I'll be back in the spring/summer of 2008

Hello friends,
Sorry to have been away so long--just living, loving and grateful for moments of presence. So much abundance living in community and with all of the wonderful things going on at work and at home, but it is a challenge to find much time to be online. I'm officially going to take a break from blogging for now, but I hope to be back in the spring/summer (when the amazing produce and abundant wild greens outside will be too much to keep me from sharing many pics and stories of raw adventures!). :)

Here's one last recipe for the holidays--shared by sangha members Angie and Robert (it's wonderful!):

Olive - Hiziki Tapenade
1 oz. Hiziki (sea vegetable)
1/2 cup olives, pited and chopped
(Angie recommends Kalamata, Alphonso,cerignola or any
combination - Giant and Wegman's have good olive bars)
1/2 cup capers
2 TBS olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 tsp ume plum vinegar - more or less to taste
(Angie recommends Eden brand)

Soak hiziki overnight in water. Boil hiziki until tender
and strain away water. Combine all ingredients in food processor
and blend until smooth. Serve with tortilla chips or crackers.


Here's to remembering that we are all One, on the path to remembering who we are as loving beings of light!
Love,
Marykaye

Peace to you and to all beings

Peace to you today, wherever you are this moment. I've been taking a moment to rest and meditate today, and wanted to share this. It's so sweet and joyful when we humans act from this place...



Namaste. :)

Inspired raw posts

Hello everyone,

Spending so much time these days with my dear son and husband, having lovely adventures in the woods and with friends in sangha and community, but not so much time online!  (The beautiful days keep calling me outside and I feel so much love for nature and all of it's creatures--even the occasional fly (River says, "Don't smack it, Mommy, it's alive!"). ).  From the mouths of babes...  I wanted to take a moment to say hi and send a blessing and a hug.

Some free flowing happiness this week:

Appreciating simpler raw treats: all the lovely fresh pears around now and looking forward to heading to the CSA this weekend for fresh local transitional organic apples; love their dinosaur kale in my green apple and almond smoothies...

The addiction to clutter continues to dissolve as we clear out old things we don't use to allow them to become new comforts for other dear beings flowing on their journey through this joyful and bittersweet life...

Feeling the love and inspiration flow from posts by Raw Model, We Like it Raw, Raw Food Right Now!, and as always, the resonant words and images over at RawketScience as well as the words of Eckhart Tolle, reminding us what is real and true--to trust what resonates in the heart until the mind agrees and sings the same song.

Blessings to you, beautiful beings on your loving path.

Love,

Marykaye

Living in peace

Wow--feeling an intense urge to continue to clear out and let go of lots of clutter and things we don't use.  (In keeping with the environmental blog action day happening all over the world of blog, we sent tons of things to GoodWill, and hope that they all find another happy home!). Interestingly, I felt much more of a natural desire to eat light, raw foods all day, too.

To be honest, it was easy to get a little carried away with wanting to get there already, and forget gentleness and flowing with it and my sweet husband, so I felt drawn to practice these three things today, and made them like a mantra:
Patience
Enthusiasm
Mindfulness

A friend also passed on this lovely email on Peaceful communication today, from Jinjee at TheGardenDiet.com:

10 things we can do to contribute to internal, interpersonal, and organizational peace
1 Spend some time each day quietly reflecting on how we would like to relate to ourselves and others.

2 Remember that all human beings have the same needs.

3 Check our intention to see if we are as interested in others getting their needs met as our own.

4 When asking someone to do something, check first to see if we are making a request or a demand.

5 Instead of saying what we DON'T want someone to do, say what we DO want the person to do.

6 Instead of saying what we want someone to BE, say what action we'd like the person to take that we hope will help the person be that way.

7 Before agreeing or disagreeing with anyone's opinions, try to tune in to what the person is feeling and needing.

8 Instead of saying “No,” say what need of ours prevents us from saying “Yes.”

9 If we are feeling upset, think about what need of ours is not being met, and what we could do to meet it, instead of thinking about what's wrong with others or ourselves.

