Have you tried going 100% raw for a week yet? If you are a reader of this newsletter, and you enjoy it, then I think you'll have an amazing experience being raw for 7 days - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually! Are you already a raw vegan and would like to learn some new and exciting recipes, could your raw diet use some fine tuning, or would you like to feel better on a raw diet than you do now? - Then I think this 7 Days Raw Program may be your missing link!
We developed this program over time to help people start eating a raw diet in their own homes, eliminating the need to go to a retreat or classes to learn to prepare raw living foods. So, what you get when you sign up is an eBook "7 Days Raw, Shopping Lists and Menu Plans" with simple detailed recipes for raw vegan Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and Snacks for every day of the week. You'll also get two shopping lists in this eBook, one for Sunday and one for Wednesday, to make sure all your ingredients are as fresh as possible! These shopping lists make your job of going raw that much easier! We've made it 36 pages, and easy to print out in one click. The eBook is a pdf file, which you download and read with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader, which most people already have on their computers.
This eBook actually has three full menu plans and three full sets of shopping lists -- one for those who would like to lose weight on the raw diet, one for those who would like to gain or maintain weight on a raw diet, and one that is specifically designed for children with their tastes and nutritional needs in mind. Feel free to try all the recipes from all sections over time for maximum use of this eBook! Some recipes are the same or similar, so that if you want to lose weight, your husband wants to gain weight, and your kids want to try the diet too, you can prepare food for the whole family as easily as possible.
At the bottom of the eBook you'll find a link to a special 7 Days Raw Online Forum, where you can chat with others on the program, exchange success stories, ask questions, and find support!
You can start the 7 Days Raw program any time, but every month we have an official start date specifically so that people can enjoy the program together via the forum. We've seen lots of great support and friendships begin in this forum! We've also seen people keep in touch and stay raw long-term through participating in this forum!
Treat yourself to a raw retreat in your own home now!
Our next 7 Days Raw Program starts on Monday! You can get more information and sign up here!
Listen to Your Body - Blogdate 2/3/10
Received this email from a reader....
Is it absolutely necessary to include fats in the diet? I am allergic to all nuts (even soaked), coconut, avocados, and refined oils. I have 9 bountiful citrus trees in my yard so eating oranges through the day is quite easy. But by noon I am shaking from blood sugar spikes and practically become comatose. I am eating raw to be healthy not weak and sick. I feel better with some cooked starchy vegetables at noon and dinner, but all of the raw food people swear they are poison so I stopped eating them. But now I simply have no energy for physical exercise. Please advise.
My response...
Listen to your own body! - You can receive information from other people, and use it together with what your body tells you... But don't just blindly follow someone else's regimen long-term if it isn't working for you. Every body is different! On the other hand, you may have to allow some time for the detoxification process. Detox has many different symptoms from flu-like illness and tiredness to head-aches and joint pains. What helps is drinking lots of water, doing enemas, and/or getting a lot of cardio exercise. Also, for energy and to help with the shakiness, try eating something intensely green every day - a big kale salad, a green smoothie, a green juice...
Farmacists Desk Reference - Blogdate 1/29/10
I want to tell you about an absolutely amazing whole foods encyclopedia called "The Farmacist Desk Reference" (FDR), an extensive 2-book set, listing all of the individual whole foods and their medicinal qualities/benefits! The author is a raw food enthusiast, and former raw-restaurant owner. The FDR is an encyclopedia of wisdom and knowledge from many cultures both old and new. It is very well balanced between ancient wisdom and modern science.
I use it several times a week to answer questions about the qualities that each individual whole food contains and what benefits the body receives from eating them.
I am also able to look up each specific bodily organ and see what it does and what foods best serve its health and well being. I also use it to help others with their health. It is pretty much my Whole Foods Bible, with tons of great pictures, - and it has clear new evidence for why not to eat meat.
This is the perfect guide if you are a raw vegan and want to know what to eat or if you want to fine tune your diet consistently according to the feedback that your body gives you!
My friend Christopher John says:
I have had the privilege of meeting the author of FDR a couple of times and he is an amazing person. He tours all over Australia teaching seminars to tens of thousands of people many of whom are doctors and Pharmacists who applaud him when he shows them the truth of how amazing Whole foods are and how ridiculous main stream tactics are. He has also had a TV show in Australia teaching children about health and whole foods.
FDR Stands for Farmacist Desk Reference....Notice that it contains the word Farm instead of Pharm.
I would like to see every Family have one of these sets in their homes so we can take back our Authority on our own Health and wellness by creating our own Health Care Plan in each of our homes.
The next 7 Days Raw Program starts Monday Feb 8th! - In just 10 days from now! Sign up now and have plenty of time to get your ingredients together for your personal home raw retreat! Click to join for only $19.95!
Vision Board - Blogdate 1/28/10
Brandi, Jules, the kids, and I had so much fun doing our vision boards on New Year's Eve! We took my old magazine collection that needed to be recycled anyway, and sat around the big table with cardboard, glue, scissors and a cherry fire crackling in the fireplace! Rather than making New Year's Resolutions, we decided to do collages of what we want our new year to be about. The collage could show what we want to accomplish, how we want to feel, what we'd like to focus on, what to give, what to receive, etc... and then we can keep this on our desks and let them inspire us and remind us of our goals!
