First, I want to break news on the recent happenings for Rainbow Cloud Kombucha! The first of two biggest announcements is the creation of our official website. www.rainbowcloudkombucha.com. I had fun learning web design with templates, and am really pleased with the results! Visit the locations page on our site to check out our new locations in Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia, and Portland!
The other main announcement I am proud to announce with Rainbow Cloud is the launch of our 16oz swing top bottles! We have sent our labels in to print with www.diecutstickers.com out of Seattle, and our small bottles will be arriving in stores by March 1st, or maybe sooner! :) Here's a sneak peek of a paper prototype! Our bottles will be available at most of our existing locations, in addition to many new locations who were unable to take our 64oz growlers on due to the size of the bottles! NOTE: It will still be cheaper to buy our kombucha in jugs and on tap, and we want it this way to promote sustainability and minimal waste! That said, there will be a $1.50 deposit on our 16oz bottles, and we will reuse all of them as well!
Kombucha aside, I am having major breakthroughs in the musical field! I just finally set up recording capabilities, and am now recording improvised jams on my keyboards and synthesizers! Check out my soundcloud site for some jams! They aren't super polished or anything, but it's fun nontheless! I've been playing music for over 7 years and this is the first time I've been able to record anything!! My jams are viewable here! https://soundcloud.com/matthew-gordon-eklund
Sound has always been a major influence in my life! I have always loved music, and realize that our entire universe is made up of sound, or vibration, and different frequencies! We refer to people's "vibes," or the "vibes" of a room, or a party, or a waterfall! Man I love Tumwater Falls! That place has amazing vibrations! I've realized that with music I can alter my vibration, and create a sonic shield around me to keep the negativity at bay! Music has the power to unify people, and literally heal our bodies, minds, and spirits! Especially through Singing and Dance!
What I really wanted to share this time is my experiences over the last 6 months with my partner and lover, Erika Charbeneau! Erika and I met at the Okanogan Family Barterfaire over a year ago at sunrise on sunday morning atop of the hillside looking out over the festival. Before we knew it, we were back to back on a rock, singing to each other in spanish, and I remember the beauty of that moment; an instant connection, perhaps divine, definitely cosmic! Here is a photo of us together the morning we met!
Erika is one in a million: she has travelled the world freely over the last 6 years, living in Thailand, Guatemala, Europe, and more! What I most admire about her is the size of her heart, her capacity for unconditional love, and her desire and ability to connect with everyone she meets! She is a true compassionate being, and has taught me so much! We have both been super independent people over the course of our young lives, and it has been a new experience for both of us to enter into a relationship! What had me, besides her beautiful smile and the love I feel inside of myself when I'm around her, was her willingness to do "The Work" of Self Inquiry and use our relationship as a means for inner transformation and healing! This has not been easy all the time, but has led to massive breakthroughs within myself as I observe myself with a willingness to be open, vulnerable, transparent, and willing to communicate no matter what!
Erika and I are similar in many ways, and in many ways we are the complete opposite! We are truly yin and yang; I tend to do things fast and punctual, she tends to forget about time. She loves to connect with everyone she meets, and I tend to be more introverted, and at times shy. In living together amidst polar oppositions, we have found incalculable opportunities for growth, conflict and resolution, and passionate love. She has recently gone to Guatemala to become a yoga teacher, and in her absence I have had time to reflect and see just how much she has influenced my habits and ways of being in such a short time! I am looking forward to joining her down in Lake Atitlan, a magical lake surrounded by volcanoes, for a break away from the daily routine, rejuvenation, love, and inner reconnection!
I am so grateful for everyone in my life, and all the experiences I have had over this short time on Planet Earth! It is not always pleasurable! I deal with intermittent physical pain (right now in my neck), psychological challenges, ups and downs! I've learned gratitude for all these experiences, and especially the peaks! Understanding that there can be no high's without low points, and especially the nature of constant change and impermanence. We are here for only such a short time in this incarnation, why not live it ALL? We may be infinite beings trapped in these Earthly bodies, we may have billions upon billions of lifetimes to live, as taught in Eastern philosophy, and yet, we are Here Now in this time, and this life feels so precious! It feels fleeting, and special! Knowing we could leave this place at any moment, has allowed me to appreciate the pleasures and highs, pain and suffering, that is a fact of life! I would definitely come to Earth again to Laugh and Cry and Live and Die! :) Thank you for sharing this experience with me! Infinite blessings!!!
-Matthew G. Eklund
Rainbow Cloud Kombucha
