Ailments

IF WE’RE NOT ALREADY ON THE SHELF AT YOUR LOCAL DISPENSARY, LET THEM KNOW TO HIT US UP ON LEAFLINK

By Brannan Bell

“Living and standing in your full divine feminine truth with grace and love is something that no one can take from you”

Meet Mel Cortez. She’s a passionate advocate for the Cannabis plant, a Cannician trainer, a mother and a part of Papa Jesus Farms here in Oklahoma. She’s always spreading the love and it’s noticed and appreciated by many in the community! From my first time ever coming into contact with Mel, and having the pleasure of seeing her at a variety of cannabis events, I've grown to love her and the energy she carries. Mel has all the loving mama bear energy, she cares for people and truly shines her light, with being such an easy soul to connect with.

I had the pleasure to chat with Mel, as she shared her heart with me. I always enjoy digging deep with people and feel that it’s an honor when they choose to open up to me She makes the conscious habit of expressing appreciation on a regular basis, big or small. She embodies her Feminine Divine in more ways than one.

F E M I N I N E F E M I N I N E

D I V I N E D I V I N E

M E L M E L

C O R T E Z C O R T E Z

TO GET TO KNOW YOU A LITTLE MEL, TELL ME ABOUT WHERE YOU GREW UP, HOW YOU WERE RAISED, WHAT LIFE WAS LIKE?

I was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. We grew up pretty poor and lived in the projects with government assistance, until I was about 11 years old when my mom married my dad. He moved us into Scottsdale, where we lived a modest blue collar family life. I had a pretty challenging childhood to be honest. My mother was manic depressive, bipolar with borderline personality disorder, who was extremely neglectful. My biological father was an addict. I was molested at age 7, put into intensive counseling/hypnosis therapy, and have had to learn how to be a human through my parents’ mistakes. Through my childhood, I learned what not to do as a parent moving forward. I’m thankful for the rough upbringing I had, for it led me to who I am today. My step dad helped to change and save our lives, which I’ll be forever grateful for. He’s actually the only parent I still have and I talk to him and call him dad to this day.

YOU’RE SUCH A GREAT FOLLOW ON INSTAGRAM MEL, BECAUSE OF THE UPLIFTING THINGS YOU SAY AND SHARE, WITH A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR. I LOVE YOUR VIBE AND SOCIAL MEDIA CAN SAY A LOT ABOUT WHO WE ARE. HOW DO YOU FOLLOW YOUR OWN INTUITION AND REMAIN TRUE TO YOURSELF?

This was actually a very important thought process to me when I started my canna IG. I’ve had different ones in the past for my hair/makeup business etc, but I felt in my soul this one had to be different. I originally started Mel.purehempstress when the peak of Covid hit and we all went into lockdown. I was managing a dispensary in Claremore, and I had patient after patient coming to me worried, crying about the lockdown and not being able to see each other and connect. So I started a instagram page as a means for us to connect on some sort of level, since we couldn’t have our long daily visits and conversations anymore. I purposely put out loving and funny uplifting posts to ensure others that there was someone that loves and cares about them. I’m HUGE on mental health, and knew that isolation could potentially cause some of my patients to act out of character…by making this page it was a way to express and show love, joy, happiness and a little silliness in a time that was unsure.

WHAT ARE SOME EVERYDAY RITUALS OR ROUTINES YOU HAVE THAT ARE SACRED TO YOU?

I immediately wake up every single day and before I open my eyes, I think and say several things I am grateful for, then I make my bed, take a morning bong rip and cuddle Aries(my cat). That is literally my ritual. I then like to journal 10 things I’ve been grateful for that has happened within the last 24 hours, ten goals I have for myself (can be realistic or not..what resonates with you will stay), followed by which one of those goals I’m going to work on that day…and/or I just release into my journal about life. This is probably the most sacred to who I am…having an attitude of gratitude mindset on the daily. It has changed who I am today.

GETTING CAUGHT UP IN THE HUSTLE AND BUSTLE OF LIFE CAN BE A LOT AND IT’S UP TO US ON IF AND HOW WE CHOOSE TO SLOW DOWN. HOW DO YOU TAKE THE TIME TO TURN INWARD AND FEED YOUR INNER CHILD?

To be honest, the inner child really gives me no choice!! I had a pretty traumatic childhood that I’ve had to do a lot of healing work from. I’m extremely thankful for a therapist that has taught me many healthy coping mechanisms to help calm the inner child, when she goes rampant. I have fed the inner child by giving her something she never got enough of: LOVE, ATTENTION, & AFFECTION. Sometimes I just sit in silence and hug oneself, and tell the inner child how much she is loved and how proud I am of her. I often validate the inner child by eating cake for dinner, or going to see a late night movie at the theater alone, or grabbing up my kids and acting like kids, I dance, tell silly jokes…I act like the child I was never allowed to be growing up.

“Sometimes I just sit in silence and hug oneself, and tell the inner child how much she is loved and how proud I am of her”.