10 Instead of praising someone who did something we like, express our gratitude by telling the person what need of ours that action met.

The Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC) would like there to be a critical mass of people using Nonviolent Communication language so all people will get their needs met and resolve their conflicts peacefully.

For more info on nonviolent communication see www.cnvc.org

(I feel so happy to experience the sweetness of human beings acting in such loving ways and with these intentions! Blessings and peace to you, for all that you contribute to the world! Love, Marykaye)

Still here...

I'm still here and flowing into the cooler fall weather.  Not sure why, but I've been feeling some aversion to the idea of raw entrees, although "greens, greens, greens" are my mantra and my intention.  

Some random thoughts from the last couple of weeks:
I found a neat article on greens and why to stay raw that I found interesting and helpful. Daniel had an inspiring weekend "Smoothie Extravaganza", and I posted a great recipe he created for a low-sugar green smoothie on Gone Raw here. Some lovely posts by Keiko Cacao Ti on Love and Gratitude have lifted me up.

It's been so busy around here lately, with the Little Buffalo Festival, events like the drum circle and clearing out the house, open to living in community again...

Here are some pics of the festival, with friends Lara and Josh leading the children's parade... Lara did an amazing Fire Dance at the end (I'll post a movie of it as soon as I get it onto the computer) while Daniel and many other wonderful musicians shared their musical gifts in a lovely synergy. The park has a great stage in a valley embraced by rolling green hills and trees all around, with a peaceful lake just above the valley, waiting to be discovered at the top of the hill in the second picture. (It was a fun adventure to trek with River to the top of the landing and beyond up into the woods, only to wind down a quiet path through the forest and back down behind the stage.). The event had many other great workshops on alternative energy, creative expression and yoga, and the best part of all was that it was free and organized by local artists and musicians.
 
 

 

Hope you all are well and holding images in your mind of your highest Self and greatest happiness for you, your family and community...

Blessings,
Marykaye

Cultivating right mind

A sweet poem from our meditation tonight...

While buttoning my jacket
I hope that all beings
Will keep their hearts warm
And not lose themselves.
~Master Doc The
from The Sun My Heart by Thich Nhat Hanh



Such a gift to be present and conscious of our Oneness. :)

Going with the flow

Had a nice day by the river--been intensely busy at work this week, so today was my day off. I've been connecting alot with friends who are also experiencing an unusual degree of busyness recently; it's interesting how we are all connected, so we can trust we will always look up and see a reflection of what we have going on inside, and with those we love. A dear friend and teacher often speaks of her practice of surrendering to whatever is happening in each moment. If it is a challenging moment, either sending love to whatever is arising, recognizing it as an aspect of herself, a projection, or praying for healing of the emotion and then sending that healing and a desire for happiness to all beings. I think that is lovely, and have been remembering to do that as well, with more success the past few days. Also remembering to picture us all happy and well and hold those images in my mind to invite them. I've been so grateful for peaceful moments with family throughout the week too.

I felt a real desire to clean and reorganize our living space today--feels so peaceful now... I had a great day, but after dinner am feeling a little less integrated. I've been losing so much weight eating raw (but feeling so good otherwise), that I've decided it does feel right (for today, one day at a time) to eat raw all day and then have a healthy, lightly cooked vegan meal in the evenings with my family (trying to only offer quinoa, sprouted grains and veggies). I love the advice to trust our bodies and flow with eating raw as it feels most natural; I could see that this might work best for me or be temporary and lead naturally to 100% again as I flow and grow as a spiritual being in human form. (The truth is, I feel so great when I eat raw all week and then always feel a little funky by the third day eating cooked. However, it feels like it takes some pressure off to not have to work so hard to maintain weight and think about it so much, and to have some healthy things for my son and in-laws to share to eat.).

