who am I?

I'm in the mood for some Neuroscience again... who are we? Where in the brain is "the soul"? Are mind and body separated? What does modern Science have to say about those questions - how does the brain work?

Am I conscious... or are my neurons conscious? And is there something like truly "free will"?

Interesting documentary about human consciousness. For breakfast, before yoga class, in Chiang Mai. ♥

traditional thai yoga massage certificate!

I finished my Traditional Thai Yoga Massage course yesterday and I did really well in my "exam" - or celebration of knowledge as my friend would call it! I am really happy about this newly acquired skill - I love giving massages, it's such a beautiful gift. My teacher was great and my massage family for those 2 weeks was really wonderful as well, I enjoyed the whole experience. It was quite challenging at times, but we all know that I like challenges (they make me grow).

I am sitting in a nice restaurant/coffee shop at the moment, drinking the best Soy Masala Chai tea I could find in Chiang Mai, it's really nice and spicy with fresh ginger pieces in it! Gotta love it, if it has ginger! Now that my course is over, I feel kind of sad to leave, so many times during my Thailand trip I had to say goodbye to the most amazing people. It can be really tough, but such is a traveler's life! I feel like I have learned so incredibly much the past 3-6 months, I feel more grown up, more alive, more confident and more centered. I am endlessly grateful for all the wonderful teachers who came into my life...

When the student is ready, the master appears.

True that! Since the end of the Summer term in July I spent my time traveling and studying LIFE. Meeting people. I put myself out there in the world to actually experience people, experience life outside my comfort zone. It started with volunteering at the raw food festival in Denmark, continued with my Permaculture Design Course and NVC workshop in England - which was followed by spending time with the most inspiring, loving family (thank you Doug, Rozi and Faychesca, I miss you)... and then I left for Thailand where I had the most fantastic Yoga and Meditation retreat, time for myself and time with very special people, I learned more about Tibetan Buddhism and now I did the Traditional Thai Yoga Massage course... and soon I will be back studying German Philology at the University of Vienna.

Travel often: Getting lost will help you find yourself.

I got much clearer about what I want to do - and that makes me really happy and grateful. I realized how much I love languages, so I want to finish my degree in German and get a TEFL or CELTA certificate so that I can teach English professionally - my goal is to travel to Nepal after my graduation to teach English there. I will take courses in Tibetan/Buddhist studies, SE Asian studies and Entrepreneurship as well (we can choose from a list of courses). I also want to keep educating myself about Massage, Yoga, Permaculture, Meditation and Non-violent Communication. And I want to study other languages (thinking of Hebrew, Sanskrit, French, Thai...)

Did you notice something? Raw foods and Natural Hygiene are not part of the "priority list" anymore... I spent so much time of the past few years of my life thinking about food, diet, nutrition etc. - it just wasn't helpful for me at all. I got so obsessed about it all, and I need a break from mind-based (over/under)eating and special diet "rules", I am not eating raw at the moment, and it isn't my goal either - nor do I fully "believe" in it anymore. For such a long time I thought that "as soon I am low fat raw vegan all my problems will be solved" - but that was never the case and never will be, of course. I have been suffering from bulimia for so long and the compulsive eating is still something I am working on to overcome.

There are 2 books I read here in Thailand that really helped me a lot: "Intuitive Eating" and "The Love-Powered Diet". I also read a book about Adrenal Fatigue and a book about the Traditional Chinese Medicine approach to diet and health called "The Tao of Healthy Eating". I don't really feel like reading information about nutrition much at the moment, but I find Macrobiotics interesting (the whole philosophy about finding balance). I am working on my intuitive eating and I love the concept. Hopefully, I will find time to talk more about it soon!

Happy to come home to Austria for Christmas! I know what my present for my parents will be... a good massage!!

P.S. I think I need to talk more about Pai and post some pictures soon - the time in Pai was my favorite part of my journey... pure magic! Surreal when I think back! Must be because of the mist...

a definition of "normal eating"

Normal eating is being able to eat when you are hungry and continue to eat until you are satisfied.  It is being able to choose food you like and eat it and truly get enough of it – not just stop eating because you think you should.  Normal eating is being able use some moderate constraint on your food selection to get the right food, but not being so restrictive that you miss out on pleasurable foods.  Normal eating is giving yourself permission to eat sometimes because you are happy, sad, bored, or just because it feels good.  Normal eating is three meals a day, or it can be choosing to munch along.  It is leaving some cookies on the plate because you know you can have some tomorrow, or it is eating more now because they taste so wonderful when they are fresh.  Normal eating is overeating at times:  feeling stuffed and uncomfortable.  It is also undereating at times and wishing you had more.  Normal eating is trusting your body to make up for your mistakes in eating.  Normal eating takes up some of your time and attention, but keeps its place as only one important area of your life.
 In short, normal eating is flexible.  It varies in response to your emotions, your schedule, your hunger and your proximity to food.

 Source:  How To Get Your Kid To Eat…But Not Too Much by Ellyn Satter

I love love love Rumi.

Truth was a mirror in the hands of God

It fell, and broke into pieces.

Everybody took a piece of it,

and they looked at it and thought they had the truth.

music nostalgia

forgiving myself

Compassion with my Self.

nature, connectios, retreat

I am still in Thailand. I have just done a Yoga and Meditation retreat in a breathtakingly beautiful valley in the mountains of Northern Thailand, it was chilly in the mornings and evenings, really cold in the night and very misty - which I loved. The climate is just perfect there: like Austrian autumn (my fave) from evening to late morning, and like Austrian summer during the day. I was surrounded by green everywhere I looked: GREEN. Seeing the mountains, in their softness and greatness felt deeply healing.

