Two scoops of healing

One sugary lick at a time, I came back to love.

The summer of 2024 was the summer of a thousand  ice cream licks, goats on a roof, fresh starts, new developments, confrontations, terrifying darkness, joy and beautiful friends. 

Some time in 2023 my friend, Damon, from Saskatchewan says to me “If you ever go through Yahk, you need to go check out Tammy and Bryce’s. They have a soap company and an icecream place. It’s really neat”. 

To which I replied: “I have no reason at all to go through Yahk”, as I contorted my face. 

And I thought to myself, why the fuck would I bother. I didn’t change my life and move to British Columbia to hang out in Yahk!! What is Yahk even?

Except. Apparently I did. 

Don’t you just love it when you have everything planned out and you know just exactly what you want, and you set out with excitement and focus and  maybe even a sense of pride that you have got your poop in a group. And then BAM, God or the Universe has a whole different idea of what you need and what is best for you!?

I find it so curious how, while I was going through the darkest of times, with pain and uncertainty very present in my heart, and frustrations growing with our perfect plans falling apart. And with my mind falling into the deepest doubts and fears of “WHAT AM I EVEN DOING”…….

THAT…..I was also joined by the most magical and loving encounters and feelings. 

It was as if, I would be smacked by the darkest and most vile force so hard, that the hit whipped me around, right smack dab into the opposing force of LOVE. 

Like I got hit so hard, I ended back at the start, which is love.

The darkness of that vile force sent me straight into an embrace that I’ve never felt. I was held by something so mystical, I have yet to find the words to fully explain or express it. 

This is the year that proves to me, that really knowing who you are, and what your made of, is only possible if you allow for both the dark and light to be present at the same time. No denial. No avoidance. Just facing both and accepting both. Those seemingly opposing forces of light and dark or love and fear.

Letting that darkness be there and admitting it is, while not turning a blind eye to the joy and beauty that also exists in this world, and the people around you. The very people who will mirror it so beautifully to you. But, only if, you slow yourself enough to be open to all of it. All of yourself. All of you. And all of the people too. Even the ones who came to hurt you and harm you. Those vile pricks ;)

The darkness was where I found the courage to do hard things and be who I am without worrying if people are bothered by the journey I am on.

That’s where I sat…… and ate my ice cream….one concentrated lick at a time…..in an unseen dark cave….with love swirling all around me. 

It was glorious. Sometimes the love was easy to see and sometimes, all could muster to feel, was the truth of the darkness. 

I still found myself eating ice-cream, like a little girl full of joy, while constantly sensing a feeling of terror of what bad thing may happen next. 

Tammy, my friend, from the Yahk Soap Company, reminded me of a book she read and how it reminded her that all the things we do are just experiences connecting us to the right places and people. Little dots and clues leading us to the next place and the next encounter that’s meant for us. When the time is right. 

We recently sat with Tammy and Bryce and shared a meal we cooked for them. The whole encounter was full of love and gratitude and we spoke of the dots of the universe leading our way to them, and Two Scoop Steve in the little town of Yah, British Columbia.

And to the ice cream experiences that put me and my heart back together one lick at a time. 

What they have brought to the little town of Yahk is more than ice cream,

and soap,

and goats on a roof,

in a cute little scene,

placed so perfectly along the peaceful Moyie River,

with meandering magical gardens that you could mystically lose your innerchild in. 

I can’t help but think about how many people have a story like mine. Are you out there?

Are there more people out there that managed to heal a piece of their soul simply by stopping and licking ice cream, sniffing soaps, laughing at the goats on the roof and eating the most delicious bread, while meandering those mystical garden paths that are tenderly cared for by Tammy? 

To many people, Two Scoops and the Yahk Soap Company might be a place to stop on Highway 3 along their summer vacation; to simply devour great ice cream on a hot summer BC day. Or for sniffing great soaps and browsing the selection of gifs at the shop.

But for me, it was a mystical experience that lead me back to love.

An experience that pulled me from the untrusting, terrified and dark state I was about to drown in and maybe never come back from. 

One lick at a time. One hug at a time. One smile at a time. One giggle at a time. One tear at a time. 

Two scoops was the summer I came back to myself, one lick, and probably, pound at a time. 

Take the road to Yahk. Maybe even consider finding love in your heart again while you devour a tasty treat or sniff the best soaps. Pause. Notice this place. Like really feel it! Because it’s more than a road side stop along highway 3 on a hot summers day.

I’m convinced it’s a magical portal that can transport you into the dimension of love. 

My wish for you is that, if you are feeling stuck in the darkness that you find your way back to love, by simply experiencing the world around you with a lens of love, a hunger for light and maybe a little sweet treat along the way too. Travel the magic of highway 3 in British Columbia, I promise you will find your way back to your heart.

Make sure you stop in Creston and say hi to me! We loved it so much around here, we decided to stay after all. I can’t wait for the upcoming ice-cream season :) and more adventures in my heart.

xoxo

Paula

P.S. Damon, you were right! Don’t tell anyone I said so though!

Two Scoop Steve | More than just ice cream! Where families come to make memories!

Handmade Soap - Home - Yahk Soap & Candle Company

Paula Haygarth B.A. | Spiritual Teacher (@paulahaygarth) • Instagram photos and videos