Introduction to Mindful Market
‘Tis the season of the holiday market, which means large crowds, long lines and stressed-out shoppers wielding Christmas lists. That is, unless you visited the indoor Mindful Market in Portage Park on Small Business Saturday this year. There was incense in the air and chai in the cups of calm patrons visiting a small number of vendors. The wares included candles for meditation, apothecary kits for rituals, educational zines about healing, and indented “worry stones” to be rubbed in tense moments. Other visitors opted to participate in yoga classes, tarot readings and healing sessions for the body, mind and spirit.
Teacher Lauren Oberlin (right) leads a class at Wildlight Yoga’s Mindful Market in the Cobra pose.
Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
The Purpose of Mindful Market
Hosted annually by Wildlight Yoga, the one-day market is designed to support local makers and healers while promoting wellness. The event happened during an especially challenging moment, according to practitioners. They say they are noticing an uptick in clients seeking alternative medicine and methods to cope with the capricious social, political and economic environment, as well as overstimulation online.
Increased Interest in Energy Healing
“I feel like this year has been really rough,” said Christine Zenino, of Portage Park, a Wildlight Yoga staffer who provides psychic readings. “There were people hoping that, after COVID, it was going to get better. And by 2025, they’re just like, ‘We’re so sick of this.’ I’ve had a lot of people checking in with me lately who haven’t gotten readings in five years.”
Wildlight Yoga founder and director Kelli Wefenstette said more people are expressing an interest in energy healing. The practice claims to manipulate a person’s energetic field to facilitate physical, mental and emotional relief. An example is the Japanese-based method of reiki, in which a specialist moves their hands over one’s body to identify blockages and transfer energy. Another option is sound therapy, which supports well-being through the use of singing bowls, gongs and other instruments.
Wildlight Yoga founder and director Kelli Wefenstette is expanding her business from a yoga studio into a healing arts center in response to increased interest in energy healing, sound therapy and reiki.
Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times
Expansion of Wildlight Yoga
These services and others are provided by Wildlight Yoga, which is in the process of expanding from a yoga studio into a healing arts center.
“We’re experiencing a time where a lot of people have physical ailments that can’t be explained with a standard diagnosis,” said Wefenstette, 40, of Albany Park. “We just encounter so much more than we did when we were children or in our parents’ or grandparents’ generations. There’s just so many more things that our energetic field is being bombarded with and trying to process. And so by working in energy healing, you are helping the body detox.”
Vendor Testimonials
Mindful Market vendor Terrell Boykin said he has also noticed more overwhelmed clients.
“People are looking for moments to be still,” said Boykin, a yogi who also sells candles through his Inspire Natural Goods business. “Whether it’s through a product or through a class, they’re able to find that.”
<img class="Image" alt="Founder Terrell Boykin smells one of his Inspire Natural Goods candles during Wildlight Yoga’s Mindful Market in the Portage Park neighborhood on the Northwest Side, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025." srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6196b52/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7765×5179+0+0/resize/840×560!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fcf%2F26%2Fb7583b6246f984a1ce08b0873a43%2Fmindful-113025-033.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/367f62f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7765×5179+0+0/resize/1680×1120!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fcf%2F26%2Fb7583b6246f
