Today we gather to remember together the life of an old and very dear friend, Mrs Essie Honiball. Surely she will be present too? Essie's passage via the frail care into the clouds was so rapid that I missed the opportunity of a photograph together, and yet her face is before me so crystal clear. There are moments that are frozen into my memory. Her presence was such a profound gift I never, ever took it for granted, and yet now that she has left us I just want to sit with her for ever more, as if what I had wasn't enough. From the moment I saw her I loved her totally. She was lying in bed and hadn't her teeth in, though her hearing aid was there. I had come with Averil and we sat in fold up chairs next to the bed. Essie was watching tennis. She immediately set about clarifying that she is lnot going to be involved in anything at all. Nothing that anyone could imagine. Averil attempted persuasion but I hadn't any expectations, I was just happy to hear the voice and see the eyes of someone I had revered for a decade. Essie comes from my father's generation and she had some of the phrases and hand movements that he used. Sometimes I Sits and Thinks, Sometimes I just Sits. Essie sat and watched the world through her window overlooking the grassy common ground in front of the ouertehuis. She loved walking, and she loved her independence. Now she is independent of the final limitation, has shuffled off this mortal coil.
Oh Essie will you be with us today? I am thinking of you every moment.
Essie is now with all of us
The last time I saw Essie was two days ago, her fingers were a deep blue, a fly buzzed around her head and she didn't move to swat it. She lay on her back and the breaths were so far apart I continually wondered if there would be another. I spoke loudly to her, and touched her, and those eyes opened and for a long time she looked at me, and I looked at her. Eventually the lids fell again. I knew it was the last look. At four o clock this morning she died.
I wish Essie were alive to sit with, be with, talk with, but because she was so old her going is very natural. I wonder where she is now, what she is experiencing, who she is with.
There are people whose every word is worth hearing. Each sentence comes from a very deep place. Essie was a beautiful crystal among the pebbles.
I wish Essie were alive to sit with, be with, talk with, but because she was so old her going is very natural. I wonder where she is now, what she is experiencing, who she is with.
There are people whose every word is worth hearing. Each sentence comes from a very deep place. Essie was a beautiful crystal among the pebbles.
Deep Questions
Today I had a really interesting visit with Essie. We were talking about people trying to change each other and how we stiffen when people try to change us. We both know extremely well how hard people have tried to normalise us back into society's ways, and as such are rather allergic to it in the end. Just live and let live.
Essie made the most interesting observation, about my market stall where I sell fruit salad and offer an alternative way of life to passersby with whom it may strike a chord. I would love to say that it is my bread and butter but actually I have only really made money from it once. Essie said today that she is not sure whether its the right thing, being there. Lately I have to say that I am not sure, either. The people who buy the fruit salad will have it in the same way they would chocolate, its for the taste, and they will not change their ways or get excited about the idea of just living on fruit. Admittedly I do get people who are amazed one can live on fruit, but as Essie and I both agree: this is an incredibly difficult path and only people who really want to will be able to follow it. Most people are unable to embrace it mostly because they have not experienced the rewards and so don't know what they are missing. Thereafter it is only when they are really convinced that the things they are addicted to are harming them will they actually be able to give them up. And then following shortly in those footsteps will be the challenge of the social resistance to fruit eating.
It is my birthday this month and I'm having a Bring 'n Buffet birthday party, where everyone brings a couple of servings of what they'd like to eat on their birthday. They also need to bring a joke, or be subject to Truth or Dare, and must also wear their favourite clothes even it is their pajamas. The theme is "everyone's happy". In the past I would have prepared food acceptable to me and tried to share it with others, or something we'd all like... but this way everyone gets what they'd want, and more.
The question of the market stall remains, though. Is it the right thing? Should I be trying to advertise Fruitarianism and raw food? Its nice being there, whatever happens.
Essie made the most interesting observation, about my market stall where I sell fruit salad and offer an alternative way of life to passersby with whom it may strike a chord. I would love to say that it is my bread and butter but actually I have only really made money from it once. Essie said today that she is not sure whether its the right thing, being there. Lately I have to say that I am not sure, either. The people who buy the fruit salad will have it in the same way they would chocolate, its for the taste, and they will not change their ways or get excited about the idea of just living on fruit. Admittedly I do get people who are amazed one can live on fruit, but as Essie and I both agree: this is an incredibly difficult path and only people who really want to will be able to follow it. Most people are unable to embrace it mostly because they have not experienced the rewards and so don't know what they are missing. Thereafter it is only when they are really convinced that the things they are addicted to are harming them will they actually be able to give them up. And then following shortly in those footsteps will be the challenge of the social resistance to fruit eating.
It is my birthday this month and I'm having a Bring 'n Buffet birthday party, where everyone brings a couple of servings of what they'd like to eat on their birthday. They also need to bring a joke, or be subject to Truth or Dare, and must also wear their favourite clothes even it is their pajamas. The theme is "everyone's happy". In the past I would have prepared food acceptable to me and tried to share it with others, or something we'd all like... but this way everyone gets what they'd want, and more.
