my email attachment…...

Yesterday I received an email that was sharing information with me. I won't go into details of that information as it really isn't relative to what I learned about the email today. After reading this email I was very, very angry. What I was being asked to carry out was not the problem at all. I was angry at the composition of the email and how the writer immediately went to a place of suspected non-compliance on my part and laid out in no uncertain terms what the consequences would be for my inaction. My goodness …. I haven't even been given an opportunity to comply and I'm already being painted with the brush of disobedience.

This email was sent out to many people and not just myself. I believe there is a way to communicate that will achieve results in a positive fashion and have people feel positive about it. And then there is communication that is not positive. For me, I felt this came across as a threat. That is my personal opinion. As a finger-wagging in my face. Neither of these methods leaves me feeling very good. I discussed the email with my partner at dinner and I could feel my anger once again and it was rising even higher. I am disturbed by people who communicate in a way that is negative, leaves a person feeling negative and feels that this way of communicating is worth the outcome. This email was meant to be intimidating and nothing else.

Now here's the good part. I learned something from that email. I know there is negativity around us everywhere, but yesterday it came through in this email. It was like an attachment that I didn't have to open though because it was simply in the written words and maybe it was in my interpretation, but then again my interpretation is my reality. The next time this happens I will immediately cleanse if I'm in a position to do that and if not I will make sure that the negativity does not attach itself to me and clear it from my environment. Dry brushing is also a good practice to participate in to make sure that your body is cleared of negativity. Even meditating quietly for just a few moments will clear the negativity. Make note of the pertinent information in the email and then delete it.

The power of negativity is amazing and we all deal with it differently. Yesterday I was having a great day and then I read this email. It didn't turn my day upside down, but I certainly was upset when I read it and when I talked about it later. It was still affecting me hours later and now I realize that I could have changed that. I needed to deal with it immediately and then let it go. Let my frustration and disappointment go. Let my expectations of better communication from this person go. Just let it all go. There, I feel better all ready. If we let all of the negativity around us cling to us it will weigh us down and we will feel very heavy with its burden. Let's lighten the load.

Thanks for listening……

Blessings to all,
Maggie

a green breakfast …...

During our first week of our wellness journey we had 3 days of rebooting our systems and this meant having a green smoothie as our breakfast each day. I quite enjoy smoothies but the ones we were used to were fruit smoothies made with yogurt and almond milk. This smoothie was going to be different. We are talking vegetables here and a couple of fruits ……but yes, serious amts of vegetables, but that also meant great nutritive value! I bought all of the various ingredients and began chopping. I quickly learned after making the first batch that there was something to be said in terms of what order the ingredients went into the blender to make it easier on the machine. At times the blender sounded like it was sadly groaning as it tried its hardest to liquefy the vegetables. It did finally get the job done and I ended up with this beautiful green drink! I had for reasons unknown to me at the time saved the bottles from tomato passata that I like to have on hand and these were perfect to keep the smoothies in.

I was loving the colour but now we had to taste them. I remember pouring us each a glass for the first time and taking a taste. We were pleasantly surprised with the taste and finished the glass easily. You can taste a hint of each of the ingredients and the two fruits allow for a bit of sweetness to come through. I personally love the colour of the smoothie although I have had comments from my co-workers when I have taken it to work, that the colour is appalling in terms of a drink in a glass. I guess green drinks are not really the norm and will attract attention often. I'm happy to drink it and know that I am getting so much goodness from just even one glass of this green drink!

I love this pic of several of the ingredients ready to blend! You can barely see it but the coconut water is in there too at the bottom. I do have to say though that now that I have made this several times I do not put all these ingredients in the blender at the same time as it makes it too difficult for my blender to do its work. There are probably blenders out there that are more heavy duty than mine is that could do it but I follow an order that makes it a bit easier for mine. 

Adding the parsley…….

The finished product! All bottled and ready for the refrigerator and the week ahead.

Drink up and enjoy the goodness!! 

