Is Your Soul For Sale?

Most of us would not follow Faust and sell our soul to the devil, but there are less obvious ways we may hock parts of our soul to satisfy some of the seven deadly sins. Can you name them all? I always forget one or two, but they are greed, sloth, envy, gluttony, pride, anger & lust. Of all, pride is regarded as the most damaging sin. Lack of ego eradicates them all. Sloth is a bit trickier as it relates to laziness and allowing our talents to go to waste. Perhaps selfishness causes sloth? Not wanting to share our talents with the world or donate our time selflessly to others since it would require work? When we sacrifice bits of our integrity and self-worth for money (who hasn't?) we need to be observant and aware. Missing your child's play or soccer game due to work obligations is sometimes necessary. Skipping out on a social event because you are wiped out from a frenetic work week is perfectly fine. Biting your tongue with clients who disrespect your time and worth is NOT ok in the long run. Hating your job is NOT ok. Allowing others to take advantage of your good nature is NOT ok. Eventually, these actions eat away at our soul like acid and pierce the armour of our divinity. A good friend of mine just started a new job she absolutely loves. Her prior job was fulfilling & paid well, yet office politics were draining her. The last straw broke when her company sold out to a conglomerate and her boss threw her under the bus.  Despising every hour at this new, antiseptic workplace she quit on the spot one fine day. She now wonders why she waited so long. Eventually, we all boil over like pasta water left on the stove too long. The signs that we are "done, prick me with a fork" include that gnawing feeling in your gut, sometimes manifesting itself as stomach aches, nausea or a general feeling of malaise. Ulcers are the physical outcome of uncontrolled acid created by stress.
Renting out parts of our soul for short periods of time is a bargain we've accepted in our lives. Check in with your higher Self every now and then to make sure you didn't rent your soul out to a hold over tenant. Living authentically and fully leaves very little room for compromise with our lower Self. 

Juicing Wild Dandelion Greens Is a Tame Endeavour

I've done a lot with weeds, just never drank one before. These wispy, long bright green leaves are mild in flavor and considered a superfood by none other than Dr. Oz. Choose iron-packed dandelion greens that are bright green, not wilting or browning on the sides, you want the freshest weeds possible. Their Irish green potassium rich liquid is not abundant, but unless you are really adventurous (or a goat) eating them raw is a bit too wild for me. Here is my recipe for this week: 1 bunch of dandelion greens (ends trimmed and rinsed well under running water), 4 cucumbers which are finally affordable again (ends trimmed), 2 heads of celery (2 for $1 @Sprouts this week) ends trimmed and 1 peeled lemon. Divide all veggies equally into two separate heaps and juice. To juice dandelion greens, fold a handful in half and stuff with leaves & ends pointing upward and feed through Breville on low. Should give you about 64 oz. of juice. You can freeze freshly made juice, although it does change to a grainy texture (instead of smooth) once defrosted. Just one warning, these weeds will send you to the water closet - they're a diuretic. Also, brimming with beta carotene.
Salud!

My Ego Is Stalking Me

It shows up at my doorstep uninvited, unwanted and most unwelcome. I thought I was rid of this pest called ego, done with it, finito. Like a reformed addict free from drinking the Kool- Aid of self-importance and arrogance. Teaching the joys of humility and detachment from pride to my students. Proud of my ascent onto the ladder of enlightenment, only to miss a rung in my selfish giddiness. The I-Maker skulked back into my life as I happily donated a trailer full of old household items and a large turkey to a soup kitchen last holiday season. Feeling like Santa Claus riding in on his sleigh, I apparently expected the receivers of this generous gift to kiss my feet. Wow, was I disappointed! The manager of the Love Kitchen was grateful for my 25+ year old stove and 20+ year old mattress, just not to my ego's satisfaction. The shocking revelation to me was that I had expectations at all. Concealed from my conscious mind, ego leaped out into my path and unnerved my higher Self.  Pride and ego are survivors and, not unlike a scorpion, can go a year without being fed and live in sub zero temperatures. And like scorpions, are practically impossible to eradicate. Trust me, I know about living with scorpions. So I now treat this unwanted pest by dousing it with daily meditation, staying vigilant of my inner thoughts, and as a last resort, stomping on it mercilessly with the shoe of humility. Just remember, scorpions crawl into your slippers, climb walls and hide behind your bath towel. They show up in the most unlikely places...and it's scorpion season in Phoenix again.

My Venture into Juicing Red Cabbage

How to choose the right cabbage? Select tightly wrapped crisp leaves with no browning on the edges. Never having purchased a cabbage before, I went out on a limb and ended up with a healthy looking head (inside resembles a cerebellum, weird). Now, how to juice it. I was startled at what a red cabbage's innards look like, swirly red & white veins and very dense. Make sure you have a sharp knife on hand, I only work with Wusthof Trident knives, a good utility knife did the job here. You'll need to cut the halves lengthwise again and again until they will fit into the feeder. I was concerned about how to clean the leaf crevices, but they were so compact I just slightly pried them open under running water and no dirt or other surprises washed out. Breville's manual suggest a low speed setting but this super food cabbage is packed full of crisp leaves and I found the high speed pulverized it easier. How does it taste? Surprisingly mild and pleasant, similar to bok choy but a bit sweeter. It packs a wallop of Vitamins C & K.
 So here is the recipe I used to create this ruby red anti-cancer, inflammation reducing, anti-oxidant concoction: 1 medium red cabbage, 2 lbs. of carrots (ends sliced off), 1 head of celery (clean off ends) and 1 lemon (peeled). Divide all veggies equally into 2 piles and juice. I tossed in 2 apples 'cause they were there, but it almost sweetened the juice too much. Makes 64 oz. Salute!