Archive for May 2009
You Are The Answer
You have the answer. It is not in a book. It is not in a TV show. It is not in the DVD you just got through the mail from NetFlix. It is not in the lecture you are going to hear from your favorite teacher. It is not in the conversation you might be having with your friends at dinner tomorrow. It is not in the Wall Street Journal or The New Yorker. It is definitely not in this blog.
Whatever you are really seeking. Whatever you really need to know. Whatever you think you need to learn and understand by taking in outside information, it is all within you right now.
Deep down you have all the insights you need. The knower, the silent witness – is present in all of us. Our challenge is to quiet the thinking mind to the point where our deep-rooted and all-knowing self can really shine through. This is where meditation and the practice of present moment awareness can be such powerful tools.
Next time you have a big problem, something that has been puzzling you for a long time, something that causes you some level of anxiety or worry. Instead of trying to talk to people about it, read books to find the answer or turning to the Internet; try just quieting your mind.
Go for a walk. Sit in meditation. Go for a jog (no iPod please!). Take a relaxed bike ride. Do something to still your mind. Chances are you will either discover the answer, or realize that the problem isn’t even a problem to begin with and isn’t worth any further attention.
Either way, the solution is a process of discovery, not one of learning. Find the answer within yourself.
Raw Food Challenge – Completed After 30 Days!
(Breakfast! 1 Whole Organic Honeydew Melon)
I’ve reached the final point in my Raw Food 30 Day Challenge. It has been a great adventure. While I experienced some incredible increases in my overall health and wellness, I was also happy to break the 30-day streak with a dinner at a favorite vegan restaurant of mine with some friends last night!
In my previous updates, I wrote about the benefits I was experiencing through this way of eating. Those benefits continued, and if anything became even more pronounced throughout the last 10 days of the challenge. I feel incredibly light. I think clearly. My skin is clear and I really feel great overall.
In terms of body composition, here is where that ended up. Keep in mind that throughout this entire challenge I had no intention to lose weight. I am already fit and slim enough. I also made a point to eat a significant number of calories (mostly through fresh, organic, ripe fruits!). My goal was to try to keep my caloric intake similar to what my previous diet was (roughly 2300 calories per day). I think I struggled to do this for the first 10 days or so, but then got the routine down and was eating plenty.
Who Will You Become?
Think about the five people you spend the most time with right now. That is what you will become. Your personal and professional achievements and attitudes will be shaped by these five people. Choose wisely.
If you spend your time hanging around people who have a poor work ethic, no goals and a “woe is me” attitude, that is what you will inherit. If you spend your days with people who make excuses why things aren’t going their way. Why luck never shines on them. Why life is so hard. Why success is so fleeting and had to grasp. That is what will come your way.
On the flip side, if you spend your time with people who have a positive outlook, work hard and carry a mind-set that their future is the result of their actions and intentions; that is what you will inherit. You will see that excuses are the easy way out and stop making then. You will see that luck frequents the prepared not the lucky. You will find that even in hardship there is beauty and learning to be had. You will see that success shines on everyone, you just have to be still enough to notice. You will find all this and more coming your way.
Friends are hard to find. Good friends even harder. Think about who you spend your time with. Are their attitudes and intentions in line with how you want to live your life? If not, you owe it to yourself to keep looking.
Raw Food Challenge – Day 20 Update
Wow, time really does fly by! It seems like just a few days ago I was contemplating this little experiment. It really has not been anywhere near as challenging as I thought it would be. My food cravings for cooked foods have diminished even more as I’ve gotten smarter about eating more total calories and also eating the right types of foods.
Over the past week, I’ve started to experiment with some new foods and recipes, and have started to cultivate a keen taste for my morning fruit smoothies and evening veggie soups (un – cooked of course)! I actually look forward to these!
Raw Food Challenge – Day 11 Update
Today is Day 11 of my Raw Food 30 Day Challenge. I really didn’t expect it to be this easy. I feel absolutely fantastic and have absolutely no detox symptoms to speak of. In fact, this transition from my vegan diet to a 100% raw food diet is easier than my transition from lacto-ovo vegetarian to vegan.
I think difference is that I am both far more educated and also have connected into a support system of people that I have learned a ton from – from various raw food online forums like Give It To Me Raw and 30 Bananas A Day, and through a few friends (like Darrick) who have been walking down this path for a while. I’ve also been reading a ton of books and online resources (including Dr. Doug Graham’s 80-10-10 and David Wolfe’s Sunfood Diet).
