Lessons in Balance

What's in my medicine cabinet?

When I decided to submit a blog post to The Kathleen Show's Prevention Not Prescriptions project, I thought I'd better check my own stash before getting up on the soap box. This is honestly what I found. The only alterations I made were to turn a few bottles around so the labels would be visible. From top to bottom shelf the contents are:

• Vinceel (homeopathic sore throat remedy)
• Zeel (a sample of homeopathic joint remedy)
• A pack of gauze
• An almost empty tube of Traumeel  (used in my massage practice)
• Another bottle of Zeel
• Detox (homeopathic cleansing remedy)
• Chinese herbs: Cholisma and Nourish blends
• Milk Thistle
• Daily Multi vitamins
• "Unforgettables" (good for brain health but I forget to take them)
• COQ10 (took them for a few days)
• Halfprin (Dr. Oz says they're good for your heart but my stomach hates it so they sit there in case someone has a headache)
• Glass eyewash

Not one prescription medication in there. I do have a vial of generic Vicodin in my freezer which was prescribed on December 22, 2008 when I had a tooth extracted. I didn't have any resulting pain but keep it my freezer, "just in case". Of the 16 total, I've shared 8 of them throughout the year with house guests who's back,shoulders, knees or toes hurt them more than they could bear. The balance will be tossed out after the expiration date.

I'm not Anti-Prescriptions, I am Pro-Prevention. I feel blessed not to have any disease or ailment that might impel me to choose pharmaceutical remedies over the more natural herbs and tinctures, most definitely. But I believe I'm in possession of what I embrace (good health), as opposed to being free from what I push away (disease or pain). Both involve action and energy but the first encourages growth.

Try it out on yourself. Rather than focusing on avoiding unhealthy foods, toxic situations, or depressing news, choose instead to step toward healthy eating, happy encounters and uplifting stories or movies. If, as it has happened to me, someone accuses you of ignoring reality, just proclaim that it's not your reality. Sooner or later, it all comes true.

In fact, I think I'm going to empty that cabinet and fill it with even more meaningful items. If you have any suggestions, send them my way! It's not a medicine cabinet after all.

I'm submitting this post to Prevention Not Prescriptions . Please feel free to join the discussion, make a comment or share this with a friend.

My Own Food Rating System

Breakfast for me is often a drink as shown above, which is easily my first serving of:

• 1 Mango
• 3 bananas (frozen, whole)
• 2 Tablespoons ground Flax seeds
• 1 Tablespoon raw hemp protein
• 1 cup Lemon/Ginger juice with echinacea
• 1 teaspoon Flax Oil
• 1/2 cup frozen mixed berries
• 1/2 cup ice cubes

Into my Vita-Mix, I first pour the juice, add the ground flax seeds (also done in the Vita-Mix), protein powder, fruits and flax oil. Ice cubes on the top seem to work best with the blender turned on low and slowly accelerated to full power. In less than 30 seconds, my smoothie smothers my taste buds with cold, natural sweetness.

As I looked at my blended food this morning I thought, "It looks good, tastes good and does good. That would be a great way to rate and grade what I consume." No matter how beneficial something is for me, if it looks and tastes awful, it's not getting past the taste bud patrol very often. (Wheat grass juice, I'm talking to you).

On the other hand, a beautiful hot, melting chocolate souffle will definitely taste good, but lose out in the "Do Good" category, even if the waiter comes back to retrieve my empty plate and says, "You did good!"

From now on, 3 Goods is the rating I'd like to be able to give my food. Now for the rating icons. Suggestions anyone?

It's Simply a Pot of Soup

If there's a philosophy behind the making of soup, I believe it's a simple one. I used to love the allegorical tales of Nathaniel Hawthorne and D.H. Lawrence and now, find more joy in the messages that stream from my 8 quart pot. I crave simple answers.

I once asked artist Tadashi Sato what his lifetime goal was for his art and he said, "I'd like to paint one broad brush stroke and have people understand everything I have to say in that one stroke." I learned that it takes practice to make it simple.

