I Proposed Under the Noya Rao Tree: This is my Love Story Rooted in the Medicine

Elio Geusa

Founder

Noya Rao love story

Two years ago, I met Estefania, the woman who would become my beloved and life partner. And just a few weeks ago, I asked her to marry me while standing knee-deep in the flooded Amazon rainforest, beneath the canopy of Noya Rao a legendary tree of light. Nothing about our story has been ordinary, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

My path began in Australia, but the medicine called me elsewhere. In 2014, I packed my bags and moved to Peru to continue my apprenticeship with Ayahuasca. Before that, I had spent almost a year with Indigenous tribes in Brazil. Eventually, my journey led me to the Shipibo people. For two years, I lived on and off in a small village near Pucallpa, deepening my studies. Without me knowing at the time, the woman who would one day be my partner was born and raised in that very region. But spirit had its own timing.

We met years years ago in Lima. Estefania had moved to the big city to start a career after finishing her studies, but her roots were always in the jungle. She grew up surrounded by plants, and from a young age, she had a natural connection with the medicines of her land. She knew their names, their properties, their songs. Her grandmother had taught her how to prepare remedies, how to listen to the plants, and how to pray.

When we met, it felt like something out of a dream. She was radiant, grounded, and deeply intuitive. Her presence was like being in the jungle itself: alive, wise, and vibrant. We connected instantly, like two threads being woven back into the same lineage. It was as if the spirits had brought us together.
Eventually, I introduced her to Noya Rao, the Tree of Light, and together we began dieting at AYA Healing Retreats.

Dieting as a couple is not for the faint of heart. The restrictions, the silence, the intensity, it all tests your bond. But we were met with visions that affirmed our path. Spirit beings appeared in ceremony, blessing our union, and showing us what we could create together. The jungle was not just a backdrop but it became a witness, a guide.

Even when we were apart (me leading groups, her walking her own path) I could feel the spirit of Noya Rao working within our connection. Then, during ceremony, I began to see clear images of a wedding. The ring appeared to me in vision: a golden Ayahuasca-style band, engraved with Noya Rao leaves, crowned with a jungle-green agate, and accented by two tiny diamonds representing spirit watching over from the stars.

It took seven months to have the ring made!

I received it just as our Leadership Program was about to begin. This retreat is a rite of passage held deep in the Amazon, helping participants reconnect with their vision, mission, and purpose. Estefania joined the program as a participant. Though we were in separate tambos and the Noya Rao dieta required distance, our connection grew even stronger.
She had no idea I was planning to propose.

After the retreat ended and the group left, we stayed an extra two days to integrate. David, our trusted videographer, was still with us and we had a plan. We would “go film by the tree,” and I would surprise her.

Simple. Elegant. Jungle magic.

When we arrived at Noya Rao, something extraordinary had happened. The tree was surrounded by water. It hadn’t rained heavily, and yet the entire area around the base was mysteriously flooded, as if the jungle had prepared a sacred stage just for us. Thousands of Noya Rao leaves floated gently on the surface, encircling the tree like glowing messengers from the spirit world. We were completely surrounded by them, as if the tree itself had extended its arms in blessing. The water shimmered with life and intention. It felt as though the spirits had not only arranged this moment but were fully present, watching, holding, and embracing us from every direction.

I looked at David, and he gently asked Estefania to turn around for a photo, and when she turned back… I was on one knee in the water, holding the ring. I couldn’t find many words as the emotion was overwhelming. She didn’t speak either. She simply cried and hugged me. There we were, both of us kneeling in the water, embraced in tears and silence, held by the thousands of floating Noya Rao leaves around us. The jungle had wrapped us in its arms, and for that moment, nothing else existed, just us, the tree, and the sacred stillness of yes.

To propose at the base of the Tree of Light was beyond anything I could have planned. Noya Rao was the reason I founded AYA Healing Retreats. It has guided me, healed me, and now it has blessed our union.

This isn’t just a love story. It’s a story woven by spirit, by jungle, by lineage.
Next, we prepare the celebration a sacred wedding ceremony held right there, at the foot of the tree that brought us together, wrapped in its shimmering leaves and jungle silence. We envision an intimate gathering blessed by the presence of Noya Rao, where the forest itself becomes altar, witness, and guardian. Surrounded by loved ones and the spirits of the plants, we will honor the path that led us here and vow to continue walking it together, rooted in the medicine, guided by light.

Let this be a reminder: when you walk the path of the plants with an open heart, they don’t just heal. They unite, they guide, and sometimes they write the most beautiful chapters of your life.