Micro of the Macro

Tough Love

*All photos were taken inside Yosemite National Park in California before devastating wildfires began frequenting the area*.

Warning: this is not my typical post. It may be hard to read. It was certainly difficult to write. I don’t want to believe what I’m about to share. But I do. I must. We all must.

Global warming is changing us. We occasionally recognize it in the form of severe flooding, a killer heat wave, or a hurricane that is amongst the largest, strongest & most devastating we’ve seen. But we are quickly headed toward a time in which these and other climate-related catastrophes will be the norm. Because our civilization is doing so much harm so fast, the bits and pieces of news we receive about it are often outdated. And, as for the 2016 Paris Agreement’s goal of maintaining a global temperature of less than 2 degrees Celsius warmer than pre-industrial levels, we are already over 1 degree warmer. More damage has been done over the past 30 years than in all the rest of humanity’s history.

As human beings, we are vulnerable to confusing the unprecedented with the improbable. In our everyday experience, if something has never happened before, we are generally safe in assuming it is not going to happen in the future, but the exceptions can kill you. Climate change is one of those exceptions. ~Al Gore, Former US Vice-President & Environmentalist

David Wallace-Wells is a journalist who has written extensively on climate change for New York Magazine, The New York Times, The Guardian, and authored the book The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming, published in 2019. To summarize some of the ideas in his book, if your primary concern is rising sea levels brought about by the melting of the polar ice caps, you should know that there are much more damaging effects in store. All that Arctic ice has kept who-knows-how-much carbon, the main driver of global warming, out of our atmosphere for thousands of years. It has also served to contain bygone diseases, keeping them dormant. Less ice means less reflection of the sun, contributing to even more heat. Increased temperatures can result in more frequent drought, full desertification of some areas, and decreased crop production. Fossil fuel particulate pollution will further contaminate our air & waters. Due to large swathes of land becoming uninhabitable from rising sea levels and sweltering heat, millions may be forced to migrate. And the likelihood these challenges will culminate in increased conflict, both locally and worldwide, is very good. What’s more, continued warming can make the whole of the earth inhospitable to humans, bringing us to extinction.

According to a recent policy paper from Australia’s Breakthrough – National Centre for Climate Restoration, there’s a good chance society could collapse as soon as 2050 if serious mitigation actions aren’t taken in the next decade (meaning prior to 2030.) Climate scientists are known to consistently underestimate the severity of what is actually happening, the paper warns.

In a short TED talk, David Wallace-Wells suggests paradigm-changing solutions. He explains science isn’t stopping us from taking action, and neither is technology. We have the tools we need today to begin. Of course, we also have the tools we need to end global poverty, epidemic disease, and the abuse of women as well. Which is why more than new tools, we need a new politics, a way of overcoming all those human obstacles — our culture, our economics, our status quo bias, our disinterest in taking seriously anything that really scares us. Our shortsightedness. Our sense of self-interest. And the selfishness of the world’s rich and powerful who have the least incentive to change anything.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. ~Margaret Mead, Cultural Anthropologist

So, what can you and I do? First of all, we can stop hiding behind the idea that we’re helpless. Examine your choices around activities like eating, shopping, & vacationing, and make changes in ways, big & small, that will result in the wealthy elite benefiting less from your dollars. Don’t vote for political candidates who deny climate change or support environmentally unfriendly industries. If you must continue to eat meat, eat less of it, and buy only from companies that don’t utilize factory farms. Plant more trees, flowers, & shrubs, and grow your own food. Contribute your time or money to environmental causes. Learn & practice indigenous ways. Challenge your family to discover ways to live more sustainably. Strike up tough conversations about global warming with friends. Teach your children and grandchildren the importance of living in a manner that embraces all of life. Write letters to your congress person, or the editor of your newspaper or favorite newsletter. Blog about it. Bring it up on Facebook and Twitter. Share this write-up.

Anything else you’re interested in is not going to happen if you can’t breathe the air or drink the water. Don’t sit this one out. Do something. ~Carl Sagan

If you’ve read this entire post, congratulations and thank you. It’s difficult to read about things that make us uncomfortable. But the truth of these impending dangers can no longer be ignored, denied, or sugar-coated. Some of the negative effects of global warming are already upon us. Our individual lives and our society will suffer dramatically in upcoming years if we don’t begin to do things differently.

