Rediscovering the Joy

...A perfect light raw dinner of Red Chard Nori Garden Wraps filled with carrot and daikon radish ribbons, cucumber slices, slivers of avocado, and fresh cilantro leaves, accompanied by a side sprout, cucumber, red onion and shitaki mushroom salad, with a miso/tamari dressing. So light, yet deeply satisfying and springing with so much joy! All served on our lovely paint speckled table in Michael's art studio. I have finally discovered the key to eating smaller portions is to use the little plates, little forks and savor each bite fully -- there is so much being offered don't miss out by swallowing too fast! :)

Since my last post something profound has shifted. My mind and body are finally starting to seamlessly work sweetly in synergy with one another and my spirit could not be happier! I think it all started to finally fall into alignment at yoga class on Friday (go figure), when the Universe so generously placed me right next my dear friend Judy, who also happens to be the most inspirational Yogini and THE BEST yoga partner/assistant ever. If you are ever feeling uncertain about your capabilities and potential, Judy is the person you want to go to, as she has this amazing way to bring out the best in people.

What made the class just that much more in line with where I am at, the theme was all about finding the Lila or Joy in life by relaxing and trusting the inherent order of nature. Essentially, trust the process, both universal and individual, soften and HAVE FUN! I am finally understanding that that the "rules" of whatever you are doing are not there to control you, but rather, to give you a sturdy foundation from which you can twirl and skip and dance like nobody's watching so that you can truly experience life more blissfully. It is one thing to cognitively understand these simple concepts, but another thing to allow yourself to soften and experience it. A lot of this shift for me is directly link to trusting myself. Why is that so challenging some days and so easy others?

So back to yoga, we were asked to do ALL the variations of headstand with the support of a partner, including the variation when you are balancing solely on your head with hands off the ground and arms at your sides so you look like a pencil standing on end. NOT exactly a "comfort zone" pose. But with the support of Judy (whom I trust completely, it was more myself I wasn't so sure about), I applied the alignment principals and took the deepest breath of my life and just went for it! Not only did I go for it, but I LOVED it and had the biggest smile on my face. The joy was beaming out of me even upside down and with "no hands mom"!

Since then, I have been making the most empowered choices without very much effort or feeling left out or like I was sacrificing the joys of life. I am also worrying or getting less uber stressed out about food and what I am taking in. It seems like the more I let go, the better choices I make, naturally. Again, it's all about trusting myself and not critically comparing the decisions I make today with those I made yesterday...ahhhh

Physically, I am feeling pretty good. Definitely not as good as on my best days juicing, but that is a lot to expect, so I am letting go of comparing the juicy world to the solid world. It was just making me depressed and feel like I was always doing something wrong. I am, however, still experiencing some puffiness in the morning, a few skin breakouts, a little weight gain
(about 3 pounds), some bloating and gas after either eating a little too much or bad combining (of course!). But on the positive side, my colon and elimination systems are working like rock stars, especially since having green smoothies everyday for lunch! I can't recommend them enough.

I have tried to keep one day just juice, but I don't think I am ready for it. My body (well, actually I think it is more my mind) is still not ready to be 100% percent on the juice even if it is just for one day. I am trying to be gentle on myself about that and really honor its request.

To conclude this post I want to give a juicy shout out to my friend Juicy Ben in Ottawa for finishing the entire 92 days of his juice feast!! He has inspired me and so many other people and proven with grace and humor that you can work 2/3 jobs, pay all your bills and live only on juice for 3 months and come out on top!! If you haven't already check out his blog, it's a must read! Hip Hip Horray for Ben!!

xxkyle