I think so much of how we feel is what we believe about it, that all of our experiences are so sacred, especially if we are mindful as it all arises. It's been so nice hearing from you guys on the blog, and I've been enjoying your posts so much! Happiness and blessings to you on your journey, each day...

Love,
Marykaye :)

Here are some raw pics from the week:

Raw-renewed

Wow-it's been an interesting couple of weeks, but it feels like much longer. Dear friends came from out of town to renew their vows on the river bank and we had so much fun, but I also found myself, to my surprise, bumped right off my raw path (I woke up today bewildered on the side of the metaphorical road!).

It's all good, and it was very educational, but I've been wandering the last couple of weeks, exploring all-cooked Indian meals to 80% raw (with a cooked meal after 6pm), to now back to 100% raw and with Daniel joining me (the best scenario yet). It's amazing how quickly the energy of a raw and living foods diet affects us. I believe the burden of digestion must use up more of our bodies' resources than we might think, not to mention create some block to an effortless sense of incredible connectedness, spiritually. I felt fine initially, but after a few days found myself increasingly more irritable, foggy-minded and sleeping 8-10 hours/night again. The worst thing was feeling out of touch with intuition and higher Self, in such an egoic space. Sorry for my absence, but it felt right to hold off on blogging my experience until I knew which way was up, and I'm happy to say, 100% raw feels like the way!

My recent departure stemmed from the reality of extreme weight-loss eating raw. I think I must have gotten down to under 100 pounds (40 kg or so) and felt extremely unhealthy and a little bit concerned about what was happening to my body on the raw diet. I think I am just recognizing the benefits of this diet for those desiring weight loss, and the reminder that I can't be so cavalier about going too long without a balanced meal and plenty of fats and protein. (I'm one of those fast oxidizers per Gabriel Cousens, I think). Either way, it is lovely to be back and it feels like home to have some time (and energy :)), to read favorite raw blogs and beloved sites like RFC and Gone Raw.
Shell has a wonderful post on Synergy, shared from RFC, that says it all...

Here are some pics of some raw delights that made it through to me, even in my wanderings, and others from a delightful walk one morning when we couldn't leave for work because of a traffic tie-up where thankfully, nobody was hurt. It was great to go with the flow and share some time in nature before heading off to work for the second half of the day!



Namaste, and blessings on your journey. :)

Global Mala (that's us!) :)

There are so many amazing events upcoming reminding us of our peace and interconnectedness--I am so joyful to see all of the beautiful beings who are working together to share loving intentions for the earth and eachother!

Here is a wonderful post about one called the Global Mala Project from Peggy and Curtis on their Solutions blog. It describes an ecstatic string of loving consciousness rising to connect all beings and the earth.

From their site:
"As we approach the Autumn Equinox it is a time to recognize the abundance that summer has brought us. Fall is a time for celebrating harvest and enjoying a last taste of freshness as we shift into a cool, more introspective time.

On September 23, the fall equinox, people all over the world will be participating in a "Global Mala". We will be creating a wave of sun salutations sending peace energy into the global consciousness. To become involved, all you have to do is perform the salutations. If you want to go a step further, look for participating local yoga studios or encourage your local studio to participate. There is a website, www.globalmala.org, where you can find out alot more. Check out the videos they have posted there which are truly inspiring."

Their posting is wonderful--you can check it out here: click for link

I was thinking of a picture to illustrate the idea of a beautiful human chain reaching lovingly around the earth (the Global Mala), and I thought of the most amazing thing. Every year the Rainbow Family of Living Light gathers somewhere in the states for 2 weeks of camping, music and joy, culminating in a silent peace circle thousands strong at noon on the 4th of July. Everything is free or for barter--$ is only allowed for donations for food ingredients for those who travel outside of the gathering for supplies to feed everyone inside. It was so beautiful to experience that--all of the same love we extend to our friends and community, to all beings, and the planet, but in that moment, you can actually see it happening on a bigger scale. (Feels just like sangha!).

Namaste!