Blessings for Speedy Change,

Lisa

The content of this article is for educational and informational purposes only, and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult with a qualified health care professional before acting on any information presented herein. Any statements about the possible health benefits of any subject discussed have not been evaluated by medical professionals or the Food & Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or illness.

What Do You Mean “Holistic?”

*I am saddened by the increase in wildfires ravaging our National Parks. These photos are from King’s Canyon in California’s Sierra Nevada.*

If you are a tag reader like I am, you may have noticed all my posts include the word holistic. You may understand the concept, but my idea of it encompasses more than what’s normally considered. For that reason, I’d like to take the opportunity to explain.

First, I want to share a definition from the American Holistic Nurses Association: Holistic health is an approach to life where the whole person is valued. Rather than focusing on specific parts, holistic health considers the person’s body, thoughts, emotions, spirit and interaction with others and the environment.

All of our earliest healing traditions are holistic, including Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Traditional European Medicine. Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, asserted, It is more important to know what sort of person has a disease than to know what sort of disease a person has. Modern Western Medicine began as holistic, but now, the majority of its practices involve addressing particular issues with little regard for the whole person. This tendency to compartmentalize helps explain the long list of side effects often associated with surgeries and medications.

There are some holistic therapies practiced in the US. They include acupuncture, acupressure, reflexology, massage, cupping, chiropractic care, and aromatherapy. Even yoga and Tai Chi can be added to the list, making you your own practitioner. And meditation is a holistic therapy that can get you in touch with the very ground of your being.

The American-born theoretical physicist David Bohm referred to his body as a microcosm of the macrocosm. (Hmmmmm, where have I heard that phrase?) In his book Wholeness and the Implicate Order, he writes, We must learn to view everything as part of Undivided Wholeness in Flowing Movement. I really like that idea.

The idea of interdependence plays a starring role in this philosophy. (Read more on that in this post.) The health of everything in the human body, mind, and spirit is dependent on the condition of the whole. Our interactions with and the well being of our Primal Mother are a huge part of that. Some examples: we can become depressed with too little exposure to Nature. Our lungs can suffer from breathing toxic air. The liver can become stressed when our water is infused with chemicals. Our gut’s lining & microbiome can become dysfunctional as a result of eating foods that are grown from lab-modified seeds in nutrient-poor soils. And due to our body’s internal interdependence, these health issues affect other organs, our blood, nervous system, energy levels, and attitude.

Making strides toward a more holistic lifestyle is important for all of us, both individually and collectively. These are a few of my suggestions:

Ask for alternatives or adjuncts to medications or procedures. If your physician is not open to – or knowledgeable of – natural approaches, maybe look for a new one.
Choose organic, non-GMO, fair-trade, & sustainable foods. Entire forests are being destroyed for the purpose of producing the palm oil found in peanut butter and other foods. (Alliteration unintended.) Don’t buy it unless the label indicates it’s sustainably grown.
Avoid single-use plastics. If not recycled, which is common, plastic can stay in a landfill more than 100 years before decomposing. If you purchase bottled water, buy it in glass or 2.5 gallon containers. Better yet, take your own containers into a refill station each week. And when you shop, use your own bags.
Stay away from unethical investing. If you buy stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and the like, let your investment advisor (IA) know that you are interested only in ethical investments. For example, you don’t want to put money into companies that exploit poor populations by paying pennies a day for labor (more unintended alliteration) or “benefit” from environmental destruction. If your IA is ignorant of such practices (or claims to be) find one who is willing to make these concerns a priority.

In general, I believe living holistically boils down to this: practicing what best serves your life while also choosing to do the right thing for the whole. In your process of making daily decisions, keep in mind our undivided wholeness, upon which we are all dependent for long, healthy, happy lives.

Holistic Blessings,

Lisa

5 Jewels of Imagination

*All images display the imaginative work of wind and rain on sandstone inside Antelope Canyon*

I’m just finishing the book Beauty: The Invisible Embrace, by John O’Donohue, who was an Irish poet, author, priest, philosopher, and environmental activist. His writings contain some of the most elegant, soul-stirring, thought-provoking prose I’ve read. It’s hard to believe I’m just now reading him for the first time.