The question of the market stall remains, though. Is it the right thing? Should I be trying to advertise Fruitarianism and raw food? Its nice being there, whatever happens.
OJ Day 2 - Sungazing
Last night's sunset was my first sungazing session. One only gazes at the rising or setting sun when its rays intensity are weakest as they travel through the longer distance of the Earth's atmosphere.
I had always compared Oranges to the Sun but they are nothing like it, nothing is. The sun glowed with an incredible golden whiteness, a band of alternating black and white racing around its rim. I drank the light for ten long breaths and then closed my eyes. The afterburn was a brilliant green Sun inside my eyelids, which after a while became cerise pink. Within five minutes the afterburn had gone.
I felt I had experienced something quite significant, quite profound.
A while back I did some onscreen proofreading work and it really affected my vision. Now I struggle to read the little text on my phone. But check out this video. I have very high hopes for sungazing, besides my eyes also for my dreams.. this guy has been going a month and listen to what he says.
It may be that sungazing is in its own right as exciting as eating food raw and unaltered.
This article on sungazing is quite interesting. Sunset and sunrise times can be found at this site.
I had always compared Oranges to the Sun but they are nothing like it, nothing is. The sun glowed with an incredible golden whiteness, a band of alternating black and white racing around its rim. I drank the light for ten long breaths and then closed my eyes. The afterburn was a brilliant green Sun inside my eyelids, which after a while became cerise pink. Within five minutes the afterburn had gone.
I felt I had experienced something quite significant, quite profound.
A while back I did some onscreen proofreading work and it really affected my vision. Now I struggle to read the little text on my phone. But check out this video. I have very high hopes for sungazing, besides my eyes also for my dreams.. this guy has been going a month and listen to what he says.
It may be that sungazing is in its own right as exciting as eating food raw and unaltered.
This article on sungazing is quite interesting. Sunset and sunrise times can be found at this site.
Over The Threshold
Taking
a step over the threshold, dressed in work clothes and carrying a
light. The place beyond is dark and fathomless, like the death of
materialism, the bottomlessness of eternity. The doorway is shaped like
that of a church and it seems like a gateway through which one passes
and doesn't return.
This
image speaks of self-guidance, of seeking in places where there is no
sensory stimulation, of introspection and finding one's own way.
Somehow
the ball of light looks a bit like an Orange, and the blue work clothes
are clear evidence that this person is not a tourist.
I
use the these images to portray my current spiritual circumstances.
They are very effective, and the ones that I like the most are Ed Buryn's.
Tomorrow
Tomorrow is a whole new world, a whole different life. It holds the opportunity for leaving behind today, and all the days that came before today. It holds the chance to forge new habits, to build a new self, to say goodbye to everything that doesn't serve me, everything that doesn't make me a better person.
One hundred years before I was born, Aurick S Brackett first consciously began his struggle with his lower nature, 32 years later he put pen to paper and wrote of his Covenant, his commitment to his life work, to fulfill his desire to manifest Divinity from within.
So often I have longed to do this, in another form perhaps, but the same thing. I have planned my own marriage, alone in the forest, where I would pledge fidelity to myself. I would bind a tie around my wrist where I would always see it and always be reminded that amenability to the will of others at the expense of my own purpose cancels out the point of my being alive.
Celebrating Life with Life
Chloe had hepatitis when she was a student nurse and finds rich food makes her feel distinctly unwell. She is a person who is prepared to form her own opinions and think outside the box. Her observations about life and food are spot on, and I can always count on her as an ally and to enjoy whatever meals I may produce. She also adores fruit, one at a time.
Chloe would be a Fruitarian in a flash but prefers to walk a high-raw/some cooked path because the people around her are into cooked food and she loves the socialisation of food and sharing meals with our Mum and her wonderful husband. The blatant, obvious good sense of not altering food is well known to her and yesterday she sent me this article about New York doctors prescribing fruits and veggies. Earlier in a store we had had a good laugh over a pack of tablets we saw there that claimed to be the best way to get one's fibre. Better than eating an Avocado? Aren't marketing people funny!
So Happy birthday, Chloe! you are one of the great pleasures and treasures of this life and your generous spirit, warm open heart and great strength of character make you an asset to the human race and one of the most admirable people that I have the honour to know. May you keep being as alive as you are for a long, long time.
Electric Lou Corona
INTRODUCTION: Dan MacDonald
introduces a very interesting individual,
58 year old Lou Corona. Notice how
electric Lou is, how vividly he feels life's
energy constantly thrilling and pulsating
through him. Filmed a while ago, Dan is a
few years younger and a few kilograms
heavier, it is obvious how fasting and
detoxing has changed and refined him.