When I got there I met some beautiful people to share my time with. Sadly, they left after only a few days - and that is when my retreat started. Half of it was dedicated to silence, very much inspired by Vipassana meditation retreats. We had a full on schedule, starting at 7am with some Soy Chai Tea to get ready for the daily practice. We did some nasal cleansing - something I look forward to doing when I am back in Europe. I liked the freshness and feeling of cleanliness. And the breath in the following breath work exercises flowed so much better! We did Hatha Yoga, breath work and meditation in the mornings and had a yoga philosophy class and Yin Yoga in the evenings. We also had a chanting session which I loved and on our last day we made a trip to hot springs hidden in the jungle at night time. The stars were shining so bright that night .- it was amazing. I also had a fantastic yoga family and already miss them! Not to mention how much I already miss my yoga teacher - she is such a wonderful being! I am very, very grateful for her guidance and inspiration.

One night I decided to study Hebrew. I am a language freak, I just need to learn a new language. I know a few phrases in Thai, but don't feel like going much deeper for the time being. I love French, but I can wait until I am in France to learn more (I got invited by a beautiful Persian couple living in Paris, so I am looking forward to getting some French and Persian lessons when I visit!). Hebrew is such a beautiful language, and learning the letters is fun. I am using this fabulous website along with Youtube videos and of course I have some support by Israeli people. Would love to spend some time in a Kibbutz as well.

Now I am back in Chiang Mai where I want to do a Traditional Thai Massage introduction course, starting next week. I am already looking forward to going back to Europe. Right now I am trying all sorts of local foods, and experience the consequences! But I also enjoy the tastes and am grateful for that. I feel more connected to Thai culture this time around. Funny, I came here to have all the tropical fruit, but now that I could have it, I choose not to have too much of it. I love the tastes... but somehow I am not in right place for eating a lot of fruit. When I get home I will eat mostly vegetable based meals along with a little bit of fruit (can't wait for the apples!) and cooked starches (they make me feel much more balanced, brown rice and sweet potatoes are amazing). I am so psyched by the thought that I will be able to cook for myself!

Namatse & Shalom!

new beginnings

... and changes. So, I started this blog as a way to talk about my experiences with a fruit-based raw or high raw vegan diet. As someone loving fruit, I chose to call myself "Fruitfay" - however I see that I am gravitating more and more towards a diet based on vegetables (especially the green and orange stuff) and cooked starches. This is why I changed the header of the blog.

At first I thought about changing it to "Veggiefairy" or "Vegfay" - but then I realized that I find it limiting to choose a name according to my momentary dietary preferences. I have just completed a Yoga and Meditation Retreat in the North of Thailand. It was one of the best experiences of my life! I had the most wonderful and powerful yoga teacher and the setting was just breathtakingly picturesque.

The idea was that we get to the yoga platform (surrounded by green mountains) and choose a yoga mat. On the backside of each yoga mat was written a word - like gratitude, awareness, peace etc. This word could also be found on each cup and water bottle for the yoga students. Long story short: I chose simplicity and simplicity chose me. My yoga family started calling me "Miss Simplicity" and I really like that! Hence, the new name.

Namaste!

Consequences

So, after my frustration with a low fat, high fruit raw vegan diet and my longing for having more fun with food again without feeling guilty (I am human after all), I get to experience the consequences. Some things I have learned in the past few weeks:

• Having a soy cappuccino at Starbuck's equals a sleepless night.
• Eating meals at restaurants which contain salt, heated oils and sugar are not a good idea to improve my skin condition.
• Eating cooked food is not going to kill me (right away ^^).
• I feel very clearly that I long for a low fat vegetable based diet. I know I am doing great with vegetables. I am longing for the plain steamed sort of dishes, along with herbs etc.
• I like green tea and oolong tea and if I drink them not in the late afternoon they don't cause any big problems with my sleep, and they make me feel good and mildly energized as well as help to sharpen my mind.
• I don't need salt. Why are they putting that stuff into everything again?
• I don't need oil. Seriously. Who came up with this?
• I really enjoy the taste, smells and textures of Thai vegetarian food.
• I really appreciate to have pleasant to no body odor, good deep sleep, a flat stomach, healthy digestion and glowing healthy skin. Heated oils, lots of salt and refined sugar are not taking me there. 
• Searching for fun is not a bad idea nor is it a sin.
• I can have a deeper satisfaction with my life if I take radical care of my self, internally and externally.
• If I am 100% honest with myself I can see that eating those foods I have been ingesting is not what I truly want.
• There are so many things in life that can be fun. Food is only one of them.
• I fell in love with Yoga, and I really enjoy cycling and running, as well as hiking and reading - and, of course, dancing and hooping. 
• I can still make my food fun - I simply need to take care of this myself instead of relying on others.
• I can find a diet that makes me happy - emotionally, physically, spiritually, mentally. I think and feel I already have a clue what that diet may look like. In fact, I have been clear about this for about one or two months now. I have just needed some time to get to experience other things in order to be certain about my next move. That time wasn't wasted - it brought me clarity.
• I love my life, I love myself for the choices I make and the consequences that come with it as it promotes my personal growth.
• And yes, others might look at me and observe what I am doing as failure. Finally I am in a place where I can smile at that. They don't know what I know, they don't feel what I feel. They do what they do and experience what they experience, they get their results and make choices according to that. And that is what I am doing as well.
• As I have no clear goal except for experiencing my life in all authenticity, I don't have failures anymore in my life - that is a mental program I no longer subscribe to.
• My mind is like a theater, a movie, a TV show. There are some films running that I know already - they are getting old. It's ready for a new tape, I am ready for switching the channel. And that is a channel called unconditional love.

Peace everyone!

