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Layla Levy

@beneatheleaf

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Trauma informed social ecology
Occasional garden designs and many other thoughts.
▫️Cultural connections & Umthombo trust

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This magical marriage was you two personified!

Layla & Jake’s colourful day of love helped me understand poetry, why it exists, how it can be used, how you can say so much whilst saying so little, how you can hide behind the words and yet still feel so exposed. Here are some words I shared on the day.

Layla,
When I think of you, I think of your favourite colour
I think of yellow
A yellow sun, yellow hair, yellow flowers and yellow hearts
I think of hands held tight between the sheets, of pillow talk and butterflies, and of a love story that isn’t shallow

The lightest hue on the spectrum
Warmth, joy, compassion and light
Are some of the words that come to mind
All the ones that suit you just right

You were born into a nest of love
Flowers and family watching over you
Your eyes taking in all the world -
Big, curious and blue

We lived in different lands
Our stories in different books
How was I too know I was yet to meet
- the princess of Bibbys Hoek!

We shared a secret friendship,
Where we danced beneath the mulberry tree
Perhaps only in our dreams
A place where we were truly free

We knew each other in those dreams
Before our dreams became flesh
Angles on the beach,
A dream, or a memory we were yet to refresh

And then our worlds collided,
Stardust bursting open
Gently finding our way to each other,
Healing what was broken

We learnt to share a family,
We began to share a last name
You opened your heart to me
And my heart did the same

You carved and whittled and bit by bit
You opened me up so we could both bloom
This is your magic
And the effect you have in every room

You bring us all together
The beautiful sticky glue
Making our family whole
In our centre there is you

Now those families are growing,
And that name is changing lane
The Levys are a lucky bunch
As Layla Levy they gain

What a day today is
Layla, the other great love of my life
We all get to witness you
Becoming a chicken farmers wife!

Theirs is a love story written in artichoke hearts,
Sunflower blooms,
And believe it or not
Solidified in a little teapot gifted to her by our groom

Continued in comments..

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Layla and Jake’s happy vibrant wedding celebration at @highacregarden - 19 September 2026 - a fabulous gathering of wonderful humans in our garden. Thank you to everyone that contributed to making this so special and memorable - @maillardbakingco @cookedcook @ecozest_hannes @beneatheleaf @jake.levy @marleneboyce @waldemarwildy

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Mantras to live by

Sometimes I need a gentle reminder 🌑

Save this for a day when things are spiralling

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Well isn’t this a pretty neighbourhood!

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Everytime i take my camera out and record or photograph I have two very conflicting feelings inside of me.

One feeling is a deep joy. My cameras offer me such joy. I love documenting. I love editing. I love telling visual stories and I liked it way before content was even a thing which brings me to the other feeling, a deep dislike for how I perceive and judge anything online nowadays.

"Oh, they're an influencer" or "i wonder what they're going to sell" or some bullshit monetary thought because its all we're fed all day on these apps.

And that saddens me because I just want to share my home style videos with no negative self-talk about why im creating this or even putting it out here.

Reminder to self: I can share for joy and thats a good enough reason. 👑

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We're lucky to work with such beautiful pallets in the Western Cape. This soft and textured planting transformed a monotonous high maintenance lawn into a biodiverse reflection of the what was once in this area pre agriculture.

(Pls excuse the Yucca it was an emotional attachment thing ;) )

Thanks to @beneatheleaf for the planting design and project management

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In between the storms and the chaos, the uncertainty and the worry, the last minute venue loss and the second venue change - to feel the amount of love and support from these girlies is more than I could ever have imagined possible.
I am SO grateful to have you all in my corner, at the end of it all it has been the greatest gift to witness everyone coming together and showing up in ways we didn’t even know we needed 🤍
Third times a charm, and we are ready for the weekend!

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Light and textures play in this garden that hugs this beautiful home by @terravertahabitats.

We've loved seeing this garden growing in, highlighting and softening the architecture and tying the house into the amazing location on the banks of the Knysna lagoon.

The garden has created a haven for the home owners, and the local visitors as you'll see if you scroll to the last photo.

Thanks to @beneatheleaf for the collaboration and beautiful work.

Photo 1 and 2 by @ruan_swart_photography and 3 and 4 by @beneatheleaf

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Thank you to the Sponsor and to the volunteer, Victoria who organised it💃. You are a ⭐🌟✨ #sponsor #educationvolunteer #fundraiser #environmenteducation #volunteer

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We are so ready for this year after a fruitful reflection and planning weekend together as the Cultural Connections Collective. Excited for all that is growing despite the heat in the Karoo, watch this space!

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Wow wow wow — I am so unbelievably lucky!

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