Cozy Bruja

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit allthingsada.substack.comIn this episode I'm sharing a reflection on my recent visit with my mom and the complex layers of love, grief, and healing that came up for me afterward.It's a tender and personal moment I felt called to share on behalf of every daughter who has ever felt the weight of outgrowing the woman who raised her while still loving her deeply.The first five minutes are available for everyone. The full episode is for subscribers.WANT TO GO DEEPER?The full written version of this reflection is also available exclusively for paid subscribers including the doctor's note she kept all these years, and everything I couldn't quite say out loud.THIS EPISODE IS FOR YOU IF:- You love someone whose pain lives beyond what healing work can fully reach- You feel guilty for growing while someone you love stays the same- You're navigating the tension between your healing and your loyalty to where you came fromJOIN COZY BRUJAIf this resonated with you, these are the kind of topics we discuss in depth inside Cozy Bruja aka my Substack subscription. Join us! https://allthingsada.substack.com/

In this episode:- What spirit was actually calling me toward when I stepped away from social media in 2023- Why true innovation requires psychological safety — and how I had to build that foundation inside myself first- What bruja actually means and why reclaiming it is an act of ancestral return- Why cozy is not a trend but the condition that makes depth possible- The Aries / Leo / Libra through-line that is the map of this entire body of work- Pluto in Scorpio, Jupiter in Cancer — why Cozy Bruja is my literal birthchart- Who this podcast is for — and an honest word for those who don't share my racial or cultural background- How this Substack is structured and why the paid membership now existsMentioned in this episodeMy 2023 farewell video — the intro you heard at the top@AstroCodeFairy on Instagram — her breakdown of the difference between fires signs (specifically Aries and Leo energy) was too good@theFlowerChildBruja on Instagram - spiritual properties of dillMusic: Toribio (Conclave) - Habla https://open.spotify.com/track/4meUQXUhGAATMhvNgCLDS5The Cozy Bruja Podcast on Substack — https://allthingsada.substack.com/podcastWork with Ada ✨ Reiki Sessions (distance) — https://calendly.com/adarojas 💌 Paid Membership ($11/month) — community readings, honest essays, the living room conversation — https://allthingsada.substack.comFind AdaSubstack → https://allthingsada.substack.com Instagram → @allthingsada Your soul was born with a map. This is where you remember how to read it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit allthingsada.substack.com/subscribe

I am so incredibly grateful for this beautiful and reflective conversation with The Hungry Medium and I hope you find the same depth, joy, and magic in it that I did.We didn’t plan anything other than the date and time to chat. Freestyle’d the whole thing and it became a portal.Kat read my Chiron in Cancer live on air and what she read matched word for word what my great-grandmother had told me in spirit. I literally can’t make this up and I don’t know how to explain that except to say the ancestors were loud in the room. We talked about my ancestor work with my father and what happened when I went to DR to relocate him to new ground after a tree uprooted his grave. We talked about death cycles and why I had to stop pouring into my community so I could fully pour my energy into myself and birth my a new me. We talked about surrender. About how just when you think you’ve surrendered, you have to surrender even more. About what it cost me to finally stop running and just be still.We talked about Sala Sessions. How a morning ritual between me and my love became something we felt called to share with the world.And Kat shared what she’s been called into this year. A a road show of healing and connecting with her community IRL. I love this for her and I love this for us! If you’re not following her, get on it. Check out all of her incredible work right here on Substack, especially her Chiron astrology as a healing framework. This conversation is two hours long and I promise you its going to feel short. Press play and let me know what resonated with you the most in the comments. The Cozy Bruja Podcast officially launches on March 20th. This conversation is the door.Love, Ada This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit allthingsada.substack.com/subscribe