I took my time going through the magazines and just cut out pictures, words, and phrases that appealed to me. Then started laying them out on the cardboard, big pictures in the background, smaller ones and words on top. My theme ended up being about me in nature, which is where I would like to spend a lot more time. The main graphic represents taking this plunge in to a more vibrant nature-oriented existence, and then all the words and little pictures are so many little positive affirmations of things I'd like to experience, do, have, and be... It makes me happy just to look at it! :)
We see in pictures, in our brains. So I think that a visual affirmation is very powerful to elicit change in ourselves. Words are powerful too, of course, setting us on the course of our lives for better or for worse. Sometimes we can say things we aren't sure we mean only to find ourselves living the results of these words. Should we be careful what we ask for? I don't know. I think it is great to manifest something rather than nothing, even if we change our minds and decide we want something else. At the least we'll find out what we don't want.
In some ways I take affirmations and manifesting with a grain of salt. Most of the things we ask for are whims that have little import on the grand scheme of things. Our fondest dreams often turn to ashes in our hands once we acheive them. It seems to me that God's will is more likely to be the best thing for us, and all concerned. I imagine His Master Plan takes everyone's desires, decisions, intentions, and well-being in to consideration every moment and calculates the best possible outcome for all based on all this constant information, like an ultimate computer program, but with heart and magic, able to compute a new plan every instant.
One thing I've realized of late is that everything is set up to work for the greatest good of all beings, -- including ME! :)
So when we hope for things to be a certain way, and yet pray that God's will be done in our lives, I think this generates a healthy balance in which we can be co-creators of our lives and still experience that greatest good, and still contribute to the greatest good of all beings.
I hope I don't offend anyone talking about God. Sometimes when I do, I offend Christians as I may not always have traditional views, and I offend non-religionists who don't expect talk about God on a health site. So I try to keep it to a minium, but to me, everything relates to health, and our relationship to the universe plays a part in our health. But let me say, as a disclaimer, that I don't claim to know anything about anything.... I'm just sharing some of my thoughts here, that I am having on my journey... and hoping they might inspire someone on their own journey....
In Joy!
Jinjee
The next 7 Days Raw Program starts Monday Feb 8th! Sign up early and get ready to go raw! Click to join!
I bet every fruit and vegetable is a miracle food on this level....
The Amazing Cucumber
This information was in The New York Times several weeks ago as part of their "Spotlight on the Home" series that highlighted creative and fanciful ways to solve common problems.
Ý
1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.
2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber.Ý Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.
3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower?Ý Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.
4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds?Ý Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long.Ý The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.
5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool?Ý Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite.Ý Works great on wrinkles too!!!
6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache?Ý Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!!
7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.
8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes?Ý Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.
9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge?Ý Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!
10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa?Ý Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber with react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.
11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints?Ý Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemcials will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.
12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel?Ý Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.
13. Using a pen and made a mistake?Ý Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!
Blogdate 1/13/10 - Shale's Snow Sundae
Shale and Adagio make a Snow Sundae....Raw Vegan kids invent their own treats...Here's the recipe, as told by Shale, age 8 and Adagio, age 5. Many variations possible. Please make only if clean snow is available....
Retreat Update: Due to snow we are moving this weekend's retreat down to a beautiful retreat center in Ojai where it is 70 degrees and sunny! We have one private room and one discounted spot available!
I am no beauty queen, but I realize now that I have been somewhat attractive to certain people. And I also realize that the people I am attracted to are not typically beautiful either. I think I have realized what the nature of the attraction has been. Here's the thing for us beauty seekers to understand: I believe that consciousness itself is very attractive!
I am not the most conscious person in the world, but even the little level of consciousness that I have grown into gives me a certain gravity, I believe. Gravity is a good word, because consciousness is a potentially infinite thing, and the bigger your consciousness, the more gravitational pull you would have.
Consciousness is probably one of those words that means different things to different people. It could have a billion different meanings. To some it might mean God, The Universe, Cosmic Mind, the Collective Consciousness of All Mankind, caring about the greater good of all beings, being in touch with love, truth, the intense wonder of every moment of life.
There are so many different things to be conscious of. One person might be considered conscious because they are conscious of what is really going on in the world politically, another might be conscious about the true nature of health, another about deeper levels of spirituality. We're all conscious of something. Hopefully at least we are all conscious as in somewhat awake some of the time.
But maybe the more awake you are, the more conscious. It is like consciousness is the health of your spirit. If you are fit in body, you vibrate at a high rate and that is attractive. If you are fit in spirit, you vibrate at a high rate and that is attractive too. And I think the path to becoming more and more awake would be a different path for each of us....We would have to follow our own heart's or God-within-our-heart's leadings.
I used to have trouble drinking green smoothies with an orange juice base, however Jules has been making some green smoothies with orange juice that taste and feel absolutely great! Here are her recipes....
