"Bringing peace to the world... one cup at a time"

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Six Ways to Honor Earth Day and Your Body

Ancient Rivers dwell within our souls. Our bodies are our temples of Bliss   Spring is definitely here and the Official Earth Day is this Sunday. In my mind, Earth Day should be everyday along with valentines day and any other holiday or reason to celebrate caring and nurturing. The best ways to celebrate our blessed Earth is to honor our bodies as we would a temple. Here are some ideas. 1)Being green is easy. Keep it simple. Drink green tea. It is full of ani-oxidants,it raises the metabolism, helps keep blood sugars level. There are plenty of high quality delicious types to choose from.2) Eat lots of leafy greens. They can provide all the basic nutrients you need. There is kale, chard, spinach, cabbage, and bok choy to name a few. You can eat them raw, cooked, or blended in the blender to make green drinks. These little jewels are anti- inflammatory. They also help block bad sugars and fats from getting back into the blood stream. They also are very low in calories so you can fill up on them instead of those heavier carbohydrates and fats. 3) Take a walk through your local farmers market and buy local fruits and veggies and prepare them simply. This does several things to help mother Earth. You are supporting farmers who are taking care of her the best way they can. You are You are helping the local economy by keeping the money here. And best of all you are out in the sunshine getting vitamin D and getting some exercise and fresh air. And I invite you to talk to the farmers, get to know them. Who knows you may also make some new friends. 4) Get a massage. Everyone needs to be touched in this way. Massage moves all those toxins that are stored in your fat cells into the blood stream so that your liver can filter them out.5) Take a class. Learn something new. Keeping the mind strong and challenged keeps us young. 6) Eat with a friend or family member. Eat sitting at a table. Hold hands. Give and receive love. I believe that healthy food is only half the story. We humans in at our best are living full well rounded lives. We are not sitting alone all the time (alone time is good but in balance )eating in our cars, watching TV while we eat, working inside with no sunshine and fresh air. Life can be simple and beautiful and green. If everyone were to follow these few simple ideas just imagine what could change. Imagine.............

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

The Mouth is more than just for spouting off

Mouth Hunger Is the Mouth's desire for Pleasure. What constitutes pleasure sensations is different from one person to another. Some like it hot and spicy. Some like it cool as a cucumber. The experience of the mouth sensation is not only taste but the feel of food in the mouth. Does your palette desire smooth creamy feeling food or crunchy, or maybe a fleshy texture is more your style? Do you like to lick things, like your fingers after something sticky and sweet? We are entering into sensual territory here. Many cultures are very sensual in the way they approach food. Some eat with their fingers. Where your ancestry origins come from may play into how your mouth feels about tastes and textures. My ancestors were from Scotland/Ireland and Portugal. I love yams, fresh baked breads (though I only eat sprouted grains), greens, both cooked and raw. But I also love creamy things like avocado, papaya, then there is rice and oatmeal and seeds and nuts. And seaweed I love fried seaweed. These things are not all that I eat but they are really Parties in my mouth. To some people what goes in the mouth goes right to the brain and manifests in emotional experiences. Have you ever seen or heard the advertisements that profess that "Party in the mouth" blast of exciting amped up food sensation. That is a ploy for an emotional mouth response.Most of the time it is items laden with more salt, sugar, fat, and artificial spice or other flavorings. But it is an emotional call to the taste buds and their brain contact that tells the body it is having pleasure. Americans have been fooled into buying unripe fruit, over done products, over fatted, over salted, over sweetened, to the point that many people don't know what a normal ripe piece of fruit tastes like or food that is prepared in it's normal state. The mouth is very connected to awareness. It is not enough to stick food in your mouth chew it up and eat it. The mouth and mind want intelligence. If you want to feel satisfied, truly satisfied when you eat, the mind wants to be invited to the party. Mindless eating is very much part of eating disorders and overeating. Often times the problems lie in not paying attention to what is going on in the mouth that gets us into trouble more so than the actual diet we subscribe to. I am not advocating a junk food plan here but it is important to eat mindfully foremost.