Maija West has always known where she came from. She didn’t necessarily know who she was. Her mother was Latvian, and her father is of German descent, yet both made their way, against all odds, to California, where they raised their family. Once her mother passed away, nearly five years ago, West, profoundly affected by the loss, tasked herself with making a decision about which lessons she wanted to carry forward in her own identity as a woman, and which ones to let go.

“When my mom passed,” she said, “I realized how much I wanted to get clear on what core values I want to live by and what it means to me, now, as the matriarch, the oldest woman in my family. It was like a makeover of sorts, part of which involved thinking about what it means to be a woman today, what it means to be a nurturer and what it means to be a powerful woman inside and outside the home.”

The result is “Matriarch Makeover: A 30-Day Invitation.” West considers her book, published in September, a call to action for women to step into their full power as leaders, nurturers and stewards of both their communities and the natural world.

By committing to the daily practices she has outlined in her book, readers can become empowered, she believes, to access tools in support of lasting change in their lives, reconnect with their cultural core values and lead with authenticity and integrity.

This book, says West, offers a path toward greater self-awareness, resilience and personal dignity. She believes it can be a valuable resource for anyone, actually, who is seeking to achieve, embrace and integrate our full potential into daily life. Yet, before she was ready to write the book, she needed to understand this for herself.

Embracing her heritage

West, too, required a “matriarch makeover.” This began with the lessons her parents instilled in her while she was growing up, paired with her own investigation of core values, part of which surfaced during what she calls a “cultural lineage-based” recovery of what those core values mean, all the way to Latvia.

“My father, a Vietnam veteran, is of German descent, and came from Ohio to California by way of Colorado,” West said.

“My mom was born in a ‘displaced persons’ camp during the war and couldn’t return home. During the war, a third of the Latvian population perished or were forced into work or displaced camps. And yet, for those who survived, theirs became a story of resilience. It’s an amazing story, and I’m honored to be a part of the legacy to tell it.”West’s own story began in the Northern Sierra Nevada, where she spent 18 years in a town of 1,800, dedicated to the Back-to-the-Land movement, characterized by living off the land with an emphasis on self-sufficiency, autonomy, and local community.

“Based on their status and experiences, my mom as a Latvian immigrant, and my dad as a Vietnam Vet,” said West, “I understand they were looking for a more peaceful experience. This community really formed me. We had to learn how to get along with each other and to rely on each other. Part of my awakening has been to recognize the true value of culture. This is what “Matriarch Makeover” is about, my relationship with my mom, which was complicated.”

West understands her mother was trying to teach her about culturally driven, land-based practices typical of Northern Europe and that she was the messenger. Yet still, the lessons were hard to accept.

“My mom’s core values are part of my inheritance,” West said. “So, it is important to understand, to participate, and to bring it into my own family as a culture bearer. It’s about connecting with my mom’s lineage and building that into a map for leading my family life and community. through the work I do.”

Powerful pivot

In 2021, West stopped practicing law, so she could turn her attention toward supporting effective leadership and peacemaking, something that was at the heart of her work all along. Yet she is now allowing it to transform her and her work in the community. She understands that her own purpose and the sacred value of her contribution as complementary to everyone else’s own, unique transformation.

“More specifically,” she said, “my work is about helping support women in developing a different type of map for themselves, based on their own ecological and lineage-based definitions.”

When West was younger, she wanted to learn the Latvian language, but her grandfather discouraged this because he wanted her to assimilate into the western culture, because he wanted to forget the terrorizing experiences of war. As a member of a white-looking immigrant family, it was easy to assimilate on the outside, she says, but she still bore a Latvian identity and wanted to be part of that.

“My name, Maija, means ‘goddess of the hearth and home.’ So I already had a name that required I explain myself. I realize it was a way of making sure I would always have to talk about who I was and the name I was given. Even though it was difficult when I was young, I realize this was a gift, which asked that I focus on who I am and where/who I came from.”

West realizes she wrote “Matriarch Makeover: A 30-Day Invitation” for women at a crossroads in life, perhaps a new life stage after graduating from college, having a child, going through a divorce, becoming an empty-nester, changing careers, retiring or going through a tragedy or significant loss — a life change that shakes us up, and we find ourselves questioning whether we have the right tools to handle each stage.

“My book is a love letter to all the women out there who may not feel they have access to the tools they need,” said West. “Can we just give ourselves 20 minutes a day for 30 days, to explore a new way to consider ourselves as a woman, as a leader? I believe we all are leaders of some domain in our lives, and this book creates a path that allows us to choose the tools that are most helpful and explore how we can make choices in our lives to support the dignity of our own leadership definition.”

This past summer, West handed her book to 13 early readers to get their opinion on her message and its delivery. One reader said, “This book should be wrapped in caution tape because, once you follow it, your life might not be the same.” Bingo.

“It took me seven years to write this book, four of which,” said West, “were about understanding that it was a matriarch makeover I was embarking upon. The knowledge in this book is incredibly powerful and based on some of the oldest teachings I had the privilege to access. I did my best to share the juiciest and most gorgeous wisdom and pack the book full of it.”

To order “Matriarch Makeover: A 30-Day Invitation,” or participate in its companion 30-day “Matriarch Makeover” online class, visit www.maijawest.com/shop.