Never taking life too seriously.

I learned some important things recently about the importance of having a spirit of play. In fact, I dare say it’s one of the most important things you could ever have.

How “seriously” do you take your job? your debts? your relationships?

Please don’t misunderstand me. I’m not talking about irresponsibility here, but rather the idea that a spirit of play can be applied to just about any aspect or element of your life and somehow living gets a whole lot easier.

For many of us in the game of health, we have a tendency to take food seriously. I can’t count the conversations I’ve heard, and participated in, where the sole topic on the table is “I ate 100% raw, I didn’t eat 100% raw.”

That’s taking things “SERIOUSLY”.

I mean, at the end of a day, there are some questions worth asking ourselves:

What did you learn?
What did you do to make your life easier, more fulfilling?
Who did you help? Who helped you?
What changed? Who changed?
What dreams do you have and what are you creating for your tomorrow?
What made you giggle? What took your breath away?

You know, walking home at night, I go through a very dark park. It’s not lit at all and naturally, walking alone after 10:30 pm, I used to feel a bit “SERIOUS” about the whole thing. It’s not that I am irresponsible or careless. I’m not. But what I realized, was that by feeling fearful and nervous in the park, I was missing out on something.

THE STARS!!!

I mean, I realized for the first time tonight that this park, BECAUSE it’s not lit, is a magnificent place from which to see the stars!! So tonight I heard myself giggling in the darkness, looking up at the infinity of space and thinking to myself, how silly I’d been to miss out on all this juicy sparkle that was there just waiting to be noticed.

What sparkle are you missing out in your own life by taking things too SERIOUSLY?

Life IS a game, and you’re the one making the moves. Embrace a spirit of play, regardless of what life throws your way, and you and all those around you will be much better for it.

Love and hugs,

Tera

p.s.

Muah!

xox

Trick or Treat? A Clever Mom’s Guide to a Healthy Halloween

As the streets become more and more speckled with Halloween decorations, a spooky sort of vibe fills the air, spurring children into anticipation and preparations for their annual sugar overhaul. I remember as a kid bringing out a pillow case for the collection of my candy?and FILLING IT! I also have very vivid recollections of hurling over a toilet bowl a time or two.

If you?re anything like me, the approach of Halloween brings a certain sort of nervousness to the surface of my skin. I believe in compromises and a balanced approach to health, but ?candy? in any shape or form is just way out of my comfort boundaries. I?ve tried it all when it comes to creative solutions for a Healthy Halloween, and I?d like to share a bit about what worked and what didn?t.

The Deprivation Method

I think every hard-core health extremist tries this at some stage, only to realize that outside of moving to the jungle and tucking yourself away on a fruit farm, it?s nearly impossible to avoid the influence of the standard modern day family and their traditions and habits.

Admittedly, the deprivation experiments worked for a little while. I remember when my daughter Mika was 3 years old, she was offered a package of free Smarties in a movie store. I didn?t say a word. She just looked up at the man and said, ?No thank you. I don?t eat those.? Then smiled her innocent smile and took my hand.

One of my proudest moments of motherhood I can assure you.

However, as my little muffin became increasingly exposed to life in the ?real world?, there wasn?t much I could do to prevent the invasion of those colorfully wrapped poisons accompanying this holiday into her life. So when deprivation was no longer cutting the mustard, I had to get more creative about things.

Bring Halloween to Your House, and Be Willing to Get Gross

Okay, this one takes guts, sweat, creativity and hard work! I decided that if I couldn?t keep the kids from Halloween, I could bring Halloween home and thereby control the adventure myself.

One of my most memorable Halloweens as a kid was at the community hall where we lived out in the country. They had transformed the basement into a little haunted house, and had plenty of scary food things I had to stick my hand in. To the blindfolded, Spaghetti, jello and pickled duck eggs were “Bats Brains” “Goblin Guts” and “Old Lady’s Eyeballs.”

For a fun and healthy holiday, use peeled lychees for ?owl?s eyeballs?, grenadilla for ?frog?s eggs? and make a dish of ?Goblin?s Guts? from a thick green pudding of bananas, apples and spinach (chilled and firmed up in the fridge). The important part of this is letting them get their fingers in there. Sensation is everything. The grosser, the better!