Simple Green Smoothie
1 banana
1 peeled orange
1/2 bunch kale
1/2 bunch romaine
About 16 ounces orange juice
Pineapple Berry Green Smoothie
A few pieces pineapple
1/2 pack blueberries
A few strawberries
1 pear
1/2 bunch chard
1 bunch parsley
About 16 ounces orange juice
Blueberry Pear Green Smoothie
1 banana
1 cup blueberries
1 pear
1 peeled orange
1/2 bunch collards
1/2 bunch red leaf lettuce
About 16 ounces orange juice
These make a whole vitamix container of smoothie, about 2 liters! Using fresh squeezed oj makes it sweeter, allowing for more greens than when just using water. Experiment with different fruits and greens: bok choy, cilantro, spinach, different varieties of kale and lettuces, etc.
Retreat Update: Due to overwhelming demand, we are offering 2 additional spaces for our annual retreat coming up this weekend Jan 15th - 18th. These are for spaces on the couches in the living room, and therefore are discounted. Email me for details: jinjeetalifero@gmail.com --- http://www.TheGardenDiet.com/retreat
Going Raw and Detoxing While Nursing - Blogdate 1/9/10
I just received this letter this morning from a concerned Mother....
I am currently nursing my 21 month old, and i have been trying to figure out how i can make this transition to raw without totally interfereing with nursing. I wanted to start off with the Master cleanse starting this weekend, but i dont think it is a good idea for the breastmilk. I was wondering if you thought juicing, and just going completely raw before i do the mastercleanse would be better untill we are done breastfeeding? This will be my first time going raw. I have been a vegetarian for a year now, but my body and mind are ready for raw! I am 27 now, and really need to change. I feel tired, achy. My skin and body are just toxic! I dont want to cut out nursing my son. But i need the change now!
This was a difficult response to a common question, but here it is....
I think this subject has a lot to do with our belief systems. It is such a mysterious subject and there really are no answers out there. All I have come up with is that I believe in the body's ability and intelligence to not detox through our milk. From what I've read, detox occurs only through the breath, the elimination organs, the lymphatic system, and the skin. This is why I recommend that people drink lots of water, do cardio workouts, and do enemas while detoxing. Also, just watch how your baby reacts to your changes in diet. There would be warning signs before any serious trouble started... breakouts, irritability, diarreah, weight loss, loss of energy.... If any of these occur with your baby, you would want to return to whatever works for your baby....or make slight adjustments until you find something that works for you both. My holistic nature tells me if something works for Mom it should work for baby too, though....Best of luck!
The truth comes out! This article below claims that fruits and vegetables are more important than dairy for healthy bones!
The Acid Alkaline Balance: Our pH Balance, or Acid/Alkaline balance is an indicator of our health. An acidic body is more prone to disease, and an acid environment, which is created by a diet of meat, dairy, and junk foods is a breeding ground for cancer. Keep in mind when reading the article below that the raw diet is a very alkaline diet. All vegetables and fruits are alkalizing to the body. Even citrus fruits which one would think high in acid, are alkalizing in the body. However, overeating causes acidity, so this would be a way that vegetables and fruits could turn from being an alkalizing force to being an acidic force.
Calcium Absorption: In Victoria Boutenko's excellent book "Green For Life", she cites studies that show that the calcium in vegetables and especially in dark leafy greens is more easily absorbed by the body than the calcium in dairy. This article would seem to support these studies.
Here is the article from the LA Times, from this past August....
"Fruits and vegetables, good for the bones?"
NUTRITION LAB
For proponents of a low-acid diet, vinegar and citrus aren't the suspects -- meat and dairy products are.
August 24, 2009 | Elena Conis
Don't think dairy when it comes to building strong bones, say proponents of the low-acid diet. Focus instead on a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, these nutrition scientists say.
The low-acid diet (also called the alkaline acid diet) has been the subject of scientific debate of late, as doctors and researchers question what, precisely, it takes to keep bones strong. The thinking behind the diet goes like this: Blood is slightly alkaline, with a pH just above 7. If the diet is rich in acids, the body tries to restore alkalinity by eliminating minerals, including potassium, magnesium and calcium, which the blood essentially pulls from the bones.
Following a low-acid diet doesn't mean avoiding vinegar and citrus fruits. On the contrary, it means not overloading on proteins, which are made up of amino acids that, as the name suggests, are acidic in nature. Low-acid diet adherents point out that because humans did not evolve on a diet heavy in meat and dairy, the modern Western diet, which is rich in animal proteins, may be contributing to illness and disease -- including osteoporosis.
That's the theory. What about the science?
"There's good evidence to suggest that pH in diet can make a difference" when it comes to bone health, says Dr. Bart Clarke, an endocrinologist specializing in osteoporosis and an associate professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
However, Clarke adds, the difference is small.
The theory was first proposed in the 1960s by scientists who hypothesized that human bones might be giving up calcium to compensate for pH imbalances caused by protein-rich Western diets. Evidence to support the theory accumulated in the 1980s, as scientists began to show that in rats, even small shifts in pH (such as a drop to pH 7.15 from 7.25) increased bone loss up to six-fold.
In test tube studies, acidity was shown to ramp up the activity of osteoclasts, cells that promote bone loss, and dampen that of osteoblasts, cells involved in bone formation.
Small studies in humans soon began to suggest that the body excreted more calcium, or less, depending on the acidity of the diet.