Lovely potluck day

Had a wonderful day today at our monthly community potluck. It was a busy day for local events (a music festival and an Arts for Peace and Justice exhibit that Daniel played music for) and some friends were away doing other things, so it was a small group but full of love! It was sweet to have more time to talk and we could actually all fit at one table for once! Afterward, we relaxed with music (and naps for some--I meditated with all my raw energy!) before a wild storm blew up. It was very exhilarating and woke us up nicely! Daniel's out with some of our friends from potluck at a drum and percussion open-mic night at Suba, a great local place with music and cultural events. 3/4 of the audience drum with those on stage--really amazing! (Not bad for Central Pa!).

Another lovely aspect of the day was the peaceful, easy feeling of moving through the day feeling so calm and centered, a joy to clean and get things ready for potluck and feeling so much energy when cleaning up afterward. I feel more drawn to keep things organized and the energy clear when I eat raw--it's delightful and I'm sure reflective of what's going on interally, manifesting outwardly. I've been eating more greens and really seeing how much better I feel when I am conscious of that. I was reading about the alkalizing effect of greens and the potential for acid pH to cause anxiety and even depression, (among, of course, many other disease states). It is such a gift to have a clear mind and great energy to share...

Here are some pics of the raw portions of the potluck. (3 or 4 of us eat raw and the rest love healthy, organic, vegan food. I love my friends so much and love to see them--it only feels like a joy to offer foods that everyone will feel nourished by and also have fun sharing new raw foods for them to try!).



Have a great day!

Present moment, wonderful moment

Had a nice day--was feeling a little out-of-sorts in the cooler, rainy weather, so took River to the library and then to meet a dear friend, Robert, at Luna Pastel, a lovely local raw food cafe. (He treated me to an amazing raw birthday lunch--thanks Robert!!). It was so nice and I felt so much lighter afterward--resonating with the energy of my wonderful friend and the love-vibes in the food and the cafe! Matthew of Solive and the cafe shared a great quote from Thich Nhat Hanh and then Robert followed up with a reading from a pocket notebook he always carries, reminding me that we always have the opportunity to come back to the present moment, with awareness--residing in a quiet mind of love. So many blessings all around us, every moment...

Here are some pics from our lunch today and some meals in the last couple of days. The savory sage croquettes were scrumptious, from Gabriel Cousens' book, Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine; the avocado "fries" were from Carmella at Sunny Raw Kitchen and Raw Freedom Community and the delicious meatloaf, mashed potatoes and sauerkraut were my birthday lunch at Luna Pastel--wonderful! The "hot chocolate" was a dream--almonds and brazil nuts blended with cacao, agave, cinnamon and maca, then whirled in the Vita-mix until warm to finger-touch--still raw. Alternatively, I used pecans and almonds with vanilla and cinnamon for a bed-time version. A pinch of cayenne added a feeling of warmth on a rainy day...



Blessings and love to you. :)

Raw Spirit

Wow--some wonderful and inspiring speakers and info coming out of the Raw Spirit Festival. For those who haven't seen her site, Keiko Ti has some great posts on the different speakers and events there, Rawket Science. I especially loved the post on Happy Oasis (there's a part one and two), with such a lovely and joyful description of the spiritual nature of a raw lifestyle. Sparkly! :)

Hope you are having wonderful day and drinking in fresh, cool, clear air, water and sunshine wherever you are!

Love in action

This Saturday River and I had a wonderful adventure at our local CSA, Spiral Path Farm. The CSA is such a joyful paradigm--friends who love the earth and have a gift for farming allow members to pay a fee at the beginning of the season and then we all benefit from the bounty for the rest of the year! They open their farm to visits from members for many Saturdays of the season--this was just one. We have been enjoying so many wonderful local organic treats because of their generosity.

It was a magical day and such a gift to share it with my son. He loves fruit and although he is less fond of most veggies--he ate parsley and basil right from the rows! :) It is so life-changing for children (and adults) to have a connection to the earth and the food we eat, (and so inspiring to have the opportunity when eating raw and living-foods!).

