had plans to travel on to Guatemala afterwards, but cut the trip short. I told myself I would finish the travel plans some day, but life never made space for it. Almost 20 years later I made it happen! 

At the beginning of last year I signed up for a different training program, knowing that it would end with a retreat in Guatemala. I felt like it would be a threshold I'd be crossing over during the 9 months (and really the last 20 years since the loss of my dad). I would be processing the years of deep healing/grief work, facilitation training, and gathering of "life experience" that began (in many ways) on the trip I cut short years ago. The program helped me develop new pathways for my offerings in the world. The hope being, to weave together the tangled mess of talents, skills and passions acquired over the first half of my life... into a beautiful way of being that is in service to myself, my community and the environment I live in. 

The training program, called Source... was with a small group of people and facilitators (Dr. Katia Sol & Lizzy Hart) that I have been working with for many years in the Ecology of Leadership. Over 9 months we practiced being in deeper listening/flow of how to "source" our service in the world from... we learned tools including: coaching/facilitation skills, honing our own intuition/practices, healing/bringing awareness to our own patterns, and more. The nine months ended with the final retreat in Guatemala on Lake Atitlán! 

There is so much I could write about this whole experience... both the 9 months, and the time in Guatemala. However, I wanted to mentioned it all briefly here to mark crossing that threshold. I don't always share about this side of my life, but in trying to weave all the parts of who I am together... it is time. I am slowing down. Listening. Moving from a place that taps into what wants to move through me, and offer something beautiful to the world (that also brings me joy). My hope is that this all shows up in what I am creating, and includes NEW offerings this year! Please stay tuned!

TBD Tiny Gallery & Mr. Lee's Art Machine
The Showroom has new additions... a wall space dedicated to showcasing the work of guest artists and the sweetest compliment,  an old sticker machine refurbished to sell tiny prints (or even originals)! 

Last Art Walk we introduced both new additions with the help of guest artist, Tara Funk! Tara is a Vallejo artist/designer who enjoys walking with her pup, and capturing her surrounding with the most magical drawings! So we were thrilled when she agreed to be our first featured artist for the gallery and new art machine. Tara was such a huge help setting up our launch of the machine, and even created the beautiful graphic insert for the front of the machine! You have a few more weeks to stop by and get one of the originals (that haven't sold) or your own tiny print (bring your quarters, or we have some on hand)... there is only one more Saturday (and bonus Sunday, the 7th) to see Tara's work!

The art machine came about when Kristin (Love YAAH More) told her grandfather about the idea to turn an old sticker machine into a way to deliver little pieces of ART! He thought this was a wonderful idea, and insisted in helping fund the endeavor... because it would "make people happy"! The response has certainly brought joy to everyone who has come through, and I can't wait to see more artists participate!

I have so much more that I would like to share in this newsletter... lots of new things on the horizon! There are classes/workshops/community time in the works... along with so much more. Look for updates on all of the fun additions coming soon.  Thank you again for reading!

With heaps of gratitude, - Micah/TreeBed Design

The TBD Showroom... is finally a SHOWROOM! 

On the first day of Fall several of my dreams came to fruition! When I moved back to Vallejo (from bouncing around for several years after the 2017 fires in Napa) it was with the idea of having my own showroom type space downtown... a place to show what I was working on, collaborate with talented people to host fun events, add energy to the new life growing in downtown Vallejo. The pandemic shut things down one week after I moved in, and all of those ideas were put on a long pause. 

When I found my new Vallejo studio space at the beginning of 2023, I was finally able to move all of my ceramic work space from downtown to the nearby studio... the showroom was ready to be realized! This of course took longer than I anticipated, and I wanted to mark the occasion. My friend Fiorella Butron (and her team at Allikai) reached out to create a collaborative event... the beautiful food they make on my ceramics (and you take the ceramics home)! They crafted a menu of delicious small bites to be served on a fresh batch of lively colored autumn toned plates (and tumblers). I asked Melanie Teixeira (of Village Vallejo) to help craft beverages to meet the moment and she curated just the right fit for the season!

It felt so sweet to have many of my new Vallejo (and beyond) community fill the space with conversation, curiosity, and connection. I was even able to share some of my own music (another dream for the space... hopefully more live music coming soon)! At the end of the night, each guest had their plate and tumbler wrapped up and sent home with them. I felt so full of gratitude for everyone who attended, and those who collaborated to make the evening happen. I look forward to more unique events like this in the TBD Showroom!