Welcome. I am so glad you’re here.
Hi, I’m Xandra O’Neill
I am a sacred vessel – I believe you are too
I am a perpetual redecorator – I believe we can shift deeper energy when we shift things on the surface
I am a writer – I believe our truths fly out of our fingers
I am a mama – I believe we have the power to influence future generations with love
I am a yogi – I believe in the connection between the body, mind, and spirit
I am a guide – I believe you deserve to find the path to your sacred becoming
I am a mala maker – I believe in the power of stones to help support us
I am here to help you to tap into your sacred power, whether it’s reconnecting with it or connecting with it for the first time.
I’ve always known that my why in life was to help people. When I was 4, I was honored as the Jewish Family and Children’s Services youngest volunteer. I grew up in a family of doctors that were beloved by their patients because they were treated with love and respect, and I learned to value that.
What I haven’t always known is the how.
I spent my high school years feeling frustrated that I didn’t seem to know what I wanted to do with my life when I thought that all of my classmates did.
I spent my college years taking classes I loved, resulting in degrees in English and history and still no plan for how I was going to transform that into meaningful work.
I learned from my mother’s wisdom that it was okay to have more questions than answers about where life would take me. She gave me the understanding that this life is a journey and dreams beget new dreams and that I could be open to that adventure.
Years working in a bookstore taught me how much I value connection with others and creativity.
Years working at a desk job taught me what I’d already known – that I was not destined for a 9-5 career.
And then, in the summer of 2007, everything changed when my husband woke me up in the middle of the night with some unexpected news.
Upon learning that friends of ours were pregnant, I was struck hard with the knowing that I wanted to be a mama. After years of searching, there was finally a desire that came from so deep within me that I knew it couldn’t be ignored.
These knowings are the signs we must learn to follow.
When I was pregnant, I awakened a sacred power inside of me that I had never before known was there. This power gave me trust, strength, and confidence.
Once my daughter was born, this power seemed to return to a dormant state, but something important had occurred – now I knew it existed.
Since 2011, I have been teaching women what I know about awakening that sacred power.
At first, I was sharing what I knew with women who were preparing to have empowered conception, pregnancy, and childbirth experiences. I knew what I did to cultivate trust in myself and the choices I made on my journey and I loved sharing this with other women who were dreaming of becoming mamas.
Along the way, I discovered that there’s more to it….
I discovered that what I was sharing was resonating with women who were on the path to other ways of sacred becoming.
Messages like this began appearing in my inbox in response to my weekly e-letter:
“Even though you are speaking to a particular audience of which I am not (no kids, no plan to have kids), this still resonated with me.”
I was hearing this from women of all ages, all backgrounds, all over the globe. This was no longer just about plans to conceive a baby – this was about plans to awaken dormant dreams and desires.
And so it was that part of my sacred becoming became sharing this message and guidance with you.
You, a sacred vessel.
You, whose dreams and desires have been planted and are ready to grow.
You, who has sacred power that deserves to shine in the world.
When you learn how to awaken or reawaken your sacred power in any moment, it is there waiting for you when you most need it.
Sacred Becoming is about leaning into who you are and who you want to be. It is about cultivating trust in yourself and your intuition so the choices in your life come with more love and ease. It is about being guided to your own answers instead of being given someone else’s answers and hoping they work for you.
Your Sacred Becoming begins here.
As my own journey of sacred becoming continues (for it is one that never ends) I have added practices over the years that have becoming integral parts of both my life and my work with others.
Growing up I was quite sedentary and never felt drawn to gym class or sports teams. It wasn’t until I was living in Philly in the mid 2000s that I discovered a movement practice that felt aligned with my body. From my first yoga class (a private because the idea of a class with other people admittedly intimidated me), I knew there was something different. After practicing off and on for over a decade, a practice that deepened my connection to my body and expanded my experience of spirituality, I returned to my first teacher, Corina Benner, and learned how to share the practice of yoga with others.
Being part of the yoga community introduced me to kirtan and mantra meditation. Singing was something I always had interest in but never felt like I was very good at, but as yoga had done for my physical movement practice, kirtan gave me a sense of confidence in my voice. There is a power in chanting mantra with a group of people that is difficult to put into words, but undeniable.
I cannot tell you with certainty how I first discovered what a mala was or what it was used for, but the practice of mantra meditation has been a powerful force in my life. Mantra meditation gives the mind something to focus on and the fingers something to do, which I think makes it a very accessible form of meditation. When I finally followed my desire to take a hand-knotting class at a local bead store, I knew that I wanted to create a mala. I already had one that a friend had made for me a few years before, but now I was feeling drawn to creating one for myself, and I followed that energy.
I did not know that it would lead me down a new path, one that led me to creating malas for others and that is one of the greatest gifts that I have received from trusting my intuition.
Each one of us is made up of many parts, whether we label them or not. The stories of who we have been, of who we think we are, of who we are becoming, are similar in a way to the beads that make up a mala. They can feel similar to one another, they can feel separate, they can hold different energy and represent different moments in our lives, they can lead us to feel like we are struggling to find a way to hold it all together, to see how all of these pieces fit.
There are the beads, and then there is the thread.
The thread holds them all together while still allowing each bead space to breathe, to contribute its own energy to the whole.
And then comes the realization that we are the thread.
All the parts of me are held together by the essence of who I am, that which is beyond the labels.
I am mama. I am wife. I am daughter. I am yogi teacher. I am writer. I am guide. I am mala maker. I am friend. I am all of this and more. These are the beads of self and I am the thread.
Part of my journey involves writing to my community consistently each week to share from my heart in the hopes that my words can lift them, lift you, in some way.
Part of my journey of Sacred Becoming includes guiding you and holding sacred space for you to dive deep and explore your sense of self.
Part of my journey involves sharing words from my heart with you in the hopes that they can support you in some way.
Part of my journey is a maker of Sacred Becoming malas. The intuitive creativity and love I put into the malas I make offer additional support and a deep connection to the earth.
A guide. A writer. A mala maker. All these parts of me I share from my heart as ways to help guide you to your own Sacred Becoming.
Are you ready to take your next steps on this sacred path? Follow me.
With Love and Gratitude,