That is why the whole concept of  43 Things  appeals to me. It narrows everything down to 43 Things and with practice, I'd like to pare it down to just 1 Thing. I'm already beginning to see the way everything interrelates. Of the suggested 43 categories, I'm focusing on these 5 Things as I plan, cook and eat a bowl of Lentil Soup:

      #2. Learn New Things. I've been cooking soups and stews for years but never diced the vegetables or held off on the salt until just before serving as the recipe (linked below) instructs. The result is a quick-cooking soup with all the vegetables retaining their flavor.

     # 8. Cook More. I'm trying to be more mindful of what I eat, to eat regularly and be sure that I'm getting enough of the right nutrients. I love the freedom of cooking for one but I need more incentives to cook. Since this soup was so easy and quick to prepare I've made it 3 times in the past 2 weeks with different ingredients.

     #13. Be Healthy. I've decided to make my way back to a plant-based diet, free of animal products but I don't want my iron levels to fall back to where they were 5 or 6 years ago. Anemia is not the animated-Asian picture I have in mind for myself. The lentils in this soup are high in iron.

     #19. Have More Friends. Twitter has introduced me to a lot of interesting people and as long as they're real and courteous I like to follow people of assorted political, religious and career interests. Still operating though, as in face-to-face relationships, is the law of attraction and I thank Twitter for bringing me Stefan Pinto's 10 Healthy Foods article along with Leslie Ashburn's Easy Lentil Soup recipe.

     #27. Be More Organized. The foods on the list provided by Stefan (@stefanpinto on Twitter) are things you'll always find in my kitchen (lately though, no tuna):

1. peanut butter
2. oatmeal
3. brown rice
4. garbanzo beans
5. tuna
6. black beans
7. lentils
8. corn
9. frozen spinach
10. sweet potatoes

Since those foods are always in my pantry, I must like them and I've started to look for new recipes containing those ingredients.  Leslie's (@MacroHawaii on Twitter) Easy Lentil Soup recipe, calls for lentils and corn and I've also used sweet potatoes and cooked brown rice.

Everything around me is conspiring for me. It's as simple as that. The hard part is getting over the belief that it's supposed to be hard. That's where practice fits in. As I continue to add to my list of 43 Things, I want to hang on to these thoughts:

• What's the One Thing that I want?
• Everything is interrelated, just connect the dots
• Rest assured that everything works for me
• Believe in the simplicity of it all

Try making the Easy Lentil Soup and see what profound message appears for you. Then please come back here to tell me what it was.

Photo: Real Simple

How to be Happy in Two Easy Lessons

1. SMILE. A true smile will increase activity in the left prefrontal cortex of your brain -- known to be the seat of positive emotions.(1)  Need some help to get started? Just watch this video, but beware. The laughter is contagious.

2. LOOK FOR A HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY, everyday in your life and write it down. Whether on a calendar or in a diary of some sort, it becomes a gratitude journal. The habit of  listing what makes you happy and thankful, has been found to increase positive emotions.(2)  I'm listing my Highlights of the Day on 43 Things.

Sources:

(1) Engines of Our Ingenuity: Smiles that make you happy.www.uh.edu

(2)Highlights from the Research Project on Gratitude and Thankfulness.

43 Folders for 43 Things

I took the 43 Things Personality Quiz and found out I'm a

Spiritual Self-Knowing Self-Improver

I took the quiz and I bought the book because I am a spiritual, self-knowing, self-improver. Well, sometimes I'm all that at the same time but usually, my better qualities just peek through my everyday self. Like the tag on the back of a shirt, I've learned to keep certain things about myself, tucked in.

43 Things asks you to announce your goals within 43 separate categories and connects you to people who share the same goals. The theory being that publicly announcing your intentions makes you more accountable and committed to achieving your goals. It's true and it's the main reason why I've always been very careful about making promises.

But I've been practicing and observing a few things over the last three years that have lessened my fear of failure and I'm ready to step into the Ring-of-43-Things with these three in my corner:

1. The Laws of Attraction via Esther & Jerry Hicks;
2. The Mother Sequence of yoga postures as taught by Jehangir Palkhivala;
3. Heart Coherence via the Institute of HeartMath.

I'm going over to 43 Things to sign up..."slowly I turn, step-by-step"... Do you know where that phrase came from?

UPDATE: I've signed up and started with 20 things. Follow me here.  Maybe you'll start your own 43 Things and we can 'mingle'.