QUESTIONS

Questions
I keep asking them
Because I want to know the truth
I want more than a superficial answer
I want a deep understanding.

Questions
They are like a quest
One leads to another
Which leads to another
And they lead me to a deeper understanding
They help to have a deeper understanding of the truth

Questions
I ask them because I can
I ask them because I have the right to
I ask them because I want to know
I ask them because they bring me
To a truth
Which can only be answered
Through questions

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Do you accept responsibility for the consequences of your choices?

SONG OF THE WEEK

Sometimes it is not the words or the music but the message that bring forth together. The blend in this video shows how we can bring about social change through peaceful resistance with the music of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings in the background https://youtu.be/afJvvMGoe7I

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Do you have courage?

IT’S A FAMILY THING

A few weeks ago, I shared that I was going to select a vegan cookbook and like Julie Powell, from the book Julie and Julia, cook my way through it. I was quite methodical in my approach. I looked at various lists of top vegan cookbooks, compiled my list of those that were on more than one top list, and borrowed them from the local library. I was not sure how I was going to discern which one I would choose, but I was clear I would be selecting one from the top ten list I had put together. Then life happened.

I had the opportunity to leave my home and physically go to the library by myself, something I had not been able to do in 7 years, and browse the vegan cookbooks. I found several which caught my attention for various reasons, so I came home with about 6 more books to add to my collection. Now I was faced with an even more difficult task of picking THE book I would cook my way through.

I had no idea on how I was going to pick THE book until I was reminded about how important family is. I was doing more then just cooking my way through a cookbook. I was going to be cooking for my wife and her selective palette. This was not just a me thing; this was a family thing. The decision of what book to use went from being a me thing to a family thing. Zoe and I began to go through the books together. Immediatel6y, some books were eliminated because there were not enough pictures for Zoe to imagine what these dishes were going to look like. Since we tend to eat with our eyes first, those with little to no pictures went back to the library.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Are you reliable?

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Change the way you think and change the world

BEGINNINGS

Beginnings
Not endings
Unlocking
Not closing
New doors
New pathways
New possibilities
Giving
Doing
Learning
Sharing
Growing
Continuing
Serving
Loving

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Open your eyes and seek the beauty

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Nothing can harm memories of kindness

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Invest your energy in peace, not war

HOW GOD FEELS

The shame, the silence, the pain
God has felt this too

I was shamed for my enthusiasm
I was silenced and not given space
I have been told I was too kind
I was not given room to explain
God has felt this too.

I have been told I was not welcome
I was told I was too enthusiastic
I have been told I do not fit in
I have been told I am not relevant
God has felt this too

I have felt the pain, experienced the humiliation, felt the denial
God has felt this too.

I have felt the love, I have felt the joy, I have felt the companionship
God has felt this too.

I have been validated for my feelings
I have felt appreciated by others
I have known what it is like to be told thank you
I have felt the warmth of someone’s hand
God has felt this too

What I appreciate about my life
Is that everything I have felt
God has felt this too.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Remember there is always more to the story then meets the eye

IF AT FIRST

https://createmindfully.com/vegan-garden-vegetable-cream-cheese/

This morning was my first attempt to make vegan cream cheese. Zoe has been pretty happy with my getting Tofutti from the grocery store.  The last three trips, however, they have been out of Tofutti. So we have tried another brand, but it did not meet Zoe’s desire for bagels and cream cheese for breakfast, her favorite. Last night, they were out of Tofutti again, so I decided I would try to make vegan cream cheese, something I had read was pretty easy to do. Yes and no.

Last night, I did as everyone suggested, well almost everyone, and I soaked my cashews over night. This morning they were uber soft and I could tell it would be fairly easy to blend them in my blender. So I began. I followed the direction that had the highest rating which had me add 1 tsp organic apple cider, 3 tablespoons lemon juice and a pinch of salt. I was supposed to add 1 tsp of water at a time to help it blend, but I thought I would add cashew milk instead as needed.

So the first tasting with Zoe and she thought it was not creamy enough. So I had it blend several more minutes. It was creamy enough for her, but I could tell by her face it was not cream cheesy enough to please her palette. Other then it not being Tofutti, it did not taste fatty enough. So back to the cookbooks.

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SONG OF THE WEEK

this week's song of the week reminds me that no matter who we are we all have the potential to be a light for change https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=6&v=MFuorvcvB7M

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Focusing on our union builds bridges. Focusing on our separation builds walls.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Get out of the way and let your Higher Power guide you in this journey.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Listen to your heart and soul and it will guide you

SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

Having been pretty much unable to leave my home the last seven years, other then for drs appointments, has given me a different view of the world. When I roll down my driveway and get to venture into the world, things overwhelm me. Today, for example, I got to see someone I have not seen in 8 years. As I rolled into the bus, taking me to the oncologists office, I could feel the excitement surging through me. I felt like a little kid. I was going somewhere and nobody was going with me. It was just me and the world.