In this post:* Why your money "issues" aren't actually about money at all* The feast-or-famine cycle that's been in my family for generations* A deep-dive audio on the ancestor whose story shaped our relationship with money* How understanding your money attachment style changes everything (+ what's coming next)How to read: Read through "The Ancestor Who Started It All," listen to the audio, then come back to finish reading.This is it - the final piece of my Root Chakra Healing series. And honestly? This post might explain more about your financial patterns than any budgeting advice ever could. Because what we're talking about today isn't really about money at all…👀The Feast-or-Famine LegacyI have very distinct memories of watching my mother work her ass off cleaning office buildings every week. She’d often bring all 6 of us to help. While my classmates watched cartoons and ate after-school snacks, my siblings and I scrubbed toilets and emptied trash until every floor was spotless.Monday through Friday, she'd work hard and stress about every dollar. Then, like magic, the switch would flip and the shopping extravaganzas would begin.I'd watch her come home with bags upon bags of beautiful things—towels in every color imaginable, polo shirts in every shade (literally the same shirt in different colors), home goods that transformed our space into something from a magazine. My girl loved a theme and would go all out. One year, we had an apple-themed kitchen: apple wallpaper, napkin holders, fake arrangements, centerpieces. Every surface decorated in red apples, complete with apple-scented candles and plug-ins. A Yankee Candle still hates to see Mami coming!! LOLDuring those moments, our house felt abundant, full, like we had finally "made it."But then, months later, we'd be out of groceries. Or packing boxes again, leaving another beautiful home behind for an apartment that felt like a major downgrade. In a different part of town, of course, which meant switching schools. Again. The cycle was so predictable I started anticipating it: feast, famine, move, fresh start.I used to think she was just bad with money—that she didn't understand budgeting or self-control. But now I understand what was actually happening: her nervous system was stuck in a feast-or-famine cycle that had nothing to do with logic and everything to do with survival.The truth is, my mother grew up in a house where money was scarce and unpredictable. Throughout her life, having food on the table wasn't always guaranteed, and financial security was a luxury her family couldn't afford. So when she finally had money - even a little bit - part of her needed to prove to herself that the famine was over. She needed to feel abundant, even if it was just for a weekend.Those shopping trips weren't about the stuff. They were about temporarily soothing a nervous system that had learned to expect scarcity at any moment.The Pattern ContinuesI inherited this pattern, but it showed up differently in my life. I'd spend months living minimally, proud of how little I needed, how simple my life was. But then I'd move apartments and suddenly need to furnish the whole place in one weekend. I'd go to IKEA and come home with a car full of furniture, decorations, kitchen gadgets - everything I'd been "doing without" for months.Or I'd move to really beautiful places but never fully furnish them because part of me knew I wouldn't be able to afford to stay. I'd set up my office and bedroom - the essentials - but leave the living room half-empty because what was the point? I was already subconsciously planning my exit strategy.Hot Mess Entrepreneurship Throughout my entrepreneur journey, these patterns got even more real. The feast-or-famine cycles of being an “influencer” aka content creator? They were literally my childhood on steroids. One month a 5-figure brand deal would come through and I'd be like "Mama, I made it!" The next month? Crickets. Pure crickets. The unpredictability of entrepreneurship fed directly into my nervous system's existing patterns.As I became more seasoned, I started making "better choices." Every time I made money, I invested it back into my business. Whether it was launching a new business, taking courses, coaching programs, team members, systems - always "scaling" and "investing in my growth." Then months later, I'd be back in famine mode, wondering where all my damn money went.I started asking myself: was I investing strategically, or was this just a new way to feast? Don't get me wrong, those investments were crucial for my growth. But I had to get honest about the energy behind them. Was I making strategic moves for my business from abundance and vision, or was I spending from scarcity and fear? The actions looked responsible, but the motivation was pure survival mode. Part of me felt like I had to enjoy the feast before famine came knocking. And social media? Girl, don't even get me started!!!Social media exploits these exact money patterns for profit, and as a content creator, I was caught in the worst kind of irony. I was promoting the very consumption cycles I was struggling with - sharing hauls, PR packages, products, and outfits while battling feast-or-famine patterns. The platform feeding my wounds was also cutting my checks. WHEW!! For years, I felt stuck in this all-or-nothing cycle that seemed completely out of control. I kept judging myself for being "bad with money," wondering why I couldn't just budget like a regular