Something is happening to me

Yes, something strange is happening to me and I don't really know how to explain it. I was thinking about all the horrible things going on in Darfur right now, and how much crap is going on in the world today. I know that I really shouldn't dwell on the negative all the time, and I know that all I can do is make a little difference, but I know that if we all made a "little difference" then we'd make a big difference, especially if we stopped caring less about celebrities and more about our worldwide brothers and sisters who are in danger. Now, I really don't think society is so far gone that we just don't care about these things happening, I just feel like we don't know what we can do about them, and we have our own busy lives to worry about, our own families, our own sets of problems. Lately I have been likening this to the way we treat our bodies, and the responsibility we should take for our own health. I think that it's easy to chalk it up to everyone just not caring, but really, we do care, even if we don't realize it until we are sick. I think that the main problem is that we just don't know what we can do, we don't know how to change our habits, and we have been so indoctrinated by people who care more about the bottom line than they do our health, that we believe what we are told and have these total misconstrued ideas about health and nutrition.

So, like I was saying, I feel like something is happening to me, and I can't stop it. The more I try to deny or ignore the things I've been learning the more sensible and apparent they become. The more I learn the more I see around me, and the more I worry about those who wonder why they are sick, and just don't know enough about what they can do to heal themselves without taking truckloads of meds. Tonight I was reading a book, New Choices in Natural Healing, and it was talking about how heart disease is really a 20th century disease. It quoted Thomas Edison as saying "the doctor of the future will give no medicines but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause of disease". Even Hippocrates said "let food be your medicine and medicine be your food". As I'm reading this book I'm getting this burning feeling in my chest, like my heart is so full and wanting to burst out of there! I know it was the Spirit talking to me and finally giving me answers to my prayers as to what I should do with my life. I want to educate people and help them. I want them to be able to see past what they think they know, and give them facts. I want to shout it from the rooftops, it's that important! And I know that the 1st step is making sure that I have my own life in order, so that I can be an example, and practice what I preach.

Ok, so enough about me and my blabbering for today. I'll try update soon! Ta-ta for now.

Summer = Produce Heaven

I went to Macys foodstore this weekend, and yipee!! I am starting to see the first beginnings of summer based on the beautiful produce on display and the beautiful prices as well >;). Giant avocados, 4 for 5 dollars! Giant juicy pears, perfect tomatoes, giant pineapples...yum yum. The only drawback is...they're not...organic :*(. Now, it used to be that I got really hung up on this, because I know most raw foodists will absolutely not eat anything non-organic, but you know, I think that eating more fruits and veggies, even if they aren't organic, is still better than not. Don't get me wrong, I believe all the hype against the pesticides that are used, and I'd love to grow my own garden as soon as I can get some land, but until then I'm not going to stress over it. If the kicker is that I won't eat raw because I can't afford organic, then I won't buy organic. Still, I have found some great, cheaper organic foods that are worth the extra 10 cents per pound or so, including apples, bananas, spinach, lettuce, and sprouts. I have heard that organic broccoli is pretty cheap too, so I'll look into it.

Thankfully I live near peach country, where the hugest, most beautiful, tastiest, juiciest, most scrumptious peaches I've ever eaten are grown. This summer I am buying a box full! And I'll eat them all myself! There are also local farmers around here that grow cherries, one of my faves. I am doing what I can to find a farmer's market around here, because summer is really a raw foodists happy time (if you're like me where summer is actually a season, not a way of life). I'm sorry that I get into raptures over produce, lol. Speaking of it, I'm gonna go buy me some, and then bask in the sun...sounds like a satisfying Saturday to me :). Adios for now!

It's been forever !!

Wow, it's been almost 2 months since I've written, I feel horrible!