I am in love with Life.

As you think, you travel, and as you love, you attract. You are today where, your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.

You cannot escape the result of your thoughts, but you can endure and learn, can accept and be glad. You will realize the vision(not the idle wish), of your heart, be it base or beautiful, or a mixture of both, for you will always gravitate towards that which you, secretly most love.
Into your hands will be placed the exact result of your thoughts; you will receive that which you earn; no more no less.

Whatever your present environment may be, you will fall, remain or rise with your thoughts, your vision, your ideal. You will become as small as your controlling desire; as great as your dominant aspiration.

~ James Lane Allen

hooping inspo

I love Hula Hooping and I would LOVE to be able to do something like the girl in the video. Love it, love it, love it.



I am also an admirer of Mona (Spangled Hoops).

Need to get a good Hoop here in Chiang Mai! (Yeah, I am in Chiang Mai, by the way, hehe. More soon.) Hooping in the park. ♥ Can't wait!

path of least resistance

I am going with the flow.
As I dream I travel, as I love I attract.
Feeling good is fun.
Finding things to appreciate is fun.
Being grateful is fun.
My life is a reflection of my thoughts.
My body is a reflection of my vibrations.
I have the power to create what I desire.
And I can start getting closer right now in the moment.
I can practice feeling good.
I can train myself to be grateful every second.
Joyful living, peace and happiness are possible.
They are within my reach.
I am the person I want to be already.
All I need is to embody it in the physical realm as well.
Embrace my being fully.
Living love with all my being.
Here.
Now.
I.
AM.
Namaste!

good teeth

have fun

You know, I value having fun in my life. I think I didn't allow myself to have enough fun over the past couple of years, sure, I had some fun here and there, but most of the time, I didn't allow myself to fully enjoy those moments.

Fulfilling my need for fun is definitely on my priority list at the moment. I didn't have real fun regularly for so long, that I don't even know what fun is to me. What do I really enjoy doing? I would say I really love dancing and hooping. I love being around people who have a good sense of humor and make me laugh. I enjoy long walks in the woods, in nature. I really like lying on the grass underneath a tree, looking up to the sky, seeing the sun rays shining through the green leaves on the branches. I really like having a fit body and being able to do difficult yoga poses or acrobatic stuff. Will I get my fitness back? Will I get fitter than ever before? I hope so. But I know I can have fun, whatever happens,... yes, I can have fun.

This video shows a scene from one my absolute favorite movies (Practical Magic). This looks like fun to me.
And the song always makes me want to have some fresh coconut water, yummy!



Another thing that is fun for me at the moment is experimenting with cooked food again. I changed my view on cooked foods quite a bit in the last couple of days/weeks. My goal is simply not 100% raw right now. (Again, I don't like the labels I put onto myself. Making these choices gives me a feeling of freedom and I really like that.) I do enjoy all the things I eat. As long as I am alive I will remain open-minded and open to learn. All I have are my experiences, and I am grateful for every single one of them. They are what makes me alive, and I love being alive, that is why I'm here in the first place.

Also, I think there is a lot of black and white thinking going on in the raw food/vegan movement and I want to take a step away from perfectionist thinking patterns. I have had my share of perfectionist obsessions in my young life already. If you love eating all raw, and you feel great with it, then all is fine, and I am glad you enjoy your experience and wish you the best. My path is leading me somewhere else right now, and I am following my intuition.

Love to all! I am off for having some really nice papayas for lunch. What can I say? I simply love fruit.

expressing gratitude for every meal

Today I want to talk about the importance of being grateful for our food. Growing up in a Western country, having enough food and a wide variety of available foods to choose from, it is sometimes easy to take it for granted to be provided with (more than) enough to eat. Well, when I was younger and spent more time with my grandparents, we spoke prayers before every meal. These prayers were Christian prayers and they kind of did not connect me to my food, to the earth. So, I had to say those words without realizing a deeper meaning behind them and soon lost interest in this habit of speaking prayers when I grew older and wasn't told to so anymore. (I am not saying that the trouble was that they were Christian prayers, I am just pointing out that I felt a lack of deeper meaning and connection.)

It has been a few years since I noticed that I missed the pure act of sitting down, being still before having a meal and expressing gratitude for Mother Nature's gift: food. When I spent time with a dear friend in Thailand in 2009, we always folded our hands, closed our eyes and spoke prayers of gratitude to Gaia, either out loud or in silence to ourselves, before enjoying our fruity meals. This simple practice brought me to the present moment and made me feel warm and happy inside. What a lucky girl I am to have food! And such beautiful and nutritious food too!

Sometimes people, especially in the health food scene, get caught in their longings for 'perfect' nutrition. They analyze every bite, plan a lot and get annoyed when something is not ideal, or even beat themselves up for not eating 'the best/perfect' foods. If that is you, I recommend to take a step back and acknowledge that you are extremely lucky to be in a position in which you can even think about all this. I say, be grateful for every bite. The mind is a powerful thing, and what you think can make you feel very miserable - it is not only about the food. Of course, food is important as well. I am just saying, sometimes we make ourselves unnecessarily feel bad. Happiness is a choice, it is not dependent on having 'ideal food' at every meal. (Especially, since every health expert out there seems to have a different take on what 'ideal' means anyway.)

I feel that there is still a bit of anxiety inside myself when it comes to making food choices. I am working on letting go. I ask myself what I feel like, then I choose something to nourish myself with and whatever it is, I am grateful for the food. I am grateful for the sun, the rain, the air, the soil, the microorganisms, the water, the farmers, the trees etc. There is a lot to be grateful for! As you eat your meal in a state of inner calmness, honest gratitude and emotional poise, you will experience a difference in how you feel about yourself and your food.