The weight he carries here even looks
lumpy and excessive in comparison to the
lean machine Dan is nowadays. Lou himself
fasted for 40 days at a time, alone in the
mountains - twice, I believe. Wow, Lou..
Look at his smile!
Look at his smile!
PRINCIPLE ONE: Cellular Communication,
the thoughts and feelings about ourselves,
life and others are communicated throughout
our body & have an absolute effect on whether
it is geared toward life or death because -
medical science has shown - negative thoughts
and feelings have an acidifying effect, positive
and benevolent thoughts alkalise. This principle
deserves to be first although with raw eating
the body alkalises and the overall effect is a
more positive frame of mind - Alkalinity causes
positivity, and vice versa. With detox,
often old emotions are released as well.
.
PRINCIPLE TWO: Cellular Environment,
namely the elements which constantly
surround us : earth, air, sun and water.
These provide the basic foundation of life
and health. For more information on these
elements, here are links to excellent works:
WATER: The Water Cure
SUN: Sungazing Phenomena
EARTH: Understanding Earthing
Each element deserves a post on its own, this
is just to open awareness of their importance.
is just to open awareness of their importance.
PRINCIPLE THREE: Cellular Excercise,
Lou explains how excersizing the body
does not just excersize the muscles but
does not just excersize the muscles but
all of the cells and the Lymphatic system
as well. For those experiencing a bit
as well. For those experiencing a bit
of fear and trembling at the notion of
exerting themselves, going raw for a while
first will definitely make the body more
amenable to activity. As every month, week
and day passes since my last slice of
cooked food my body becomes more im-
patient to do stuff. Just like a dog loves
going for a walk, this is actually our natural
way of life when not burdened with heavy
food and toxins, and being nourished by
life rich ingredients.
PRINCIPLE FOUR: Cellular Nutrition,
At last these two get down to what's on
the menu. Lou's accent is not just on raw
but food that is still alive. The vital role of
enzymes in digestion and in making the
food assimilable to the body is very often
totally overlooked. Lou is into a mix
of fruits, vegetables and seeds and also
his enzymes.
I struggled to find the final video where Lou
shows off his feats of strength - of which I
was already convinced just from observing
his energy: writhing in his seat and splaying
his fingers as he talks. There are plenty of
videos of Lou's recipe's -
Lou isn't so much into big fruit meals, where
Essie lived on them with a very good result.
Both Dan and Lou use blenders and juicers
as a way of life, where I find them too annoying
to clean and prefer less rather than more
ingredients on my plate and in my stomach.
The mixing of many ingredients, to Essie,
is necessary to fill the gap between
the barbecue and pure Fruitarianism (one fruit
at a time, in season). One can certainly mimic
cooked food recipes with a clever combination
of raw ingredients.
Its important to have many voices, and each to find
their own path and preference by listening to
their own body, in the end each is his own
salvation and the most important voice to
hear is the still, quiet one inside. Nevertheless,
Lou Corona's is a vitally interesting one to hear,
and a compelling example of electric living.
hear is the still, quiet one inside. Nevertheless,
Lou Corona's is a vitally interesting one to hear,
and a compelling example of electric living.
Dreaming Of The Heights
Last night I dreamed I was in India with a friend. We were standing at a railway station about to leave and I was describing the beauty of Nepal, the mountain kingdom directly alongside. As I described it I could see the pristine white snow capped Himalaya - pure, lofty, and remote. I felt awe struck by the inaccessibility and mystery of the mountains and longed to be there .. but I hadn't a ticket. So near yet so far.
Why travel all the way to India and not go to Nepal? India is far to come and certainly has so much to offer but next to Nepal is chaotic and dirty. The Nepali aren't aggressive and their poverty looks more like simplicity, they plant flowers in tin cans and fly colourful flags inscribed with prayers for the wind to carry around the world. And instead of a searing, flat brown land the constant backdrop is a majestic white mountainscape, accessible only by strenuous mental and physical effort.
Coming as far as India and not entering Nepal feels a lot like eating 90% Oranges and 10% Avocado. Its almost but not quite there. And because of the leak in focus other fancies have slipped in - turnips or cabbage with tomato, for example. The abdomen is always busy, the waters muddied, mind chaotic. Avocado is not only my comfort but also an ingrained habit, and I experience immense difficulty in giving it up, even for a period.
As wonderful as Avocado or any other fruit may be, the benefits of a mono diet are worth the effort. The body rests, no longer a washing machine of activity, the mind rests, no longer subject to fermentations and 'fumes'. The personality learns to overcome its fears of having to forego the body's impulses. I met a girl on the path the other day who was fundraising to go to a netball match in New Zealand. I gave her my coins, afraid to give her my last note, afraid to not have enough money for food. Afraid of my own mortality. Why not push past that and see what lies beyond?
 |
| Not Oranges |
I must finish the Tomatoes and Cabbage that I bought, I can't waste them, and on Saturday is my sister's birthday and she must be treated to a deluxe fruit salad 'cake'. Thereafter I am heading to the airport and between her birthday and mine, about a month, I commit to the austerity, endurance and effort of not indulging in comfort but aspiring to the pure clear heights of discipline and simplicity.
