EP 25: An Unfolding Life Featuring Photographer, Textile Artist and Private Chef April Valencia

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Episode Length: 1:17:13

This week I’m chatting with April Valencia, a photographer, textile artist, sustainability consultant and private chef. She’s shot for Apiece Apart, Levi’s Made and Crafted, Sezane, Ozma of California, Gjusta, among others; she’s cooked for Yola Mezcal and the ICA in London; and she’s also on the board at the Elizabeth Street Garden in Manhattan. My dear friend Caroline Ventura introduced us because she knew I was heading to LA for three months and thought we’d enjoy meeting each other. What started as a leisurely meal in Venice, turned into a friendship, and I’m so excited to share this interview with April for what I believe is her first podcast interview. I wanted to speak with her because she’s had such a wide ranging, varied life - from being married at 21 and working at Trump Tower in New York, to losing her brother and finding herself alone in the jungle of the Yucatan, April’s life has shifted and evolved as she’s grown into herself. 

Nature teaches us that the only permanence is change, and April’s journey feels in harmony with nature. It’s always changing, hard to define, and that’s precisely what makes it so vibrant and beautifully complex. Be sure to listen all the way to the end of this conversation because April shares an important perspective for anyone struggling with a chronic health condition, or simply anyone who feels overwhelmed by often conflicting and confusing health advice. With that, let’s get into my conversation with the wonderful April Valencia, who actually just celebrated her birthday on Monday. Enjoy ~

I didn’t realize I grew up in nature until I wasn’t in it anymore.

I don’t want to have to have a reason to love something anymore. The nature, cooking, photography, they’re all coming from the same source.

You stick with one thing long enough and you become really good at it, or like my grandma used to say ‘you become really resentful about it.’ If it’s not the thing you want to stick out and do, why hold yourself to that.

I feel really centered or balanced when I’m alone and it took me a really long time to get there.

I like to settle into being uncomfortable.

The main source of everything and our biggest connection to nature is food. I’m really aware of how food is influencing my mind, how it’s influencing my body, how it’s influencing my sleep…this is my ritual and practice.

Trust your body. I do believe in the power of vitamins and herbs and tonics and things. I also believe in the power of the mind and intention. I just don’t believe in shame.

Resources

Show Notes

  • April’s relationship to nature growing up in the desert of Arizona

  • How living in a city really makes you appreciate the natural world

  • How working at Trump Tower changed April’s life

  • The role nature has played in April’s photography

  • How visiting Costa Rica helped April find her voice

  • Why you don’t need to choose one thing or one career path

  • How a message from a psychic brought her to Mexico and what solo travel means to April

  • The practices that help April stay connected to nature

  • How food has been April’s place of ceremony

  • The role that shame played in April’s healing journey and how to find what works best for your body

Connect with April:

The sea, the ocean, being in water - that’s my place.

A palm tree. They’re rooted, but there’s something about them that’s so free at the top.

I think meditating can bring you there and cooking - taking vegetables and doing whatever you want with them.

I think that I’m really small.

Peace. It brings me closer to my brother. For me, the sea brings me peace because my peace is to be close to my brother again.

Connect with Our Nature Podcast:

Gratitude List: This podcast would not be possible without the group of talented individuals below. I offer them my sincerest thanks and love.

episodesAlyssa Benjaminfood, photography, solo travel, profile interview