Since my arrival in Bangkok I have enjoyed fresh coconut water (which is becoming one of my favorite things to nourish my cells), fresh squeezed OJ (this stuff is amazing here, so sweet!), durian (of course! How could I resist?), papayas (love them), lots and lots of dragonfruits (love them) and some bananas. Also had some organic greens.

I LOVE MY FOOD.

I AM GRATEFUL FOR EVERY BITE.

I THANK THE RAIN,

I THANK THE SUN,

I THANK THE SOIL,

I THANK THE TREES.

GAIA, GAIA, GAIA,

THANK YOU.

I will be doing a Yoga Retreat with my friend Jess in two weeks! It will be intense: Hatha classes in the morning, Ashtanga classes in the afternoon. And hopefully relaxing at the beach and getting a nice tan!

I love Bangkok, I am grateful for my time with Jess and I am happy that I have all I need.

Are you expressing your gratitude when you are eating? Do you have a prayer? 

I'm curious.

thailand, music, dance

I am sitting in the same hotel room I had spent the last 2 weeks of my last Thailand journey and I am listening to this wonderful song I posted below. It makes you want to jump and go wild! I love it! S. J. Tucker is a great artist, I love all the songs I've heard by her so far, all from her album "Blessings".

Music is so powerful, dancing makes me feel alive and connected to my true self, my inner Goddess, it makes me feel free, it helps me to open up and shine my light. I miss dancing. I miss music. I miss singing/chanting. So, now that I have come to Thailand my second time, I will focus to give these gifts to myself.

I am in Thailand again. Wow. This is like a dream. It is surreal. I am here and I came here with a one-way ticket. I came without strict plans. I came to experience life. My life. And I came to experience people, and I mean people who really resonate with me, people I can trust and people who are good for me. I am done with relationships that cause me suffering. This includes the relationship I have with myself, my inner being. I am open for something new.

I am here to heal. I know that I don't need to be in any particular place in the world to accomplish this, as it is more about my inner state of being. I can find peace in my heart wherever I am. I know this. I have experienced this. It just happens that I chose Thailand, my intuition led me here. As I've said, I don't have A PLAN. I have ideas, yes, and many opportunities. Possibilities everywhere I look. What I need now is peace, harmony, relaxation. These are the priorities for now. I have many unmet needs at the moment and my body reflects my inner stress I have been suffering from for such a long time in various ways, various symptoms one could say.

I am ready to heal. I am here now. And that is a miracle in itself. I have a body which is a miracle as well. I am blessed with this life and I am going to make the best out of it. I am here to heal and help. I start with caring for myself. I love helping other people, I love caring for animals, I love caring for the Earth. One step at a time, with peace in every step, I may follow my heart now and we'll see what unfolds.

Blessings!
And relax.
(Before you go wild, I mean.)




I am the firebird!
I am his daughter!
I am the firebird's child!
I am a firebird!
I am his daughter!
And like the flame, I am wild wild wild wild
WILD!
I am the firebird!
I am his daughter!
I am the firebird's child!
I am a firebird, the boldest song you've ever heard
Join in the dance, and make it wild, wild, wild!
Join in the dance and make it wild!

To see a maiden dance around
a fire is not so strange
but fire dances round the limbs
of this uncommon maid!
Be brave enough to burn
and you'll be brave enough to fly!
Join your sister Solace as
she lights the morning sky!

I am the firebird...

Wonders of the water air and
earth are all the same
you'll never know a wonder
like the wonders of the flame!
Freely fly as what you are
and never walk in shame!
You must not fear to blister
if you'd live a life in flame!
I am girl and firebird
and solace is my name!

I am the firebird...

If you're brave enough to dance
then you are brave enough to fly!
Forget what's right and proper!
You won't know until you try!
If you're brave enough to fly,
then you are brave enough to burn!
Take my hand and join me in the
Carnival of Dawn!

I am the firebird...

Sister will you follow me?
Sister will you follow me?
Sister will you follow me?
Sister sorrow walk with me!

(Solace, Sorrow, round and round
Sisters burn the morning down
Solace, Sorrow, round and round,
Sister, burn your Sorrow down!)

Like a flame you must be wild/I am a firebird!

I am the firebird...

You must not fear to blister if you'd live a life in flame!
Freely fly as what you are, keep dancing just the same!
You'll never know a wonder like the wonders of the flame!
I am girl and firebird and Solace is my name!

from Blessings, released 20 June 2007

not taking things personally

permaculture adventure

I've recently earned a 72 hour Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) in York, North England (UK). It was a fantastic experience, but also really challenging at the same time. I was the only vegan, let alone raw vegan there and having enough food for me (ripe fruit, organic greens were tricky) was stressing me more than necessary. Feeding a raw vegan is the easiest thing in the world. There were 2 fruiting plum trees on our campsite and I could live straight from the 'garden' for a few days which was really wonderful. Imagine a whole field of several acres (like the one we were camping on) covered in fruit trees and other perennial plants! No need for gas for cooking, packaging, recycling/getting rid of harmful materials etc. Just pick, eat, give back to the earth. The perfection, beauty and abundance of a forest garden.

Our teacher, fabulous Richard Perkins, paid a lot of attention to our group development and focused on creating a functioning little community for those two weeks we spent there together. We played several games which allowed us to connect deeply. The more games we played, the closer we got together. The last few days I felt like I got a new big family - it was surprising to me, as I didn't expect to feel that much included - especially because I found it pretty hard not to feel separated because of my different diet/lifestyle. Cooking together and enjoying the same food at meal times is very central in community development and therefore I felt pain and homesick a lot in the beginning. I even cooked for my crew once which was fun as a creative process in a way, but also stressful, as I didn't enjoy the low energy and smells etc. I did my best, though and was happy when I saw other people being happy.