I have always longed to go back to Nepal, to be surrounded by that lofty, grand landscape, high above the world, present amongst vibrant, simple people. Does last night's dream indicate that what I seek is a spiritual place that I can find within myself? Once again I feel called to meditation and silence.
How To Get Drunk
An easy way to make alcohol is to leave a piece of bread - white, brown, "health"/seeded, barley or rye - in a bit of water. The type of flour makes not a jot of difference, nor will seeds and other fancy additions change the outcome. It is the presence of yeast in the bread which will cause it to ferment. Yeast is the very same little organism that is also used to make wine and beer, so why expect a different result when it is laced into any other carbohydrate?
To digest and absorb that carbohydrate before the yeast can get at it it will be necessary to chew the bread between 40 and 70 times per bite. No one can do this because quite soon, somewhere around the 8th jaw press, the primary constituent of the bread becomes plainly obvious, namely flour paste - not at all pleasant to chew, insalivate, suck, nibble and masticate away at lovingly. It is thus unlikely to be adequately acted on by starch specific enzymes before being swallowed into the warm, wet environs of the body where it can brew away nicely into industrial grade alcohol.
It is my own very firmly held view that bread is the number one enemy of the human race, ranking higher on the evil scale than atom bombs and mad politicians. If it were not for the insidious and darkening presence of this mind control substance, would we really want to blow each other up?
Notice how in the Genesis rendition of man's history our transition from raw to cooked went from user-friendly fruit to labour intensive bread in one swift movement. Collecting a myriad of grass seeds, grinding them up, infecting them with a mould and then baking them is a level of complexity that begs an interim step. Archeological evidence indicates that beer predates bread by thousands of years, and it is said that water left to soak on grains caused them to ferment and the resultant liquid was lauded as a staircase to heaven. The remaining mush was probably initially discarded until eventually being made into cakes and left on hot rocks to bake in the Sun.
Concomitant with the end of fruit and beginning of bread in the Genesis tale is something known to women as 'the curse' - menstruation with pain and bleeding. How interesting that the severe symptoms of menstruation are treated by total abstention from wheat and yeast products, and that menstruation fades to being indiscernible on the raw food diet. This fact is the experience of long term raw eating women.
After the introduction of alcohol into the diet of man, our freedoms and way of being together changed significantly. How does one or a few individuals hold an iron grip over many? Force is not sufficient because strength is with the masses, only payment or preference will make them amenable to the minority's cause. Why build a pyramid, or any of the great monuments? Those who calculate such things say that the people were paid with the addictive substance, beer. Is not a day's hard labour under the searing sun worth that connection to the Divine served by 'priests' in the form of a kind of golden water that won't go green with algae when stored? Addiction and slavery are the same thing.
One of the hardest things for health seeking people to move away from is yeast.
It is tenacious and wants to share our body, senses and mind. Moulds, yeast and fungi are like spirits who, not having a body of their own, want to inhabit someone else's, debauching, debasing and degrading it as they have no moral code. Alcohol is in fact even called "spirits". To this day people eat bread as if it is the most innocent of substances when it differs from alcoholic beer only by degree of potency. These conscious, alive and kicking organisms which cohabit our bodies affect our moods and decisions, they are the veritable dark side of the human race. The picture of a pizza which flashes in the imagination is but a yeast sending up its lunch order to the brain of its host, who doesn't realise that so many of the thoughts and emotions he feels are not his own but those of his constant companion, closer than his own shadow: parasitic and wide awake moulds, yeast and fungi.
| Yum Yum in your tum |
It is my own very firmly held view that bread is the number one enemy of the human race, ranking higher on the evil scale than atom bombs and mad politicians. If it were not for the insidious and darkening presence of this mind control substance, would we really want to blow each other up?
Notice how in the Genesis rendition of man's history our transition from raw to cooked went from user-friendly fruit to labour intensive bread in one swift movement. Collecting a myriad of grass seeds, grinding them up, infecting them with a mould and then baking them is a level of complexity that begs an interim step. Archeological evidence indicates that beer predates bread by thousands of years, and it is said that water left to soak on grains caused them to ferment and the resultant liquid was lauded as a staircase to heaven. The remaining mush was probably initially discarded until eventually being made into cakes and left on hot rocks to bake in the Sun.
Concomitant with the end of fruit and beginning of bread in the Genesis tale is something known to women as 'the curse' - menstruation with pain and bleeding. How interesting that the severe symptoms of menstruation are treated by total abstention from wheat and yeast products, and that menstruation fades to being indiscernible on the raw food diet. This fact is the experience of long term raw eating women.
