Peru - Master Plant Dieta - Day 1
August 22, 2026
I do not typically begin writing something unless I have some understanding of where it is going and what it wants to be, but that is simply not the case here, so bear with me. Symbolically, this is me surrendering into the journey that lay before me. Writing this has been on my mind for weeks, yet it has never really been a something, simply a spark of light somewhere within my being. I know you enjoy reading about my adventures, and as of late I have have not been writing about those so much, they are still there, but I have been keeping them for myself you might say. This journey for which I am about to embark is certainly not for the faint of heart, in fact most of the people in my life are a bit uneasy about the whole affair, then there are a few that completely understand it, appreciate my sense of adventure, sacrifice to work on myself, and help others . There really doesn’t seem to be any in between, either fear or excitement is the response, and as one would expect, I have been working with both inside myself. It has been an incredible build up, it has been just over a year since I sat at the breakfast table in Mexico with my friends, drinking coffee and eating chilaquiles, when the words came out of my mouth, “I am ready”.
Today I began the first leg of this journey to Peru to do my Master Plant Dieta, but we will get to more about that later. For now, the first stop is California to do a Vipassana. Six days of silent reflection and work in the Redwoods and mountains. As the summer progressed and the energy built up to this moment, I knew this was something I had to do, I trust my instincts even more than my logic at this point. It had to be done to prepare for what is to come, I want to be as clear of mind and heart as possible, so after some careful consideration, I made it happen. I am leaving behind all the distractions and escapes of everyday life behind, I will be spending the next six days in an isolated cabin in silence, alone with only my thoughts, a few books, my notebook, and my guitar to keep me company. I must say there is something really appealing about it all, has been as long as I can remember, I have always enjoyed being alone, even as a child. I am no stranger to this sort of isolation, I have spent weeks all by myself backpacked into the wilderness, but for some reason this feels different…
I have little to no idea what the next 4-5 weeks will hold, but I have decided that I will try to write as much as I can muster about the experience. I am going to switch things up a bit from our regular scheduled programming, and instead just chronicle what is happening, what it is like, what I am feeling, just the ends and outs of experience of being me in this place. Bear with me, as the posts will be delayed, I won’t always have connectivity, in fact you will probably read this after I am already on my way to Peru. I am also going to forgo the normal editing that is my process, this is just going to be raw and unpolished, grammar & spelling mistakes, and some incomplete trains of thought should be expected.
After this week, I am off to Peru, as I stated before, I fly into Cusco, high in the Andes, then will spend a couple weeks in the Sacred Valley to begin my Dieta. This is where things get interesting, not entirely sure how long this will go on, could be for a couple weeks, could be for a month. Each day I will consuming and learning from various plants and the indigenous teacher (Maestro). The diet includes a variety of plant medicines, ayahuasca every other day, and the days in-between other plants, such as Wachuma (San Pedro), Noya Rao(Tree of Life) and tobacco, and who knows what else. This is really a process of complete surrender in all that I believe that I am, completely letting go of the illusion of control. Divine surrendering!
It has been more than a year since I have sat in an ayahuasca ceremony with the intention of my own work, rather than being in service to others, so that is an interesting element to all of this, what will it show me…. The plants always know your purpose and intent and they give accordingly. I have heard the stories about how it all hits different within the sacred lands of Peru, the power of the medicine in this place, the power of the Maestros, the black magic and witchcraft, all of which are interesting new elements that add a layer mystery that I am excited about.
The build up to all of this has been complete insanity yet somehow completely expected, we live in a paradoxical universe. This is no vacation, but rather a pilgrimage of sorts. The medicine knows I am coming, that I know with certainty, so here I come.
I have had many adventures in this life, especially over the past five years, spent many nights deep in the mountains all alone, been face to face with a Grizzly Bear, lived the island life in the Bahamas, traveled more places than I can name, and saw and experienced shit I wouldn’t dare write about here, well maybe I would, haha, but somehow I know this is going to be my greatest adventure yet, because facing the truth about ourselves, has always been and will always be our greatest challenge in this human life. So sit back, relax, maybe get a refreshing beverage, and enjoy the ride I am about to take you on.
Joshua
