Kayla Jacobs

You gotta have faith.

I repeated those four words to myself recently after leaving a bag complete with my laptop, cell phone, wallet and diary with a woman I had never met in a local café, so I could go to the toilet.

In the moment I asked her, not an ounce of doubt slithered into my mind. It wasn’t until I locked the bathroom door behind me that I suddenly felt riddled with anxiety and uncertainty: What if she stole my bag? What if she left it? What if she rummaged through it? Oddly, though, those thoughts didn't hurry me zipping my jeans or washing my hands. I observed this dichotomy in the mirror. The woman looking back at me seemed calm, but, inside, my gut was a brick tugging at wild internal maps.

Faith, eh? It’s described in the dictionary as having “complete trust or confidence in someone or something” or “strong belief in God or the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof.” This apprehension or, I would say, “sixth sense” would seem to suggest an inherent fear that’s present within all of us. Fear can be healthy, as can faith. And, yet, it seems harder to espouse the latter. Maybe that's because our connotations with faith are twisted up with religious notions of obedience and bad self-help psychology or, worse, an overactive ego and lack of character. Faith, in the best sense, would seem to be a constant hum, the colorful chord of loveliness that permeates from the top of our heads through to the tips of our toes; at worst, a lone ship mired in an angry sea.

Abstractions aside, staying connected is vital if one hopes to keep tethering the two sides—fear and faith—so that neither wins (where would be the fun in that?). Opening that vulnerability wide is a game-changer—allowing in all possibilities. Take your cues from yourself, from nature, from slowing down (or, in some cases, quickening up), from not restricting your beliefs.

With that in mind, I offer you a pure essential oil ritual aptly named, “You Gotta Have Faith, Girl.” Oil rituals are like mantras to me, except more exciting, because they have the sensory component and fragrant fumes that can quickly shift moods and stagnant physical energy. The micro-moments of our days are the ones to pay attention to, the ones where we can grow our internal beams, so that “potent” and “sparkly” aren't just random adjectives, but words we can wear with absolute certainty and joy.

You Gotta Have Faith Blend

This combination of citrus oils, hormone-balancing geranium and earthy sandalwood makes me want to sing “Ain't No Mountain High Enough” at the top of my lungs. I'm convinced this is a sure-fire way to fan the flames of faith and ground down into the essence of who I am and where I want to go. Mostly though, it smells like pure unadulterated faith.

• Lavender, 10 drops
• Geranium, 10 drops
• Lemon, 6 drops
• Bergamot, 10 drops
• Sandalwood, 10 drops
• 60ml carrier oil of your choice

Blend into a carrier oil and use on pulse points!

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