Lessons from the Garden
African Spirituality, Health, and Holistic Practice
- Publisher: Broadleaf Books (Augsburg Fortress)
- Published: 2026
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Publisher's Description
Unearth the profound connection between health, spirituality, and our relationship with God by realizing that wellness is found in the harmony of our physical and spiritual lives. How we live, practice our faith, and think of God profoundly influences our health and well-being. Inspired by the reflections of a young girl snapping beans on the porch and playing in the dirt, Rev. Lahronda Welch Little's Lessons from the Garden offers us a pathway to the biblical landscape of spirituality and health. From the garden to her grandmother's kitchen, Little discovered a powerful truth: What we ingest profoundly shapes our well-being. Nature's bounty offers remedies for colds, minor cuts, burns, bruises, and even indigestion, teaching us that health is rooted in the earth. Little weaves together personal stories and insights that illuminate these revelations, inviting us to embrace the wisdom of nature as a companion to our spiritual life. With clarity and passion, Little redefines health and spirituality, equipping spiritual seekers with the essential tools to explore the holistic foundations of African American and Kemetic spirituality. She shares transformative practices such as Kemetic yoga, sewing, breathwork, prayer, and biblical study, each serving as a pathway to deeper wellness and connection to the divine. At the heart of Little's journey toward wholeness lies grace. Through the practice of compassion and empathy--first for ourselves and then for others--we learn to adapt and thrive as a community. While not every seed we plant bears fruit, our connection to the cyclical nature of life keeps us attuned to the Spirit.
Endorsements (6)
“Rev. Dr. Larhonda Welch Little has harnessed the desires of her ancestors, brought that into conversation with serious analysis of faith and mental health, and given us a gift. Lessons from the Garden gathers us with strength to face the perils and possibilities of life. Rev. Dr. Little opens us up to the rivers of sacred breath and life that flow in and through us to heal one another. What a timely work.”
“This book captures the fullness of Black embodiment, our breath, our sweat, our stories, our survival. It weaves yoga with the sensory world of our people: the incense of Sunday mornings, the spices of our grandmothers' kitchens, the earth beneath our feet, the memory of those who walked before us. Ah, it is a fierce and tender testament to what it means to heal in a Black body.”
“Lessons from the Garden offers brilliant spiritual practices derived from African and ancestral relationships with the earth. Centering Kemetic spirituality to combat toxic ways of being, this text is resonant with movements seeking care and balance in a world facing increased destabilization, technocracy, and dehumanization. Little invites us to return to embodied spiritual technologies that promote well-being from a communal perspective. Readers are summoned to cultivate spiritual disciplines through holistic healing practices readily available in their respective communities and from the very ground we stand on. It's time to get in the gardens that contain a plethora of abundance for our thriving!”
“Wholeness is our right as living and loving beings on earth. Gratefully, wise and healthy prophets in our time have been chosen to lead, teach, and guide us to know Spirit within ourselves, in earth, and in each other. Lahronda Welch Little is one: a spiritual guide, scholar, and teacher of prophetic wisdom. Her book is a true companion on the journey of freedom, water for the mind, body, and soul. Filled with poetic writing, spiritual practices, and powerful teachings, Lessons instructs us how to breathe again, slow down, deepen our faith, and anchor in hope.”
“Dr. Lahronda Welch Little skillfully blends wisdom lessons about African spirituality and health, gleaned from her grandparents' garden and her personal experiences as a mother, a chaplain, a pastor, a professor, and a pilgrim to the Mother Land of Africa, with profound discussions about spirituality, salvation, health, ritual, ancestors, and MA'AT of Kemet/Egypt. She even demonstrates Kemetian yoga poses to help us embody balance and order! With graceful moves and movements, Dr. Lahronda offers this unique model of ethical care for those of us in search of grounding in holistic health, empowerment, agency, and interdependent well-being for self, others, communities, and the Earth. This is a must-read!”
“Dr. Lahronda Welch Little brilliantly captures ancient, practical African wisdom of the enduring essence of life on Planet Earth as a quest for amiable harmony and balanced equilibrium, to write a commendably practical book on how human wellness is achieved when our physical and spiritual aspects are in tune with each other. Her exposure to her grandparents' knowledge of ancient African wisdom and her own deep-reaching experiences in their garden have given her the lusty strength and well-used opportunity to share wisdom from African American culture and spirituality.”
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