Things that interested me the most:
- food forests/forest gardens (we visited a food forest in the North of England! fantastic!)
- natural building
- Ken Wilber
- permaculture in temperate climates and urban areas
- community building
- skill share
- the actual designing process

Other things:
- homeschooling
- attachment parenting/continuum concept
- nonviolent communication

On our last day of the course we had to perform a (no) talent act in form of a show which is part of the course. I did a hula hoop dance to the song "Woman of the Earth" by Spiral Dance, it was so much fun and I loved it. People seemed to love it, too.

After the PD course I attended a nonviolent communication workshop which was really helpful. I'll be writing more about NVC soon, as I think it is incredibly important for social change and community building. It supports healthy relationships to other people and ourselves. It has potential to help make this world a more peaceful place. So, I want to talk about the language of love some time soon!

being different

I want to share a motivational speech with you today on being DIFFERENT. If you haven't noticed by now, I have joyfully jumped out of the norm a while ago. Yet, it's not always easy, and everyday I face new challenges (which I welcome), so at times, it's good to read/hear people tell me that it's okay GREAT to be different. Enjoy!

~ If you want to get what everyone is getting, do what everyone is doing. ~


"Dare To Be Different"



THE WALK
I think it all started when I was 18 years old and in my first year at campus. That was about the time that I started to observe people’s behaviour and just to think about life. I was taking a walk with two friends and was in deep thought. They were chatting, but I was not paying attention to what they were saying. Then suddenly I said
“You know guys; I am pretty disappointed with the adult world.”
One of them asked me why and I explained that when I was going to campus I expected a lot of change and difference in the behaviour of the people around me. After all, they were adults. I always thought being an “adult” was a lot different from being a kid. However I felt after being on campus for a few months that the adult world was not what I had expected.
Everyone just seemed to behave like they were still teenagers. Nobody seemed to be outstanding in any way. There was no distinction, as far as I could see, between the 18 year old and the 50 year old apart from their age! Where was the wisdom and excellence I had come to expect. There was no change!
I did not know it then, but over the years I have come to see that the reason people don’t change is simply that they do not dare to be different.

WHAT DOES BEING DIFFERENT MEAN?
Being different means:- Not being afraid to challenge the norm.- Being willing to take a chance.- Asking why.- Making your own track, not just following the well trodden path.- Charting your own course and destiny.- Being the person that you were meant to be.
I believe that everyone is born unique. But through the years we work very hard to be like everyone else. We conform to society’s so-called “common-sense.” Unfortunately it is just that – “common sense.” That does not mean its “good sense.”

THE FOLLY OF EDUCATION.
If I were to take just the people in this room, it is likely that most of you have spent anything from 15 to 20 years getting an education so you can get the jobs you have. Doesn’t it strike you as irresponsible that one can spend so much time getting an education and yet so many people don’t make any deliberate effort to develop their greatest asset – themselves!
Most people think once they have a qualification that’s it. They have arrived. Is it any wonder they don’t grow? They are stagnant. Stuck at 18!
Most of us won’t even read unless there’s an exam in sight. But you know what? Everyday of your life is an exam. Everyday you either pass or fail the test of life. Everyday is an opportunity to grow beyond your present barriers and circumstances. Everyday is a chance to become a better person.
The saddest part is most of people don’t realize this. If they had to be graded at the end of their lives you know what they’d get? D, D and more D’s. And yet they thought they were doing very well. They let society’s “common sense” grade them.

MY ADVICE?
If I can leave you with one piece of advice it would be this: READ
Society celebrates mediocrity so much that it does not take much to set yourself above the rest. Doing that one thing regularly will put you way above the rest. Read books that challenge you and that make you think.
I have decided to read at least one book every month. I’m already amazed at the results.

MY FINAL WORDS
In closing I’d like to say to those of you that are skeptics out there, those of you that are saying “oh, he is just drink with the omnipotence of youth. He’ll get over it, and then he’ll be just like everyone else.”
My words to you are:
“I ain’t going out like that. I know that I have an abundance of potential within me and I will bring it out to fruition. Why?”

“Because…I’M DIFFERENT!”

music can be powerful and healsome

Hey, hey! I have come across a wonderful artist producing the most beautiful, touching and uplifting music I have ever heard. From listening his very first track, I've been captured by these sweet and deep rhythms and lyrics - I love every beat, every word, heck even every syllable!

I have fallen in love with this music and so I feel the urge to share it with you and the rest of the world. I sense this kind of music is an amazing gift and I am filled with gratitude that I have found it. The artist I am talking about is called OGMA. Check out his website and his songs! (You can listen to his first album on his website for free!) - I wouldn't be surprised, if you were enchanted as well. Let me know what you think in a comment below or e-mail, if you feel like it. I am interested in your reaction, as I have experienced waves of love listening to the album "You Are It" over and over the past few days. I mean, the last song is called "Jasmine's Song", so I gotta like it, right? ;)

Here is Samson, the beautiful being behind OGMA, performing two of his songs live:



...SAY YES TO LIFE CAUSE LIFE SAYS YES TO YOU...



Don't you often feel like most music we listen to on the radio/on TV thoughtlessly day in, day out have lyrics that don't have really meaningful and empowering lyrics? Don't you feel that by listening to some songs, you even feel a drain of your energy? Don't you feel that there is a lack of truth and positive intention behind most of them?

Well, at least that's how I feel and that's why I am always excited to come across music like this. I'd love to make music myself one day, as to me this is such a fantastic way of sharing yourself, your uniqueness and your message with the world around you.

