October 22, 2007: Sexy Note from . . . ??

[This wacky thing arrived in an email from a nutty friend today. I couldn't resist posting it here.]

"I will seek and find you. I will take you to bed and have my way with you. I will make you ache, shake & sweat until you moan & groan. I will make you beg for me to stop. I will exhaust you to the point that you will be relieved when I'm finished with you! And, when I am finished, you will be weak for days."
*********************************** All my love, THE FLU !

Now, get your mind off sex and go make a green smoothie!

Speaking of which . . . My green smoothie today (breakfast & lunch) is made with organic strawberries, pear, peach, collard greens, parsley and romaine lettuce. Delicious!

October 20, 2007: Smoothe On Down the Road

MY "GREEN FOR LIFE EXPERIMENT" IS UNDERWAY!

Cabbage

Today I start an experiment of drinking mainly raw green smoothies for two weeks. I'll take it in 2-week increments and document my fitness progress as I go.

Came across this 90-minute, highly informative video today on food production that is pretty eye-opening and worth watching, I think. It can be viewed in separate sections for easy "digestion."

The Future of Food

October 18, 2007: Soul Mates

Two months ago today I met my soul mate. I'd hoped he might be -- and had a deep sense that he was. But what I didn't know as I first laid eyes on him, joyfully smiling from ear to ear, and taking his hands in mine -- was that my concept of "soul mate" was about to be expanded a bit!

Yup, on this date in August I met my soul mate. But not in a romantic (unrealistic) sense of the magic, "perfect fit"of a person with whom one never has conflict, in whom no flaw is seen, and in whose presence is perennial bliss. Nope. This was the "real deal" of a soul mate; not some false ideal of one. This is the person who helps you come squarely face-to-face with what is living in yourself to such a degree that it shakes up your world almost violently -- painfully -- yet all for the good. And your meeting them is all to the end that you find your way back "home" . . . back to that beautiful, genuine self that somehow got overshadowed, went underground . . . and finally got abandoned because of all that Life had dished out to us over the years.

When we're ready to reconnect with that true self . . . at just that time, a soul mate will show up, become our mirror, and point the way "home" -- whatever that "home" happens to be for each of us.

For me it is being at peace with my body.
Not just at peace with it, but actually loving it!
Having a mind and body no longer at war with one another.
That is "home" to me.

But what was surprising was that I'd made such strides already, and actually felt like I was so close to that "home" (even coming down the walkway to the front door, so to speak!) But I wasn't. Instead, I was heading to meet my soul mate -- probably the last guide I'll ever need to arrive "home" via the shortest, fastest route!

A friend is reading a book entitled, Eat, Pray, Love. I picked it up and randomly opened to a passage. It was about a different definition of "soul mate" . . . not the rosy, glowy, blue-skies and sunsets one. And as I read the passage -- wham(!)-- it hit me that I'd just met mine.

(The italicised parts are my emphases.)

["Groceries"] “I seriously believed that David was my soul mate.”

[Richard, a fellow Ashram guest from Texas] “He probably was. Your problem is that you don’t understand what that word means. People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that’s what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life. A true soul mate is probably the most important person you will ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But live with a soul mate forever? Nah. Too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then they leave. And thank God for it. Your problem is, you just can’t let this one go. It’s over, Groceries. David’s purpose was to shake you up, drive you out of that marriage that you needed to leave, tear apart your ego a little bit, show you your obstacles and addictions, break your heart open so a new light could get in, make you so desperate and out of control that you had to transform your life, then introduce you to your spiritual master and beat it."

Returning Home

I came across another bit on "soul connections" quite out of nowhere the other day too. To me, it rang equally as true as the above excerpt from Eat, Pray, Love -- even though it appears contradictory to it. (Again, the italicised words are my emphases.)