Listen to Mel’s episode on The Cannabis Hangout Podcast

WHAT DOES HARNESSING AN ‘ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE’ MINDSET LOOK LIKE AND WHERE DO YOU THINK IT TAKES YOU?

The attitude of gratitude mindset has completely changed my life!! I actually LOVE to talk about this with people! My therapist taught me this way to ‘rewire’ my mindset/brain about 4+ years ago and I’ve never looked back! I feel by truly embodying this mindset, you’re grateful for what happens no matter the circumstances. I feel grace and gratitude go hand in hand. I wake up everyday saying what I’m grateful for, and continue to do so throughout the day. At first, I kind of thought my therapist was joking…like really how will this actually work?! However, after just a few days I noticed differences in how my days went and continued to say, write or think in the constant state of gratitude which I feel has brought me to where I am in life right now.

“I feel by truly embodying this mindset, you’re grateful for what happens no matter the circumstances”.

IF THERE WAS ANYTHING YOU COULD GO BACK AND SAY TO YOUR YOUNGER SELF, THAT YOU NEEDED AT A TIME AND DIDN’T RECEIVE IT, WHAT WOULD THAT BE?

I love this question..mostly because I love to connect with my inner child to self regulate. I would tell her, ‘Melina, I love you, please be patient’. I’ve had such a crazy life, I’ve lived life backwards in my opinion. I had neglectful parents, childhood trauma, I was a high school drop out, I had children at a young age, toxic relationships, several jobs, which made me feel lost and alone…like why am I here..why did I through all this?! Now it all makes sense. I had to learn how to be patient and love who I am (and have been) in the now. Everything makes sense now that I’ve come full circle and I’m able to relate and help so many others that have been, are, or could be in the same positions I’ve been in before. For the first time in life, I am proud of who I am and what I’m doing to impact and help others.

HOW DO YOU TAP INTO YOUR OWN DIVINE FEMININE POWER AND EMBRACE IT? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE FOR YOU?

I learned several years ago that to fully embody what I feel divine feminine is: by gracefully loving yourself from the inside out, so much that you’re able to stand by your thoughts, words, and actions no matter the circumstances because they all come from a place of love. To love, honor and cherish yourself enough to set the standard and example for not only how you should be treated, but others as well. I can finally look in the mirror and say ‘I love you’ without feeling weird or crying and genuinely mean that. There is power in self love. Living and standing in your full divine feminine truth with grace and love is something that no one can take from you.

ARE YOU A BOOK READER? IF SO, PLEASE SHARE WHAT YOU’RE CURRENTLY READING RIGHT NOW! I LOVE TO KNOW WHERE PEOPLE’S MINDS GO.

I’m actually a HUGE book reader!! I love, love, love to read! Fun fact: I don’t watch television! I own one for guests and kids, but I rarely turn it on. My favorite pastime since I was little has always been reading. It was a way for me to escape life. Then it became an addiction to fuel my brain with knowledge. It’s how I learned to have a healthier mindset and lifestyle. Right now I’m currently re-reading a favorite, (I do this a lot lol) The Power Of Now by Eckhart Tolle. It’s SO good! I sometimes forget to stay in full presence and by reading it again, it helps to ground who I am and reminds me that all I can do is Live in the Now. You’re a huge Cannabis advocate. What do you cherish most about this plant?

I absolutely adore this plant and how it’s changed my life, as well as many others. The fact that we get to have the freedom to medicate with it as we please is what I truly cherish!! There are SO many variations of cannabis products these days and it’s absolutely mind blowing what we’re doing with it. I also cherish the fact that I get to help people through several avenues on the daily with plant based medicine!

IS THERE ANYONE ALONG THE WAY IN LIFE THAT HAS INSPIRED YOU DEEPLY TO BE WHERE YOU’RE AT NOW?

My children. They have seen me through it all. I’m extremely thankful for the support that they’ve given me and continued to give on this journey. I’m hoping that I’m able to be a solid example for them throughout their lives. I pray/manifest that we’ll continue to be the best lights we can be to the world.

AS A WOMAN, WHO YOU ARE, AND EVERYTHING THAT YOU EMBODY, HOW HAVE YOU CREATED A LIFE YOU LOVE ON YOUR OWN TERMS?

By having time for solitude and living alone. I know that sounds crazy…but times of solitude have taught me more in this life than anything else. I learned to set boundaries, meditate, exercise, take care of myself, love who I am, I learned what I want, and most importantly what I don’t want or won’t settle for. I had a wild childhood and was thrown into adulthood early. I never got the chance to learn, nor was taught any of these things. I always wanted to be in a relationship and/or married to feel complete. Only to feel the total opposite. I finally took charge of my life and set boundaries. I’m still carving out the life I want to this day with full grace and love at the forefront of it all.

Are you glad you read until the end? What a beautiful soul! I hope you take something away from this conversation, that maybe you need or inspired you in some way!