Wanting The Work

I confess. I am an observer of people. I think it is part of the path I walk on this earth. I observe to try and find solutions for people as they struggle with life's challenges. In my previous blog post I spoke of Working With What We Already Have. On this note, I want to remind you that each and every one of us, has inside of ourselves, ALL that we need to heal; to reach every goal we have for our physical, emotional, and spiritual health.  We just need to work with what we have, call up our strengths (and we have far more than we think or give ourselves credit for having), and put into action the steps we personally need to create a healthier lifestyle.

OK, so first... my floor, back to working with what I had and my promised update. Here are finished pictures of the floor. Not bad for 100+ year old floors that the pro floor guy told me my best option was to bag them and start over!

Perfect? No.

Shabby chic? Yes.

I am happy!

Working in health care (true health care and not just disease symptom management) for 30 years and most recently for 20+ years in personal health education,  I have made discoveries. We often have amazing goals for ourselves. We know where we want to be with our health, our body weight, and our physical wellness (emotional & spiritual wellness as well). Our end goals are very clear to us and we do truly want to attain these goals. Most of us have pretty good ideas about what we need to do to get to our goals.

Here's where things get sticky: wanting the work that leads us to these goals of health, weight loss, healing, physical fitness, emotional and spiritual happiness, etc.

In order to be successful at reaching our goals, we have to want to do the work to get there. This means changing the way we eat, what we eat, and our lifestyle habits little by little, step by step (or making sweeping changes if that is how you best function) and sticking with our changes to reach our goals and beyond. Maintaining health means living these newly incorporated eating and lifestyle habits for life, changing them up a bit as the seasons of the years and our lives evolve and need something different. (An example would be slowing down to embrace aging gracefully: giving you body more recovery time between fitness routines and allowing for more sleep at night than when you were 20!)

Reaching and maintaining our goals, for life, is a true "on top of the world" feeling!

The work comes in when we have to suffer a little to meet the challenge of change. I will give an example here in weight loss. In order to lose weight we have to change the way we eat, get rid of the garbage factory made food, and learn to eat less. With this comes the struggle to get through the feeling hungry challenges. If you are used to eating large meals, the challenge will be to leave the table feeling less than full and relaxing, breathing, and moving through this feeling knowing you will be ok, you will survive without feeling stuffed and full all of the time. Going hungry is the work of losing weight for some people. Wanting this work makes reaching the goal of weight loss easier and more acceptable for you to accept the challenges that lay before you.

This is true of many forms of lifestyle change to improve (yes, even heal) lifestyle diseases. To reach the goal of saying goodbye to diabetic, cholesterol, or hypertension medication and ill health symptoms, we must want the work that lies between the present dis - ease in the body and achieving the goal: major eating and lifestyle changes, living completely without sweeteners, and being OK with this and the impacting consequences of our changes.

My job as a natural health educator RN is to give you tools to support you through the WORK of making change and achieving goals.  I have raved about the power of yoga to heal on numerous occasions. I am throwing it out to you again because that is just the kind of gal I am... repeat, repeat, repeat until someone actually listens to me!  (I keep thinking this will someday work with my kids!)

Yoga IS Snake Oil

Why I Love Yoga And Other Thoughts On Whole Food, Whole Health Healing

5 Shocking Ways Yoga Causes You To Lose Weight

The above three blog posts are inspiring posts on the benefits of yoga. I encourage you to explore what makes your mind, heart, and soul sing so that the path of the work comes more easily to and for you every day. Maybe for you it is meditation, prayer, martial arts, Qi gong, walks in the woods, etc. Find your personal soul medicine and practice it daily. Wanting the work will become second nature.

Much love, Paula

PS Upcoming Fall Online Class: 

Herbs For Enhancing Your Natural Health

PPS Beloved Beet Recipe!

