01/01/2026
My favorite photo of 2025. Why? Because it’s two of my closest friends in the world, enjoying a rest cycle from the juniper lined sauna we built for them out in Eastern Oregon a few years back. It’s become a rhythmic part of their daily lives. It’s a place they use often and regularly, a place where their friends and locals come to Gather frequently, a place they share with all newcomers and visitors passing through. It’s become a heartbeat of connection within a tiny rural town that grounds me in the reminder of what it’s all really all about…when you take the business out of it and you strip away the glitz of social media and the cultural trends and viral moments. Out there, they are living the sauna life I always wanted for them…and for us all. Just regular, rhythmic moments of cleansing and connection. Out there in their tiny little isolated corner of the world there is nothing glamorous about it, and that makes it all the more endearing. We just need it, it’s that simple. It warms our spirit, it’s that easy. We can shed the day and its heaviness and prepare our minds and bodies for the next ahead. We can find meaning in the joy of sharing in that ritual with others. It just warms my heart to no end to know that we got to help create that for them and that they have made it so deeply ingrained into their lives such that it’s not flashy or novel, it’s just ordinary.
Our 2026 prayer for you all is that you may find an ORDINARY HOME in your sauna practice like this and that we can find the ways to help make that a reality for you too. ❤️ Thank you for taking this journey with us and supporting our 6th year of existence! The fact that we’re in the business of making you feel good is our highest honor and our deepest reward! Thank you thank you thank you for making it possible for us do this work ❤️🙌🏼 Happy New Year and Blessings in 2026!
Xoxo - Halina and Team Gather