degular person.Then I remembered something…when I had that stable executive assistant job in my early twenties, I was actually great with money. I saved consistently, budgeted like a pro, bought stupid things of course but was on top of my ish financially.The difference wasn't my character, it was having predictable income. When money came steady, my nervous system could chill enough to handle it properly. But this entrepreneur roller coaster? Especially in an industry like content creation that was still figuring itself out? My system was just trying to survive.Eventually it clicked: these weren't character flaws. They were nervous system responses that made perfect sense for a little girl just trying to feel safe in a world that never felt predictable.The Ancestor Who Started It AllDuring a meditation focused on finding the roots of my family's money patterns, an ancestor showed up - a man from my dad's side who had land that he worked with his hands every day. What happened to him changed everything for our family's relationship with money.I recorded this story as a voice note because some stories are meant to be heard, not just read.Take a listen to the 30-minute audio at the top of this post, then come back here for how this connects to everything I've shared about my family's relationship with money so far. When I understood this generational context, everything about my family's money patterns made sense. The weekend shopping sprees. The beautiful homes we couldn't sustain. My own binges. The inability to save, to hold, to trust that money would still be there tomorrow.We weren't being irresponsible—we were being loyal to an ancestral wound that said enjoy it now before it's gone.Understanding YOUR Money Attachment StyleI've been developing a framework around money attachment styles that explains so much about our financial patterns. Some people obsessively check their bank accounts multiple times a day, the way someone might check their phone to see if their crush texted back - constantly seeking financial reassurance because their nervous system learned that money disappearing equals abandonment. Others avoid their finances entirely because looking at numbers feels dangerous. Some alternate between extreme frugality and shopping binges because they never learned what "enough" feels like.There are those who hoard money but feel guilty spending a dime on themselves, and others who can't keep money in their account for more than 24 hours without finding something "essential" to buy. Some feel shame around every dollar spent, while others use spending to validate their worth.And then there are those who learned that money is just a tool - not a measure of worth or safety.Here's what I'm realizing: your nervous system doesn't distinguish between emotional safety and financial safety. To your body, they're the same thing. So however you learned to get your needs met as a child - that's exactly how you're trying to get your needs met with money as an adult.But here’s the tea on attachment styles… most attachment research studied white families who had the privilege to focus on emotional connection because their basic needs were met. Our families? They were surviving immigration trauma, working multiple jobs, learning new languages, navigating hostile systems - all while raising kids. These weren't attachment wounds; these were survival adaptations.This and so much more explains why my family has been stuck in feast-or-famine cycles for generations.The Deeper TruthYour relationship with money isn't separate from your relationship with safety, survival, and belonging. They're all connected at the root level - literally, in your root chakra, where your sense of fundamental security, safety and groundedness lives.When we understand our money patterns as nervous system adaptations rather than character flaws, everything changes. We can start to work with these patterns instead of against them. We can heal the root instead of just managing the symptoms.Your money "issues" aren't really about money at all. They're about safety, survival, and worthiness. And those things can be healed.The Healing Is in the RootsWhen your root chakra is shaped by early experiences of instability, scarcity, or unpredictability, everything reflects those patterns - your money, relationships, career choices, and ability to trust yourself and the world.The healing happens at the root level. When we understand our money attachment style, we can start making different choices. We can build a relationship with abundance that isn't based on ancestral trauma but on our own conscious decisions.I'm still learning, still catching myself when I want to spend all my money at Home Goods because it feels like abundance even though I know it's really just my nervous system seeking the familiar pattern of feast before famine.But now I understand what's happening. And understanding is the first step toward healing.Whatever your money pattern is, it doesn't have to be your story