Green Smoothie Recipe

• 1 cup kale or 2 cups spinach
• 1/2 cucumber
• 3-4 stalks celery
• 1 avocado
• 1/2 bunch parsley
• 1 apple
• 1/2 lemon - juice only
• 1/2 bunch mint
• 1/4 pineapple
• 1 cup coconut water or filtered water

Chop all veggies and fruits small to make for easier blending. I have yet to find any bunches of fresh mint so I haven't used it in mine and I still love the taste. I also find that I put more coconut water in so that it is thin enough to drink.

Blend and serve! 

Thanks to Sarah Tilley, RHN for the recipe!!

In wellness,

Maggie

Our healthy journey…..

Several weeks ago we made the decision that we were going to embark on a journey that would see us increase our potential for good health and 'eat to live' essentially. Life is busy and we both have stressful jobs and this translates into effects on our bodies that warrant attention. Our nutrition is compromised by the needs that our bodies require to process the stress inside of us each and every day. Nutrients are used to combat the effects of stress and if we are not eating well to begin with then the effects will be quite damaging. So we decided to make changes for ourselves that would have us invest in our own futures. Changes that include methods of stress reduction and a nutritional approach to look at what we eat. We were already eating probably at least 50-60% organic, were cooking from scratch always, had eliminated most processed foods from our diet and yet we knew there was always room for improvement. We contacted Sarah, a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and our journey began. I have an extensive background in nutrition but we wanted to do this right and have support along the way from a professional. Our goals were to lose weight and provide our bodies with the foods that would support wellness in the best way possible.

For myself I am very much enjoying the journey because I know I am doing good things for this body of mine. I can admit that I just recently turned 58 and I want to create an existence of wellness for myself that will support many more years of an active and productive life. In order to do that I chose to create this wellness path. I have a solid foundation in terms of nutritional knowledge and awareness and this has allowed me to feel relatively well for many years, but I still felt that I could feel better. I was beginning to feel a bit 'achey' a lot of the time and this disturbed me quite a bit. I felt as though I was becoming 'old'. Eeek!…..I do not want to feel that way and therefore the desire to make this change began. I had given up sugar several years ago, but it did seem to be creeping back into my diet from time to time and my biggest challenge was going to be giving up butter! I have a love affair with butter and I knew that I had to break the ties of this relationship to where we could simply be friends but no longer lovers…. lol.

We are following along with a meal plan and particular recipes currently while we work with Sarah for several weeks, but our plan is to make changes in our food choices and create a lifestyle that supports our nutritional wellness at all times. It will simply become a way of life for us. Right now we are still in the intensive stages where we have to follow along with the designated meal choices and this does require a lot of prepatory work, but if it is not done then it is setting us up for failure and that is not a choice we want for ourselves. Our refrigerator has never been so full of vegetables !

I will continue to blog about the journey and share how things are going. I truly feel that 'we are what we eat' and the effects that it has on our bodies is summed up in how we feel and move through our day. Food affects our mind and our bodies and we have no one to blame but ourselves when we make poor choices. I've made those poor choices and then regret them pretty quickly after I did. For me it's now time to make the good choices and reap the rewards.

We start our day with a hot cup of Lemon Ginger tea to help us detox and cleanse our liver which is an organ that is so important in terms of our body functioning well. I have come to love this cup of tea each morning!

Benefits of lemon include : 

• cleanse the bloodstream and liver
• aid digestion
• boost the immune system
• prevent heart disease and cancer
• lower blood cholesterol levels
• lower high blood pressure 
• stimulate the liver
• reduce inflammation

Benefits of ginger include :

• remedy for nausea, morning sickness, upset stomach, indigestion, vomiting, motion sickness and cramps
• promotes healing of inflammation 
• helps lower blood pressure
• reduces fever
• reduces cholesterol
• prevents internal blood clots
• aids circulation
• eases asthma symptoms 

*NOTE - avoid consuming ginger in large amts if you take an anti-coagulant as it can thin the blood further and taking more than 3 gms of ginger at a time can cause stomach upset. 

I simply use the juice of half a lemon and grate a 1/2" piece of ginger (use organic if possible - I don't peel the ginger then) and steep it in hot water for several minutes…..and then enjoy! Your body will love you for it each morning! 

Have a great day filled with good choices!! 

Maggie

Health information on ginger and lemons taken from Prescription for Dietary Wellness by Phyliss Balch, CNC