After the introduction of alcohol into the diet of man, our freedoms and way of being together changed significantly. How does one or a few individuals hold an iron grip over many? Force is not sufficient because strength is with the masses, only payment or preference will make them amenable to the minority's cause. Why build a pyramid, or any of the great monuments? Those who calculate such things say that the people were paid with the addictive substance, beer. Is not a day's hard labour under the searing sun worth that connection to the Divine served by 'priests' in the form of a kind of golden water that won't go green with algae when stored? Addiction and slavery are the same thing.
One of the hardest things for health seeking people to move away from is yeast.
 |
| no its not |
Expensive Food
Whilst researching the possibility of getting around using Epsom Salts in a liver flush I was turned onto Apple Cider Vinegar, a raw product which dissolves gall stones and cleanses the liver, as well as having many other benefits. The effect which appeals to me most is that it is lauded as tightening loose skin, and as I lose weight on Oranges this is vital to not stirring up fright and hysteria in those around me. I tend to lose weight very, very quickly, probably because I haven't enough real body - as per Arshavir Hovannessian's pages on the False Man.
Today I bought some Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) and decided to go for a health food store bottle instead of a supermarket cheapie. It was twice the price and twice the colour. Sez me Mum: This raw food diet of yours sure is expensive!
At ten rand a day on Oranges, I cannot concur. Even at the R20-R30/day I customarily spend on fruits and vegetables the diet is still outstanding for economy. I don't use a fridge or stove - which both require connection to a nuclear power station and come with a bill for that ultra special, priceless stuff: electricity. Then there is the water and plumbing necessary for cleaning those pots, mines to produce metal for them, strong detergents to cut into the grease, and all the laboratories and technology that lie behind this complexity.
I never visit the doctor or buy pills, don't pay into a medical scheme or need the services of a dentist. Deodorants, face creams and all that stuff necessary to fake sweetness and health where it does not exist should also be reckoned into the food bill.The endless cups of coffee or tea that is the way of life of my contemporaries are also not without cost and neither is the petrol they use to go the smallest distance because their body is too heavy and lethargic to spring into action.
Springing into action is the modality of a person fed on the user friendly, readily accessible produce of planet earth that doesn't need altering or fiddling with before consumption. When one considers the cost of cooking in all its ramifications it just can't be called cheap - not even plain boiled rice! Which, incidentally, is shipped to us here in Africa in a tanker.
So thanks, Mum, for bringing to my attention how much I can afford to buy posh vinegar. Hasn't life on earth been rigged just perfectly for us when we just accept it?
Today I bought some Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) and decided to go for a health food store bottle instead of a supermarket cheapie. It was twice the price and twice the colour. Sez me Mum: This raw food diet of yours sure is expensive!
| How to make toast |
I never visit the doctor or buy pills, don't pay into a medical scheme or need the services of a dentist. Deodorants, face creams and all that stuff necessary to fake sweetness and health where it does not exist should also be reckoned into the food bill.The endless cups of coffee or tea that is the way of life of my contemporaries are also not without cost and neither is the petrol they use to go the smallest distance because their body is too heavy and lethargic to spring into action.
Springing into action is the modality of a person fed on the user friendly, readily accessible produce of planet earth that doesn't need altering or fiddling with before consumption. When one considers the cost of cooking in all its ramifications it just can't be called cheap - not even plain boiled rice! Which, incidentally, is shipped to us here in Africa in a tanker.
So thanks, Mum, for bringing to my attention how much I can afford to buy posh vinegar. Hasn't life on earth been rigged just perfectly for us when we just accept it?
The Social Obstacle
One of the hardest things in life is to continue in a relationship while discontinuing habits that the relationship shared. Our habits not only define our own character but many of our relationships - coffee buddies falling away when the coffee does. The substances we take are frequently even closer to our hearts than many people are because their comforts and pleasures can exceed those of human company. This is because each substance has its own essence, its own spirit, with which we so intimately commune. When we take in these spirits they share our bodies with us for a while - they get to feel us, and we get to feel them.
When one 'goes raw' they will find the whole social situation will shift. People love their little treat. It can only really be compared to sex, and because sex is so overused as a type of entertainment rather than as a deep fundamental experience of magnetic electricity and love it regularly doesn't give as much pleasure as eating does. Eating with people is also very intimate and is the expression of a bond. To stop sharing specific pleasures with someone is like breaking up a happy threesome.
It is the test of a relationship to survive a change of habits. The separation goes into overdrive if the move of is toward health and sobriety because the one who remains with the substance feels judged in the presence of the one who has broken away. The obvious example is with alcohol, it is unusual for one to drink in the company of another who isn't. Even two people drinking alcohol can feel adversely observed by a sober spectator. A marijuana smoker will only smoke alone or in the company of a fellow smoker, someone who 'understands', who is in agreement.