In a 1994 study by scientists at UC San Francisco that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, calcium levels in urine decreased in 18 post-menopausal women who took potassium bicarbonate daily to neutralize the acid in their diets. The authors concluded that taking the potassium bicarbonate reduced the women's bone loss and increased bone formation.
You may have seen my Pear Magazine interview with Teresa Jordan, who at 52 is a role model for me with her raw glow and beautiful vibe! Well now she and Dr. Ariel of Women Go Raw have written a book about how to exactly do Teresa's secret of having a flat tummy at 52 - a 5 day juice fast that she does each season! This is a must have for anyone who wants to achieve outstanding health at any age!
SECRETS to a 5 Day FUN Juice Fast!
by Teresa Jordan and Ariel Policano, ND
E-book, PDF Format, $14.95,
Teresa Jordan, 52-year young raw vegan endurance athlete and Dr. Ariel Policano, naturopathic physician, team up on this incredible guide to a 5-Day Juice Fast. Pictures galore! All recipes included for your fast! Lots of delicious green juice recipes! Teresa's creative JUICE SOUPS! TIPS! Lose weight, feel renewed, and improve your health in just 5 days! You will LOVE THIS FUN JUICE FAST!
Download immediately: http://tinyurl.com/rawt5
Note - You can meet Teresa at our Jan 15th annual retreat in Southern California! She will hang out and work out with us for a day, speak, and demo a recipe or two for us! We still have 2 spaces left! This is our only retreat this year! -- sign up quick! http://www.TheGardenDiet.com/retreat
In joy!
Jinjee
LandShare - Blogdate 1/4/10
I just received this email from a woman in the UK....
Just thought you might be interested to know about a green community initiative we have here in the UK called 'Landshare.' Land owners can link up with growers and helpers to cultivate and grow fruit and veg in exchange for a reasonable amount of the produce.
I have just linked up with a lady who grows organic fruit and veg. She is very experienced, very green and very knowledgable and a retired countryside ranger. I have loaned her use of a portion of my land to grow on in exchange for her help, advice and some of the lovely fresh organic produce. (organic produce is very expensive in the UK, also a great solution if you don't have the time, know how or inclination for gardening)...and my children get to help out too. It is a total win win!
We are in the process of digging the beds, erecting the polytunnel and transfering her fruit trees from the council allotment which she has been renting, starting off two huge compost heaps and creating a habitat to encourage more birds, and other wildlife. I can't wait to get planting and to get my children involved. We have had all this land sitting doing nothing for the last two years since we moved here and now thanks to this great initiative I can see a way forward....once the frost thaws!!!
-- Note from Jinjee: That sounds like a great idea. I wonder if there is anything like this in the US. I guess people with extra land could just advertise on craigslist that they are looking for someone to garden their land in exchange for a share of the produce grown. But it would be nice if there was a website to co-ordinate this.
LandShare is a new social enterprise, founded to create direct links between land, food and people.
We aim to re-shape the food supply of Britain and the world.
Avatar movie review - Blogdate 1/3/10
We saw the new movie Avatar and I was just amazed! I was sure I wouldn't like it, thinking that it would just be a lot of special effects as they spent $500,000,000 making it. For that price, you should be able to make a world, and they did! It was a very beautiful world where the people just radiated health and were built very lean but very powerful - they reminded me of my children. They lived in nature and were very connected to nature, being able to connect their DNA to animals and plants via the ends of their tails which could intertwine with similar tendrils on the animals and plants of that world. If you don't like a lot of action and high tech battle scenes, this might not be a good movie for you to see, but the point of it was that the industrial war machine was just totally out of control with its greed to the point where it had no regard whatsoever for life. The beauty of the film was otherworldly and the whole package just felt like a whole new level of film-making - totally outside the box. 7 thumbs up from our family! :) http://www.avatarmovie.com/index.html
PS - Don't forget today is the last day to sign up for the 7 Days Raw Program starting tomorrow.. Well, you could sign up tomorrow but it is better to sign up today so you can start shopping and be ready by tomorrow morning! Click to join!
Desire is The Healthy Beginning! - Blogdate 1/2/10
The Desire to Create, is strong in me today. I wish to create a new website for the Garden Diet. I wish to make a CD of my music. I wish to sing. I wish to write songs. I long for this time. I am lying in bed reading to my children. And I recognize that this desire in me is a wonderful thing to have. The longer I have this desire, and the stronger it grows, the better my creation will be. This desire to create is a huge part of the creative process. Without it, how deep will it be? Without it, how much meaning would it have? Without this desire, my creation would be empty.
The desire itself, rather than something to be frustrated about, is now an important part of the creative process, is now cherished, cultivated, felt deeply, enjoyed. What is in this desire? It is of my mind - something that I wish to say, to express, to share, to impart, to teach, to inspire, to uplift. It is of my spirit, something that must be, the creative drive that exists in us all. And it is very much of my body, something that I have energy stored up for, that my cells are excited to manifest.
It is the same with a desire for anything, for health, for strength, for energy....The desire is a blessing, a gift. It is the foundation of what you create in life. It is a necessary ingredient for change!
One Day Water Fast - Seven "Healizations!"- Blogdate 12/3/09
I had some amazing realizations, or as Storm calls them "Healizations"....