The human soul is hungry for beauty; we seek it everywhere – in landscape, music, art, clothes, furniture, gardening, companionship, love, religion and in ourselves. When we experience the Beautiful, there is a sense of homecoming. We feel most alive in the presence of the Beautiful for it meets the needs of our soul. ~John O’Donohue

For me, this book is like none other. I struggled to get through the first few chapters because I kept thinking about what I was reading as I was reading it. That’s a lovely way to explain it. Ohhhh, what a beautiful line! Hmmmm, I’ve never thought of that . . . I would catch myself time after time, lost in thought with my eyes still moving across the page, with no clue of what I just read. It was a challenge to stick with the reading until I got to the end of a paragraph or a page. Ahh, the power of presence!

The imagination is always loyal to the deeper unity of everything. It has patience with contradiction because there it glimpses new possibilities. And the imagination is the great friend of possibility. ~John O’Donohue

I’m grateful I kept plugging away. I discovered a chapter entitled Imagination: Beauty’s Entrance, and I’ve read it several times over. I’d like to share a few of its points. (All quotes are from the book unless otherwise noted.)

The imagination awakens the wildness of the heart. This is not the vulgar intrusive wildness of social disruption. It is the wildness of human nature. Otherwise, he explains, convention could make our single adventure of life into a programme of patterned social expectation. According to Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Jungian analyst and author of Women Who Run with the Wolves, our wild nature is present at birth, providing us with passion, playfulness, inner knowing, creativity, courage, and confidence, but the process of domestication can result in this innate quality devolving into something that feels improper.
The imagination keeps the heart young. When the imagination is alive, the life remains youthful. Even near the end of life everything can come alive in new and unforeseen forms. This research from the Journal of Aging Studies explains that productivity, distinction, and anti-aging are major organizing principles for elders describing themselves as creatives.
The imagination has no patience with repetition. We become interested in what might be rather than what has always been. Experimentation, adventure, and innovation lure us toward new horizons. In Walking in this World: The Practical Art of Creativity, Julia Cameron writes, The soul thrives on adventure. Deprived of adventure, our optimism fails us. Adventure is a nutrient, not a frivolity. You might recall some of the reasons I am an adventure advocate from this post.
The imagination offers wholesomeness: heart and head, feeling and thought come into balance. An awakened imagination brings the warmth and tenderness of affection into the life of thought; and it brings clarity and light of thought to the flow of feelings. As Mark Twain wisely stated, You can’t depend on your judgment when your imagination is out of focus.
The imagination creates a pathway of reference for the visitations of beauty. It opens up diverse ways into the complex and lyrical forest of experience. To awaken the imagination is to retrieve, reclaim, and re-enter experience in fresh new ways. And in Kahlil Gibran’s masterpiece The Prophet, beauty is described as an ecstasy: a heart enflamed and a soul enchanted.

The brilliance of John O’Donohue’s writing caused me to pause and reconsider blessings I’ve taken for granted, like these jewels of the imagination. I encourage you to explore his work, as well, to bask in its powerful, heart-opening, sacred practicality.

When you regain a sense of your life as a journey of discovery, you return to rhythm with yourself. When you take the time to travel with reverence, a richer life unfolds before you. Moments of beauty begin to braid your days. ~John O’Donohue

Imaginative Blessings,

Lisa

Taste of Summer Wraps

Summertime heat can be searing in Arizona, even in the mountains of the northern part of the state. Our intense sun makes me want to hike earlier in the day, have extra fluids at the ready at all times, and use the stove less! The idea for these super-simple wraps came about on one of our recent scorchers.

Owing to its combination of flavors and textures, this wrap is bursting with freshness. A couple of these tasty treats make for a nice lunch, picnic meal, or travel snack. They’d also be great to put in your backpack before hitting the trail.

The assortment of colorful veggies in these wraps provide many benefits of eating the rainbow. And raw veggies, as I explained in another summer recipe, are much more nutrient-dense, hydrating, and alkalizing than cooked. Plus, if you serve these wraps with berries and green tea, you have covered all of the 6 tastes, which should leave you feeling satiated for hours.