I myself attend very few - if any - social events because of the uncomfortable scrutiny of what I eat and the backlash of people who feel judged because I have said Hokaai to the culture and lifestyle into which I was born. In the case of my family I have cooked meat dishes for them to relieve them of any ideas they may have that I wish they were different or I want them to change. I don't force my ways on them specifically because I abhor anyone trying to change me. I have never felt so comfortable as I did on the few occasions that they ate what I prepared for them, as they like it, while I sat with my plate of chopped fresh Tomato.
The reader can appreciate then how difficult it is for me when a family member who I love as much as any human being or probably more intentionally tries to derail me with temptations because they don't approve of my choices. They resuscitate old habits we shared - a Kitkat in the car on the way home, little 'treats' we once had fun enjoying together. Amenability is possibly my worst weakness, being a people pleaser something I pray on my knees with face to the ground that I can be free of. Trying to bring respect and understanding for my ways is an ongoing struggle with someone who privately holds my ideals in contempt and who loves the communion of sharing treats.
Sharing treats is often one big distraction, coffee buddies do fall away when the coffee habit goes. But it is possible to push past the 'main attraction' and make each other just as viable company, the real thing.
Many a raw foodist has come unstuck because of the loss of the society. If more of us were into raw food there wouldn't be a problem. This is what caused Essie so much agony, why she is not a Fruitarian today when she loved the path so very much.
All we can keep working towards is a new world, where sanity reigns supreme. The single greatest difficulty in following the Holy path is in attempting to leave enculturated habits for sobriety and spirituality while remaining social. Having supportive company is like a balm for the soul, but in the end it is the strength of character to obey one's convictions and not go with the flow that is the only thing which will win the day and allow us to expand into the fullness of our own being.
This is a very high calling. Our mission, should we choose to accept it.
When one 'goes raw' they will find the whole social situation will shift. People love their little treat. It can only really be compared to sex, and because sex is so overused as a type of entertainment rather than as a deep fundamental experience of magnetic electricity and love it regularly doesn't give as much pleasure as eating does. Eating with people is also very intimate and is the expression of a bond. To stop sharing specific pleasures with someone is like breaking up a happy threesome.
It is the test of a relationship to survive a change of habits. The separation goes into overdrive if the move of is toward health and sobriety because the one who remains with the substance feels judged in the presence of the one who has broken away. The obvious example is with alcohol, it is unusual for one to drink in the company of another who isn't. Even two people drinking alcohol can feel adversely observed by a sober spectator. A marijuana smoker will only smoke alone or in the company of a fellow smoker, someone who 'understands', who is in agreement.
I myself attend very few - if any - social events because of the uncomfortable scrutiny of what I eat and the backlash of people who feel judged because I have said Hokaai to the culture and lifestyle into which I was born. In the case of my family I have cooked meat dishes for them to relieve them of any ideas they may have that I wish they were different or I want them to change. I don't force my ways on them specifically because I abhor anyone trying to change me. I have never felt so comfortable as I did on the few occasions that they ate what I prepared for them, as they like it, while I sat with my plate of chopped fresh Tomato.
The reader can appreciate then how difficult it is for me when a family member who I love as much as any human being or probably more intentionally tries to derail me with temptations because they don't approve of my choices. They resuscitate old habits we shared - a Kitkat in the car on the way home, little 'treats' we once had fun enjoying together. Amenability is possibly my worst weakness, being a people pleaser something I pray on my knees with face to the ground that I can be free of. Trying to bring respect and understanding for my ways is an ongoing struggle with someone who privately holds my ideals in contempt and who loves the communion of sharing treats.
Sharing treats is often one big distraction, coffee buddies do fall away when the coffee habit goes. But it is possible to push past the 'main attraction' and make each other just as viable company, the real thing.
Many a raw foodist has come unstuck because of the loss of the society. If more of us were into raw food there wouldn't be a problem. This is what caused Essie so much agony, why she is not a Fruitarian today when she loved the path so very much.
All we can keep working towards is a new world, where sanity reigns supreme. The single greatest difficulty in following the Holy path is in attempting to leave enculturated habits for sobriety and spirituality while remaining social. Having supportive company is like a balm for the soul, but in the end it is the strength of character to obey one's convictions and not go with the flow that is the only thing which will win the day and allow us to expand into the fullness of our own being.
This is a very high calling. Our mission, should we choose to accept it.
Potentiating Mixes
While researching Avocados for the Vygie Street Journal some very interesting information came to light, namely that the unique fats in Avocado potentiate the absorption of phytochemicals.
Phytochemicals are often very specific to a type of fruit, and are responsible for its particular flavour and colouring. Some phytochemicals are present in more than one fruit, for example the phytochemical Lycopene is the red colour of many fruits. Nevertheless, they are intimately bound to the very essence of a plant, its soul almost. They are ascribed with incredible healing effects on the human body and are the subject of much research. Most are destroyed by heat or processing, we can all plainly observe for ourselves that these paradisical flavours are altogether lost or altered by cooking. In the case where it is said that cooking Tomatoes breaks down cell walls and thus makes Lycopene more available, the solution is simply to chew one's food more thoroughly, and throw the stove away.