Healization #1. When fasting, I have more energy for others. I enjoyed focusing on helping others get their wants and needs met, without worrying about my own. It cut down on a lot of the stress. I noticed things others didn't when they were eating. Eating takes a lot of mental energy, it seems!
Healization #2. I had more energy for thinking. I had so many wonderful thought, insights, ideas, realizations, -- vivid, clear, organized, passionate, energetic thoughts!
Healization #3. It was easy to stay on the water fast after saying no once or twice to food. It just became a habit. The clarity of the boundary here seems to be key for me. The first day, as I had let fruit in to my fast, it became harder to distinguish where I should draw the line. Or rather, it was easier for my mind to finagle a little extra food in to my "Fast". On the other hand, today, I was surrounded by the most delicious foods all day, prepared two awesome meals for the kids when we got home, and didn't even lick my fingers! :)
One Day Water Fast - Seven "Healizations!"- Blogdate 12/3/09
I did it! I did a one-day water fast today, to jump-start me as I was doing poorly with my first two days of my green juice fast! I knew I could do the water fast as I did one recently and felt great!
Wow! I have so much energy right now, I don't know if I can sit here and write this!
OK, I was pretty down yesterday as I was nibbling on food as I was preparing it for my children, and I didn't have any green juice the first day as we were snowed in and couldn't shop for the greens. My emotional state has been a little wacky lately and I was starting to doubt that I could do this fast! - I was feeling so dependent on eating to handle my emotional state. But I didn't get toooo down on myself, although I didn't know how I was going to do get my mind in the right space to start fasting. However last night I remembered my friend Kriya's advice (that I believe she gave in the forum)...to start with a day of water fasting.
Kriya is the woman who started this feast! She is a member of our raw vegan village core group, a "wise woman", veteran juice feaster, water faster, and raw vegan for many many years. She is ageless, but has many years of experience on this planet!
So, I decided to take her advice and do water for a day. I figured it would help me with my loosey-goosey boundaries. And it did!
We did an all-day trip to Ojai to take care of business and do some shopping, - the whole family! We went to lunch at The Farmer and The Cook Cafe where I helped my kids put together their salads at the salad bar. They ate while I shopped for my greens. How lucky to have that all-organic farm store in Ojai! I got some beautiful kale, spinach, carrots, cucumbers, apples, lemons, bell peppers, celery -- I'm so looking forward to making my green juices tomorrow!
I had some amazing realizations, or as Storm calls them "Healizations"....
Healization #1. When fasting, I have more energy for others. I enjoyed focusing on helping others get their wants and needs met, without worrying about my own. It cut down on a lot of the stress. I noticed things others didn't when they were eating. Eating takes a lot of mental energy, it seems!
Healization #2. I had more energy for thinking. I had so many wonderful thought, insights, ideas, realizations, -- vivid, clear, organized, passionate, energetic thoughts!
Healization #3. It was easy to stay on the water fast after saying no once or twice to food. It just became a habit. The clarity of the boundary here seems to be key for me. The first day, as I had let fruit in to my fast, it became harder to distinguish where I should draw the line. Or rather, it was easier for my mind to finagle a little extra food in to my "Fast". On the other hand, today, I was surrounded by the most delicious foods all day, prepared two awesome meals for the kids when we got home, and didn't even lick my fingers! :)
Healization #4. My synapses are firing faster. Not only did I feel like I had a jet-pack strapped on me, but I was able to move faster, preparing the food, cleaning, putting away the foods, and even now typing, much faster than usual.
Healization #5. As I mentioned, I didn't think i could do this fast, due to my emotional state. But I started anyway, thinking I would have great difficulty, that I would have to "face" my emotions and that this would be challenging, but an amazing shift happened! My emotions got in line! I just became happier and happier through the day. Maybe fasting is a "high". Maybe it is a cure for depression! I just amazed.
Healization #6. I am drinking more water!!! Of course, whenever I felt hungry today, I drank water. I have been having trouble drinking enough water. I've never been a big water drinker. But joyfully, I'm drinking a ton, and loving it! I believe in the rejuvenating, healing power of hydration, and I think it will help me to not wrinkle if I drink enough.
Healization #7. I'm clear as a bell. Not only do I have more energy for thinking, but way more clarity too! What a lovely combination! How do we survive walking around in a total brain fog all the time???
I think this experience could inspire me to become a very light eater in future! I will not think so much about meals, or feel like I have to eat at each one, but will aim in general to eat only when truly hungry, enjoying the mental, emotional, and spiritual clarity of "traveling light"!
(Will I be able to find this balance? Yes!!! I believe I will.... I see my friend Teresa doing it.....She has amazing balance, and fasts for three days each season. It IS possible!!)
My favorite part of turkey was always the stuffing! And today I accidentally made something that tasted a lot like the stuffing my Dad used to make! I was attempting to make a sticky rice immitation for sushi, but didn't have the almonds I usually use for this recipe, so used brazil nuts instead. It turned out not quite right, and in my efforts to fix it, it began to taste like stuffing. So I added some more things to make the taste and texture even more like stuffing. The result was so yummy that the kids ate every bit of it, wrapped in nori with avocado and tomato and carrots, before I could get off the phone which had rung right as I was setting the table! :)
Here is the recipe for raw vegan stuffing! - which I'm not sure what we could stuff this in to -- I guess it would be delicious stuffed into tomatoes, peppers, or lettuce leafs, for instance!