One year for Halloween I rented a community hall. We planned games, had prizes and there was even a marvelous haunted house going on in the hall which saved me a bucket load of extra work! The kids were still young enough that this was acceptable and enjoyable. No one really asked about why there were no candies. There were other things? little toys and prizes, games and good friends.

So at the end of it all, while I had achieved a victory in preventing the consumption of sugar, I?d spent countless hours, dollars and a whole lot of energy putting this event together. Was it worth it? To a certain point, but I was sure that better solutions were to be had. So, that?s when I tried?

The Bargain

The next year, I decided that there was no way I was going go through all that hoop-lah again, just to avoid some sugar. The financial burden alone was prohibitive, never mind the number of hours that had to go into preparing for that event. (The thing that would have made it much easier, by the way, would have been a group of other parents as motivated as I was to create a Healthy Halloween. As it was, most parents wanted their kids out in the streets getting as much candy as possible so they could pillage the bowl at the end of the night!)

So, we inevitably decided to join the masses and walk the streets for Halloween like everybody else, BUT with a deal in place. The deal was that nobody touched any candy until we got into the car at the end of the night. At which point, they were both allowed 2 candies, then they had to pass over the bag.

They did it willingly, because the next stop was a supermarket with aisles and aisles of kids? toys. Which is where I let them loose to indulge in a different kind of consumption.

Feels a bit desperate looking back. There was still a lot of fear on my part in trying to avoid the evil sugar villain, and in my desperation I distracted them with toys instead. Nonetheless, I felt a victory had been won. That year had been much easier on the pocket book and my personal energy and resources than the previous year?s Halloween Party.

This year, I?m making it their choice!

The deal still stands. ?You give me your candy, I give you my money?, but this time it?s with a twist. The more candy I get, the more money I give. The choice is theirs. No ultimatums. No desperation. If they decide to cash in their stash for some money, they do. If they decide to keep their sugar, they can.

The one big thing I?ve noticed, is that the more I honor their right to choose, the more I am impressed, almost humbled frankly, at their ability to KNOW what is right for them and choose accordingly. The kids are already talking about how they?re going to spend their money this year and I haven?t heard much talk about chocolates or candies yet!

This year I?m also trying to put the focus on an adventure rather than a toy. Maybe we?ll go on a little trip by train, or out to the movies! Maybe we?ll go to a ceramic studio and paint our own pots!

I Don?t Wanna be a Wonka Mama

If you?ve not seen the movie Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, then do so! Willy Wonka himself is a perfectly brilliant demonstration of how deprivation just ends up creating extremism. His father was a dentist and a candy-despising tyrant!

There was a time when extremism served me. I?m not there now. I recognize the value of being balanced and conscious of the fact that health is about more than just food. Besides, there is something magical about walking the streets on Halloween, and seeing the costumed kids, proud parents and pumpkined paths – not to mention the ecstasy of a teeny piece of Halloween chocolate as it melts in your mouth!

Happy, Healthy Halloween

If I wasn’t so boring when it comes to food,…

…then I would definitely visit this dynamite diva for recipe inspiration:

The Daily Raw Cafe

I was literally paralyzed when I encountered her chocolate covered basil leaves…

Cream of mushroom soup caused all my childhood memories to come rushing back…

And this morning’s post (named in honor of our dear Diva Bob) was literally breathtaking.

I know I won’t eat any of these, I’m just far too conservative and “Hygienic” and well, I should just say it like it is: BORING!!

But I truly admire people that can eat that way and still feel good!

Anyway Teri, you have definitely made my heart skip a few beats with your super-creative approach to foods and your down-to-earth profile speaks volumes about just how very cool you are!

Three Cheers for another Raw Diva making ripples and waves in the lives of others!

Check out that basil limeade!!

Love and hugs,

Tera

What are you going to do about it?

Well, today is Blog Action Day!

A day to make a bit of noise in the name of environmentalism.

Admittedly, I’ve been feeling a bit of pressure, wondering what I could say that would really be of impact. The issue is one that really touches me deeply. I look at my kids and I just want a place where they can thrive, and roll around in green parks and have beautiful fresh fruits.

But when we consider ourselves as little people on this big spinning ball in space it can be a bit overwhelming to imagine how our efforts can make a difference. And yet, someone had an idea to do Blog Action Day, and because of that we’ve got a ripple the size of 15 000 blogs and 12 million people.

So where do you start?

Well, start by informing yourself.