Phytochemicals are very often fat soluble and in the presence of the ultra special Avocado their absorption is increased by as much as 400%. Stand back for a moment and say Wow! Is it a leap of logic to reckon that Avocado makes other fruits not just four times healthier, but four times tastier? I would attest that anything tastes better with Avo.
And what does that say for mono-mealing, where just one fruit is eaten at a time? Is it a case that when mixed together different aspects of fruits are unlocked and they become more than they were alone, the whole being greater than the sum of its parts? How far does one take it? Taking a closer look at phytochemicals they appear more and more like the 'personality traits' of a plant, and behave differently depending on the company, just like we do on a Sunday visiting granny as opposed to a Saturday night with the lads. Perhaps this is even why mono-meals feel so good - we need to consider the social dynamics of these phytochemicals!
The sensory world is very difficult to negotiate. I found that in my case of Mono Oranges, even the introduction of just one Avocado brought all my best laid plans to nought. Essie Honiball never mixed fruits.. with the exception of Avocado, and perhaps its just Avocado that holds a special place in potentiating other fruits. There are other factors which make mono diets and mono meals so worthwhile, but if and when its beneficial to mix is really good to know.
Phytochemicals are often very specific to a type of fruit, and are responsible for its particular flavour and colouring. Some phytochemicals are present in more than one fruit, for example the phytochemical Lycopene is the red colour of many fruits. Nevertheless, they are intimately bound to the very essence of a plant, its soul almost. They are ascribed with incredible healing effects on the human body and are the subject of much research. Most are destroyed by heat or processing, we can all plainly observe for ourselves that these paradisical flavours are altogether lost or altered by cooking. In the case where it is said that cooking Tomatoes breaks down cell walls and thus makes Lycopene more available, the solution is simply to chew one's food more thoroughly, and throw the stove away.
Phytochemicals are very often fat soluble and in the presence of the ultra special Avocado their absorption is increased by as much as 400%. Stand back for a moment and say Wow! Is it a leap of logic to reckon that Avocado makes other fruits not just four times healthier, but four times tastier? I would attest that anything tastes better with Avo.
And what does that say for mono-mealing, where just one fruit is eaten at a time? Is it a case that when mixed together different aspects of fruits are unlocked and they become more than they were alone, the whole being greater than the sum of its parts? How far does one take it? Taking a closer look at phytochemicals they appear more and more like the 'personality traits' of a plant, and behave differently depending on the company, just like we do on a Sunday visiting granny as opposed to a Saturday night with the lads. Perhaps this is even why mono-meals feel so good - we need to consider the social dynamics of these phytochemicals!
The Thin Edge of the Wedge
Whatever we focus on, expands. This could be the most important advice any of us ever hear. If I focus on Oranges and Oranges alone, my chances at succeeding on Oranges are very high. Once I break that focus, the world underneath me dissolves like a bag of sand that's got a hole in it.
This is what happened after I began to research the headliner fruit for the next edition of the Vygie Street Journal. I was completely amazed and enchanted that Avocado potentiates the absorption and flavour of other fruits by hundreds of percent - especially phytochemicals like Beta Carotene, which improves eyesight.
I was also feeling stretched and thin, as women do sometimes in their cycle. Ravenous and emotional. When I was out and about shopping for fruits to make fruit salad in the market, I grabbed a huge ripe Avocado, intending creaming it up with Orange and Dates to make the fancy sounding 'Brasil Cream' I ladel over the fruit salads.
And why stop there? Having had one, why not another? Its no longer Mono Oranges, right? The first bite took care of that. This is how it works with the thin edge of the wedge which forces open the very door which I'd had help from angels to finally get closed.
My mother was filled with delight and did her best to place whatever she could in my path to make me 'normal' again. But its my hand, my mouth, and I'll never let anyone else take responsibility for anything I do. I went from feeling bright and alive to stupid and dead in no time at all, too heavy to go up the stairs two at a time and barely able to recall my dreams. More than this, I missed the simplicity of Orange juice, it was like having an orgy with strangers while thinking of one's true love all the time. No amount of sensuous living can replace the deep emptiness that makes reality feel naked against one's consciousness.
Now the family have all sorts of goodies downstairs but I'm so glad to just be back on Oranges! Today is day Zero, again. I'm doing another flush this evening, and every single day I am going to remember how I loved and missed Oranges.
This is what happened after I began to research the headliner fruit for the next edition of the Vygie Street Journal. I was completely amazed and enchanted that Avocado potentiates the absorption and flavour of other fruits by hundreds of percent - especially phytochemicals like Beta Carotene, which improves eyesight.
I was also feeling stretched and thin, as women do sometimes in their cycle. Ravenous and emotional. When I was out and about shopping for fruits to make fruit salad in the market, I grabbed a huge ripe Avocado, intending creaming it up with Orange and Dates to make the fancy sounding 'Brasil Cream' I ladel over the fruit salads.