Hope you are part of many wonderful organizations like Spiral Path in your area--making a difference in eachother's lives by living our right path...



Namaste!

Congratulations to Angela Stokes and Matt Monarch on their engagement!! What a wonderful union!

Nourishing eachother

 

"We usually think that parents have to nourish their children, but sometimes the children can bring enlightenment to the parents and help transform them." ~Thich Nhat Hanh

(So true--an amazing experience!).

Had a lovely day by the river with my son and nephews--I felt so grateful for a blissful moment when I was feeling so happy and content and aware of that great blessing!

Have been enjoying mono-meals of canteloupe and fruit all day, but had a grounding snack of raw almonds, brazil nut and dried cranberry in raw organic almond butter in the afternoon--a real treat!

 

Hope the day finds you well and happy!

Serving Love

Feeling nice today--moving along with a gentleness and sense of surrender. It is so nice to feel in tune with my body, the things it needs and desires, the intention to serve others with love. Had a neat experience--I had just made a nice salad and a plate of tarragon pumpkin seed pate with some great raw sesame flax crackers. Enjoyed the seeds and was eating the salad when it suddenly began to taste bitter to me. I decided maybe not to eat it (but didn't want to waste it) when Danielsun came down, saying he was too hungry to sleep. I asked him to taste test if for me and he was so joyful to declare it scrumptious and to help me out by eating it! (I eat that exact same type of salad every day and love it, so it felt like it was Spirit flowing for his health and well-being. It was so sweet to know that it was just time to pass it on to him to enjoy--synchronicity.) Happy to recognize the smaller and larger ways we can trust and go with the flow in our lives. Lovely!

Here's the pics of some food from today:

Weekend by the river

 

We've been enjoying a cooler day today--we cleared out some of the abundant weeds growing down by the riverbank to open it up for a drum circle today. Wonderful to be outside! Been making lots of simple foods and appreciating watching things bloom. Decided to go for it and get a Vita-mix for my birthday--for some reason can't decide on the color (silly). Standing between two places--what is and what might be, and wanting to leave things most open...

Hope anyone reading this is well and happy--have a beautiful day!

Here are some pics from the week...
(The corn chowder in the first pic was amazing and let me use up some organic ear corn from our CSA.)
Here is the recipe:

2 1/2 cup almond milk
5 ears corn on the cob, shaved
1 small avocado
Sea salt to taste
Put aside one handful of corn. Blend everything else in a blender. Pour into a bowl, add the handful of corn and stir adding sea salt to taste.

- from “Living on Live Food” by Alissa Cohen


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Blessed community

I feel so blessed to have so many loving teachers and friends in my life. It is a tremendous gift to live in a time when there are so many beings working together to create peace and love on the planet, (as a dear friend, Lara, says so beautifully). I had a lovely experience of "fruit euphoria"--feeling so peaceful, happy and contented after eating delicious bananas, a gift of blackberries with agave and organic cherries.  (I've mentioned cherries often recently and am joyful to eat seasonally while they are available.  I feel fantastic whenever I eat them so I googled nutrient info on them: they contain a lot of potassium and are actually a food-source of melatonin.  They are also good for reducing pain and inflammation associated with gout.  Go raw!).  Spoke by phone to a dear friend who had joined us last evening and slept under the stars in her tent; I felt so loved and connected speaking to her and looking up the at the amazing cathedral created by the sycamore trees out in the backyard--such immense treasures for our comfort and happiness.  I love to wake up in the morning with all of them here (human friends, tree friends and all of the life that shares the river bank), the energy so light and clear....

More wonderful raw food posts all over the web--my favorites are the ones that remind us of our nature as beautiful, precious, loving beings remembering who we are, why we are here and extending love and light to those we meet. (Practicing one day to remember to do so all of the time and for the most challenging of all, sometimes, our families and closest loved ones).

