You may not know this, but I actually got certified as a healer and practitioner because I started importing extra virgin olive oil from Spain and wanted to share the healing powers of Reiki with everyone by infusing it into the olive oil.
3 years later, I realize I have never written one article on my blog solely about the olive oil I import, what makes it different, or what the new name and label means. I’m ready to finally share with you, as I rebrand the olive oil, formerly known as Aqua et Oleum.
Let’s back up a little bit. I decided to go holistic in 2016, finding Ayurveda (coming from India and meaning the science of life – this has been around for thousands of years) which helped me not only improve my physical body, but also my mental, emotional, energetic, and spiritual body. In Ayurveda it is believed that food has the power to heal on all levels, through the food we ingest which has the power to make some of the fastest changes in all of our 5 bodies.
Through changing my lifestyle (including diet), I saw those changes in my life. With quality food our body is in a much more receptive mode, not only to fuel it, but also to help the body make preventative changes where we need it most. What we work on today, even in small ways, helps us for years to come, like the butterfly effect.
In ancient times, olive oil was used as a way to trade and barter. It was valued as much as gold. It’s not surprising that in Spain it’s called oro líquido (liquid gold). Not only did the Spanish people use it as currency and for cleansing rituals (you will find it in our Hierba Cleanse); but also, for their hair, nails, and skin and, of course, to ingest and consume as food. Even back then it was something that brought people together and was communal. It built communities. That’s powerful!
This olive oil works in a number of ways:
- It transports you on an adventure back to Spain (España). If you’ve never been – I highly recommend adding this to your list of travels. The Spanish people are connected to their food, they have a relationship with what they are producing and Mother Earth herself. The olive oil comes from the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain in Sierra de Gata (coming from the Western part approximately 30 minutes from the Portuguese border – and is located in between Salamanca in the interior and Andalucía in the south.) Sierra de Gata literally means Mountain or Mountain Range of Water. Remember, our bodies are mostly made up of water. (Gata is Latin for water.) It was the last region/area of Spain I lived in (before moving back to the states in December 2020) and holds a very special place in my heart and for her people – specifically from the Cáceres Region (which is where Sierra de Gata is located). I have the highest respect for the people in this area, how they live, and appreciate life, and how they manage/take care of the extra virgin olive oil we get to enjoy and ingest. Maybe you need a bit of whimsy and magic in your life!
- Enjoy using the olive oil at gatherings as it will create new memories with loved ones. This is more than a quality product; it adds to celebrations and it’s a reason to celebrate with others. It’s a part of most meals and tastings. You may not look back and think that this extra virgin olive oil brought you all together, you may instead think about who was at your table, why everyone was gathered and what emotion or memory was elicited. And that’s the most important part – that life was shared and celebrated. La vida es bella (life is beautiful) after all.
- This olive oil is good for you – coming from the girl who had leaky gut 2 years ago, I couldn’t eat in a restaurant for over 90 days, and strictly used and cooked with this extra virgin olive oil. So why is this olive oil different?
- It comes from the 1st cold press. Meaning the olives are harvested at the end of October/beginning of November, then the olives are immediately pressed – strained from the sediments, and that’s what you get in your bottle.
- You get all the nutrients from the 1st cold press. Not the 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th
- Cold press means that the product is NOT heated in order to extract the oil that we use. That makes a difference as our bodies interpret that differently. We receive more antioxidants from a cold pressed olive oil, meaning that this oil helps us combat stress and inflammation on a higher level in our bodies. If it didn’t come from a cold press – it is not as good for you, and you aren’t getting the optimal benefits.
- It’s not a blended olive oil! The oil is from one type of olive, the Manzanilla Cacereñ These are 100% Manzanilla Cacereña olives. That’s it! With a blended olive oil, you may have to ask yourself how many types of olives are in this oil? And how are they handled and processed? In a blended olive oil, we have to think about how all the oils will interact with each other to make a harmonious taste. Will they play nice together? Here there is no worry. One product and type of product for that matter.
- It’s extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). Having that seal of extra virgin means it’s up to all the standards. Only EVOO gives us all the medical and medicinal benefits that both medical and functional doctors, healers, and researchers talk so highly about.
- Some of these benefits include that this oil works as an anti-inflammatory in the body to help reduce inflammation, it supports healthy brain and memory functions, it assists with a healthy immune system, it helps balance your blood sugar, it helps support the liver and is perfect to support a liver cleanse, it supports healthy gut microbiome, it boosts hair and skin health, it protects against diabetes, it reduces heart problems, it helps lower bad cholesterol, it reduces high blood pressure, it can help elevate your mood, and boost your metabolism. Researchers have also found a high diet in quality olive oil can reduce Alzheimer’s. I invite you to go online and do your own research and discover just how powerful and potent the health benefits of a quality extra virgin olive oil are. Now you get why it was so coveted as liquid gold!
