STORIES / QRA: NITSA CITRINE
TUNING IN
SOUNDFOOD’s creator Nitsa Citrine on listening to our bodies, each other + the natural world
Video + Images Captured by Olga Nazarova
What led you to start your podcast?
I created SOUNDFOOD from a desire to speak more openly, candidly about food, resonance, and healing. I wanted to create a safe space for dialogue on all forms of nourishment, whether it be the most delicious, home cooked meal, a discourse on tea ceremonies, nerding out over a rare and powerful adaptogenic herb, design inspiration, holistic beauty secrets, meditation, art, music, film, clothes, wild hot springs... everything! After working for years in a hyper-visual space as a Creative Director and photographer, I felt a pull to challenge myself with a new medium—audio. I have always been pretty shy when it comes to speaking (mercury in Pisces), so working on a podcast has been a step outside of my comfort zone. And I am SO grateful I pivoted because the conversations we have held on this platform have been transformational, illuminating, humbling and deeply healing. I am constantly blown away by the wisdom, beauty, and courage of our guests and community and I am so honored to be a conduit for their streams of consciousness.
How does your connection to nature inspire you daily?
Nature is the most nurturing and fierce of teachers. Right now, as I type these answers out on my iMac, in my little adobe home in northern New Mexico, I can feel a sweet summer breeze coming through, swirling around and tickling my peripheries. I am serenaded by the chirping of birds, the hum of cicadas, and I can see the native grasses I seeded last month swaying with the wind through the window.... The less evolved/ awake part of me might feel tired and overwhelmed with the digital workload, but then, like magic, nature rolls through and finds me, reminding me that everything is ephemeral and to cherish the details—the precious moments of being alive, in a body, here on Earth!
You integrate art with your holistic practice so seamlessly.How do you find the balance in your own life?
Thank you for seeing that! For me, health is a combination of physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and creative wellbeing. I can drink all the green juice, meditate, exercise, chant, etc and still, if I do not feel that creative light inside, I do not feel healthy or whole. Art and nature are my favorite forms of therapy. If I am feeling down or out of balance, I make it a point to devote some time to unplug and go visit a museum, listen to scores, or immerse myself in the wild. Likewise, I definitely do my best creative work when I also take care of my body, by eating organic, local foods, keeping a movement practice and getting ample SLEEP.
What are you excited to share in the next few months, years, days, or moments?
Right now, I am fully enthralled with turning my home into a food forest. I have three 5 x 8 ft. garden boxes blooming with greens, tomatoes, peppers, herbs, melons, cucumbers, berries, grapes, and am working to restore the surrounding landscape with native plants. We had a solid amount of rain last week so suddenly everything is growing at full speed! It's verdant and wild. SO, I am excited to share this garden journey along with some magical SOUNDFOOD conversations and collaborations we have coming up in the next few months.
