Meet Eminé Kali Rushton, writer, editor, holistic facialist & naturopath-in-training. Eminé was the Wellbeing Director at Psychologies magazine for 10 years, before becoming editor of beautiful mindfulness magazine, oh . Eminé is THE THREAD JOURNAL’s latest Insider – an individual who embodies a connection to their surroundings at home and in their work.
Eminé lives with her family and two young daughters in the Kent countryside and champions low cost, low waste living. The family grow a lot of their own food, spend lots of time outside, gently aligned with nature’s own cyclical, seasonal rhythms.
I found it hugely inspiring to hear Eminé’s experience of moving to the countryside and how this shift to a slower pace has influenced her life. We talk about the joy of rural living, how to live in tune with the seasons and how her experience of home has changed during a year in lockdown…
Describe who you are and what you do.
I am a writer, a word-player, a creator, a nature-lover. I’ve written several books on wellbeing, including Sattva: The Ayurvedic Way to Live Well and Reclaim Joy: A Guided Journal to Discover Simple Pleasures Every Day. I am also studying Herbal Medicine at The School of Natural Medicine UK. Above and beyond all else, I am a mama of daughters and someone who dreams of being left alone with their herbs & flowers, for days at a time.
What led you on your path?
I studied English Literature at Durham University, and always knew I would need to find ways to get my words down onto paper and, possibly, out into the world. I have always scribbled down words… always devoured books and wanted to learn more about the stuff that really interests me: femininity, nature, plants, mythology, wellbeing, holism…
I ended up doing work experience at British Vogue shortly after graduating (just to answer the phones when one of the interns got sick), and ended up staying in magazine world for 20 years! I now edit a beautiful indie mindfulness magazine, oh (ohmag.co.uk) and have a really nice (if busy!) mix of editing & writing work, with my studies & holistic work on the side.
Where is home for you?
The Garden of England – Kent.
What led to you to move to the countryside?
Outside space. Birdsong. Being able to see the stars. Having green all around. A tiny garden to grow everything we could possibly squeeze into it. A small local school for our girls. Being able to walk a lot more and drive a lot less… so many things.
How has a slower and quieter pace affected your life and work?
When I lived and worked in London, the pace was all I knew. Commuting, rushing, getting frustrated if the person on the street ahead of me was rambling slowly, and I needed to BE somewhere. I do laugh when I think back on those days. Now, I am absolutely the rambling one! I never see people rush around in the village we live in… everyone seems to have time… to talk, smile, catch up… and that has made such a difference to our sense of wellbeing. I also relish having a garden to go and sit outside in… to take my work, and create a working life that can move with me, and go where I need to go… I feel far more peaceful and easeful in myself since I left the city.
Why is cyclical and seasonal living important to you?
It underlines everything I believe to be true about holistic wellbeing. We change, moment by moment. We adapt and respond and adjust. We are not linear beings, made to go from A to Z without erring off the path. I love learning more and more about my own body, my cycles, how I am affected by light, sun, sky, moon, air… how, when I support it, my body does just what it needs to do in just the right way – cleansing itself in spring, cooling itself down in summer, shedding extraneous layers in autumn… we ARE nature, and it’s never more evident than when we adopt seasonal living.
What simple changes would you advise someone wanting to adopt a low cost and low waste lifestyle?
Stop buying stuff! We wear so little of what we own, yet we always feel we must buy more. We purchase on a whim, without need, because we feel we want / must have something. I have stopped buying high street clothing and we now use our local veg box scheme & fill up all of our other household & food items at our local Eco Pantry. When something breaks, we fix it. When something tears, we mend it. If we need to buy something and we cannot find it secondhand, we try to buy the option we can afford but that will really really last. I always think of cost per wear, and also cost to the planet when it falls apart…
What drew you to the ancient science of Ayurveda and how do you translate it to modern living?
Ayurveda is the science of life… it is just the most insightful and visionary, but also commonsense, way to approach daily life. Every single thing that touches you, that you hear, see, smell, taste, that is said to you, or that you say to someone else – every single thing has an effect on you. I love how deeply it has made me consider what affects me for the better, or worse. And how attuned it has made me to what I need, day by day.
In the very simplest terms, day to day, that means eating seasonally, eating nourishing cooked meals each day, sipping on warm water throughout the day, reaching for herbs and spices at all times, to keep digestion optimal, and eating in ways & at times that also support this. It is about creating mindful routines for sleep, for self-care, for nourishment, that are simply part of life.
What does homecoming mean to you?
Home means so much to me. I am a very homely Cancerian and love my home space. It is plants and light and classical music and my children and a green, wild garden, and bird song. I feel very lucky that home means happiness in my heart & mind.
How would you describe your home? Has it changed since the beginning of ‘lockdown’?
Being home all the time during lockdown has encouraged us to be far more mindful in what we invite in, how clean and bright we keep our spaces, and also more conscious of allowing everyone else in our family of four their own private places and spaces too.
We have invited more houseplants in (we are close to 50 now I suspect), as they enhance our wellbeing exponentially, and have gifted books, clothes & toys to local families in need during lockdown, as our children grow out of them too.
We have also put more time into our garden this year. We have sown many new types of medicinal flower & herb, and my husband has really dived deeper into growing our food… we have many more pots & mini plots of good things popping up around us now… always excited about the wild strawberries, raspberries, calendula & sugar snap peas!
Do you have a sacred space in your home?
I really love the view from my bed, which looks out on the most tall & majestic evergreen tree, and is always filled with throngs of singing birds.
How does the ethos of ‘sacred space’ play a part in your home?
Honouring my home, however small & old, however un-pinterest like it is – because it is filled with love, happiness & those in the world I love most of all. Hanging precious pictures, singing to the plants, lighting candles and burning olive leaves from the garden, keeping windows bright & clear… all of this helps me honour my space.
Find out more about Eminé,
Visit Eminé’s website to find out more about The Clearing, a seasonal living course.
Check out oh, beautiful mindfulness magazine edited by Eminé.
Listen to Eminé’s podcast This Conscious Life and read her book written with husband Paul Rushton, ‘Sattva: The Ayurvedic Way to Live Well’ and you can preorder her new creative journal, Reclaim Joy: A Guided Journal to Discover Simple Pleasures Every Day.
Follow Eminé on Instagram for beautiful insights into reclaiming everyday joy and seasonal living from the Kent countryside.