This recipe was inspired in part by this formula from Clean Eating Online.

Yield: 2 – 3 Servings

Ingredients (use organic or non-GMO whenever possible)
1/2 medium baked sweet potato
1/2 avocado
1 small shallot, chopped
1/4 tsp Himalayan salt, or to taste
4 – 6 butter lettuce leaves (or wraps of your choosing)
8 – 12 asparagus spears, trimmed
1/2 medium yellow squash, cut into thin strips
1/4 head red cabbage, sliced thin
1/4 bulb fennel, sliced thin
2 medium carrots, shredded
3 – 4 stems basil, leaves removed

Directions
Spin the first 4 ingredients (1/2 of baked sweet potato through salt) in a small food processor until smooth. Taste the sauce for salt, adding more if necessary.

Slather the sauce onto one side of each butter lettuce leaf. Add a bit of all of the veggies, making sure not to skimp on the fennel or basil. Roll up & enjoy this healthy, delicious creation! (Wrap in wax paper for taking on picnics, road trips, hikes, etc.)

Five Life-Changing Gifts of Travel

Before I started traveling extensively, I was showered with advice from friends and family. I received warnings like travel is dangerous, those people don’t like Americans, and you’ll be back home sooner than later. They all meant well, of course, but I’m not sure how many of them had done any traveling of their own, especially outside the country. In retrospect, I think they were giving me fear-based advice from what they had heard or assumed. Fact is, I’ve enjoyed all the places I’ve visited, and I’ve never felt ill at ease. Learning about new ways of life is fascinating to me. Exploring State and National Parks feeds my soul. Hiking and biking new country landscapes, towns, and villages puts a smile on my face that lasts all day. Seeing with my own eyes the ancient structures first glimpsed in the textbook of my college Renaissance Art and Architecture class thrills me. And the people I’ve met have been amicable, both the other travelers and the locals; they are always willing to direct me to the nearest cafe or train station, or help reorient me when I’m lost. My travel experiences have been nothing less than life-changing.

As a result, my advice is much different: I say you’re shortchanging yourself if you don’t travel! Of course, it’s never a bad idea to check for travel advisories, read guidebooks in advance, and be aware of your surroundings (which is true at home, as well.) But with good attention and preparation, the joy of travel can triumph over trepidation, even if you’re not part of a group. Below, you’ll find some of the reasons I feel travel can change our lives, individually and collectively.

Experiencing new places and cultures allows you to get to know some of the populations you’ve heard about in the news, thereby reducing fear. Aversion toward groups of people that are different from us is often rooted in fear. Being in a distant land, whether in your country or another, you learn that most people are fundamentally like you: they love their families, go to work, take part in community, walk their dog, prepare meals, and treasure their beliefs. It’s truly an affirmation of life to witness the similarities.

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness. ~Mark Twain

Travel is one of the best educational experiences available. While experiencing new lands, you may learn about their history, politics, religion, art, language, food, flora, fauna, geography, topography, and much more. You may gain a new understanding of why things are as they are in that part of the world. Additionally, you might be challenged to plan your train or bus route, communicate with native speakers, find a restaurant, or locate a merchant who sells good wine and crusty bread for a picnic or locally sourced souvenirs for the folks back home. Being outside your daily norm can really augment your brain activity.

Travel will broaden your appreciation of Nature. This planet is amazingly diverse and beautiful. During your travels, you may come upon trees, flowers, or animals you’ve never seen. You might be delighted by tiny islands, waterfalls, snow-capped mountains, green seas, or volcanos. The awe you feel in their presence could prompt you to be a better environmentalist for the benefit of future generations.

The world is full of wonderful things you haven’t seen yet. Don’t ever give up on the chance of seeing them. ~J.K. Rowling

*Gargoyle on Notre Dame Cathedral poised to gobble the Eiffel Tower (before the devastating fire)*

Travel changes your perspective on life in general. With a broadened worldview, you’ll find your conversations will change. You may read or hear news stories with a different understanding. Your spending habits may shift, after realizing the value of experiences over objects. Your beliefs may even become less rigid and situations may appear less black or white.