Here are two wonderful blog posts that explore our true nature through the support of a living foods diet, among other practices:
Raw Reform E-Journal
(for anyone who hasn't yet found her site, I'm so happy to pass it on, and for everyone who knows her, to remind you to stop back for more wonderful adventures).

I continue to be so grateful for Shell's Raw Blog too--the posts are so beautiful and light... (pic of lovely blue borage flower from her site).

Some more pictures for you:

a yummy salad with alfalfa sprouts grown in a mason jar with cheesecloth--so easy and fun to do--you should try it!

a flower for you, Buddha to be...

beautiful sunflowers love the riverbank--

Danielsun's favorite flower, too :)

Hope you are experiencing many moments of peace and joy in the present moment... 

Keep Calm and Carry On

Here's a lovely post from Raw Yogi Journal II...
Her perspective on life "LIVE IN THE MOMENT. LIVE BY THE OCEAN. CREATE BEAUTY. INSPIRE OTHERS. DO YOGA & MOVE THE BODY. LIVE & EAT WHOLE ORGANIC VEGAN RAW BASED AND AS CLOSE TO NATURE AS POSSIBLE. AND REMEMBER TO BREATHE..."

The Sad and the Raw

Whew--busy week! Had some dear friends and our beautiful god-daughter here for a few days and it went quickly! It was fun to share raw food with them--been 99% raw for the last 6 weeks (the exception being "raw cashews" that I'm not sure of the true origin of) but gave in to the tradition to eat one favorite meal of non-raw Indian food with them, as we do a couple of times a year when they visit. It felt loving and healthy to be able to do that and then not to obsess about it or go on to eat non-raw afterward. It was helpful to know that it was enjoyable but that I felt really tired and drained for the next couple of days--I think that is beneficial in encouraging myself to stay raw even when it is challenging. What an immense blessing to have found this raw/living diet and lifestyle--such an amazing gift! Our friends really enjoyed the green smoothies and have been drinking more of them--so has my sister; I love to hear that familiar tale of friends and family inspired to try raw food from watching us eat it and thrive!

Like Greenmama and many others on the raw/living foods diet and lifestyle, I continue to feel myself more drawn to eat simple foods, and often it's primarily fruit! In the Ayurvedic paradigm, I believe I'm a Vata-Pitta, and think Candida may also be at play after many years of frequent antibiotic use and sugar/junk food intake, so I notice I do feel better if I eat more greens and nuts/fats. (I know that is controversial, but I personally believe that Candida overgrowth or a prevalence of some non-beneficial organism could be one aspect of the aberrant bowel-ecology that is responsible for poor health and digestion). It is neat how everyone who eats raw is different with regards to the ratio/balance of what works for them and fun to figure it out intuitively and experientially. I trust that eating and living well will take care of things slowly, over time, but I'm open to doing a bowel cleanse after I'm done nursing altogether...

Had a little conflict with hubby, who is struggling with living in the world and working so much, challenged with finding time for artistic/musical expression. Shell's Holistic Raw blog cheered me up, so I wanted to share it with you... (Regarding today's entry on her blog: I find eating raw that I feel more connected with others and love for them to share my raw meals and snacks, but the tone, the lovely pics and entries and her sweet voice and lifepath bring me so much joy and reminds me of all the wonderful, loving people striving to bring happiness and peace to each other and the earth, every day.). The moments of feeling loving and joyful and those lost in confusion and suffering come and go, but remaining present and engaging in high-vibration things like being in nature, meditating and being around/hearing others share from their loving space really help me to stay present and conscious more often! (I think many of us are striving to be more like the Dalai Lama, who seems to remain conscious "full-time". More on that here

Today I ate: (always organic unless otherwise indicated)
2 peaches
handful cherries
2 bananas
fruit salad (golden delcious apple, grapes, banana)
pkt chlorella
nori rolls with cabbage salad, lettuce, avocado and golden beet
more bananas
water

I miss my smoothie but it's getting late--will probably eat some more fruit or greens... Must go, our darling 3 year old just asked me for "the biggest banana that can fit on the world", so I'm happy to oblige him with a snack!