Another band I am happy to have discovered as of late is Dispatch. (Thank you, Jess, for your great recommendations!) Check out this song:



say what you want, say what you mean
question yourself, are you really what you seem?
say what you want, say what you mean
question yourself, are you really what you dream?

Enjoy the magic!

gebet an den planeten

Wir alle beten für diesen Planeten,

um jedem neuen Tag in Hoffnung zu begegnen.
Unser Licht durchbricht die Nacht in unsrem Glauben daran.
Dies ist die dunkelste Stunde vor dem Sonnenaufgang.


Es tut mir leid, Tier, denn sie mögen dich so sehr,
sie wollen alles von dir - und am liebsten noch mehr.
Deine Haut ist ihre Kleidung, dein Fleisch ist ihr Essen,
dein Geist ist vergessen.
Bei dem Versuch, das Recht auf Leben in Gesetze zu verpacken,
haben sie bei dir, Tier, einige Sätze weggelassen.
Deine Schreie zu erhören, wurde leider verpasst,
weil du für Menschen keine verständliche Stimme hast,
erhebe ich meine Stimme für dich,
es scheint noch immer vonnöten.
Ihr erinnert euch (nicht): Du sollst nicht töten,
denn du kriegst was du gibst, bist was du isst,
weißt, was das heißt - alles kommt zurück.


Hier ist mein Gebet an diesen Planet,
der Versuch zu beschreiben was mir nahe geht.
Solang sich diese Welt noch dreht,
werdet ihr meine Stimme hören.
Und immer wieder Menschen treffen,
die aufs Leben schwören.


Wir alle beten für diesen Planeten,
Um jedem neuen Tag in Hoffnung zu begegnen.
Unser Licht durchbricht die Nacht in unsrem Glauben daran.
Dies ist die dunkelste Stunde vor dem Sonnenaufgang.


Es tut mir leid, Natur,
denn deine Erben erheben sich gegen dich
und erledigen dich.
Du warst vollkommen in Vielfalt mit allem im Einklang,
bis der Mensch mit Gewalt in dich eindrang.
All deine Schätze, die am Anfang allen gut vertraut,
sie wichen Plätzen die auf Tränen und Blut gebaut.
Ich seh' die Wunden blinder Wut auf deiner Haut entstehn,
obwohl doch die, die dich verletzen, damit gegen sich gehn.
Und dennoch liegt etwas Heiliges in deiner Luft,
an besonderen Plätzen ein besonderer Duft,
der mir sagt, dass jeder Weg so wichtig ist wie jeder Fluss,
und jeder Baum, jeder Berg dort steht, wo er muss.
Sie handeln wider ihren Sinnen, als wären sie blind,
wenn ihre Ziele nicht im Einklang mit den Deinen sind.


Und selbst um dich, Mensch, tut es mir leid,
denn du quälst dich selbst die meiste Zeit.
Im Krieg mit deinem Ego stehst du neben dir,
ewig die Frage verdrängend, weswegen leben wir.
Du findest keinen Frieden hier,
wirst zum seelenlosen Wanderer.
Und dein Lebenskampf geht auf die Kosten anderer.
Verfolg in Liebe all die Ziele, die du gut nennst,
doch gehe nie gegen dein eigenes Blut, Mensch,
denn du irrst wenn du denkst, hier steht jeder für sich,
was gegen uns geht, geht gegen dich.
An jedem Start ist 'ne Ziellinie und wir sind alle gleich weit.
Und aus einer Familie.
Um die Tests dieser Zeit zu bestehn und um weiter zu gehn,
muss hier jeder sein Ego in Demut zurücknehmen.


Hier ist mein Gebet an diesen Planet,
der Versuch zu beschreiben was mir nahe geht.
Solang sich diese Welt noch dreht,
werdet ihr meine Stimme hören.
Und immer wieder Menschen treffen, die aufs Leben schwören.


Wir alle beten für diesen Planeten,
um jedem neuen Tag in Hoffnung zu begegnen.
Unser Licht durchbricht die Nacht in dem Glauben daran.
Dies ist die dunkelste Stunde vor dem Sonnenaufgang.


Mein Gebet an diesen Planet,
der Versuch zu beschreiben, was mir nahe geht.
Solang sich diese Welt noch dreht,
werdet ihr meine Stimme hören.
Und immer wieder Menschen treffen, die aufs Leben schwören.


Wir alle beten für diesen Planeten,
um jedem neuen Tag in Hoffnung zu begegnen.
Und unser Licht durchbricht die Nacht in dem Glauben daran.
Dies ist die dunkelste Stunde vor dem Sonnenaufgang.

- Thomas D

feasting and letting go

I had the most fantastic time at the Fresh Food Festival in Denmark last week. The food was fabulous (and I helped preparing in the kitchen which was great fun) and the people were fascinating, loving and kind. I was happy to meet Doug, Rozi and Fay again, among all the others. Like last year, the atmosphere was so good that I was reluctant to leave. Why can't this last forever? I thought. I made some amazing friends this year and loved the experience as a volunteer. I am deeply grateful for the time I spent there and I am looking forward to new events in the future.

The sad news is that when I arrived back home after a very exhausting 24hours plus train and car travel, I found my beloved dog friend called Daisy in a very bad state of health. She had some nasty thromboses which needed to be removed in an operation. She was operated on the day after my return. The operation went without complications, my mom and I were waiting for the doc to finish and take her back home with us. Suddenly the doc showed up, asking us to follow him into the operation room. There she lay on the table, tubes in her mouth, a big scar on her shaven stomach, unconscious. The monitor showed arhythmic heartbeat. And as I as I stood there, hands on her struggling body, she faded away. Her heart stopped beating.

