Seasonal Alchemy is a journey to reconnect with self, purpose, and the wisdom of the Celtic lands.
Seasonal Alchemy is a body of work and seasonal rewiring; this page is to share a flavour of the heart of what we deliver. We are currently delivering this work privately within organisations, and thus are not cultivating public events, however we are open to exploring nudges with people and organisations that feel they might like to host us and bring this journey to their people.
Guided by a timeless Celtic map, this seasonal journey reconnects you to rhythms that have guided humanity for centuries, fostering a more resilient, compassionate, and intuitive approach to life, work, spirituality and time. This programme is for those seeking deep nature connection and a reimagined life, from the inside out. Designed to run over a complete cycle, Seasonal Alchemy explores the seasons of the year through in-person immersive retreats, online wisdom sessions, and personal ritual.
As your hosts, we have decades of experience guiding transformational processes and are committed to serving the sacredness of nature and ancestral wisdom of the Celtic Isles. We invite you to step out of prevailing cultural narratives into a story rooted in interrelationship, mystery, and soul.
This journey might call you if…
You feel a sense of unease with the direction of our modern culture and its disconnect with the natural world.
You are ‘on purpose’, but you feel overwhelmed, stressed and exhausted by how much there is to do.
You want to contribute something truly meaningful and inspire future generations, but you’re uncertain about your path forward.
You long for a supportive and understanding community where you can explore your very own earth based spiritual path.
You are interested in how Celtic culture and consciousness can be practically applied to our modern lives.
The Celtic Wheel
The Celtic Wheel is a map of wholeness.
When we tune into our natural surroundings across the year, we find, within each season, resource and wisdom that can help us make sense of the ups and downs and twists and turns of our inner and outer lives. The wheel encourages us to surrender to and find the necessity and gift within whatever human experience we are having.
The wheel supports us in how to make pragmatic decisions in the daily churn of our ordinary lives. It gives us a deeper understanding of the nature of change, so that we can respond to whatever unfolds with more understanding, grace and skill.
Winter:
The Renewal - Samhain
Imbolc
Spring : The Beginning
Bealtaine
Summer : The Flourishing
Lughnasa
Autumn : The Honouring
Our Philosophy
Seasonal Alchemy is born from an understanding that modern society has distanced itself from the wisdom of nature and the sacred wisdom of our ancestors. Our philosophy challenges the dominant narratives of our time - narratives that have cast powerful spells over our collective consciousness, leading us to believe in the illusions of separation, endless growth, and the supremacy of technology.
Breaking the Spells of Modern Society
We recognise that we are living under the influence of many spells:
The Spell of Control
Tricks us into believing that we must be the architects of our own destiny, ignoring the natural unfolding of life and the intelligent power of emergence.
The Spell of Self-Improvement
Pushes us to constantly strive to be more, often leaving us feeling exhausted and inadequate, forgetting that we are enough as we are.
The Spell of Pain
Misleads us to believe that feeling our hurt and acknowledging our mortality will only harm us more, when healing comes through acknowledging and embracing our pain and relationship with death.
The Spell of Conformity
Tells us that fitting in is the key to belonging, but real belonging is found in our connection to the land and our unique contribution to the world.
The Spell of Growth and Progress
Teaches us that endless consumption leads to happiness, yet it divides us, sows the seeds of deficiency and destroys our natural environment.
The Spell of Individualism
Leads us to believe we exist in isolation and enact our work alone, yet our ancestors knew that meaningful and sustainable change is achieved in community.
The Spell of Time
Confines us to linear thinking, denying the cyclical (and spirallying) nature of life and the ever-present opportunity to begin anew.
The Spell of Separation
Suggests that we are separate from nature, viewing the Earth as a resource to exploit, rather than a living, animate web of which we are only a small part.
The Spell of the Saviour
Keeps us looped in trying to fix external (and often uncontrollable) dynamics. Whilst systemic attention is essential, the root of global healing begins inside us and in our immediate environment.
You should know, before embarking on this journey, that societal spells can be broken, but the revelations of the Soul, of Mystery and of Mother Nature, cannot.
You cannot unsee what you have seen. Once struck by awe, there is no returning.
The Wild Self, in all its richness of colour, texture and feeling waits to be found just beneath the choppy, murky surface of our modern lives.
