Humble Enough to Learn from Anybody

Snake Oil, Guns & Buns, and Learning from Anybody

An unexpected afternoon, an honest friend, and the best lesson I keep having to relearn

My friend Spencer  — the man behind the one-minute exercise challenge — posted an article on his website that made me laugh out loud. Three little phrases in it jumped out at me:

“Snake oil.”

“Learning from anybody.”

“At first I avoided Steff.”

Each one made me smile for a different reason. Let me take them one at a time.

“Snake oil”

That phrase took me straight back to a store I once wandered into near Caldwell, Idaho — a place called, I kid you not, Guns and Buns. Two businesses sat side by side under one enormous sign: one sold guns, the other sold deli sandwiches. The people inside were every bit as wonderful as the name. I grew up in a rural town of about three hundred people, and there is nothing I love more than walking into a place and being treated like family from the first hello. This was one of those places.

A jovial man was holding court in the corner — he looked like a beardless Santa Claus in country overalls — and he asked what was taking me to Oregon. I told him I was on my way to teach some essential oil classes. He let out a big laugh and said, “Oh — so you’re into SNAKE OILS, are you?!”

I grinned. I love it when someone says “snake oil,” because it means I get to tell them what I actually find so wonderful about the little bottles. I told him that what amazes me about a pure essential oil is how gorgeously complex it is — a single drop can hold hundreds of naturally occurring plant compounds, made by something far cleverer than any of us. I told him I don’t use them instead of a good doctor; I use them the way my grandmother used the herbs in her garden — as one more good gift from creation to help care for my family’s everyday wellbeing. His jaw dropped, his eyes went wide, and then he just started grinning right back at me.

And then the funniest thing happened. Every time a friend of the owner wandered in, the jovial man would joke loudly with them, then lower his voice and point them toward my corner: “You need to sit down and listen to her. She teaches about essential oils.” I would hush whenever someone new came in so the owners could take their order — and the beardless Santa would wave his hand and say, “Keep talking!”

I stayed a few hours. I made real friends. A few folks even took some oils home with them. As my daughter and I finally walked out to the car, she looked at me and said, flatly, “That was weird.” We laughed the whole way down the road. I had stopped for lunch and somehow ended up with a café full of new friends.

• • •

“At first I avoided Steff”

This one made me laugh — and, if I’m honest, it also stung a little. But I appreciated it, because it was true, and Spencer was brave enough to say it out loud. On Facebook he had always answered my messages kindly, and here I was learning that he had partly just been being nice to me! I suppose persistence won out in the end, because he went on to have some really good experiences of his own. There is nothing quite like a person discovering something for themselves.

Here is what I’ve come to believe: it’s worth caring about people enough to keep gently offering what you think might help — kindly, never pushily — and then leaving them completely free to take it or leave it. My heart is especially tender toward anyone walking through heavy or dark seasons, because I have known some of those seasons myself. That’s the very thing that helped me push past my fear of being “too much” and keep offering a listening ear and a bit of what had brought me comfort. I’m simply grateful the friendship blessed us both.

• • •

“Learning from anybody”

Yes — I am just one more person telling the same old, simple truths.

Food makes a difference. Water. Sunshine. Fresh air. Good thoughts. Forgiveness. Nothing on that list is a secret, and you could hear every word of it from anybody. The whole trick is being willing to listen. So thank you, Spencer, for being willing to learn a little from me — and thank you even more for everything I’ve learned from you. I’ll say it plainly: I think I’ve gathered more from your posts than you ever did from my notes about food and oils. Your challenge inspires me daily to work harder, push through the hard parts, and keep my focus steady.

The longer I travel and teach, the more astonished I am at how much the people I meet end up teaching me. I am grateful even for my trials — because it is my “mess” that has become my “message.”

My whole prayer for this little blog is that whoever is reading it finds some of the answers they’re looking for — to be well in body, mind, heart, and spirit. Food really does make a difference. And essential oils, to me, will always be one of the simple, good gifts I’m thankful for.

With much love,

Steffanie

A few honest notes: I’m a wellness educator, not a doctor, and I share these stories from my own life and experience. Nothing here is medical advice, and essential oils and foods aren’t a substitute for care from a qualified professional — if you’re dealing with a health concern, please keep your doctor in the loop. I’m an independent doTERRA Wellness Advocate, so if you purchase oils through me I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Essential oils are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.