The doc gave her two adrenaline shots right into her tired heart. No reaction. He tried to re-animate her. No success. She was gone. And didn't intend to come back. Helplessly, I watched her die under my hands, my heart was broken. Daisy was ten years old, she came to our family when I was eleven. We had a very special connection, she was my little darling, my baby, my sister, my best friend. She meant the world to me and she always will.

My grief was very, very intense right after her death. We took her lifeless body home with us and laid her on her bed in our living room. I lied down next to her, unwilling to say goodbye just yet, crying a river of sorrowful tear drops. My mom was there with me, crying because of the loss of such a wonderful being. The world would be lonely without her. We buried her in our garden, her head facing east, to the rising sun. White roses grow above her now, a sphere made of white stone marks her grave, saying 'unforgotten' - and that she always will be.

When you grief, you either lose your appetite and eat less or you try to numb yourself out emotionally in order to 'protect' yourself from the pain. I found myself doing an unintentional 24 hour fast and eating comparatively little the past few days. Processing such intense emotions demands a good deal of nerve energy of the body. Sleep is really important. Sitting with my feelings, as painful as they may be, is the best thing I can do for now. And as I invite the pain and feel deeply into it, it fades away slowly, but gradually, and leaves me feeling grateful for my life, the amazing beings in it and the wonderful time I spent with Daisy. I am really lucky that I knew her, I am forever-grateful for the special connection I had with her. Thank you for enriching my life, Daisy. You will always be in my heart. Rest in Peace. I love you.

earning your fruit

First of all, I felt like crap (well, let's say less than ideal) most of today because of yesterday's overeating (?) and lack of sleep. So, I felt like, oh well, going for a run ain't make it worse, so I took off - and it was blissful. I'm really digging the barefoot running lately. I worship my Vibrams (grey/yellow). ♥

So, I ended up running 12km in my favorite park in Vienna. When I was done, I came across a fruiting plum tree! How amazing is that? In the middle of the city! In the end of June! They turned out to be the tastiest small yellow plums I've ever had. So sweet and bursting with the most terrific flavor ever. I kind of fell in love. ♥

Of course, they might have tasted like pure perfection because I've just run quite some kms. :) Fruit always tastes better after working out, doesn't it? I hope I will remember this from now on. It makes life much more enjoyable to earn one's fruit. ♥

you don't have to do ANYTHING

This is the main message I got out of watching this video:

My future is a blank canvas and I can write on it whatever I want, I can write on it anything. I don't have to do anything. When I see that, procrastination simply dries out and blows away. There is nothing to put off, everything I do is my choice. As soon as I 'must' do something, I get slave resentment. To deal with the problem of procrastination, I realize procrastination is something unnatural and unhealthy that results from control and bullying, it is a passive aggressive response to being ordered around, so I stop ordering myself around, I own my choices, what I am choosing is what I actually want - I am free. I am loving what I am doing, I am not taking orders from others. It's my life. I don't put things off that are pleasurable!

living a simple and self-sustaining lifestyle in abundance

When I watch this, I get the urge to build a massive food forest in a warm and sunny climate.

I love this vision.
♥

you can fix all the world's problems: in a garden

where does true abundance come from?

loving food that's loving me back

Alison is presenting her interview series 'Living on Fruit' and the video below features long term low fat raw vegan Andrew - there is no doubt that he genuinely enjoys his food and whole lifestyle. And I know exactly what he means. Right now, I am experiencing such high levels of happiness, contentedness and well-being resulting from my raw vegan fruit-based diet that I don't see myself eating something other than fresh, raw, ripe, preferably organic plant foods anytime soon or ever again. I am just too much in love with my current food and the results coming from it.



Do you love your food? And equally important: does it love you back?



Sometimes people think I am an ascetic eating this way, when actually the TASTE of these foods is one of my main reasons to choose this diet. Whole, fresh, ripe, raw fruits and vegetables are the most beautiful, tasty and satisfying foods I know of. I have not always viewed it this way, I am still evolving and growing more and more into it. Practice is a crucial factor: The more you practice being low fat raw vegan, the better you will become at sticking to it. It takes time to change habits, change your perspective and change your actions, I made so many decisions in the past that were not serving me - but in the end, they brought me to where I am now.
Doug likes to tell one of his many great anecdotes and it goes somewhat like this: He once asked a very successful and popular man about the secret behind his success. The man answered: All comes from good judgment. Then Doug asked, how do we gain the ability of good judgment? Experience, is the answer. And how do we get experienced? Poor judgment!
Failing is part of life, and part of success, if you handle it the right way. It is a vital source of experience and so it can be very valuable for making decisions in the future - hopefully decisions, that serve you much better.

Don't stress yourself with thinking too far into the future ('Oh my god! I can never have candy/pizza/french fries (whatever) ever again!'), but stay in the moment and ask yourself, if you are willing to experience the uncomfortable consequences resulting from your choices in the now. Change your focus from a deprivation point to an ABUNDANCE point of view - because that's what this lifestyle is ultimately about for me anyway: abundance. I love to eat. And I love to eat A LOT.

Much happiness! Enjoy!
Jasmin

thriving on the species-specific diet

Still loving the low fat, high vibe fruits and greens diet and lifestyle. At the moment I am enjoying lots of watermelons, grapes, strawberries, cantaloupes, lots of different tender leafy greens, papayas, tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, galia melons, honeydew melons, bananas, dates... I think I have never loved my food as much as I do now ever before in my life. I eat cocktail tomatoes wrapped in butterhead lettuce and go almost crazy about the amazing flavour. Every meal is a surprise and the flavours seem to get more intense and varied. It's amazing! Taste buds are renewed every 7-10 days. Mine are becoming more and more sensitive and I just love it. My sense of smell is improving even more, so that I can inhale and enjoy all the wonderful smells of all kinds of blooming trees and flowers. May is the most beautiful month of the year, indeed. Not only because I am born in May. :) The weather is just perfect. The fruit is great.