Out in the forests and hills the senses come alive; truth, beauty and goodness naturally arise from within; so too does the knowing you are guided and have everything you need.
Programme
Our approach is holistic, cyclical and embodied, mirroring the seasons. We understand that transformation is not a linear process, but an alchemical one. Each season brings its own lessons and opportunities for growth, inviting us to slow down, listen deeply, and see the world as animate and inherently meaningful.
Winter: The Renewal - Samhain
Our journey begins in the stillness of winter, where we embrace the wisdom of Samhain. This is a time of honouring our past and preparing for renewal.
In a world that glorifies perpetual growth, winter teaches us the value of rest, reflection, and the quiet power of the unknown. Here, we learn that true transformation begins in the void, where we release the old and make space for the seeds of new life.
Spring: The Beginning - Imbolc
As winter gives way to spring, we enter Imbolc, a season of rebirth and new beginnings. After the introspection of winter, spring invites us to sow intentions with clarity and purpose.
In a society driven by constant productivity, we are reminded that creativity requires space to listen deeply and choose deliberately. Spring is the time to cultivate new paths, guided by the clarity that emerges from stillness.
Summer: The Flourishing - Bealtaine
Summer, or Bealtaine, is a season of flourishing and vitality. The life force that we cultivated in the dark months now bursts forth, urging us to step into our potential and shine.
Unlike the relentless push for success in modern culture, summer in the Seasonal Alchemy journey is about balanced expansions in alignment with our deepest values and the earth’s rhythms. Here, we take risks, embrace our passions, and engage with the world from a place of authenticity and strength.
Autumn: The Honouring - Lughnasadh
As the cycle turns toward autumn, we reach Lughnasadh, the season of harvest and honoring. Autumn invites us to pause, reflect, and celebrate the fruits of our labour before the inevitable return to winter.
In a culture obsessed with constant forward motion, autumn offers a crucial lesson in completion and gratitude. As we honor the cycle’s end, we also pause and integrate its teachings, readying ourselves to enter the next phase with deeper insight and renewed purpose.
Here are some of the approaches we use to support this work:
Silence and Stillness - allow us to go inwards and find deeper meaning and insight, as well as integrate and process our experience more thoroughly.
Ritual - allows us to reimagine and reform human community and the world we are looking for. Things are moved and awakened with ritual. Ritual, myth and nature need to coexist, they are just as intricate as each other.
Movement and embodiment - keep us in the present moment, connected and resourced.
Nature Connection - Mother Nature holds the conditions for our natural, wild and true self to come alive and be known.
Solitude - shows us a powerful mirror to ourselves, especially when done intentionally and with nature.
Breathwork - our breath changes the way we think, feel and behave. So, if we use the breath purposefully, we have an extraordinary tool with which to direct our lives.
Circles - we regularly come together and sit in circle to share who and how we are, harness collective wisdom and support healing and growth.
Enquiry - whether done in pairs or individually, we uncover the truth of the matter when we look at what is going on with genuine care and curiosity.
Teachings - we teach the Celtic Wheel, which forms the underlying ‘map’ of our work and will support you in navigating change for the rest of your life. We also teach nature connection, ritual and conscious relating.
Poetry & Myth - reconnect us with our soul’s calling and inspire us to lead a heartfelt life.
Coaching - helps us to see ourselves more fully and move towards a more fulfilled life.
Sacred Spring Immersions - refresh, revitalise and renew us.
The Location
The land calls us, not the other way around. A recent year-long journey we hosted was rooted on English soil, deep in the Forest of Dean, amidst a hundred acres of indigenous trees in an inspirational space called The Asha Centre. This space was dedicated to multi-cultural healing through connection with the land and each other, a perfect home for Seasonal Alchemy.
This idyllic space offers beautiful outdoor and indoor spaces, where we can be cosy inside during the dark winter months and also have easy access to outdoor nooks and a fire pit for the evenings.
There’s a stone labyrinth surrounded by native sacred trees planted by local druids, seated meditation spots dotted about the garden, a flat lawn for outdoor movement sessions, cabins for private conversations, a nearby sacred well for a cleansing dip and an expansive garden for reflective strolls. Surrounding the centre are acres and acres of native forestry where we get lost and find ourselves amidst the trees.
