The Story Apothecary

By Nana TomovaSociety & Culture Religion & Spirituality Arts Books Spirituality

The Story Apothecary episodes

December 23, 2023 43. The Twelve Months
Story Prescription: A reminder to live in the present to embrace each season of life as it arrives.
A magical story from Bulgaria about the time that all the twelve months gathered together, and what happened when a brave young girl saw them in the midst of winter searching for snowdrops, for new hope.
I wish you all very merry Christmas and a Joyful New Year!
_To support my work financially you can become a a regular patron on Patreon, and you will receive the gift of stories and folklore.
.You can also 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.
_Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music.
31 min
October 21, 2023 42. Daughter of the Moon, Son of the Sun
Story Prescription: A prescription about the moon and the Northern lights. A Saami story of love and loss, of hope and light. A story for the autumn and winter, so that we may find the light in the skies.
If you wanted to join my Wild Women course, a 6 Months Journey into the Wild Feminine through Stories, starting on the 9th November, then find out more ⁠here.⁠

To support my work financially you can become a regular patron on⁠ ⁠⁠Patreon⁠, and you will receive the gift of stories and folklore.
You can also '⁠buy me a coffee' ⁠as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.

Music: Thank you to ⁠In Feathers ⁠for the beautiful music.

37 min
September 01, 2023 41. The Husband Who Stayed at Home
Story Prescription: A story for those who stay at home and don't have their work valued. For women whose labour doesn't get appreciated. A story for the equality and appreciation of women. A story of hope.
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A humorous story from Bulgaria (and all over Europe) about a husband who thinks that his wife's work at home is meaningless and easy. Then one day the husband stayed at home...
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To see my future Story events, courses and workshops visit my website here.

To support my work financially you can 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.

Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music.
24 min
August 06, 2023 40. Little Red Riding Hood
Story Prescription: A story about coming of age, about having courage and about the importance of wise grandmothers.
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Story Caution: This story is for people over the age of 14, not because there are scary wolves, but because it contains some mature content.
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If you think you know Little Red Riding Hood, think again. I share with you the oral women's version of the story from France, before it became a written down and 'famous' version. There is a wolf of course, but this is where the similarities end. A story of women's sexuality and bravery. Enjoy!
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To support my work financially you can become a a regular patron on Patreon. You can also 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.
To join me for the Handless Maiden workshop, you can find more here.
Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music.
39 min
July 03, 2023 39. Rumpelstiltskin
-Story Prescription: A story for naming something which you fear by its true name; a story which cautions those who make promises in haste; a story about giving up that which you treasure the most
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A story from Germany, collected by the Grimm brothers about a miller's daughter who needs to spin straw into gold to save her head. She gets help from an other worldly creature, but the helps comes at a price.
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To support my work financially you can become a regular patron on Patreon.
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You can also 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.
.
Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music.
46 min
May 29, 2023 38. Cinderella (Mara Pepelashka)
Story Prescription: A story for grief, loss, longing and hope.
Story Caution: This story deals with loss and death. Like many other stories, this is a tale for older humans. Recommended age 14+
A traditional Cinderella variant from Bulgaria. A story of Mara who becomes Cinderella (Pepelashka). We all know the story of Cinderella, or do we only know one sanitised, Bourgeoisie version made famous by one particular author? This Cinderella story deals with the grief of losing a mother, tending to the bones, the love of a cow, and of course a slipper.
To learn more about Rewilding Cinderella, follow this link: https://www.wildstorycommons.org/rewildingcinderella

To support my work financially you can become a a regular patron on Patreon, and you will receive the gift of stories and folklore.
.
You can also 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.
.
Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music.
28 min
April 01, 2023 37. The Magic Fiddle
-Story Prescription: A reminder of not trading or giving up those parts of us that are integral to our being.
A story from Hungary about a traveller whose fiddle plays the most beautiful music. But he gives it all one day for something more worthwhile.
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To support my work financially you can become a a regular patron on Patreon, and you will receive the gift of stories and folklore.
You can also 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.
.
Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music.
22 min
January 31, 2023 36. The Spoilt Daughter
-Story Prescription: A story for the freedom of women
-Story Caution: TW: This story deals with domestic violence
A Bulgarian well-known folktale of Bogdana, who was a spoilt daughter and therefore a bad, good-for-nothing wife. But is there more than meets the eye? In a ecofeminist retelling of this story, we might find that there is more than meets the eye to useless, spoilt Bogdana, and her idiot mother. Perhaps their voices have been forgotten, up till now. A story I dedicate to all Bulgarian women across the world, who were only told a singular version of this story. The stories we are told influence the lives we live.
To support my work financially you can become a a regular patron on Patreon. You can also 'buy me a coffee' as a one-off way of supporting me if you enjoy listening.
40 min
December 15, 2022 Invitation to Stories for the Dark
Join me from the warmth of your home on Monday 19th December 2022, to listen to Stories for the Dark.
Stories to guide us through the darkness. A woman who walked in iron shoes for nine years, a woman with no hands given to wild beasts, a woman who lost her son, and seeks him in Baba Yaga's hut. Tales of transformation, hardship, loss and love. We need such stories to guide us through the darkness of winter.
There is no light without darkness. Stories teach us this. They teach us that we can overcome long journeys in the deep forest of life. They teach us that we can depend on our strength when the time comes, that we have enough courage and enough softness to make the journey. For the tree bark is hard, but the heartwood is soft. Both are needed to survive in the forest of life.
You can book Stories for the Dark here.
I wish you a peaceful winter season. Love, Nana

Thank you to InFeathers for the music.
3 min
November 21, 2022 35. The Golden Maiden
Story Prescription: A story of the Woman's Quest, a feminine journey, a story of female initiation into adulthood, and into an awakening.
A Bulgarian wondertale about a girl to enters into an old woman's hut and finds gold; and her step-sister who instead of gold finds darkness - but that too is a gift, if you know to recognise it as one.
Music: Thank you to In Feathers for the beautiful music. You can find more of his music and musings at https://www.instagram.com/in.feathers/
If you enjoy my podcast please leave a rating and a review, as this helps others to find it. If you know a friend who needs this story, feel free to share it with them.
To support my work, and to hear more stories you can find me on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/NanaTomova.
43 min

About The Story Apothecary

From the publisher's feed

The Story Apothecary is a podcast filled with medicinal and healing stories. Nana Tomova, a Storyteller and a Mental Health Pharmacist dispenses stories for sadness and anxiety, and shares tales for…