As I sat at the café before my appointment, I could hear people complaining about how they had to leave the house, the traffic on the drive, the people who had pissed them off on their way there, the person who tried to scam them and of course the overpriced food at the café.  I sat and listened and remembered a day when leaving the house and going somewhere was just what you did. I didn’t think much about it, I didn’t see it as a blessing. It was just life.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Are you awake and alert

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Remove the obstacles and noise from your life, so you can hear the messages from your heart

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

The darkness has gifts to bring us when we are willing to allow them to share their gifts

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

So I am sitting here thinking about the word practice. I have come to realize that I have this love hate relationship with the word. On the one hand I realize I cannot master anything if I do not practice. I cannot make something a habit unless I do it so often that it becomes part of my daily routine. There are things which I have practiced doing so often and for so long that I now just do them automatically.

My spiritual journey has been filled with opportunities to practice. It has not always been easy, but it has been important that I remain true to my practice. Several years ago I remember a friend of mine wrote about keeping a gratitude journal for November. It prompted me to keep one daily, not just in November. At first doing so daily was not easy. There were days I did not want to do it, but I pushed myself through and now it is just part of my practice and if I do not do it, I feel off. It is like something is incomplete and missing in my day.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

If you woke up this morning, then keep working on your life's mission

SONG OF THE WEEK

That's not the beginning of the end
That's the return to yourself
The return to innocence
Discovering your authentic self is part of our journey. It is about returning to yourself and to the innocence you were born with. That is the message of this week's song of the week https://youtu.be/Rk_sAHh9s08

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Be mindful of the power behind your thoughts

CAST YOUR VOTE

Several years ago, well four to be exact, I was in the process of reading the book Julie and Julia. It was about Julie Powell’s efforts to cook her way through Julia Child’s book “Mastering the Art of French Cooking.” My goal at the time was to cook my way through the newly released cookbook by Alex Guarnaschelli. That did not go so well for a number of reasons.

This morning I was reminded it was Julia Child Birthday and it got me thinking how fun it would be to pick a Vegan cookbook and work my way through it. Unlike most people, I do not read cookbooks for the recipes. I read them for the wisdom and the spiritual lessons they offer. So now I am reviewing a list of vegan cookbooks. Not sure which one I will choose yet. If you have a recommendation from the list below, please share your comments or if you know of one I should definitely consider let me know about that cookbook as well.

Unlike Julia Powell, I am not setting a time limit, although my kitchen is not much better than the one she appeared to have in the movie. So what will I learn? Perhaps I will learn lessons about timelessness, senses, simplicity, integrity, adventure, and technique. Time will only tell.

Cookbooks under consideration are:

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

The way you live is a story about who you were and are

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

It is all about the relationships

BE SILLY!

Be silly!
The message came loud and clear.
Be silly!
Silly is selig
Selig is blessed.
Be silly.
Silliness can be sacred
So be silly.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

You can only see what you are willing to see.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Nature and wisdom speak the same language. Listen for the common messages

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Judge the advice, not by who offers it, but if it feels like it is from the Ultimate source of wisdom

SILENCE

Symphony
Intuition
Learning
Experiencing
Nearness
Connection
Eternal

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Move through the pain and you will find the joy

PEACHY KEEN

I almost missed this, but August is National Peach Month. I have always loved peaches, but now I have a greater understanding of why. Both in China and Japan the peach is associated with immortality and a long life. It is one of the “Three Blessed Fruits” in Buddhism and symbolizes longevity, so eating peaches may help me live longer.

That is just one reason I love peaches now. However, having lived in Georgia for several years, I came to love the state fruit. There is nothing like a good Georgia peach. I used to love making peach pies, but hated peeling peaches until I discovered the Pampered Chef serrated peeler, which makes peeling peaches so easy.

This week I thought I would share a few of my favorite Pampered Chef peach recipes and a few of my new favorite vegan peach recipes. Let me know which ones are your favorites.

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MORE THAN A ROUTINE

I generally tell those I journey with that I can tell a lot about their lives by the state of their apartment. Esther de Waal said something similar in her book The Way of Simplicity. She wrote, “An old monastic saying goes that you can tell how a man prays by the way in which he sweeps the cloister.” It made me realize that it is not just how cluttered or uncluttered your living space is, but the ways in which you go about the routine practices in your life like sweeping the floor.

If someone were to watch the way you perform a routine act in your home or office, what would they learn about you. It has made me wonder what others think of or learn about me by the way I do things. I would like to think people would think I was mindful and intentional, but I also know there are routines I am not as mindful and focused as others.

It is easier for me to be mindful and focused when I am cooking because I am constantly thinking, especially now, about what I am eating, where it has come from, what I am doing with it. I treat each of my ingredients with a sense of reverence. However, in all honesty, I have come to realize that I do not bring that same sense of reverence to everything I do, especially chores I have not enjoyed.

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