The bedrooms are lovely, clean, comfortable and private… overall Asha has everything we need to learn, deepen, rest, integrate and celebrate. We love bringing groups there because of its ideal set up of flexible training spaces and accommodation but also because of its ethos and multi-cultural history.
Testimonials
“I have attended all four of the 2023-4 Seasonal Alchemy retreats and enjoyed them enormously. I was very attracted to the concept of honouring the four seasons and learning more about the Celtic calendar which does so. They chose a wonderful location with the Asha Centre in the Forest of Dean. Lydia, Hamish and Jed are each very skilled facilitators in their own rights, and together they made a wonderful team that holds the space and group beautifully. They blend proactively designing the weekends with flexibility to what the group wants and brings. I’ve especially appreciated such a wide range of embodiment practices, most of which celebrate nature. I’ve found the whole ‘cycle’ nourishing, joyful and heartwarming, including making lovely connections with the developing community. I cannot recommend the experience more highly.
Lucy West
- Coach, Writer, Activist
Matt Nicholls
- Founder at Progressive
“Just a quick note to say, first & foremost, a massive thank you. Inspiring, challenging and uplifting in equal measure. I was a bit apprehensive coming in but was bowled over by everything. Thank you both for creating and holding such a wonderful space.
The beauty, grace and simplicity of the Celtic Wheel is so profound. The stark contrast with how out of sync and lost we are individually and collectively in our cultural rat race and capitalist hamster wheels. For me, this is a real moment of clarity and one I look forward to exploring over the coming months seasons(!) and years…attempting a better resynchronisation with the world and in life. So, thank you, thank you.
Moreover, the complementary power of your individual skills is going to have significant impact on people of all walks of life.
Meera Chand Senior
- Mother
“Seasonal Alchemy has changed my year in ways I didnt even know I needed. Learning about the Celtic Wheel and living cyclically and thus in harmony with nature, has given me space and rest and then enabled me to blossom. It’s hard to to describe because it’s so experiential, but for anyone wanting rest, space and a new way of living I cannot recommend this enough. Jed, Lydia and Hamish are wonderful guides who I felt very safe with and have shared tears and laughs with. To be able to reflect and plan every season in relation to its gifts and challenges has been revelatory and I am so looking forward to my next journey around the wheel. I feel a sense of hope and excitement that I didnt even know was possible.”
Tugba Kirhan
- Programmes Manager and Facilitator at Embercombe
“At Embercombe’s 25th anniversary event, we were fortunate to have Seasonal Alchemy offer a taster session, which was a truly enlightening experience. Even in such a short time, Hamish and Jed created a warm and inviting space that allowed us to step away from the day’s hustle and connect more deeply with ourselves. The session provided a beautiful introduction to the Celtic Wheel and its profound teachings on reconnecting with nature’s rhythms. It was just a taste, but it left me feeling more grounded and inspired to explore these ancient traditions further. If you’re curious about realigning with the natural world and seeking clarity in our fast-paced culture, I highly recommend Seasonal Alchemy”
Stu Pickles
- Managing Director at Aim Higher Leadership
“I don’t know where to begin in thanking you for such a profoundly rich retreat weekend. Your beautiful talents and curation were a delight to behold and experience. I have come away feeling deeply moved, connecting with and feeling my response to the “tug” back to the natural rhythms of nature and ancient traditions”
Meet the guides
Lydia Campbell is a teacher, mediator, leadership consultant, coach and mother. She has been immersed in the fertile edge of transformational leadership and healing for the past 20 years in her own life firstly, and externally in delivering retreats across Africa, India and Europe for thousands of attendees.
Her work rests on three main pillars: ancient wisdom and shamanic healing arts, facilitation and modern leadership approaches, and a healthy dose of heartful, no-bs, real life grit.
www.lydia.ie
Hamish Mackay-Lewis is a coach, facilitator and purpose and wilderness guide - eternally committed to the wisdom and gift of our moment-to-moment experience and the understanding that land and people are medicine for each other.
His journey from serving with the Armed Forces to doing what he does today, has given him an understanding of what it means to struggle between the pull of one’s soul’s calling and the comfort of security.
With an approach that has emerged from indigenous and ancient wisdom traditions, contemporary psychological insight and embodiment practises, he guides people in how to be themselves and follow their OWN path (without losing everyone and everything).
www.hamishmackaylewis.com