forever. This is part 3 of my root chakra healing series. You can read part 1 and part 2 if you're just joining me on this journey. Thanks for joining me for this series!If this story resonates with you, you're not alone. Over the past few weeks, I've shared some of the most vulnerable and sacred healing I've ever done - my root chakra journey. From ancestral healing with my deceased father to reconnecting to Mother Earth, to witnessing the money patterns that have moved through my bloodline for generations. This work has been a returning to something I'd forgotten I knew.Today's Jupiter in Cancer cazimi feels like divine timing to open the waitlist for Deeply Rooted - an intimate 4-week experience birthed from my own Root Chakra healing journey. This sacred work isn't for everyone. It's for women ready to be present with their inherited patterns of safety, abundance, and belonging with both courage and tender support.I hold this space with the same reverence I bring to my altar, supporting your journey back to yourself with tools like reiki-infused spiritual herbal baths, practices that honor both your healing and culture, and the kind of witnessing that lets your nervous system finally exhale.Come Monday, enrollment opens for just 12 women ready to commit to being deeply rooted. We begin this journey together on July 16th.If you've been reading this series and feeling like "yes, this is what I need," trust that knowing. This remembrance work asks for your full commitment and presence, trusting what you already know deep down. For those ready to go deeper into Root Chakra healing, click here to join the waitlist. The work is profound, and I'm honored to finally be walking fully in this calling.With Love, Ada This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit allthingsada.substack.com/subscribe

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit allthingsada.substack.com/subscribe

In this post:* Root chakra basics and why ancestor work will change your life* A 45-minute audio telling the full story of elevating my fathers spirit* How this work creates "Legacy Leaps" that heal your entire bloodlineHow to read: Go through the post until you hit "Nine Days of Connection," listen to the audio, then come back to finish reading.Understanding the Root ChakraBefore I dive into this deeply personal story, let me set the foundation by explaining what we're actually working with when we talk about root chakra healing.The Chakras are this ancient system for understanding the energy centers in your body that can bring some real peace and healing to your mind, body, and spirit. Each chakra is like a portal to getting to know yourself better, and honestly, understanding them has been my path to leveling up my entire life along with finding my center when life gets chaotic. I've been teaching this framework for years in my programs Healing Through the Chakras and Business Through the Chakras, but more on why I'm focusing on just one chakra later in this series…Root Chakra 101The Root Chakra is your foundation. It sits right at the base of your spine and literally keeps you anchored to this physical world we're living in. Think of it like the roots of a tree, which is why it's called the ROOT chakra (one thing Spirit is gonna do is keep it simple, ok lol) This chakra is important AF because everything else builds on top of it. It's connected to the earth element and all the solid, tangible things that make up your human experience: finances, safety, security, stability, home and family. All the stuff that either makes you sleep peacefully or keeps you scrolling at 3am wondering how the hell you're gonna make it. Your root chakra is constantly trying to ground you in the present. It wants you to connect with Mother Earth using your physical senses and actually LIVE in your body instead of floating around in your head all day. It channels earth energy up to your higher chakras and grounds higher spiritual energy into your reality.Here's the thing though - and this is where most people teaching about the root chakra miss the mark. This isn't just about YOUR individual sense of safety and survival. Your root chakra is deeply connected to your lineage, to the people who came before you and the ancestral roots that ground you in something so much bigger than just your own life experience.If you're looking for deep healing in any of these root chakra areas (money, safety, feeling secure, creating a stable home, healing family dynamics) start honoring your ancestors, tap into your lineage for help and watch what happens. Legacy LeapsEmbracing the sacred journey of Sankofa and honoring our ancestors is really the ultimate cheat code for healing the root chakra.Sankofa comes from the Akan people of West Africa and it means "go back and get it." It's about understanding that sometimes the medicine we need is behind us, in the wisdom of those who walked this earth before we got here. By reconnecting with that ancestral wisdom, you're tapping into a powerful