THANKFUL

'A thankful heart is a happy heart'

Psalm 28:7

So I was sitting here researching profound quotes on thankfulness and gratitude, wondering what some of our great world/spiritual leaders have said on the topic when the simple phrase above popped in my mind. I learned this as a child in Sunday school and just now I felt kind of silly looking for anything more complicated. 

The truth is so simple. 

I am so thankful this season, my heart is truly happy this week.  I wish that the positive energy of collective hearts being grateful together this time of year would electrify the air all year long. You can just feel it sometimes. You may have to be still and focus, but you can certainly feel that excited energy.

I am grateful for the opportunity to host Thanksgiving this year- I may feel slightly stressed and overwhelmed but I know that at the end of the day it is just a meal and the people are what is most important. I am grateful that I have the time to relax and enjoy this holiday this year, having worked retail in the past I was never able to unwind for this day- it was a whirlwind! I am so grateful that I have a lovely apartment and an even lovelier family. I am grateful for my creativity, my ability to learn and grow, and my resiliency to keep moving forward. I am grateful for a healthy body and a sound mind. I am grateful for being blessed with all  the material things I need to live a comfortable life. I am grateful for this blog. I am grateful for all the people I have meet this year. I am grateful for my refrigerator full of healthy organic foods. I am grateful for knowing and believing that anyone and everyone can feel this grateful if they truly want to. 

It makes my heart happy.

The next few days I will be focusing my meditation on thankfulness and wishing thankfulness on everyone I meet. Join me and we can send out so much good energy, I know we will all have the opportunity to touch someones life. 

I think I am going to take the next few days off from here, I will resume blogging on Friday- with wrapping up work, cooking, committing to my yoga practice and wanting the time to just enjoy the holiday I want to unplug for a few days. I hope all State dwellers have a wonderful holiday and everyone else, an amazing rest of your week! ♥

THOUGHTS ON MINDFULNESS

 '... But what is Mindfulness? Mindfulness is to be aware of everything you do every day. Mindfulness is a kind of light that shines upon all your thoughts, all your feelings, all your actions, and all your words.'

 Thich Nhat Hanh

 'Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers'

I started reading 'Going Home' this week and am already very moved by the teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh. I have read books by the Dalai Lama, they are what intrigued me to dig deeper into the Buddhist culture- I find their practices, manifestations, and beliefs to be really beautiful.

The practice of Mindfulness is one I am already trying to adopt. I think in our Western culture we have been conditioned to be more self absorbed, we don't always realize what is going on around us, and we miss moments that could be really beautiful because we just speed by. I am guilty of this just as much as anyone else and I want to stop living the blurred life and really enjoy the moments of every day.

Buddhist Monks spend a lot of time meditating on this, and unfortunately in my life I can't set enough time aside to ponder this for long- so every day I am trying to observe more and let those observations sink in and think about how those observations make me feel. This may seem like a primitive beginning to understanding and practicing Mindfulness but so far it is working for me!

-Yesterday I noticed the group of co-workers who walk together on their lunch breaks- and I was happy that they found a fun social way to be healthy together.
- When I get stuck in traffic on my commute, instead of huffing and puffing that my schedule has been delayed, I keep calm. If it turns out to be from an accident I say a little prayer for the people involved and feel more at peace that I know I didn't send negative energy their way.
- When I meet a new client at work, I remember we are both human and we communicate, feel, and react in similar ways. I can relate to this other human in some way, because we are all connected- it gives me a peaceful feeling that I know I can help, from one human to another.

These are just a few ways I have tried to practice Mindfulness over the last week- I hope it only gets better with time and that I find a deeper sense of understanding through it. ♥

TASTY TUESDAY

Since February I have been on what I would deem a Food Adventure. Because an adventure is certainly what it has been.

I was not born domestically gifted. I managed to ruin quite a few boxes of Kraft Mac n' Cheese in my time. When N and I tied the knot I am afraid I almost ruined mediocre Italian for him because we made pasta with marinara sauce a lot. It was comfortable and easy- so sue me!

Vegetarian was my way of life for quite awhile, I wasn't the healthiest veg head out there (re: abundance of empty calories 'Italian" fare) but I was semi-conscious. Or so I thought. Earlier this year I finally sat myself down to watch some documentaries on our food future, I started with Food, Inc and have moved through most of what Netflix offers on the topic. In these few months I have learned a lot and it has fueled me to research on my own. My One Year Challenge is a direct product of all this research on the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the waste we make.

