Hate is an Acid...

“Hate is an acid that harms the vessel in which it is stored more than the person on whom it’s poured”
-Ethel Giddings Short Reed (1873 - 1961) a direct descendant of Miles Standish.

How many times a day do you think that you use the word “hate”? For many of us, it is an unconscious act that erodes us deeply and undermines our ability to manifest love and beauty in our lives.

I received this quote in an email from my Green America business network the other day (thanks Steve!). When I read it to Sofia, my 6-year-old daughter, her immediate response was (gasp) “you should blog on that!”

The quote reminded me of how often I use the word hate and don’t even realize that I am using it. It has become one of those unconscious words that pepper our conversations and modify anything that is remotely unpleasant. I first noticed this when Sofia started using it all of the time, for everything. I couldn’t believe how much she said it and that she could possibly feel such a passionate and intense dislike for that many things. I reminded myself that children at this age mostly parrot what they hear the most and it hit me. Wow, I must use the word hate a lot. Not a personal revelation that I was particularly proud of, I set out to become more mindful of the words I chose and to help Sofia realize the weight of the word hate and how she simply could not feel that intensely negative about something like the sun being in her eyes or the dog looking at her when she eats her snack. We have been practicing rephrasing and renaming so that we both have a better understanding of our true feelings and emotions in a particular situation.

In meditation /or prayer, ask Spirit to help you to become aware of each time you use the word hate so that you can then have the opportunity to reassess and choose a word that better represents your feelings. After a short period of time, ask Spirit to help you to become aware of when you are about to use the word hate in conversation or thought so that you can make a different choice before you even use it.

Keeping our inner life clear of negativity and corrosive words and thoughts is more important than you think. These thought patterns slowly erode us in a way that hardens us from the inside and projects this out into the world, we then manifest and draw to ourselves more of the same. We simply cannot attract love into our lives when our internal dialog is always hate.

Be love.

Maria

Raw Chocolate Truffles

New Years Resolutions….

I am not one for making resolutions, aka empty promises to myself about something that involves the word “should” way too often. Traditional resolutions are a waste of time and only serve to make us disappointed in our lives.

Why not make a resolution to do something that you LOVE more often?

Like eating chocolate. This year, I resolve to EAT MORE CHOCOLATE.

There, I said it. I mean it, too. Real chocolate, raw chocolate. YUM.

At first glance this may seem to contradict my former edict to live a healthier life… but in reality nothing could be further from the truth. Raw dark chocolate is the purest and most divine health food on the planet. It exudes pure joy in a way that can only be healing. Not to mention the plethora of actual health benefits:

• Extremely high antioxidant levels: "Cornell University discovered that Cocoa has twice the antioxidants of red wine, and up to three times those found in green tea."
• High ORAC value from 28,000 on up. (An Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) score is a test tube analysis that measures the antioxidant levels of food and other chemical substances. If a food has a high ORAC score, then it means the food is high in antioxidants. The antioxidant’s strength is its ability to eliminate oxygen free radicals. With the ORAC score, a higher score means the food is better at helping us fight diseases such as heart disease and cancer. Definition courtesy of WiseGeek.com, thanks!)
• More than 300 minerals and properties have been identified in raw organic chocolate. Cacao contains copper, manganese, zinc, sulphur, and is rich in B –vitamins.
• Lowers blood pressure
• Increases energy, alertness, creativity, and improves mood.
• Contains very little caffeine
• Is a major source of magnesium, which helps your heart.
• Rich in Flavonoids which has a cancer-fighting antioxidant result
• Promotes healthy blood flow thereby reducing the risk of strokes, blood clots, and heart attacks
• Increased Longevity: Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health found that those who eat chocolate up to three times each month live almost a year longer than those who overindulge or eat junk food. 

• Cocoa is reported to help brain function. The magnesium is essential for maintaining brain function. Raw chocolate is also composed of brain functioning elements such as tryptophan and anandamide 

• Theobromine in cocoa has been noted as calming the coughing reflex thereby helping to stop coughing.
• Can reduce cholesterol by 5-10 percent
• Decreases menopause and PMS symptoms
• Helps control appetite and supports weight loss

So, even if you don’t believe any of the laundry list of benefits, the following recipe for raw chocolate truffles will leave you believing that life is indeed good.

Raw Cacao Truffles Makes 10

1T Organic raw cacao nibs

¼ Organic vanilla bean, cut into small pieces

½ oz Organic raw almonds

10 Organic Medjool Dates, seeds removed and discarded

1/2T Organic raw almond butter

2T Organic Raw Cacao powder

1T Organic extra virgin coconut oil

I buy my organic fair trade cacao nibs and powder and organic extra virgin coconut oil from Mountain Rose Herbs, see link at the top of the left sidebar or click on links in recipes. They are an amazing company that truly serves the planet and all of us who are lucky enough to live here.

Process first 3 ingredients in a food processor until consistency is a fine meal. Add the rest of the ingredients and process just until it comes together. Do not process for too long as the blade will heat up and begin to denature the oils in the cacao and coconut diminish the health properties and causing the oils to potentially separate from the mix. Roll into tablespoon sized balls and roll in shredded raw unsweetened coconut. Store in the refrigerator if you think that they will actually last that long.

Beware: The theobromine in raw chocolate is highly toxic and can be fatal to our beloved canine companions. Please, keep these truffles out of the reach of your precious pooches. If you wanted to make a delightful treat for your doggie to eat while you enjoyed these truffles you could make the same recipe, replacing the raw cacao nibs and powder with raw carob nibs and powder… howls of happiness, just be sure you don’t confuse them!

Health

Have you ever noticed that the more you take pharmaceuticals for an issue say pain or allergies, the more of them you have to take in order to have the desired effect? Or the generally held belief that a massage has to be painful to be effective or that essential oils have to burn or sting to be working?

Why are we humans so hard on ourselves?

With all of this abuse it is a wonder that we do as well as we do, thrive even, or is it? What magic is at work behind the scenes in our bodies that keeps everything just so…?

Health is not a magical occurrence but a dynamic process that is always at work both when we are healthy and when we are ill.

I would go so far as to say even more when we are ill.

It is our Health that stimulates the immune response that fights infection, it is our Health that makes us sneeze and cough and fills our sinuses with green goo. It is our Health that makes us puke.

Our Health is most present when we feel the most abandoned by it.

So how can we resource ourselves this winter in the midst of all the sneezing and coughing and threats of swine flu??

There are some simple steps you can take that I am sure you all know, this will be a gentle reminder.

1. Drink plenty of water (pH adjusted reverse osmosis/distilled preferred). This will keep your mucous membranes moist and able to act as your first line of defense.

2. Get plenty of rest. Sleep in! It is hibernation season, after all. Be a bear.

3. Eat healthy organic foods, in a variety of colors.

4. Do something every day that makes you smile so long it makes your cheeks ache and laugh so hard that you almost pee your pants.

5. Exercise daily, preferably in the form of play.

6. Wash your hands often (without antibacterial soap, please)

7. Do something everyday that takes you outside of your comfort level, especially when it comes to reaching out to others. Giving and serving others boosts your immune system.

So go outside and play, enjoy the snow.

Maria