There are a lot of places you can start. Here are my top three recommendations:

1. The Conscious Earth I like this guy because his writing is food for my brain. Especially this post: Skeptics, This Way, Please! *Remember, if you come across a word you don’t understand, LOOK IT UP!! Nothing worse than brain fog while you’re reading!*

2. Eco-Chick.com offers a fantastic list of resources for ecologically conscious clothing, home items, jewellry and just about everything under the sun! The site is run by an amazing group of people, and if you check out anything, then heck out the post on Elephant Poo Poo Paper! It just goes to show you that creativity counts! I mean, whoever thought of taking elephant poo to make paper!

3. Good Old Reliable Greenpeace. The Raw Divas contribute monthly to Greenpeace and encourage you to find an organization that you can support, too!

Now, there IS a lot of information out there. But don’t let it overwhelm you. The idea is to get informed and inspired, not to become a bitter, discouraged and hopeless environmentalist.

Read up and learn, but most importantly, take ACTION! Do something to make a difference and use these resources to inspire you on how you can do that.

Green Thoughts:

Mystics tell us the importance of living in the present moment, but I believe that real power is held in the dreams and goals that we build for tomorrow. Our thoughts now are creating what is to come and we’re all responsible for the situation as it exists and equally responsible for what happens tomorrow.

Let’s get busy. Start by holding a vision of a planet that thrives, with people in good communication, working together and inspired about their health, believing in their dreams and making the world a better place to be.

We have a lot to contend with this journey around the sun. Psychiatric medications, pesticides, and a battery of pharmaceuticals indicate that the health of the planet and her inhabitants is on a decline.

We know that there is a ripple effect. We know that as we take responsibility for our own health, it has an impact on the health of those around us. And on the other hand, unless you’re taking responsibility for your own health, how can you truly take responsibility for the health of others or the planet.

As far as I’m concerned, and this is just my opinion, the best way to make an impact on this planet is to affect change in your own life. Take the steps you need to feel better and live more fully. Start with you. As you continue to take back ownership over your health, you will become increasingly inspired to make a difference in the lives around you. But start with you. And then, naturally, your sphere of influence will continue to grow.

Ask yourself today what you can do to make a difference. And start by just changing the things in your life. The way you live, how you get to school, the products you buy.

Whatever it is, it IS making a difference, and the combined efforts of us all will be what finally turns things around.

Love and hugs,

Tera

p.s.

If you have a blog, please post green thoughts for this Blog Action Day. The bigger the ripple, the faster we get to where we’re trying to go.

Let Me Tell You What I Think About The Raw Food Movement

This week’s article received a lot of feedback from clients. Most of it tremendously encouraging and in agreement that we’ve got a long way to go to reach a place of mutual support and understanding within the raw food movement!

Check out the article below where Tera let’s her firey red-head temper loose!

Let Me Tell You What I Think About The Raw Food Movement
by Tera Warner

Okay, I admit that I?ve had more than my fair share of contradicting information when it comes to the ?right? way to approach the Raw Food Diet, and today I?d like to set the record straight.

This morning I received an article in my inbox and it was talking about the dangers of consuming too much fruit in the raw food diet. First of all, I love the author and felt like everything was written with great integrity and clarity. The proof was carefully laid out, and the reasoning behind it all was perfectly ?sensible,? and yet reading this article, I started to feel rather upset!

Why?

Because I could show you another link, well, dozens of them, in fact, that claim the complete 180 degree opposite of this to be true with as much ?sensible? reasoning and proof to back them up as well.

Frankly what shocks me is the fact that we can have two diametrically opposed camps in the raw food movement, and yet BOTH sides of the camp claim ?their? way is ?the right way? and then proceed to invalidate any other paths by claiming that they lead to misery and failure. The end result, as far as I am concerned, just creates a whole bunch of confusion for people who are looking to succeed in improving their health, and divides us as a raw food community.

The Fat-Fruit Controversy is not the only dichotomy in the Raw Food Movement by any stretch of the imagination. There are the Enzyme-elievers and Nay-sayers, the Sprouters vs the Doubters, the Juicers vs the Chewers, the Supplementers vs Puritan Hygienists, the Colon Flushers vs the Constipators.

You name it, there’s protest and dichotomy riddled throughout what we know as The Raw Food Movement.

And frankly, I think we should do something about it.

