🌿 Meet the Author & Grovekeeper

C’Anna Hanser
(or, as many know me… Aunt C’Anna)

I didn’t follow a straight path to becoming an author or business owner. I’m a story-keeper. A community builder. A creative soul with a big heart and a deep belief in soft places that hold space for healing.

My background isn’t in publishing: it’s in people.
I’ve worked in childcare, management, startups, office admin, and more.
I’m also a 200-hour certified yoga teacher (currently working toward my 500-hour), and I’ve always been drawn to learning: whether it’s reading, writing, crocheting, photography, or just sitting quietly with a question.

I created Essence Grove not because I had everything figured out, but because I needed it.
It began as a story I wrote while navigating illness and uncertainty…
but it’s grown into something much bigger.
A space for others like me: those still learning, healing, and holding space for hope.

My niece and nephew are a huge part of my “why.”
They remind me why it’s worth building a world that’s softer, safer, and more supportive for the next generation.

🌱 About Becoming a Grovekeeper

One day, I hope there will be other Grovekeepers too. I won’t just hand that title to anyone. Not even friends.

The Grove is a safe place. I will protect it, first and foremost.

If you want to help lead in this space, you’ll need to grow with it. Not just show up for the cozy moments, but be present for the hard ones too.
It takes empathy. Depth. Accountability.
When you walk into people’s pain, you don’t get to do it halfway. They need your care, and gentle hands.

🌿 Grovekeeper Expectations:

These are the truths I live by. These are the non-negotiables.

If you say you're in my life, if you say you want to help grow the Grove, then this is what I expect.

Here’s what else I need you to know:

I know who I’m working with.
I know the kids. I know the quiet ones reading these posts.
I know the artists, the parents, the survivors, the dreamers.

I can tell what energy you’re going to bring.
If it threatens the peace or safety of the Wildflowers here, you won’t be invited past the garden gate.

I believe community starts with a few people who really care and grows into something beautiful with time.

I’m here to lead gently, love loudly, and keep showing up for the dream.
Every day. Every breath. Every story.

—C’Anna 🌿

Yes, this sounds harsh. No there’s no room for budging, because the people we want to help, need safety and security.

✔️ What I Expect from Grovekeepers

• You show up.
  For yourself. For others. In real ways, not just words.

• You don’t let people drown.
  When someone is struggling, you don’t say “that’s on you.”
  You say, “I see you. I’m here.”

• You push gently, not passively.
  You help others move forward, especially those with trauma.
  You don’t try to fix or control, you support.

• You lead with empathy.
  Not all love and light. Real empathy.
  The kind that recognizes pain, complexity, and difference, and still stays.

• You trust your instincts.
  If something feels off, you speak. If someone’s in need, you act.

• You don't walk away from pain.
  If your response is “deal with it yourself,” this space is not for you.

• You don’t need to be overflowing with emotions.
  Whether you feel everything or feel nothing, you still care.

• You fight injustice.
  Toward people, animals, the earth. You don’t sit back.

• You take accountability.
  When you add to harm, you own it. You learn. You grow.

• You don’t need to be a “tree-hugger.”
  You do need to be someone who stands for something.

• You do better.
  Not performatively. Not because it’s trendy.
  Because it’s right.

This is for the Grovekeepers.
Not just the helpers.
The protectors.
The ones who say they’re empathetic, and live like it.

If you say you care, but don’t show up, how can I trust you with the youth?

If your life doesn’t feel like it matters to you,
how can I trust you to value someone else’s?

This Grove isn’t for ego. It isn’t for easy.

It’s for those who keep showing up.
Even when it’s hard.
Especially when it matters.