Finally, the benefits of travel don’t stop giving. The memories, photographs, knowledge, new ideas, and increased cognitive abilities experienced can be with you for a lifetime. Perusing travel photographs and journals, regardless of their age, always brings joy to my heart and a big smile to my face.

With all these amazing gifts that are yours for the taking, there is only one thing to do – make a plan to travel. Every chance you get. For a month, a week, or even a weekend. In your country or elsewhere. You’ll return with an enhanced sense of what it means to be fully alive. As Mark Twain said, Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Explore. Dream. Discover. My sentiments exactly!

Travel Blessings,

Lisa

The original version of this post, Six Reasons to Gift Yourself with Travel, was published in June of 2020, making it one of my first. Thank you, as always, for reading. And if you’ve been around since the first version, thank you again!

5 Ways to Reduce the Stress You Didn’t Know You Have

Stress – it’s everywhere – in much of what we do, see, hear, and read. Most of us think of stress as an external circumstance that affects us in a detrimental manner. But we can have a lot of self-inflicted stress, as well, that can be just as harmful.

In a past post (Nature Interrupted), I addressed the idea of stressors that we don’t normally consider. These include matters that deprive our body’s cells of what they need for normal functioning: inactivity, too little time in Nature, being a night owl, poor eating habits, dehydration, and time in unsuitable environments, whether at work or home. And stress within a biological system, although it may go unrecognized, affects the entire human organism.

To reduce the stress you might be placing on your body, I’d like to offer a few suggestions. I realize making change is not easy, so I’d recommend trying one of these once or twice a week. In the words of the 70’s musician Robert Parker, A little bit of something is better than a whole lot of nothing.😊

Take yourself on an active Nature date. Research parks, trails, Nature preserves, and the like in your area and visit one to walk, run, cycle, do yoga, or practice Tai Chi. This idea is borrowed from Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way, in which she proposes Artists Dates for sparking imagination and playfulness. When deciding where to go, Cameron writes, ask yourself ‘what sounds fun?’ You already know how much better you feel when you exercise; it makes your cells happy. And an article in Science Daily explains that even 5 minutes of outdoor exercise boosts mental health.
Go to bed earlier. Our biorhythms have been tied to earth cycles since humans first appeared on the planet. Burning the midnight oil is a modern expression often used as praise for one who works late into the night in the name of achievement. But getting your sleep and wake cycles more closely aligned with the movement of the sun can help you achieve cellular rejuvenation, preventing premature aging, disease, and early death. I’d say that’s more important, wouldn’t you? (For more on this idea, check out this post.)
Cook or make a healthy smoothie. On a regular basis, refrain from restaurants & processed foods to try a new, healthy, easy-to-prepare recipe. This not only loads your cells with nutrients & helps diversify your gut’s microbes, it also ensures your creations are infused with love. I have read that food preparation can be a spiritual practice, and your love & attention instills home preparations with benefits for the eater’s body, mind, & spirit. This is probably not the case at your local restaurant, and certainly not with food manufacturers.
Drink fruity water while soaking in a tub with Epsom salt. Slice up a lemon or lime and drop into a big glass of water for sipping as you soak your feet – or your entire body – in a bath with this magnesium compound. The citrus minerals and the magnesium in the bath contribute to deeply hydrating your cells. And since water is needed for each one of the billions of chemical reactions occurring in your body each second, this is an act of profound self-generosity.
Visualize a more positive life. If you’re not loving your job, home, the state of your health, or your relationship, take some time to visualize in great detail a better situation. An article in Psychology Today refers to visualization as a mental rehearsal used by such sports greats as Jack Nicklaus, Muhammad Ali, and Tiger Woods. Over the years, I’ve read about “miraculous” physical healings occurring using this method, as well. Seeing, even in our mind’s eye, is believing, and our biology responds accordingly.

Unlike much of the stress in our external world, we can control many of our internal biological stressors. Becoming mindful of the ways in which we can avoid inflicting harm on our personal organism can help our cells, and therefore our bodies, reach a higher level of being.

Blessings for Less Stress,

Lisa

Can the 6 Tastes Improve Your Health?

