Maison Totem

03/13/2026

Nicole O'Connor

Spar: the book of moira ( book 1)

03/13/2026

03/13/2026

Spar; the book of moira ( book 1)

03/13/2026

Ancient Skin Secret — Laurel infused Sesame oil for anti-aging

One of the oldest Mediterranean beauty remedies is almost forgotten today.

In parts of the ancient Mediterranean and Middle East, healers used this simple preparation for the skin because it was believed to:

• calm irritated skin
• protect against microbes
• support circulation
• nourish dry or aging skin

Very Simple Prep: Crush a few laurel leaves.
Let them rest in sesame oil for several days (or warm gently).
Strain.

Just a few drops pressed into the face at night.

Sesame oil carries antioxidants and penetrates the skin well, while laurel contains natural antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory compounds.

Ancient medicine is rarely complicated.

Often it was simply plants, patience, and wisdom passed through generations.

03/13/2026

Ancient Wisdom ( See our Books)
In Gaelic Ireland, medicine was not a random craft.
It belonged to professional lineages, just like; Brehons, poets, judges, or historians.

These families trained physicians for centuries. Knowledge passed from parent to child, uncle to nephew, and carefully chosen apprentices. Some dynasties practiced medicine for 400–600 years.

Known Medical Families

Several families became famous across Ireland and Scotland:

Ó hÍceadha (O’Hickey) – physicians to the Dál gCais and later the O’Briens of Thomond.

Ó Callanáin (O’Callanan) – medical family associated with Connacht.

Ó Lee / Ó Liatháin (O’Lee / O’Lea) – physicians to the MacCarthys in Munster.

Mac an Leagha (MacKinley / MacLea) – the name literally means “son of the physician.”

Ó Bolgaidhe (Boland) – associated with medical scholarship.

MacDuinntsleibhe (MacDonlevy / MacDunlevy) – renowned Ulster physicians.

MacBeth / Beaton family – a major Scottish-Gaelic medical dynasty that served the Lords of the Isles and Highland clans.

Many of these families owned medical manuscripts, copying and preserving texts for generations.

How These Families Were Established

Their origin goes back to the early medieval Gaelic social system (around 600–1000 AD).

Irish society organized knowledge into professional castes:

Brehons – law

Filí – poets and historians

Ollamhs – high scholars

Physicians – medical specialists

Over time, the profession became hereditary because training required many years and access to family manuscripts.

How They Were Trained

Training could last 7–12 years and included:

Herbal medicine, Surgery and wound care

Bone-setting, Bloodletting and humoral theory

Study of Latin medical texts from Europe

Knowledge of local plants and remedies

Students often studied in medical schools run by the families themselves, sometimes attached to monasteries.

A Very Gaelic Detail

Many physicians practiced from hereditary houses called “leech houses” (from the old word liaig meaning physician).

Patients would travel long distances to be treated there.

And in classic Irish fashion, treatment sometimes included:

herbal medicine

controlled diet

rest in quiet dark rooms

and sometimes poetry or music to calm the mind.

The Gaels understood something modern medicine keeps rediscovering:

Healing the body and restoring harmony in the person were the same mission.

03/06/2026

Meet Moira McGinnis.

She believed she was a healer.

Her clan believed she was something else entirely.

Some call her protector.
Some call her weapon.

The truth sits somewhere in between.

If you had to choose — healer or warrior — which path would you walk?

03/06/2026

In the old Irish world of the Brehons, justice had many faces.

Sometimes punishment.
Often restitution.
Always balance.

The goal was not only to judge the act, but to repair the harm done to the tribe.

Law and healing were not strangers.

Do you think modern justice still remembers that idea?

03/02/2026

THE UNMAKING — Book II
The Old Law applies. The line is crossed.

Coming soon on all platforms ( Kobo, Amazon, Google Books, Ingram Sparks)

03/02/2026

“The old law is awake. The Unmaking begins.”

Book 2 of the Saga will be out soon on all regular platforms ( Kobo, Amazon, Ingram Sparks, Google Books)

02/21/2026

For a while now, people have been asking me how to follow what we’re quietly building I’m creating a small, quiet newsletter.
A place to write the things that don’t belong to the algorithm —
the Mental Health & Wellness get togethers ( online and in person), the research, the behind-the-pages of the saga, and other real reflections. It will come monthly, like a friendly letter. Slow. Intentional. Human.
Something you open with a cup of tea, not while scrolling. If that kind of slow space speaks to you, DM me your email and I’ll add you to the list
Just an open chair by the fire. :)

02/15/2026

FR
Un livre en lien avec les savoirs traditionnels et la médecine des plantes arrive bientôt.
Merci à la communauté qui garde ces connaissances vivantes. 🌿
EN
A book rooted in traditional knowledge and plant medicine is coming soon.
Grateful to the community that keeps this wisdom alive. 🌿