But instead I ate it on the way home.
And why stop there? Having had one, why not another? Its no longer Mono Oranges, right? The first bite took care of that. This is how it works with the thin edge of the wedge which forces open the very door which I'd had help from angels to finally get closed.
 |
| Day 0, again |
My mother was filled with delight and did her best to place whatever she could in my path to make me 'normal' again. But its my hand, my mouth, and I'll never let anyone else take responsibility for anything I do. I went from feeling bright and alive to stupid and dead in no time at all, too heavy to go up the stairs two at a time and barely able to recall my dreams. More than this, I missed the simplicity of Orange juice, it was like having an orgy with strangers while thinking of one's true love all the time. No amount of sensuous living can replace the deep emptiness that makes reality feel naked against one's consciousness.
Now the family have all sorts of goodies downstairs but I'm so glad to just be back on Oranges! Today is day Zero, again. I'm doing another flush this evening, and every single day I am going to remember how I loved and missed Oranges.
Orange Juice for Brain Protection
Researching for the May Vygie Street I found out that the very flavour and colour of Oranges has a cooling, soothing effect on our cells and is anti-inflammatory, which is what they discovered when trying to work out why diabetics can drink Orange juice without it driving up their blood sugar levels. It has also been found that Orange juice increases the sensitivity of insulin and thus helps prevent diabetes altogether.
The ways of fruits can be very awesome, very mysterious, as I'm discovering researching the Avocado for the next Vygie Street. Avocados and Oranges are both winter fruits and go together like a dream come true, blended into a cream. It turns out that the very special, rare kind of fats in Avocado increase the absorbtion of other fruits phyto nutrients by 200 to 400 percent. So much for not eating fats with fruit - and Avocado's fats increase metabolism and as such are actually slimming. Just incredible, but now I'm spoiling the next Vygie Street..
The Vygie Street Journal features an in depth expose on a currently in season fruit each month, and will continue being published until all the fruits have been covered. Each issue includes a discussion about an edible leaf, a health related article and a book review, amongst other things. So don't neglect to check them out the link at the top of the page.
Jay Kordich's video will neither imbed from Youtube nor upload from my hard drive, but can be watched here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=633-YOorfi8
Best of Juice Feasting Videos
I have searched Youtube to find Orange juice inspiration from around the world, and the first words about my findings are a huge thank you to raw people everywhere who make these videos and share their experiences, they are so very helpful to all of us.
The videos are in order of the duration each Islander has been Orange-ing/juicing.
The videos are in order of the duration each Islander has been Orange-ing/juicing.
Day 55 - Featured in another post, and will be in more yet: Anne Osborne is undisputed Queen of Oranges, having been to Orange Island at least 3 times, the longest stint 84 days. Observing Anne's radiant, ageless complexion in footage from the Woodstock fruit festival led me to consider mono Oranges more seriously - She is clearly approaching her highest potential and if that's Oranges, they'll do! Anne notes that fully ripe Oranges don't hurt teeth, and I find that the easiest, cleanest, freshest way to get the juice by far is as she describes: juicing directly into the mouth. Anne's website is here and facebook here
Day 17 - Orlin Gonzales is so very alive, maintaining a fully active schedule and also doing one of the most strenuous types of yoga - Kundalini. This Orange session lasted 37 days but he had to stop because of the social pressures against being skinny, though one year into being Fruitarian he did 40 or 50 days on Oranges and afterward found that he could get by on less fruit because his body actually assimilates what he eats better! Like Anne Osborne he found that his eyesight improved on mono Oranges and next to her is the greatest inspiration for this work. Orlin is currently 13 days into his third OJ session - people who do mono Orange juice just seem to keep coming back! His blog is here
Day 14 - So clean, clear and erudite, Lauren was on fruit and vegetable juices, probiotic broths, and Rejuvelac (fermented Cabbage soak water). The points she touches on are so pertinent to this experience - especially my own worry: the elastic snap back to flavour and fullness - snap back and beyond - that can completely demoralise and undo all the good work of the cleanse. Lauren discusses the benefits of colon cleansing while juice fasting, the effect of fasting on sleep, and the emotional detox she went through, so its a very worthwhile video in this collection. Lauren has a lot of fasting and juicing experience and her web page is here
I must say that I need therapy just at the thought of cleaning the juicer. Its a quick, fun vid which drives home the difference between shop orange and real Orange, and emphasizes the importance of drinking fully ripe, orange Orange juice. Julie and Sarah have both healed and transformed with raw food and have a lot of funky guidance as well as a book on how to identify wild edible food, their site is here
So that wraps up this "best of OJ vids" post, and all that's left to say is:
THANK YOU ANNE, ORLIN, LAUREN, ANDULAIRAH AND JULIA
and of course
VIVA ORANGE JUICE !
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