This is my third post on Ayurveda, a health system that originated thousands of years ago and is still in use by over 75% of the populations of India and Nepal. This approach to wellness is holistic in its entirety; emphasis is placed on finding and maintaining balance of mind, body, spirit, & environment. My first post is a simple overview of doshas to help you determine your constitutional type (kind of like your energetic fingerprint.) My second post shares tips on Ayurvedic eating practices, including enjoying all 6 tastes of sweet, sour, salty, bitter, astringent, & pungent in each meal. To some, this may sound woo-woo. But the practicality of this balanced method can be profound, putting weight loss & better overall health within our reach.

*A delicious plant based meal* *including the 6 tastes*

Incorporating all 6 tastes into meals is ideal because it provides satiation, so it helps you steer clear of snacking. This is due to the balance of fundamental elements (space, air, fire, water, & earth) in that taste combination. You will find below the composition of each taste:

Sweet = Earth and Water
Sour = Earth and Fire
Salty = Water and Fire
Bitter = Air and Space
Astringent = Air and Earth
Pungent = Air and Fire

Kate Siraj, an Ayurvedic Practitioner in London, writes, We, as human beings, are also formed of the 5 principle elements and we need to maintain our bodies and minds in equilibrium. It is thus easy to see why we need the correct balance of each of these tastes to keep us healthy. If we eat primarily with only a few of the tastes, this carefully maintained balance within our set-up will be lost and we will become unwell.

*Your spice cabinet is a treasure trove for your 6 tastes* *experience*

A Yoga International article tells us that the tastes of sweet, sour, & salty are considered building: they build tissues, and are said to have more soft, wet, and heavy qualities. (This helps to explain why much of the US population is overweight: these 3 tastes predominate our diets.) The article goes on to say that the tastes of bitter, astringent, and pungent are considered lightening—they are cleansing, stimulating, and help us to remove wastes.

Cate Stillman, in her fantastic book Body Thrive: Uplevel Your Body & Your Life with 10 Habits from Ayurveda and Yoga, shares the outer ecosystem becomes your inner ecosystem through your senses. The role of taste is paramount in this process because food provides the majority of the gut’s microbes, your primary determinants in health or disease. Balancing the 6 tastes helps keep your inner ecosystem happy. It allows you to avoid unhealthy cravings, Stillman explains.

I believe it is important to emphasize the idea of whole foods here, not processed or fast foods. Your body cannot be properly nourished by the 6 tastes unless they come from whole foods. So, for the sweet taste, consider sweet fruits, rice, oats, corn, sweet nuts, sweet potatoes, carrots, and local honey. Sour fare includes lemons, limes, green apples, star fruit, berries, & fermented foods. Seaweed is a good salt source in addition to mineral salts. Bitter foods include cacao, green tea, spinach, kale, sprouts, and spices like turmeric. Quinoa, lentils, beans, chickpeas, cranberries, rosemary, and nutmeg are astringent. And horseradish, ginger, garlic, onions, basil, allspice, coriander, and cumin fall into the pungent category.

Creating soups, stews, salads, and curries with a veggie or spice from each taste category is simple and so satisfying. No recipe is required. I’ve made a number of “kitchen soups” where I chop up a bunch of veggies and throw them in a pot with a selection of fresh herbs, spices, & sometimes grains, and the final product is always delicious. A little spice adjustment may be required when taste testing, but that’s part of the fun!

Making a fruit and vegetable smoothie is another way to enjoy the yummy, nourishing, hydrating potential of the 6 tastes. My smoothies include local honey, a bit of lemon, spirulina, cacao powder, cinnamon, basil, and a zing of ginger in addition to apples, oranges, celery, cucumber, parsley, fennel, and spinach.

Choosing to eat in a balanced manner according to Ayurveda is a choice for better overall health. The six tastes are the perfect guideline. Maintaining equilibrium of the fundamental elements of our bodies is a simple lifestyle change that can help us reach our weight loss goals and flourish.

Balanced Blessings,

Lisa

5 Reasons to Become a Master Gardener

Back in the fall, I took an online Master Gardener class through the Cooperative Extension of the University of Arizona. (I think I mentioned it to some of you.) My goal was to learn to grow flowers and veggies here in Northern Arizona. For years I’ve tried and failed in this lovely high desert environment where the climate is one of extremes. On average, over 8 feet of snowfall, starting as early as October and ending as late as June, is followed by months of near single-digit humidity and frequent winds of 40 – 50 mph. And then the monsoons arrive, providing the region with 40 – 50% of its total yearly precipitation in less than 3 months. You might begin to understand the depths of my frustration!