2 cups brazil nuts
meat of one young coconut
1/2 cup of Laver seaweed (wild atlantic nori... Wakame will do fine too)
teaspoon fajita seasonings
teaspoon salt
teaspoon honey
I would add the seeds of one pommegranate to this too
1. Blend up the brazil nuts in the blender or Vitamix until powdered. (actually they won't exactly powder like almonds, but make something more like a paste)
2. Put the meat of one young coconut in a food processor. Add the powdered brazil nuts, laver, fajita seasonings, and salt.
3. Put the mixture in a bowl and stir in a teaspoon of honey and the pommegranate seeds
4. Try this stuffing in hollowed out tomatoes or red bell peppers, or just wrap it up in any kind of lettuce or green, like romaine lettuce or dinosaur kale!
After my cacao talk, and victory, which I am going to tell you about soon, I was blessed with this feeling of being in heaven. It felt like I was in perfect health, in mind, body, and spirit. And that feeling is so crystal, so bright, so blissful.
This kind of glistening health is a feeling that happens when your mind is healthy, your body is healthy, and your spirit is healthy.
I'm sure this is different for each person, but for me, - here's when I feel totally healthy in that holistic way where every part of me is in harmony....
My mind is healthy when I am dealing with my challenges head-on, when I am focused on all that I have to be grateful for, and when I am allowing this feeling of gratitude to well up in my heart. That's a great feeling!
My spirit is healthy when I am praying regularly enough to have an ongoing type of communion with my Creator, where I can feel our connection, notice His presence in my life, and am conscious of all the wonderful gifts of life I am receiving moment by moment.
My body is healthy when I am free of addictions, when I am eating the foods that God made to grow on this earth, in their naturally unheated state, when I am including green foods in my diet, and when I'm getting enough sleep, water, and exercise.
I should mention the addictions I battle with from time to time...
- overeating, raw cacao, too much salt, negative thinking.
Here are some addictions that I have had in the past that it really feels like I am through battling....
- depression, cooked food, dairy.
And way back about 20 years ago I was also addicted to cigarettes. I have also indulged in some alcohol and recreational drugs in my party days and though I never thought I was addicted to them, I now think I may have been a little addicted to them from time to time. Whether or not I was addicted, they definitely did have an effect on my spiritual, mental and physical health for much longer than one would expect.
In closing, I am just amazed how a day like today can feel like I am truly living in Heaven on Earth. I would be so grateful to have experienced even one day of this type of vibrancy. And I am grateful to be spending more and more time in this state. It is not easy to achieve. I am grateful to be 42 and I think I'm a late bloomer because many things that I've worked on for a long time are finally just starting to come in to alignment, to make sense, and to suddenly seem easier. And it was worth the work! I am not taking this for granted. I know that I am being given opportunities to make choices that will allow me to live long and prosper. And I know that with prayer, gratitude, and integrity I can achieve this for the greater good of all. I am able to do this because of all the amazing people who shine their light, and I want to be that kind of light for others too.
Blogdate 8/31/08
In to every great movement some drug seems to enter in to the picture to disempower the participants. The drug of choice in the raw food movement seems to be raw cacao. Highly addictive, with an endless shelf-life, often made in to packaged treats that include clogging coco and coconut butters and lethal lecithin, I have personally noticed that when I eat cacao, I start to look depleted very quickly.
20 Ways to tell if you are addicted to raw cacao:
1. You have raw cacao every day, sometimes more than once.
2. You blog and twitter about raw cacao daily.
3. You think you aren't addicted but you can't stop eating it because it gives you energy.
4. On days when you don't have raw cacao, you feel tired and lethargic.
5. On days when you don't have raw cacao, you feel foggy-brained.
6. You eat more and more raw cacao all the time.
7. After eating raw cacao you experience heart palpitations, increased heart rate or a pounding heart, and continue to eat it.
8. You can't sleep at night when you've eaten raw cacao that day.
9. You stay awake on raw cacao all night more than once a week.
10. You stay awake on raw cacao two or more nights in a row.
11. You feel dizzy after eating raw cacao, but continue to eat it.
12. You get migraine headaches from raw cacao, but continue to eat it.
13. You will leave your house just to buy raw cacao.
14. You eat raw cacao regularly and are gaining weight in tummy region for no good reason.
15. You eat raw cacao regularly and have lost interest in greens.
16. You kick raw cacao and then feel like its OK to eat it again.
17. You eat more than two tablespoons of raw cacao at one sitting.
18. You look depleted after eating raw cacao, and continue to eat it.
19. Your emotions become topsy turvy when you eat raw cacao, but you don't stop.
20. You realize raw cacao is bad for your body, but feel that you should be allowed one addiction, if its raw.
Blogdate 8/29/08 - We watched The 11th Hour wih Leonardo Di Caprio. Its out on DVD, you can get it at Netflix! Great film seabout how the world is changing, how our over-consumption of goods is bringing about global warming and how we need to do something now to stop this. The film showed a lot of solutions too, and was very positive in its assertion that this time represents a magnificent opportunity for us to make history and be the ones to turn this all around!
