About
Magdalena García
photo by Cory Johnson
I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico on an acre of land that was my constant companion. As an only child until age 11, my dogs, chickens, ducks and cats were my deepest friends. They taught me how to use my senses to connect with the world and how to listen deeply in the quiet.
I always had a dream of working with children. I studied child development and fell in love with the idea that young children could be treated as whole, complete beings, worthy of deep consideration. As the first in my immediate family to graduate college, I got my Bachelors in Psychology and Child Development and my Masters in Education with a focus on Bilingual and Cross-cultural education.
I chose to work in an inner city school of Los Angeles for 13 years. Honoring the stories that emerged each day was my social justice mission as a classroom teacher and mentor to teachers and parents. I went on to co-found a progressive elementary school in Los Angeles' South Bay. I was drawn to the idea that personal transformation was possible through authentic relationships.
Getting the opportunity to be in relationship with and support so many different parents as an educator over my 25 years in Education led me to become a certified instructor with Hand in Hand Parenting as a way to make lasting change in my communities. I believe in helping parents create support systems around themselves so they can have immensely strong, loving, respectful bonds with their children that form the “super-protective factor” for their children in adolescence.
As a seeker of deep meaning and opportunities for personal growth, I have sought out different ways of healing and celebrating throughout my life. I have regularly utilized listening partners and mentorship for the last 20 years to uncover the stories that inform my perspectives and behavior. It is through these support systems that I flourish, heal my past and find ways to allow joy.
Upon crossing into motherhood more than a decade ago, with profound losses along the way, I found myself needing to capture, very tangibly, my awe of being a woman and a mother, a human with complex emotions and experiences. As a result, I have steeped myself in learning Trauma Informed Practices, Mindfulness, Embodiment Tools, Birth Story Medicine, and Dream Tending.
As a part of this, I have intuitively sought out storytelling, music, and symbolism as a way of healing, awakening and celebrating. I have been reintroduced to the power of ceremony and ritual as a way of processing experience through the incredible power of accessing our creative unconscious.