During the class, I learned about the area’s many microclimates, the best ways to amend the soil, effective planting methods, organic weed & pest control, drought-resistant landscapes, composting, and much more, and now that I’m doing the required volunteer work, I’m gaining hands-on knowledge. (To become certified, a minimum of 50 hours of volunteer work is required within 12 months after completing the course.)

*My neighbor Andrew’s strawberr*y *plant*

According to the website of Washington State University where it all started in 1973, The Master Gardener program, which began as a response to a need for information on gardening and pest management, has evolved into a proactive partner with other agencies in addressing environmental and social issues covering such topics as integrated pest management, natural yard care, and low‐impact development, to name but a few. Now, Master Gardener programs are available across the US, as well as in parts of Canada and South Korea. As of 2018, there were over 86,000 Master Gardeners in this country alone, who volunteered over 5 million hours!

There are many advantages to becoming a Master Gardener (MG), and I’d like to share a few.

Learn to grow your own food! – This is an obvious one, but it’s becoming more and more important, in my opinion. Each MG program is tailored to fit the region in which you live. (As you might imagine, gardening at lower elevations or in wetter environments is much different than tending plants in the high desert!) You know from my past posts that eating locally & seasonally is the best way to go and that working with the earth is healing. Plus, call me a weirdo, but I find it thrilling!
Discover useful techniques – I have learned ways of working with plants that I’d never even considered! For example, walls of water are super-effective at absorbing and holding heat for keeping plants warm, whether outside or inside. You can buy small ones made from plastic for use around plants like tomatoes, or make your own to line the walls of your greenhouse by filling milk jugs with water.
Gain a sense of accomplishment – I’m always in awe when a friend shares some of her/his tomatoes, peppers, or zucchini. Wow, you grew these? I am just waiting for the day I can proudly share my home-grown veggies.
Meet new friends – I’ve noticed that as I get older, it’s not as easy as to make new friends. (And I’ve heard others say the same.) Since starting the MG program less than a year ago, I’m pleased to say I’ve already made happy connections with a few people that I believe will last.
Become a part of a caring community – Again, in prior posts, I’ve shared how important it is to be a part of community. (Among other advantages, it improves mental health and increases longevity.) And, the MG community is not just any community; it is one whose members are passionate about working with the earth and sharing information for the benefit of everyone’s gardening efforts. Volunteering at plant sales, garden shows, and public gardens gives new MGs the opportunity to really feel like one of the gang.

The act of becoming a Master Gardener has opened a beautiful new world to me. I am super excited to be a part of this almost 50-year-old tradition. Hopefully, some of you will find its benefits appealing and you’ll want to join me.

Blessings from the Garden,

Lisa

*My garden has little sprouts right now*

Need a Reason to Get Away? Here You Go!

*All photos in this post were snapped in California (I must do better at photographing the beach/ocean when in Florida!)*

Do you remember vacations as a kid? I can recall living for vacations. My family would always go to the Gulf of Mexico and stay in a motel on Florida’s Panhandle. We traveled to Flarda, as it’s pronounced in the South, to swim, lie in the sun, play in the surf, and deep sea fish. My mom and grandma would prepare snacks and sandwiches when we went inside for a break from the heat. Thinking back, I can still feel the crunch of sand under my feet as I walked barefoot inside the cool, dimly-lit room. Anticipating those summer Nature escapes helped me through the humdrum of the school year. Turns out, they were even better for me and my family than I could have imagined.

As I got older, things changed, and vacations became less frequent. That seems to be the case for many of us. The Center for Economic & Policy Research calls the US the No-Vacation Nation, referring to the fact that about 25% of American workers have no paid time off, and many who do are reluctant to take it due to workplace pressures. I am well acquainted with that feeling from past positions – I even worked while eating lunch!

Not honoring our need to get away, however, can have dire consequences. A study from the World Health Organization & the International Labour Organization reveals that working 55 or more hours per week is associated with an estimated 35% higher risk of stroke and a 17% higher risk of dying from ischemic heart disease, compared to working 35-40 hours a week. In 2016, according to their estimates, 745,000 deaths were attributed to longer working hours. Yikes!