It was inspiring to see how many people are already seriously working to help! The film has lots of beautiful nature footage too. This is an important film for everyone, kids and adults, to see, - right up there with "Breakthrough"! They didn't really address the food issue and how it affects the environment, but that would take a whole film in itself!
While we were watching, my 7 year old daughter Shale drew this picture (left). This is a whole new style of drawing for her, - I think she was inspired by the film - and I asked her what the picture was about and she said the girl in it is saying "I know, we'll all just eat greens!" - Somehow she saw this as a possible solution to climate change and all the problems the film talked about! By the way, if you have your speakers on you can hear Shale singing Green Planet, a song she and Raven wrote together. (buy the .mp3 Green Planet)
And although Barack Obama is not raw vegan - yet! - the kids and I were up late last night watching his acceptance speech online, and were very inspired. The kids made little signs saying "change" that we waved along with the crowd of 75,000 people on the screen. His wife is also an amazing speaker, moving me to tears several times in her keynote address.
blogdate 5/18/07 - Yarrow's Birth Story
Oops!... we did it again
Jinjee with 10-day old Yarrow
I had been having mild contractions – or shall I call them expansions – for a couple of days. It was the full moon, eight days before my due date. Storm and I decided to use the old semen on the cervix trick to induce labor. Sure enough that night my expansions became regular, every ten minutes or so. Put the kids to bed, set up the shower curtain on a blanket on the floor beside the bed, Storm came in and lay down, and I did my dance. The expansions started to come every few minutes. They were quite pleasurable, gaining in intensity, and I kept visualizing an easy quick birth. I found that moaning ecstatically during the expansions really helped make them feel great! I was really interested in the feelings I was experiencing as the cervix opened and the baby transitioned down into the birth canal. Julie started filming. The next two contractions were intense but blissful.
Then my water broke and the baby came down into the canal fast. And the expansions were painful. It felt as though the baby’s head was pushing on my rear instead of my perineum. I was grunting and groaning, bearing down. Storm kissed me and that made it feel good for a moment. Julie held me from behind. I went from that position to all fours, to squatting, and then she came out, - Storm and I guiding her out together. Storm’s face was disbelief as he announced it was a girl. The boys in the family had all bet on it being a boy. The girls won! But the cord was wrapped around the baby’s neck twice. About a week later Storm had an insight that the spiraling-hips dance that I was doing during expansions this time caused the cord to wrap around the baby’s neck during labor. Anyway, Storm calmly unwrapped it. My placenta came out a few minutes later, much quicker than usual. It was 3:30 AM. I had been in labor since about midnight, and the hard labor, or second stage labor, was only about 10 or 20 minutes. I was so grateful she looked so perfect! Storm cut the cord and put goldenseal on the stub of the umbilicus.
Why was my labor harder than the last one?
I think Storm went back to his checking my dilations etc... which was probably good due to the complication of the cord. But the interference, and not having him as present sexually, made me more tense.
I learned so much this time in my reading about how being in a totally sexual dance with your husband during childbirth makes it a totally ecstatic experience, and I didn’t share these new findings with Storm clearly enough for him to get it. For instance they found that being in the total dark and caressing together made childbirth easier. And that there is a direct connection between the lips and the vagina. So kissing totally relaxes the vagina, acting as a painkiller during the birthing.
Maybe her size. 8 lbs. instead of 7 lbs. as the others had been. Why was she so big when I wasn’t eating as much overall? Maybe eating less helped her absorb more/better.
I’m trying to decide whether to release my birthing footage or not. Being naked and expressing myself sensuously/sexually during childbirth feels a bit too exposed. Maybe I could edit it though, to a point where I could be comfortable with it. But then it would be a production – not really showing the real deal.
I'm amazed that at 40 years old, my body is still recovering quickly from pregnancy and labor, returning to its normal shape in about a week. I'm up and about cleaning the house and doing errands within a few days. I know I have the raw vegan diet and daily exercise during pregnancy to thank. I'll be editing my pregnancy workout video downloads soon - one is aerobics and one is yoga - and I'll be putting them up on The Natural Paradigms Channel. This time was even easier than ever as I had absolutely no tearing, stinging, or pain after the birth. And very little bleeding. Just the uterus contracting back up, a pain which I was very grateful for. It felt very final, like this is the last one. I thanked my womb for doing an amazing job five times over!
Oh, and not doing an enema was probably not such a great idea. There was not as much room in my nether regions.
Oh, and having the camera there/on with the bright light might have had an impact.
Also, inducing it as we did, through natural sexual methods, maybe we rushed it. Maybe the baby wasn’t totally ready in the right position to comfortably come out. Although we induced Adagio, (see my previous birth stories in my eBook Raw Pregnancy) he was a couple of weeks past his due date, whereas this one was a week early.
Maybe every birth/baby is just different.