- It’s a Spanish olive oil. This olive and its oil are not only different than other regions like Cataluña in the East and Andalucía in the South of Spain, but its taste is also different, more earthy, reflecting the soils of the region. That also means that it’s a different olive and taste from other Mediterranean countries like Italy and Greece.
- Why it matters that it comes from Spain and Europe?
- First off, their farming regulations and practices are governed by the strictest regulations. There are certain practices and standards that are just not allowed there. Those regulations are no joke and that’s better for you and your body! It’s much more rigorous. The fact that it passed, and it’s “stamped” as Spanish and good to sell to consumers both in and out of her borders is something to be celebrated – especially with all the extra virgin fraud out there (you can read more about this in a great book – “Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil” by Tom Mueller). You can rest assured that the caliber of the product in my olive oil is premium and supreme, another point that makes your body dance with glee.
- It’s infused with healing energies like Reiki and healing frequencies.
- Reiki coming from two (2) Japanese kanji symbols meaning “Universal Live Force Energy” it’s similar to Prana from India (and used in yoga classes). We are all made of energy. We all have Reiki within us. You may give an exchange of Reiki healing energy when you put a comforting hand on your family or friends when they are not feeling well or out of sorts, giving a hug to show someone you love them is an exchange of Reiki energy, cooking with love is another example. The difference between you and me is that I have been attuned to take in more of this Reiki healing energy to help facilitate healing whether I conduct laying hands on the body healing, hovering my hands, or sending this energy from afar. I am a conduit of this powerful healing energy. With Reiki it works along with Western and Eastern medicines, there are no bad side effects.
- Besides working on clients, I am able to infuse Reiki into products like this olive oil, spaces, animals, food, etc. Everyone’s experience with Reiki is different. Some potential benefits you may experience from Reiki include sleeping better, a reduction of low vibration emotions like anxiety/depression/sense of being overwhelmed/fear, etc., it helps balance and harmonize our energies/organs/ polarities/meridians and chakras. It’s great with assisting in the recovery from PTSD. It speeds up the healing process after a surgery or accident. It helps reduce pain in the body. Infusing Reiki into this extra virgin olive oil means that your body will integrate it into its system that much easier! Feel free to learn more about Reiki here.
Now let’s get to the new label, name, and pricing.
Fabúla de Alegría means Fable of Joy. The intention and part of the work and my purpose is to help bring out more joy in others. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the community of family and friends (who are like family) who helped me with the naming process – this took time and lots of thought! Each piece of feedback was taken into account and only bettered what I am now able to bring you.
We needed a visual representation of the olive, funny enough this was something that was created and put to the side about 3 years ago (until I recently dusted it off) when I was working on my Tory Saks branding. Let’s talk about the color of the olive – the chartreuse ray (more Latin influences here, a French word). I was reading up for my Advanced Crystal Healing course later this fall and learned about the chartreuse ray. Think Peridot gem essence and crystal. This is the highest vibrational color for the Physical Body (The High Physical Body). This Ray is composed of 1 ray of yellow and 1 ray of green or looking at it as 2 rays of yellow and 1 ray of blue. Why is this important?
Yellow is a color associated with the physical body, new beginnings, vitality, solar energy, rebirth and renewal. Getting 2 rays of yellow is all the better for that. Green is associated with health, the liver (this olive oil is good for the liver too!), the heart chakra and the spring season. Blue is a calming ray traditionally associated with the throat, the throat chakra, and the color of the Divine Feminine (the left side of the body and lunar energy). I use blue to specifically help calm the nerves, the nervous system, and inflammation. You will see the colors of yellow and blue in the leaves of the olive.
Pink is also associated with the heart chakra, a place of compassion, trust, and self-love. Red is associated with passion, the root chakra – what sustains us and makes us feel safe and secure. Our basic needs like food. What we feed ourselves. It’s a color associated with this season of summer (a stabilizing season), the southern direction, fire power, the heart space in Chinese Medicine, the Pitta dosha in Ayurveda, confidence, and abundance. It’s considered the color of the Divine Masculine (the right side of the body).
Thank you for allowing me to share some of my story. I’d love for you to invite into your homes, meals, spaces, and memories this truly amazing, nutritious, and delicious olive oil. You can grab your own bottle and purchase it here at my online shop (shop.torysaks.com) and in person at my healing space here in Dallas, Texas.
Want to know how you can work with your extra virgin olive oil besides dipping it in bread? Check out the recipes tab and one of my personal favorites – the easy and simple mixed green salad, featuring this tasty extra virgin olive oil in the salad dressing or check out the tomatillo salsa, just to name a few recipes.
Abrazos y Besos,
xoxo Tory
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