A Pub Med meta-analysis states vacation has positive effects on health and well-being, but these effects soon fade after work resumption. Therefore, frequent mini-breaks should be considered, like long weekends camping at a State Park or even a single day away to hike or bike a new area.

Vacations can improve mood and reduce stress by removing people from the activities and environments that they associate with stress and anxiety, according to this article citing various studies. Further, vacationing improves productivity and increases happiness; a win-win for employer and employee.

A write-up in the Journal of Positive Psychology asserts meditation and vacation may have overlapping effects, providing multiple pathways to boosts in mindfulness. If you’ll recall my past post on mindfulness, I shared that this state of awareness is shown to bolster immune function, decrease chronic pain, and can help improve behavior in children due to enhanced emotional regulation.

Once we’ve returned from our glorious getaway, we feel more overall life satisfaction as a result of our detachment from work, relaxation, and mastery experience during vacation, a paper from the University of Massachusetts sets forth. The last bit of that statement refers to our tendency to try something new while away – wind surfing, snow boarding, or simply exploring a new area to learn about its history or topography.

Vacationing benefits your head, heart, life satisfaction, and longevity. Making a regular plan to escape the everyday and enjoy the delights of Nature can have surprisingly positive impacts on you and your family.

Blessings for Time Away,

Lisa

Healing Made Simple

I recently listened to a podcast in which Dr. Zach Bush, an MD specializing in internal medicine, endocrinology and hospice care, was interviewed. The subject was healing the mind, body, & spirit, and Dr. Bush, who is also well-versed on the role of soil and water ecosystems in human genomics, addressed it with his typical wide and deep approach. He began the discussion with the attention-grabbing statement we have made a decision in Western civilization to outsource life because we are lazy and seeking convenience. Rather than getting up early to work our crops, we’d rather purchase those that have been grown by someone else and shipped to our local market. We find it easier to pop a pill than to go for a swim or a long walk. And why should we cook with so many options for take-out and frozen pizza?

In line with the philosophy of this blogsite, Dr. Bush sets forth we are the result of soil, water, air, and the sunlight that animates it. Therefore, the importance of clean eating, proper hydration, and time outdoors cannot be overemphasized. Choosing seasonal, local, organic (or at least non-GMO) food is the most healing way to eat. (Preparing meals from the organic veggies you’ve gardened is the pinnacle!) Staying on top of your hydration needs is crucial since our body composition is about 2/3 water and each one of our billions of cellular processes requires it. And time outside with trees, birds, breezes, and other natural sights, sounds, & scents provides joy and healing in abundance.

In this and other interviews, I’ve heard the good doctor talk about the human immune system. He says it’s not the war machine that many of us have been taught to believe. On his website, he writes the innate immune system is not fighting against nature, it’s an intelligent, dynamic, living mechanism connecting us to nature and keeping us in a balanced relationship with nature by promoting biodiversity— not eliminating it. This explains, at least in part, why the diversity of gut microbes is so important. This diversification can be driven by consistently trying new, healthy foods and limiting or avoiding things like alcohol and antibiotics. Additionally, visiting differing ecosystems, from the beach to a rainforest, river, desert, or waterfall, helps. Simply breathing the air in these varied natural environments brings new, healthy microbes into the body.

When asked which diet he thought was most beneficial for healing, Dr. Bush made a general recommendation of eating lower on the food chain, not just for the benefit of human health but also the health of the planet. This suggestion points us toward eating more plants. Plants often contribute to healing existing problems in the body. And they absorb carbon and usually require less water and energy to grow as compared to most animal products that have a large carbon footprint. (Even if you are carnivorous, his advice to eat lower on the food chain applies to meats and seafood, as well.)

The interview was quite lengthy and covered a lot of ground, but in my opinion, Dr. Bush summed it up with the following statement: We are only as healthy as our connection to Nature. Seeking ease and convenience by outsourcing life short-changes our earthly experience, leaving our health lacking. Strengthening the ties to our Primal Mother can be healing on every level.

Blessings for Simple Healing,

Lisa

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