For heaven?s sake, we?re all raw foodists?we?re a global community of people inspired about health and passionately living as fully as we can. I think the impact we can have on this planet will be greater if we stand united rather than try and throw criticism and polarity into the soup.

How do we do this?

Well, if raw food leaders would start to speak from their personal experience rather than claiming to have ?the right way,? I think we?d be off to a very good start. Let?s face it, much of what we?re doing in this raw food movement still qualifies as a grand human experiment. As far as I can see, there is no ?right way,? there is only ?YOUR right way? and if there was a single ?right way?, we wouldn?t have nearly this much argument and dissention within the raw food movement, would we?

I?ve seen raw food ?experts? try to apply the raw food diet for more than 10 years, only to pack it in and decide that it wasn?t working for them! I?ve received phone calls from people who had tried EVERYTHING (High fat, low fat, sprouts, juice, and dehydrated goods) just to end up extremely ill and finding comfort only in cooked root vegetables and a small amount of meat.

Who am I to judge? Who are any of us to judge what is ?right? for them?

Frankly, as soon as any person claims they know ?THE truth? I just want to run in the opposite direction. There are no absolutes, as far as I?m concerned, and when it comes to ?truth? well, what?s true is what?s true for YOU!

It would be very easy, for example, to say that just because Dr Norman Walker lived to the ripe old age of 100 and something, and HE didn?t eat too much fruit, and flushed his colon then we should all reduce our fruit consumption and flush our colons.

But that just doesn?t make ANY sense. There are little old ladies in Japan who have been eating sushi their whole lives and digging potatoes out of their back garden living to the ripe of age of 100 and something, too! So should we all start eating sushi and picking potatoes?

No way!

How can you possibly begin to eliminate the infinity of variables that play into each person?s unique constitution, environment and history? You can?t! There?s no way to rationally ignore all the other factors in the equation in order to make any of these broad, sweeping statements about the ?rightness? of anyone?s diet or lifestyle.

I?ve seen too many people spontaneously healed from a lifetime of illness through spiritual awakenings and self-discovery to fall for the idea that food alone is the issue. They didn?t change anything about their food, but rather come to understand something profound about themselves, their history, and their very being, and that caused an extraordinary shift in their lives and their health. Wheatgrass and bananas had nothing to do with it.

I?d like to believe that we can create a space where people feel safe to do what works for them and that we can honor the ?rightness? of each person?s self-determinism and ability to know what is best for them. Let?s put all the options on the table, but let?s do it in the spirit of learning from each other and supporting each other to better understand health as a composite of a wide range of factors, including tolerance and compassion for others.

There is so much more to be gained by realizing that we?re all here doing our best to learn as we go and make the world a saner place in the process. With all these debates and dissention in the raw food movement, we become obsessed with FOOD, and forget how important our mental and emotional state is to the digestion of whatever we eat.

We see the same thing in raw food leaders who speak with disdain and intolerance for anything that is cooked. We create competition amongst ourselves as people passionate about health, rather than a spirit of tolerance and a desire to understand each other and ourselves better.

Here at The Raw Divas, we will continue to invite experts who practice many different variations of the raw diet, and we will even invite incredible people that live empowered lives and could care less about raw food!

What are your goals in this adventure of LIFE? To attach a label to your forehead, or to better understand your body and your self? Food is just one part of the equation.

Leaders of the Raw Food Movement Unite! We?re stronger together than we are divided, and as soon as one of us starts invalidating the success or personal choices of the other, we?re all sunk! Let?s admit and understand that there is much to be learned in the process of what we?re doing, and what works for one may not work for the other.

Raw food enthusiasts and seekers of health and high-energy living: Don?t let anyone invalidate what?s real for you! Observe what happens in your body and keep things simple. You will KNOW what works for you and don?t let all those enzymatic fermentation theories distract you from what you OBSERVE to be true about your body and its reactions.

We are all engaged in the process of learning more about ourselves and working towards a greater understanding of health and awareness. We do this best with a genuine desire to learn from each other?s experiences and by standing in the integrity of what we observe to be true for ourselves, and by speaking about it in those terms.

Thank you to each of you who bravely blaze a trail of tolerance, of community, and of mutual support, as we all evolve towards a greater understanding of each other and ourselves. We have much to learn yet. Let?s support each other in the process and we?ll all get to where we?re striving to go a lot faster.