To tell the truth, I'm still in the process of transitioning to raw, I am hitting some speed bumps on the road to health if you will. As of May 1st I have gone raw once again, and I feel better in 2 days than I have in 2 months! Despite my shortcomings, however, I have learned so much about myself, and really why I am doing this whole raw food thing anyway. I've been thinking too hard, trying to hard to be perfect, and stressing too hard over recipes! It's really easy to get caught up in the excitement of raw food, and want to create perfect, gourmet raw dishes that have an ingredients list a mile long, some of which are hard to find. I think I was starting to get caught up in this, and I couldn't see how easy it was just to modify a recipe to what I had in the house, or just enjoy something simple, like a tomato, just for the sake of it. Eating raw is so EASY, but I was making it hard!

Well, on August 1st or so, it will be the first year anniversary of me really trying out the raw food lifestyle. I hope that by then I can be fully transitioned, but if I can't, I'll keep trying. The other day, I realized something profound as I was biting into a beautiful, juicy ripe strawberry. In actuality, a perfectly ripe strawberry tastes better than pizza, it really does! The taste is sweet and yummy, it fills me with sunshine, and makes me feel light and happy. Now, when I take a bite of a piece of pizza, the addictive elements of the food go straight to my brain, and make me think "ooh this is really yummy I need more...MORE!" But in actuality, it makes me feel sluggish, fills me with grease, and makes my stomach upset and heavy. And when I break it down, I don't like cheese, bread, or tomatoes more than I like a strawberry, but it's the combination of those processed foods, the grease, the animal fats, and other addictive substances that make me believe I like it more. Food is so psychological, I really need to get to the bottom of this when it comes to me! I'm thinking of a juice fast, but I think that will come later, once I can get in solid comfort with my raw diet. I am at the point again where I'm really starting to crave fresh fruits and veggies...I dream about them!

I wonder, those who eat raw say that they look and feel younger...why is this? I have felt this way too, and I have a theory about why it works for me.

Eating raw reminds me of sunshine.
Sunshine reminds me of California.
California reminds me of my childhood.
Therefore, eating raw makes me feel younger! :)

I wonder if feeling younger inside translates to looking younger in my face?

So, last pondering of the day before I share a recipe. God has blessed me so much lately, and he's given me answers. Since I was 14 years old I've pondered the question "what I am supposed to do with my life?", and in the past 2 weeks I've gotten my answer. I understand now why I didn't get it right away, why He didn't just send down a little sticky note from heaven saying, "here is exactly what you need to do!" as soon as I asked. God knew that I had a lot of discoveries to make in regards to my body and my health, and He waited until I knew that it was right before he showed me what would make my life rewarding. I have decided that I am going to do a double major, in Health Promotion, and Art. The Art so I can become better, for myself, and do it on the side because I love it and it's a huge part of who I am...and the Health Promotion and Education so that I can make a difference by helping others make good health/food choices. I'd love to study nutrition as well. I would love to work with children, because the problem with obesity is effecting younger and younger generations. I would also love to work with prenatal care, and educating pregnant women on making the best food choices for their babies. I came to this conclusion one day as I was waiting for my husband outside the pizza place that he works at. They have an all-you-can-eat buffet there, and I saw a family with 2 overweight parents, and an overweight, sweet little girl walk in. I've never been so effected by my choice of health education as I was at that moment, because I realized that little girl was not there because she necessarily chose it, but because her parents maybe didn't know better. To think that the habits she is learning may lead to such diseases as juvenile diabetes or goodness knows what else, breaks my heart. I feel so much better now that I have a goal, and I really feel like I've found my calling. I know God answers prayers...I know that.

So, here is a great recipe that I found on the Raw Food Cafe (link on the left) that looks so yummy. I happen to have the ingredients too, I'm making it for lunch!!

Avocado Salad with Creamy Lime Dressing

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup cashews
juice of 2 limes
1 teaspoon agave nectar
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
1 head Romaine lettuce, roughly chopped
1 small bunch cilantro, leaves only
2 ripe avocados, cut into small cubes

1 Combine oil, cashews, lime juice, agave nectar and cumin in a blender. Process until cashews are smooth and creamy. If needed, use water a 1/2 tablespoon at a time

to reach desired consistency.

2 Combine the lettuce and cilantro with the dressing in a large bowl. Top with the avocado pieces.