Substance part of the beet dish:

6 small to medium local & organic beets, gently steamed (save and drink the steam water)
2/3 can organic chickpeas
1 handful each of organic walnuts and pecans
1/2 handful organic pine nuts

Dressing:

2/3 to 3/4 cup full fat yogurt, from pasture raised cows / goats / sheep, etc.
2 tsp. local maple syrup
Fresh herbs of your liking: Basil, Oregano, Mint, Spearmint, Thyme, Tarragon, Chives , Garlic chives, Rosemary (I used all of these from my herb/weed garden out in front of my home)

Serve on a bed of local, organic, baby greens & sprinkle or slather with chunks of soft goat cheese

Working With What We Already Have

Above you see two pictures of my living room floor. The first is the before and the 2nd is after sanding, lots of TLC, and begging my "floor man" to just work with me on this one.

You are probably thinking great Paula, pictures of your floor, but what does that have to do with health. I am going to be quick about this explanation... the Reader's Digest version is what I am aiming for.

In a frenzy one day I made my boys help me rip up the carpet in this room. I hate carpet. I knew underneath there was 100 year old wood floors (my home is 175 years and there are wide plank boards under the boards you see. Hmmm, crowbar? Nah, work with what is right there!) that I would prefer to sweep than use a noisy vacuum cleaner on carpet.

Long story short: hard wood floor refinishing company took one look and said: "No way to make this floor look good. You need to put in a whole new hardwood floor." My reply: "Seriously? Why not use what is there and prevent the use of new trees to make new floor boards and the possibility of creating garbage in this world by ripping up the 100 year old boards. There is history here, lives lived on these boards, stories that I will never hear (the people are no longer alive!)... why waste what is already here? Why not work with what we have?"

I got my renegade, work for himself floor guy (who initially said the same thing about the floor and why I then asked the "pros") and begged him to just work with me on this one. I will share pictures of the final floor when I am finished sanding, fixing up, and poly-urethane covering the boards I am thrilled to have under my feet.

Your health and my floor connection? Work with what you have!

Years ago, close to 20 I bet,  I was doing a workshop locally on whole foods for weight loss. After the workshop a woman came up to me and said... I want to look like you. This woman was easily 5 inches taller than me and blessed with the big bone structure of Slavic peoples. I am 5 foot 5 1/2 inches and have the bone structure of a bird. (Trust me, I have had my longings for a more curvaceous and voluptuous body and bones that would better anchor me to this earth in a strong wind but what I have is what I have!) I hugged this woman, told her that her body was strong and beautiful, and suggested she work with what she already has (what she was gifted by her genetics)! Sure, a 25 pound weight loss would increase her health and vitality but her height and bones are her height and bones. 

My point(s): 

• embrace what nature, genetics, God, Goddess gave you (whatever beliefs you live and love by),
• eat whole foods to re-balance your weight right where it is supposed to be for you
• move your body to keep it frisky and healthy; do not rely on movement... exercise for weight loss, real food 100% of the time is what matters in the metabolism of healthy biology and body weight
• chew your food well to take good care of your gut
• LOVE exactly what you were given (what you have) and care for it in whole health ways to make the very best out of YOU!

There is only one of you. Celebrate you and make you the very best you that you can be!

That is how I am dealing with my 100 year old floors... making those boards the very best they can be and being at peace with their imperfections; walking with the history that came before me!

My Floor & I wish you Peace in discovering that what you have is just what you need. 

Life IS A Symphony

Life is a symphony meant to flow in harmony with self and all life on this planet.

When we live in this harmony with nature (we are nature) the music of the universe becomes the dance of life.

So many of us work against this flow, thinking we are wiser than the laws of nature; perhaps that we are above the laws of nature.

I invite you to do this:

1. Sit or lie down in a comfortable position,
2. Close your eyes,
3. Take 10 slow, deep belly breaths (breathing from the belly makes the diaphragm drop down and allows your lungs to fully expand, your breath of life!),
4. Envision yourself in the flow of life, all things in harmony,
5. Allow this vision to stay with you as you continue to deep breathe,
6. Start at your head and visualize each and every body organ & body part, one by one, until you reach your toes; visualize them alive with love, life force energy, that glowing white light,
7. Finish up with 10 more slow deep breaths.
8. Slowly bring yourself back to the present moment.

Your body, mind, and spirit should feel refreshed and alive, ready to meet the day's challenges with peace.