Here's some pics of the food I ate over the last couple of days:

Namaste. :)

sweet, peaceful day

Had a lovely day--woke up tired but got up at 9am after going to bed at 4am!! (Working on the blog and website all night after indulging in some chocolate :0  There's my Shared Secret--2 vices I am still challenged with!). Felt like I was dragging this morning (almost like a hangover!), but took a nice walk in the trees and then worked out. Felt calm and good, not very hungry today. The day flowed by gently--I weeded the wineberry bushes at my father-in-law's next door, watched my son and nephews, spent alot of time outside. My mother-in-law had beautiful leftover (vegan) homemade burritos and zucchini chocolate cake and I enjoyed looking at them and didn't feel too tempted--felt happy they were enjoying them.

Started the day off well with a smoothie (lactino kale, banana, blueberry, strawberry), then had delicious organci cherries out back looking over the river.  I feel so drawn to be outside, especially when I'm eating--it just feels so natural and light to be connected to the energy there and part of it all.  Later on had delicious organic avocado with fresh lemon, garlic powder, sea salt/pepper (a favorite quick snack) and cabbage salad (delicious with just shredded carrot, sesame oil, sesame seeds, and Braggs or plain sea salt). Had 2 fuji apples, a banana and mor cherries later, followed by cranberry/coconut trail mix and more cabbage salad. Feeling drawn to simpler foods lately and it sure saves time! (But it's alot of fun to prepare more elaborate dishes, too!). Feeling so drawn to Gabriel Cousens books now--I love that he seems to emphasize the spiritual aspects of raw/living foods and other aspects of a healthy, loving life. Hope to get some soon!

Here are some pics from today: (I feel like my camera is an extra appendage this weekend!) ;)

The river view where I ate my cherries

Frozen berry smoothie in the making...

Avocado with lemon/sea salt--

eat with a spoon...

Cabbage salad

Some wineberries I picked while weeding

Those amazing cherries...

Have a great week!

What's missing in my life? (A day without greens)

Had a good morning--woke feeling great, energized, peaceful, relaxed... then I found myself increasingly lost as the day rolled on, and looking back, I think it's because I missed my daily greens! (So much nicer than daily bread!) :). I continue to be amazed and delighted with how much energy they provide! (My husband consumes alot of chlorella and spirulina these days, and swears by that same effect from those superfood greens--I agree!). Went with my family to a work picnic where friends thoughtfully prepared raw and vegan items for us to enjoy. Had a few stray bites of non-raw grains in the asian salad and a bite of chip to try a beautiful salsa prepared with a neighbor's organic tomatoes;  I would have preferred to avoid those but felt happy to be open and not obsessive about being raw. I saw a wonderful blog entry on Heidi and Justin's site about the opportunity to not be fanatic about the occasional bite of non-raw food--we're still raw foodists in action and intention, and for me it resonates that a raw/living foods diet would also be in line with a perspective on life that promotes the healing of the earth and what feels most loving. (ie gratitude for that great food and the desire not to waste or reject a loving gift)!

Since I missed my smoothie today--I included a picture of a nice one from yesterday.
(You can never go wrong with the combination of strawberry, banana and greens!).

Delicious summer days

Wow--we got the most amazing box of produce from our CSA, Spiral Path Farm, today. Beautiful purple eggplants, peppers, cucumbers, heirloom tomatoes, sweet corn (delcious raw)--I need to start taking pics of the boxes! I had a yummy cucumber salad the last couple of days and have enjoyed their greens in smoothies (today green apple/pear/banana with greens and later pineapple/strawberry/banana with greens). Made a great sprouted chickpea hummus from Alyssa Cohen's book--I get hooked on sprouting! ( So simple using just a bowl and leaving them to their own devices without too much attention...).

