Speaker: Lily Panyacosit
What's your name and what course are you currently enrolled in?
Lily Panyacosit: My name is Lily and I'm in the School of Herbalism in the Land of Verse in their Clinical Herbalist program.
What 3 words would you use to describe your experience as a student?
Lily Panyacosit: It's really difficult to choose just three words to describe my experience as a Clinical Herbalist, student in the school of Herbalism but if I had to start with three words, I think I would choose the word Sacred, Powerful and Heart Opening. And I choose those three words because I really believe that our school offers a really powerful and sacred container through which the teachings are being transmitted to us. The students, I feel like I'm being supported in the development of my relationship with the plant world. And I believe the school offers this beautiful marriage and how they teach us this beautiful marriage between the art and the science of healing.
What really stood out to you or surprised you in the program?
Lily Panyacosit: there are a few things that stood out to me about the program. The first is that although the program is online, it's all live, which means that you're there in real time with the teachers and the other students. And I really feel like it serves to build a sense of cohesiveness through the, throughout the program and a sense of community amongst the students and the teachers as well. The second thing that stood out to me about the program is the beautiful big box of supplies that you received before the program even begins and it sets everybody off on the same foot, which I feel is just, it's just an awesome way to begin. And it's also equitable because even though you may be able to afford all the supplies, you may not have access to all the same quality of supplies that somebody else might in a different city. And so I love the fact that we all get the same big box of supplies, which comes with teas and books and plant materials and tinctures and glycerins and alcohol to make medicine. Um, so I think those are all really beautiful aspects of the program. And then the last aspect of the program, which just blows me away each time is the caliber of the teachers, our Directors of the school really go out of their way to find teachers that they find that are both knowledgeable, compassionate, equitable and um, and really have the values that our Directors themselves have of the school. So they really personify what they believe the school is supposed to bring to the world.
What is your experience of community and connection in your program?
Lily Panyacosit: So I have to admit I was a little bit skeptical about creating community online only because we've never really done anything like this before, the pandemic, and I have to admit that it's been um, it's been a really beautiful process and I was in the Apprentice program last year and I'm in the Clinical Herbalist program this year and through both of those programs. So the time that we spent online with our teachers and with the other students, I have felt this real sense of community grow amongst all of our classmates, um, to the extent that we actually make the effort to meet each other outside of class also. So I'm lucky because I live in San Francisco and I have a couple of classmates that aren't so far away from me and um, the classmates that are not so far away, we actually try and meet on a, on a semi regular basis. So just about a month ago, I actually spent the entire day with one of my Apprentice Herbalist classmates and we spent the entire day having lunch and making medicine and just thinking about how we'd love to expand upon this and have more classmates come and join us. And tomorrow I'm meeting one of my Clinical Herbalist classmates and we're going to do some medicine making homework together and have some lunch together also. So it's been a really wonderful experience to um, to create community and connection with my other classmates and even also with my teachers and I'm looking forward to doing that more