Anytime you arrive at a snag in your day, pause for just a moment, deep breathe and visualize the white light running from the center of your head to your toes. This is a quickie mindfulness meditation to bring calm and patience to the moment.

Remember your body is an amazing healing organism, part of the harmony of the universe. Allowing yourself to be in this harmony creates a healing effect in each and every body cell.

Healing Blessings, Paula

The Power Of Walking Our Personal Paths On This Planet & A Summer Refresher Drink Recipe!

The Native Americans use the term Medicine Path to describe our personal path on this planet; the gifts we have to offer to all life on this planet. What a strong message this sends: when we do what we are personally meant to be doing on our life walk it is healing to our body, mind, and spirit and healing medicine to those we share our gifts with. Each of us has a purpose, a story to tell, a gift to share with the world to make this place a better place for all. When we listen, truly listen to our heart-spirit, we know our special gift(s) to share. 

Are you connected with your purpose here, the gift you need to be sharing with others?

In my young teenage years I knew I wanted to be a health teacher. Going to RN school, right after high school, seemed to me a great place to start (When I look at my life in retrospect... I was not consciously thinking this out at the time!).  Nursing school taught me that our medical field works to decrease and cover the symptoms of ill health but really does very little, if anything, to get to the root cause of ill health and heal it. Health Education was my answer to get on prevention end and help people understand what causes disease, what promotes healthy bodies, and how to best make that happen in their lives. The road of life led me to my own practice, supporting other's desire to return to health is my medicine walk on this earth.

Finding your path in life means creating space to listen, truly listen to your heart and spirit talking to you:

• take walks in nature, relax and listen to what comes up without creating actual thoughts
• speak positive words about yourself and the world around you, your words create your reality and ripple out to the reality of the whole universe
• practice some form of mind-body-spirit activity, daily, that leads you back to you: yoga, tai chi, qigong, meditation, prayer...
• surround yourself with positive people, positive media, positive energy... positive food for mind-body-spirit
• eat whole foods so your body cells vibrate at their highest nutritional frequency
• discover what makes you happy and color your world happy!

All of these actions help you, your whole being, vibrate at your highest life force energy frequency. This is your medicine path in the making!

In my quest to do the best I can with what I do... I have devised a questionnaire for new clients to determine if I am the right choice for them on their healing path.  This questionnaire also helps me to determine if a client is the right fit for me and what I have to offer. The right fit, on both sides, creates happy clients who desire to be successful in this healing walk with me! We work together to color each other's worlds happy!

Summer Citrus Cooling Drink

• 1 lime
• 2 cups water
• 6 or so ice cubes
• optional: fresh herbs from the garden: mint, basil, tarragon, cilantro are all good choices; use one or two at a time

1. Wash off the lime and quarter it, put in blender (yes, skins & all as the skin contains amazing anti-oxidants... anti-cancer properties!)
2. add water & ice cubes
3. blend into a frenzy
4. pour into tall sipping glasses, add herbs, and enjoy (wide mouth pint canning jars work well)
5. PS add a touch of whole food sweetener if too tart for your taste buds but go very easy as sugar is not a cell enhancing food

I have made this with fresh lemons, oranges, peach & nectarines, berries, etc. Use your imagination and let the seasonal fruit offerings guide your choices.

RACK-ing Up Great Health!

I recently created the above image and idea I am calling R-A-C-K-ing up Health to remind people how easy the return to vibrant health is. When we follow life's plan, the natural laws of the earth and universe, our health flows freely.

I was thinking about this very concept as I was picking black raspberries at my Mom & Dad's home on Saturday morning. I began picking them planning to take them to my home and share the bounty. My kids were gone for the weekend so instead the hand to mouth experience began.

By the time I left my parent's home I bet I had picked and eaten, sharing with my good buddy Basil of course, a quart of these juicy delicacies. That is some powerful and colorful nutrition based upon the stains on my hands, face, tongue, lips, and teeth!  (The picture below is Basil and I on a little north country Hornbeck canoeing excursion.)

The thoughts of vibrant, live food kept passing through my mind and how much nutrition and life force energy our bodies receive when we pick and eat food immediately. Ah yes, the grace of local food, raised by ourselves or a conscious thinking farmer, brought to our tables within a short time frame to fill our body cells with nutrition and our entire being with chi energy.