Maybe I needed the lessons of this birthing. For instance, let’s see, what could I have learned. How to handle pain. Knowing that the pain is for a good purpose and isn’t a warning of trouble, there is no fear. And without fear, even intense pain is not that hard to handle. I think the worst thing about pain is often the fear that it brings about. If your body is in pain but your spirit is unafraid, you can get through the pain with a good attitude. That could be a good thing to know to be able to transition through death more easily, when it is time to go through that final portal. Also, being in pain helps you to give your control up to God. Which may be necessary for the birth and death transitions.
Also, deciding not to have more babies after this. Was this an affront to Mother Nature? Was it my subconscious admission of fear of the birthing process? Perhaps, or perhaps that decision stemmed from wanting to have all my attention free for the kids I do have already.
I thought that Adagio’s labor had been completely pain-free but reading back in my pregnancy eBook I was surprised to read about the pain I felt during hard labor. So maybe this labor wasn’t any harder. It was the magic of forgetting! Yes, I know, that’s the only way women would ever decide to have more children. I joked with Julie after this birth about the miracle of childbirth! The miracle is that anyone survives it!
Storm got this baby through, saying and doing all the right things at the right time. I am so grateful to him, to Julie, to my guardian angels, to God, to the raw vegan diet, and to Rhianna who was staying with us and helped us so much during this month – a blessing from the Universe.
The photos below were taken during a hike last week in Ojai California, at 8 months pregnant. I am 40 years old and pregnant with my fifth child. We birthed all of our children unnassisted at home. This is my 3rd raw-vegan pregnancy.
Ok, where am I at with this raw life thing. I have this beautiful body at 8 months pregnant, at 40 years old, pregnant with my 5th child! A beautiful belly, strong muscles, lean, I can still run – I don’t, except when I need to catch a wayward child or run for a phone call, that kind of thing. I am hiking and swimming and doing yoga and my own version of third trimester pregnancy aerobics which I’m working on putting on DVD.
I am wearing belly shirts, showing my big round belly off everywhere I go, and I get so many compliments on it. It is a bit shocking I know. Women don’t often walk around with bare pregnant midriffs! This is the first pregnancy I’ve done it. But I see people light up when they see it. It is a celebration of life. It think it makes both men and women want to go and have babies. People ask if they can touch it. I’m seeing a lot of smiling faces everywhere I go. Women tell me I’m beautiful. Young men react to me in ways that shock themselves, feeling emotions they have never felt before! - such as wanting to have a baby! It is a strange type of attraction. I’m attractive and yet of course I’m already fertilized, and so the attraction is very innocent.
Another wonderful thing that has kicked in this month is the hormone called “Relaxin” that causes the muscles to relax in order to ease the delivery of the baby. It also makes one very relaxed! And so I’m basically in a state of bliss most of the time. If I believed in pharmaceuticals I would bottle this hormone and patent it and I’d have the cure for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or stress in general, as well as depression. Too bad I don’t believe in pharmaceuticals. I could just prescribe ongoing pregnancy as a natural alternative! Actually, what I’m really going to do is try to memorize this feeling and see if I can learn to recreate it. Wish me luck!!!
Another thing I’m feeling is tremendous love whenever I touch my belly. I’ve never felt this in my four previous pregnancies. I always loved the babies as soon as I saw them, but this type of connection with my baby before birth is new for me. I wonder if it is because this unborn baby gets so much admiration and attention already via my bare belly?!
We are thinking of filming the birth. If my labor is as blissful as the last one with Adagio I may include some of the footage on my pregnancy DVD. I was 100% raw with Adagio after the first trimester, but with this one I’ve cheated more often, so we’ll see. I've let go of worrying about it. I totally trust my body when raw. This month I’m going to do green juice every day and I’m working out a lot. I am feeling positive and visualizing another blissful, ecstatic, pain free birth.
I think the keys to painless birthing are to relax, stay out of your head, think of the contractions as pleasurable and ecstatic rather than painful, let your husband’s hands be your painkillers, visualize yourself opening up like a flower, focus on a candle flame, focus on the breath, go with the body’s waves, dance to remain comfortable during contractions, remember that compared to being nailed to a cross this is not pain but only mild discomfort, and no matter what happens stay in that ecstatic open state, do not tense up with fear. Be grateful and appreciative and joyous for the tremendous power coursing through your body during labor. These contractions are enormous orgasms. Enjoy it totally! Love it! You are co-creating with the Universe, bringing a new being into the world!
I will have to re-read my “Raw Pregnancy, Ecstatic Birth” eBook. I received an email from a woman who just had a baby. Her husband read to her from my eBook between contractions for inspiration and it helped her through her labor! That was about the most gratifying thing to hear since the British couple who birthed their baby with our music playing in the background.
I dream of opening a birthing center to educate young couples on natural pleasurable husband-wife childbirth and raw-vegan fitness during pregnancy. I’d also love to do some more work to help spread the word about ending circumcision. I will be putting as much of this on my pregnancy video as I can. We should have it ready by end of summer.
With love and gratitude for all the support and great energy from this group!
Blogdate 8/29/08 - We watched The 11th Hour wih Leonardo Di Caprio. Its out on DVD, you can get it at Netflix! Great film seabout how the world is changing, how our over-consumption of goods is bringing about global warming and how we need to do something now to stop this. The film showed a lot of solutions too, and was very positive in its assertion that this time represents a magnificent opportunity for us to make history and be the ones to turn this all around! 