spiritual technology and source of healing energy that's been waiting for you to remember it exists.Honoring your ancestors gives you this profound sense of grounding and strength that you can't get anywhere else. This isn't just some spiritual trend or a cute way to connect with your culture - this is transformative work that balances your energies and fosters healing from within. The kind of healing that ripples out and impacts your entire lineage, past and future.This is what I personally call Legacy Leaps.That deep inner healing that breaks generational patterns and shifts your entire family line into better timelines. Every wound you heal, every cycle you break, every time you choose differently than the generations before you, you're literally leaping your bloodline forward. It's not something you can touch or measure, but the impact is real and it's powerful. Your ancestors feel it, your future descendants benefit from it, and you? You get to be the one who said "this stops with me" or "this healing starts with me." You start feeling rooted in ways that money can't buy and therapy can't quite reach. You stop carrying shame that was never yours to begin with. You break those invisible chains that had you repeating patterns you didn't even know you were stuck in. Your nervous system gets to exhale for maybe the first time ever because it's connected to a source of safety that can't be taken away. And honestly? You start moving through the world with a confidence that comes from knowing you're backed by generations of resilience, love, and protection - even from the ones who couldn't figure it out when they were here. Ancestor work is some of the most powerful root chakra work available to us. It’s the kind of rootedness that can't be shaken, because it's not dependent on what's happening in your bank account or job security. It's inner safety, and that hits different.This work becomes even more powerful when our families are under threat. When they want us to feel small and afraid - that's exactly when being rooted becomes your superpower. Your ancestors have been keeping you safe across oceans and generations, and no government agency or administration is stronger than that kind of love.Nine Days of ConnectionThe feedback from my last post inspired me to share my full journey with my Dad in audio format. What you're about to hear is the raw, real story of meeting my father through spirit work - the ancestor elevation, the downloads, the family conversations and revelations that changed everything.Take a listen to the 45-minute audio at the top of this post, then come back here for how this connects to the bigger picture of root chakra healing.Moments of Reflection during my Ancestral Elevation - March 7th, 2024Journal Entry from November 22nd, 2024Happy birthday Daddy! Today you would have been 74 years old. I hope your spirit is doing well. I hope you have been doing your work and understanding your karmic lessons. Thank you for visiting me. For letting me experience that moment of meeting you as an adult. It meant so much to me. Loved how you showed me pics of my uncle as well. Thank you for bringing me earth side. For being a portal for me to come into this world. Thank you for Hugo. Thank you for letting me know I'm never alone. For aiding me at the most perfect moments. How blessed am I to be your daughter? To carry your intellect, your passion, your charisma and charm. Your big heart and work ethic. You dreamed big and look where life took you. From the campo to NYC. You weren't perfect but l honor your humanity and your time on earth. May you find the peace and love you've always longed for. My ancestor meditation is dedicated to you. Thank you for the beautiful connections this year. Love, light, and progress to the spirit of Abel Antonio Rojas. Rest in power Dad.Why Ancestor Work is Root Chakra MedicineIf you've been carrying questions about an ancestor, or feeling like something's missing from your spiritual practice, maybe it's time to invite them in. Your root chakra and your entire lineage might be waiting for that reunion.This ancestor work changed everything for me, but it was just one piece of my root chakra healing journey. Because let's be real - life kept lifing even after I connected with my father's spirit.Spiritual connection, as powerful as it is, sometimes isn't enough when your whole world is falling apart and your body needs something it can actually feel. The deeper you go, the more support you need to stay grounded in your human experience.Coming next week: How Earth literally mothered me back to life when my entire reality was falling apart - the real work of learning to trust your body again and letting the land love you when humans keep disappointing you.With love, AdaP.S. Here is the Youtube video of the show I mentioned in the audio - Mother Meets Daughter for the First Time In 34 Years Grab some tissues!!! 🥺😭 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit allthingsada.substack.com/subscribe