I think the lovliest thing about summer (besides all of the great variety and abundance in produce) is the berries. So many different kinds and so sweet how they come one after another in waves (strawberries then mulberries, blackberries, black raspberries, blueberries, wineberries). Received an amazing gift from my father-in-law today--so selfless and thoughtful--really a lesson to me of service and unconditional love. Windhorse moving through him and then to me to share as well. (In Tibetan Buddhism, Windhorse is the unlimited energy of basic goodness, buddhanature.). Such a gift and how beautiful the world would be if we all woke up tomorrow and remembered to treat eachother in a loving and caring way. I feel so blessed for all of the love that I've received today and in my life.

Here's a yummy cucumber salad--a community
salad with tomatoes and cucumbers from family
gardens and the CSA (and CSA onions, too)



These are wineberries from the bushes looking out
over the riverbank--really amazing. A gift planted
by my mother-in-law a few years ago. What a
wonderful legacy--to plant beautiful things on the
earth for others to share when we are gone.


Have a great day!

Raw Camping with the Gypsy Caravan

I feel so blessed--we had such an abundant weekend! Went camping with dear sangha friends at Pinchot Park near Lewisberry, Pa. Robert had built an amazing Gypsy Caravan and they had it all decked out with lights, a canopy and a second tent for food/raw supplies including blender--they really know how to take camping to another level! (Also a tent for us and 2 others for friends)--it was just amazing!  I had delicious asian cabbage salad, 

cherries, melon and my raw zucchini bread and then Robert produced a chilled collard/blueberry/strawberry/banana smoothie later that evening--heaven!! So magical to spend the evening by the fire discussing life, karma, God and to wake in community with my beloveds in the string of tents in the woods. I was floating as I carried my little bag to the showers--living simply with dear friends and feeling so loved AND surrounded by trees--what else could you ask for?

Going wild on organic cherries--I'd just decided the non-organic were so delicious I couldn't pass them up when I found a whole section of perfect organic ones at the local mainstream grocery store--WOW! (Been snacking on them all afternoon). Watched the Way of the Peaceful Warrior DVD the last few days while I work out--really a nice discussion of basic principles and encouraging that it's been made into a mainstream movie. Remembering to be present and not as reactive--very grateful for that.

Here's a recipe for the great trail mix I brought to share for breakfast:

Cranberry coconut trail mix:

sunflower seeds (6 to 1 ratio with pumpkin seeds)

pumpkin seeds

dried cranberries

dried coconut

almonds

(Especially delicious with a sauce of blended sesame and virgin organic coconut oil, vanilla, cinnamon, agave and sea salt.  I have to try dehydrating that!).

Raw Spirit

I realize it's easy to become addicted to the "high" of eating raw, just like the bliss of meditation or transformative experiences like the feelings you have during sweatlodge or time deep in nature. I've felt so connected but see that when I don't feel that way, that I still have the same challenge of not becoming more unconscious. Eating raw feels like a wonderful tool, but the diet itself cannot become an obsession or it defeats the purpose. Perhaps that is what I've been feeling. Also been eating less greens and live foods in favor of nut milks, smoothies and creamy raw soups. I think they are amazing, and happy they help with weight gain, but see that this is also about light, energy and intention (not to mention expectation), so I need to check all of those and be more mindful.

Yummy Broccoli Soup from Alyssa Cohen's book (basically almonds, honey or agave, broccoli, avocado, onion and garlic powder, sea salt and cumin).

Life at the River Sanctuary

This is where we live and we love to share it for potlucks, drum circles, meditation, hugs!

Raw Ananda

Ananda is a sanskrit word for bliss--such a beautiful word for a feeling I feel more and more on my raw diet. It is such a gift to have barriers removed to seeing how beautiful nature is and to increasingly feel such love, compassion and gentleness for the humans around me! The raw diet is a recipe for bliss, and I'm so glad to have the desire to be on it for that reason, as well as the profound impact on health mentioned by so many. The experience has so many consistencies in people's experience of it that it's hard not to be open to the fact that it is for real, not a fad.
Namaste!