The number one lesson I have learned through my research is that you can never take your food at face value. If you want to eat well, live well, and be kind to yourself and the environment you will have to research and be mindful of your groceries. It is a lot of work in the beginning. I was very overwhelmed the first time I stepped into my local health food market. But it does get easier. And I am so proud to be able to say that I am saving the lives of animals everyday by choosing not to let my dollars go towards farmers who are inhumane to their livestock.

Now you might recall that though I am practicing a vegan diet, the mister is still very much a carnivore. You can still eat meat and do good! The important thing is to research and know where your dollars are going. Eat less meat and find out if it came from a farm that treats its animals kindly.

The sourcing and purchasing of food was only the first step. Since this all began I have learned and practice 'Juicing', I have cooked with more fresh produce than I ever have before, I have tried more new recipes in the past 6 months than I have in my whole life, and I actually bought spices that didn't come on my spice rack (amazing!). And I am loving it! The girl who let mac n' cheese kick her butt is loving making stirfry, cooking Quinoa, researching recipes that involve kale, and figuring out exactly what cardamon is and why does it cost $16 for a bottle?!

Tasty Tuesdays have become one of my favorite posts- and I hope they become more informative as I learn more on different foodie topics. In the future I hope to talk more about how a vegan can coexist with a carnivore, what in the heck do you substitute egg with in a recipe?! and other vegan/ health conscious kitchen dilemmas and revelations. 

Some resources and more food for thought ...
Whole Foods Blog
The Skinny Bitch Books
Know who Owns your food ... the dirt on Monsanto.  
Food Inc (film)
Vegucated (film)
Forks Over Knives (film)

And there are so many blogs out there by people trying to make us a healthier nation- I utilize sites like Tastespotting and Bloglovin' to find new foodie inspiration! If you too have had a food journey I would love to hear! ♥

THOUGHTS ON THE 'CHILDFREE' DECISION

image via

Disclaimer: This is not me and N. Not by far. Even though we happen to be 'childfree' we are hardly jet setting around the globe and living carefree. By now just about everyone has heard about the hottest new article by Time Magazine and a lot of people have weighed in. I, personally, have read quite a few responses to the article (which, honestly the cover is the most controversial aspect of the whole thing) and what I gather is that people are either getting really offended (?!) or they are simply quelching the controversy by saying everyone has a right to whatever they choose (thank you). 

When Nate and I started talking about marriage and starting a life together years ago the topic of family naturally came up. He was on the fence and I had already decided long before that children were not a life goal I had ever set out to achieve. The decision to not have children is a personal one, a serious one, and one that has to be agreed upon by both people and frankly, shouldn't be weighed in on by an outsider.

I figured it out in high school that motherhood was not something I felt partial to. I read an article way back when that discussed couples choosing not to have children and it was revolutionary to me. I had never had much of a maternal streak, children make me nervous, I am ill at ease around them, and the idea of pregnancy/labor makes me break out in a cold sweat. But I was never told that it was ok to not have children. So I assumed I would grow up, get married, have 2.5 kids and live out the rest of my life like many other families.

To choose to not have children has always had a negative stigma which I learned very quickly so I kept it to myself for the most part. When you get married the first thing people start asking you at the reception is 'when are you having kids?!'. It was really frustrating and caused a lot of anxiety having to explain ourselves to parents, family members, and friends that we simply did not want to start a family. Which garners the comments of 'oh well you will one day' or 'maybe you don't now but you will later' which in turn is extremely frustrating. 

Personally speaking- not having children is not selfish to me. It is simply a decision that was carefully made. Now if my mind ever changes or we have a happy accident will I be the best mother I can be? Of course! I have been dumbfounded by the 'debate' between mothers and the childfree on the finer details of the decision because really, who cares? I don't get offended if someone doesn't choose the same career as me, the same religion, or lifestyle, why would anyone get offended that I choose to not have children? And in the same way if someone announces they are pregnant I certainly don't put them down- I am not anti-human race by not participating in procreation myself. 

The gap that falls between the two categories seems to simply be a lack of understanding. Why the childfree choose to be so. In my circle I know everyone has different reasons for wanting or not wanting children and I personally would never judge for their decision. In your circle and community the key should be listening to people and being open about their decision. 

Hopefully some day our society will look back at this and laugh, that we were ever so trivial to make this a hot topic. Until then, it is going to take more of us being open to others and become accepting no matter what people want out of life, we are all so different and isn't that what makes humans so unique? ♥