I am a researcher. It is in my blood. So before I signed up to become a member of Young Living Essential Oils, I did my research. Wow. The negativity, vitriol, and blatant lies that abound on the internet have not left the Father of Essential Oils unscathed. One thing that became clear was that there was no evidence to back up many of the claims against him, some of which, if they were true, would have landed him in jail, as opposed to being the world leader of a global enterprise. I chose to see the lies for what they were: vicious attacks on someone who has spent his whole life trying to help others. That is why when this book came out, I could not wait to get my hands on it in order to finally hear the real story in the words of Gary’s wife, Mary Young.
This is a big book; 318 pages with over 700 personal photographs combine to make this a beautiful “coffee table” book. Although I have mine on my natural health shelf, it is a book that is meant to be displayed. It is truly beautiful. I will try not to spoil it too much but, just a warning, there may be a spoiler or two in the following paragraphs.
The forward is written by Clint Walker (star of Cheyenne, Dirty Dozen, and many more) who became friends with Gary Young over 40 years ago and was there to watch as Gary developed his farms and started to grow the family business into what it is today. It sets the stage for the incredible story to come.
The first section details Gary’s early life where his love of God, nature and horses is prevalent throughout. It talks about the horrible logging accident that left him with “3 open skull fractures, a ruptured spinal cord in 3 places, 11 ruptured discs, 16 broken and/or crushed vertebrae, a broken pelvis, the righ scapula broken in 9 pieces, a severed brachial plexus, and 19 broken bones, which included all of his ribs on the right side and several on the left.”* As Mary Young has always said, Gary does not like to talk about his accident that left him with the prognosis that he would be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life; but she was able to put together the compelling story that takes the reader from Gary’s depths of despair to his regaining his ability to walk. This lead to his study of natural health and instilled a desire to help others find answers and solutions to their own health problems.
After reading about his education, the next section talks about the birth of Young Living. To see the labs and the old products that started this company was very interesting. The pictures of the old distilleries and how Gary kept redesigning and tweaking the designs to get the most purity out of the distillation process, is fascinating. The book goes on to tell of Gary’s travels to Egypt, the heart of the ancient world of essential oils. There is an extensive section on Gary’s commitment to organic farming practices and how he developed the Seed to Seal process that goes above and beyond the US regulated “certified organic” requirements.
The reader gets to “walk” with Gary through every expansion and farm purchase. Reading about what he did in Ecuador is beyond belief. After seeing the poverty and conditions of local schools, Gary decided he had to change what looked like a hopeless situation for the children of the surrounding communities, out of which grew the Young Living Academy to teach and enable these children to have a bright future. The section entitled “The Frankincense Trail” details Gary’s time seeking out and purchasing the farm in Oman and his trip into the “Forbidden Zone” in Yemen to seek out and document the ancient frankincense and myrrh species that survive there. Next is a detailed chapter on the Highland Flats Tree Farm, that doesn’t fail to entertain! Then on to the acquisition of the Northern Lights farm in Canada that gives us the amazing Northern Lights Black Spruce essential oil, one of my most favorite oils to use daily. The book does not leave out the plight of the helichrysum plant and its endangered designation that has set up a huge illegal plant trade market in Croatia. Because of this, Gary has set up a partner farm in Croatia to grow and cultivate helichrysum to keep this plant alive for future generations.
You cannot read this book and not be utterly inspired by this man’s drive, devotion, and motivation to bring the world the purest, cleanest, most potent essential oils on the market. Young Living is truly the leader. But don’t take my word for it, get the book and read for yourself. Always seek truth, my friends.
*D. Gary Young The World Leader in Essential Oils, by Mary Young
**Our team of oilers, called Anointing Nations, made the resolution this year to commit to educating our team daily. “YL – It’s a Lifestyle” is a daily post that will be on our private Facebook group. I was asked to write weekly for this, so every Wednesday, I will focus on the YL Lifestyle and share how I live it daily with my family. If you would like to know how to get Young Living products, please message me or follow this link to my website for more information.