"A soul connection is a resonance between two people who respond to the essential beauty of each other's individual natures, behind their facades, and who connect on this deeper level. This kind of mutual recognition provides the catalyst for a potent alchemy. It is a sacred alliance whose purpose is to help both partners discover and realize their deepest potentials. While a heart connection lets us appreciate those we love just as they are, a soul connection opens up a further dimension -- seeing and loving them for who they could be, and for who we could become under their influence. This means recognizing that we both have an important part to play in helping each other become more fully who we are. A soul connection not only inspires us to expand, but also forces us to confront whatever stands in the way of that expansion." (Love and Awakening by John Welwood) .

When I read the above, it made me wonder if the Eat, Pray, Love kinda soulmates could ever have the heart connection Welwood describes. I suppose in a perfect world, eh?

So today I thank *** for my soul mate.
May he be blessed with every joy and happiness.
May he welcome the purifying, healing work *** is doing in him.
For I came into his life for as deep a purpose as he came into mine!
It's how *** works when He brings people together, I think.
It is never to just benefit one.
*** is way too clever and efficient for that!

The Oracle Says . . .

I was reading the "Health Ranger" Mike Adams' report on The Raw Spirit Festival, 2007 and stumbled on some guru's website ... a section of which was entitled, "The Oracle" :-) Kind of like asking one of those black "Crazy Eight" balls a question, shaking it up, and then watching the answer bubble to the top . . . you ask the "Oracle" a question and click the icon for your answer. These were the "answers":

Do whatever brings you peace; and if that's nothing at all, then do nothing at all. Being in a state of peace is more important than anything else, because it's only from a state of peace that you can see truly the decisions that have to be made and be willing to make them.

Depression comes from lost purpose.

Pain is the strain of refusing Truth.

Honor and respect thyself.

Work is merely the justification for the getting of what you want; it's the wanting that gets it.

What would happen if you stopped trying?

See only innocence.

There's nothing more valuable than silence.

Life is communication with God. This is the life within all things, including you.

Being lost means losing sight of where you want to go.

Where you put your attention determines your state of mind. For best results, put your attention on being clear about exactly what it is that you want.

Change the channel.

By condemning a thing you ensure its presence in your life.

To be safe, desire to hurt no one.

Take a vacation. Step aside and simply be happy. No reason is required. You can do this any time you want to because happiness is what you are.

It's no good trying to free yourself from illusions. Every illusion you have serves a purpose, and only by freeing yourself from that purpose can you be free of the illusion it inspires.

God's will for you is perfect happiness. To defy God, be miserable.

Freedom is the willingness to join.

You're responsible only for what you want.

Entering the present is not painful. It's only your reluctance to enter the present that's painful. You've devoted much of your life to maintaining this reluctance. Be happy, let it go.

You can never be free till you've freed all those you hold imprisoned.

It doesn't matter what you believe, or what anyone else believes either. No belief is truer than any other because all beliefs are just substitutes for the direct experience of reality. Believe nothing. Accept everything.

The 'Last Judgment' is simply the last judgment you will make. After that, you will judge no more and be free.

You can't transcend the rules of the game while having a vested interest in its outcome.

What have you decided?

Discard some of the things you've being carrying around with you.

You are loved.

You are bound by the rules of the world only so long as you believe the world can offer you salvation.

The only true memory is now.

Which is more important . . . being right or being happy?

Be still.

Find someone to forgive.

You criticize most in others what you most fear abides within you.

There's another way of looking at that.

Do you want to hurt or heal?

Freedom is the ability to trust.

Give, share, join.

Who could you set free?

Everything you need will fall in your lap, provided you're not standing up.

Things that are easily understood are quickly forgotten.

When you want only peace, you'll see nothing else.

Comforting peacefulness

The Dimensions Of Purity

The Dimensions Of Purity -- When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself. - Tecumseh

WOW ... stumbled on this amazing photographer . . . you'll be seeing more of his work as the weeks go by. He takes shots like this from his backyard! Click on the blue link, top left, to see more of his work.

Beatitudes at Dawn - Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never be reached by the caravan of thinking - Kahlil Gibran.

I'll be taking a breather from this blog for a few days as I have an unexpected visitor coming in from Hawaii and will be taking a couple of personal days off work! Should be fun catching up on old times -- indeed. I'll be back next week sometime.

