|  May
21st... Oprah is trying Vegan for 21 Days!
Well,
this means a great deal to me!!! It is so hard to explain
why I have gone Vegan when people don't want to hear about
animals, so I will do so from the other end. It is clear that
my health has improved greatly from this change: allergies
that used to overtake me every Spring are gone - what was
thought to be "Irritable Bowel Syndrome" was just
problems with dairy, and the symptoms disappeared when I gave
that up. Still, my own doctor was very surprised that my blood
tests show perfect protein levels, as I don't just eat tofu
(which is a very common misunderstanding that tofu is the
only source of protein for vegetarians) - I eat all types
of nuts, beans, and all sorts of veggies have protein in them
as well - it is about the mix of it all. And as I approach
my next birthday on Saturday, realizing more and more that
age is just a number, and it means nothing in the big picture,
I know that the choices I have made will have profoundly lasting
beneficial effects as I get older...
I have
a a friend who thinks that going Vegan is 'cult-ish' and that
it doesn't involve everyone, that it is too extreme, and that
it just won't change in society as a whole. Then, I get the
news that Oprah herself is becoming conscious of why one should
make this change:
Here
is a bit from Oprah's
Blog: Conscious eater. That struck
a nerve. I had recently come to the conclusion that after
spending weeks reading and rereading A New Earth and being
on line with Eckhart Tolle that bringing a higher level of
awareness to my eating was the solution I'd been avoiding.
My idea of a conscious eater, however, was not quite the same
as Kathy's.
I
thought it meant not allowing yourself to eat emotionally
and filling the void of anxiety with food, as I've struggled
with for years. I thought it meant taking your time, making
healthy choices and chewing slowly—being conscious of
every bite and not scarfing down a meal and then thinking
about the next one.
That
is one level of consciousness. But what she talks about in
her book is a higher level. She speaks of "spiritual
integrity." How can you say you're trying to spiritually
evolve, without even a thought about what happens to the animals
whose lives are sacrificed in the name of gluttony?
So
this 21-day cleanse gives me a chance to think about it differently
and see what my attachments are to certain kinds of foods—and
what I'm willing to do to change.
---
I am hoping
that Oprah will take this all to heart. She has a great chef,
Chef Tal, making meals for her, which will open her eyes to
the enormous world of actual 'food' that American society
as a whole doesn't pay attention to while being hit with burgers,
fries, pizza, and fried chicken ads all day long! So, it is
a happy thing, and we'll see what the future brings for Oprah! |
May
3rd ... My New Hero, the