When we pick plant based food from its life source, its source of life force energy, that plant based food begins to die.  The longer the time span between plucking or pulling the food from its source, the less nutrition and life force energy remain available to nourish your body. Grow, pick, and buy local for the most cell enhancing nutrition and life force energy infusion you can gift your body with.

To find local farmers here in Northern NY State: www.gardenshare.org

To find local farmers wherever you are: www.localharvest.org

Jump down below those gorgeous berries for a bit more life enhancing advice and a yummy, iced coffee recipe.

Eating fresh food is but one way we can enhance our life force energy and cellular health. Try these natural habits for increasing your vibrancy:

• deep breathing in a relaxed and peaceful way
• yoga
• meditation
• walks in the woods and time spent in nature (remember, you are nature)
• laugh
• acupuncture and energy healing methods
• take a swim in an Adirondack lake
• love with your whole heart

Added July 16th...

• Fun Loving Spontaneity increases Life Force Energy. See the words of wisdom, below, from Shelby Connelly, Five Elements Living, Colton, NY

Ingredients for spontaneity:

• The ability to let go:  Take a deep breath and jump. The chores and routine will await your return.
• Knowing life is short:  No one ever lays on their death bed wishing they had worked more.
• A friend to push you off the edge:   Every women needs a "Thelma" to her "Louise". Oh girls just wanna have fuu-un! (Cindy Lauper is my hero.)

Namaste'

Get Mesmerized by the Marvels of Your Body

I am inviting you to embrace the miracle of your body. 

I am always looking for ways to inspire and motivate clients and students in my classes to want to make healing changes in their lives, healing changes that will last a lifetime. I want you to realize that you can change any lifestyle habit into a powerful healthy and healing choice if you truly desire to do so.

I love explaining to people the impact food and lifestyle habits have on cellular health. When we realize the intrinsic effects we have on our own health we often are more inclined to do things differently, more healthful choices.

The miracle of the human body has always fascinated me. I remember watching my first birth as a nursing student. I was awestruck and in love with everything about it. 32 years later I still feel that way about the creative power of living beings. We have an egg that gets fertilized by a sperm creating a 1 cell being. This one cell goes on to split and divide millions and millions of times to create:

• every cell, tissue, organ, and organ system in this new human life,

• the placenta,

• the amniotic sac and fluid, and

• the umbilical cord!

Sometimes that one cell does a completely crazy thing and splits in half in the early process and creates 2 human beings and all of the above extras (yes, identical twins!). This can happen, in very rare instances, to create identical quadruplets and more!

This whole process is amazing, miraculous, a true breath taking and awe inspiring feat of biology. Relax and close your eyes. I want you to immerse yourself in the magnificence of this. Now I want you to think about all the other processes your marvelous body does every day:

• digestion and elimination

• immune responses 24-7

• sensory input and  neuro- analyzation so you can feel, smell, hear, see, and taste

• detoxification of everything that comes into your body

• movement of nutrients, innate chemicals, lymph fluid, oxygen and gasses throughout your body

• filtering the blood to create urinary waste

• manufacturing and delivering feel good hormones to the brain

• movement of your body about your life

• manufacturing and delivering hundreds and hundreds of enzymes, hormones, and other biological chemicals to every cell of your body (when and where needed)

Truly, this list could go on forever. What I want to impress upon you is the amazingness, awesomeness, the marvel of your entire being.

Circulatory System

Digestive Tract, Gut!

Skeletal System

The Heart

When we are truly mesmerized at the extraordinary  being we humans are (all beings on this planet are extraordinary but I want to focus on humans to turn you onto caring for you!) we are more inclined to want to better care for ourselves and make the commitment to lifestyle changes that will prevent and heal disease.

Knowing what a miracle each and every bodily process is... don't you just want to take whole food and whole health care of you? Your body will shape shift into this healthy, vibrant being... I promise!

Mind, Body, Spirit

Please share your thoughts and feelings on the Marvel of the Human Body, the Marvel of You and how this inspires you to take better care... the best care of you!