Green meets Blue - Big Island of Hawaii

. . . "all the roots grow deeper when it's dry"

Saturday-Monday, October 6-8, 2007:

Didn't stay home this weekend after all. I accepted a friend's invitation to see her perform at the Westport Community Theatre in Connecticut and spent the night at her place. She was terrific in the play, and the beauty and peacefulness of her home and hospitality were just what the doctor ordered . . . for what I could only describe as a very, very difficult week.

Things are looking up moment by moment though . . . and consistently drinking green smoothies each day has had something to do with that. I have been feeling very strong physically since starting to incorporate these drinks into my day. Yesterday at my friend's place I made one for myself and her husband -- with kale, bok choy, banana, kiwi, nectarine and lime -- and it was delicious. All day Saturday I drank only green smoothies, and felt energized and full. There are definitely some very healing properties in greens! I feel like I've discovered a nutritional goldmine. The timing could not have been better.

Just Listen ... someone recently told me

Just Listen..., originally uploaded by DanielKHC.

The opening blurb at the top of this page says something about not only physical changes but spiritual changes I hope to see happen in my life as I break away from a standard diet (and eat more fresh foods). Lately, some of those spiritual changes have been occurring, but today's post has nothing to do with raw food. It has to do with living as honestly and lovingly with others as we can and listening to one another -- and a painful spiritual lesson I'm in the midst of regarding that.

In close relationships, I think listening involves a willingness to open one's self up to another. In order to hear another, the person being heard has to first want to be known -- they have to allow themselves to be known. One cannot listen if another stays silent. Cryptic and oblique ways of communicating, expecting another to "get the hints" one sends, feeling upset when they don't, not letting another know you are annoyed with them -- these are not ways of making one's self known. Good communication cannot happen that way because all the responsibility is placed on the listener! They become responsible to read the other's mind, to automatically know the speaker's intent (without the speaker filling in texture or detail or clarifying things), expected to correct behavior without even knowing the other is offended or upset about something in the first place! These are impossible tasks.

To beat one's self up for "not being a good enough listener" -- when another withholds their genuine thoughts -- is self-abuse. Even if the motive of the person withholding their thoughts is benevolent, it leads to great strain . . . so much so that it can affect the very atmosphere the people share, literally making it heavy and awkward to be in each other's presence. The one left in the dark doesn't know where the heaviness is coming from . . . they just know they feel off-balance and the longer it goes on, the more off-balance one feels.

But letting ourselves be known is a matter of trust. We choose who we let in and who we don't based entirely on trust. We choose who we allow to know us and who we don't want to know us based entirely on trust. Trust governs it all.

What I described above is one factor that's recently put a strain on an important friendship I value deeply. Another significant factor that strained the friendship was that I projected my own fears onto my friend -- even tho I was assured that my friend had no such concerns about the issue. I could not seem to accept what was told to me and so those fears increased and took on a life of their own, adding to the stiltedness in the atmosphere between us. These two factors -- happening simultaneously -- had the chilling effect of shutting down all honest communication between us. What showed up in its place was a deadly politeness that occasioned the most bland of interactions between us and accentuated each of our flaws!

But here is the kicker. All the while neither of us spoke about it. It's maddening, when I think about it! There was a "pink gorilla sitting in the living room" but neither of us seemed able (or willing?) to point it out. I do not know why. In retrospect, it was the saddest thing -- neither one of us asking the other about the heaviness, the awkwardness. As I put the pieces together this past week, it actually brought me to tears. I wonder what might have happened if either of us had simply spoken up, honestly, from the heart -- friend to friend. That is one thing I probably will never know.

Having had a few weeks to mull things over and feel the feelings I've had -- mostly sorrow and disappointment -- I'm trusting that any relationship taken on in good faith, with love and good intentions (as this one was on both of our parts) -- even if it didn't work out as we'd have liked -- can only have good come out of it.

So onward and upward . . . What is that saying . . . "All the roots grow deeper when it's dry."