Some time ago I posted about the blood type diet. Here is what my hero, Doug Graham, has to say to this:



And the answer is... species-specific diet! Of course! ;)
Looking forward to July to meet him again at the fabulous Fresh Food Festival in Denmark. I am so glad that Petr is organizing this event. My dad will come with me this year. :) I am so proud of my parents, they are moving more and more towards low fat raw vegan. I prepared a fruity lunch last Sunday and it turned out beautiful. Will post pics soon. It looked so gorgeous!

The Vegan Summer Festivals of the Vegan Society Austria are a blast! I met a fellow 811er in Linz last week! That was so amazing!

I'm more grateful than ever. ♥
Do you feel the flow? ♥

hakuna matata

A quick update: Everything is fine, I really enjoy my food, I am deeply grateful for being alive and living a non-violent and abundant lifestyle! I feel like everything is flowing more these days and I need good rest and more sunshine to get more balanced, but overall I feel really good. My skin has improved so much which is a great motivation to stay raw! And the Summer is coming soon, so I'm super psyched for all the yummylicious fruit!

My breakfast today:

Really good video about the importance of a plant-based live food diet:




The Fruitarian Diet. Theoretically, and in practice, a diet composed of high quality, ripe, raw fruits provides the human body with all the nutrients it needs with the very least expenditure of digestive effort, at the same time producing no toxic by-products and so allowing the body to detoxify itself and perform at its peak. Raw fruits are more palatable and provide more energy for a given amount than vegetables and can be prepared with less effort and less waste. Not only can the highest level of health be attained on a fruitarian diet but, because it places so much less wear and tear on the body's vital organs, degeneration is slowed down and the lifespan extended.

From: Health and Survival in the 21st Century by Ross Horne

... and: Don't worry, be happy! Hakuna Matata! NO WORRIES!

feeling high ♥ on beautiful fresh food

I am SO HIGH on RAW foods today, crew! I feel fantastic right now. Wow. I am just sitting in front of my PC laughing sillily because I am so happy. :D

Today:

Got up at 5am and went to work. I work in the fruit and veg section of a big super market, so after work I purchased my lunch. :) Got home at noon and then...

- breakfast/lunch: grapes - loads, some fresh dates (= NOT dried, so yummy!), a big head of green lettuce
- snack: grapes and greens (another big head of lettuce and mini cucumbers)
- dinner: strawberries, papaya, tomatoes, greens (lettuce, arugula, sprouts, basil)

OMG. This was probably the BEST dinner I have EVER had. =) I need to take pics of my food again, it's so pretty and tasty that I wanna share it with you! Unfortunately, the batteries of my camera are low, I will post some pics tomorrow! ;)
So, this is what I had: First, some strawberries. Then I blended some strawberries in my tiny blender just to see, if they taste any different that way, the blended strawberries turned out really yummy, too (surprise!). Then I had some RIPE JUICY SWEET papaya (I saw it in the shop and it smelled so good, so I had to take it with me). I poured some of the strawberry 'sauce' into my papaya 'boat' - this was divine. Just to make it more fun, I combined some strawberries and some papaya in the blender and gave it a twist: great combo! I still had my undressed greens sitting in my bowl waiting for being devoured. I threw some tomatoes into the blender along with the strawberry-papaya combo: great soup! Then I added basil. Even better! And last, but not least, I added a handful of arugula and pulsed. This is the most amazing savoury low fat raw vegan dressing/sauce I have ever had, I think.
I am so glad I experimented a bit! I highly recommend experimenting with fruits and veggies in the kitchen (or on the study desk, as in my case). I coated my lettuce strips and sprouts with my sauce and enjoyed this BEAUTIFUL dish with my chopsticks. I felt like in heaven. Ha! Why cooking - when I can create something as mindblowingly delicious as this really simple low fat raw vegan dish? ;)

Happy Vibes to ya all,
Jasmin
♥


BTW: Here is a video by the amazing Chris Kendall showing some of his low fat raw gourmet creations:

rawvelations

I made a decision today. I hid my pot on top of my cupboard where I cannot reach it easily, hehe. I am not going to eat cooked vegan meals anytime soon again. I am going all raw NOW. This is why:

I have been eating cooked vegan meals (no salt, no oil) every day since last Sunday (5 days) and I do not feel my normal happy self. I feel heavy, down and sluggish. Although I cannot surely say that it is solely because of the cooked food, I am sure it is a major factor. I have experienced swell and some weight gain (I do not own any scale, but I can tell by how my clothes fit and how I look). I experience more thirst than usual. My digestion is OK, but I know it can be better. I do not feel like exercising after eating something cooked - especially, since I ALWAYS over-eat (= eat more than is comfortable) on cooked foods, it does not matter, if they are salt- and oil-free, if I am honest. I thought I could happily include cooked vegetable dishes in my diet and stay high raw vegan and low fat, but at least right now, this does not seem to be the case.

I feel more determined than ever to stick to 100% raw now. So, that is the positive side of this! I feel so sorry for myself that I do not go outside and enjoy the good weather or do some exercise, when I am actually such a big fan of sports and working out. It pains me deeply to see myself gaining weight and hiding behind closed curtains since I feel so disgusting because of over-eating! So, with ending my cooked food binges, I need to find a good alternative way to cope with my emotional void. Any ideas or suggestions? I have a lot of ideas, actually, but still I have gone back to old behavioural patterns again and again. So, how do I make the change once and for all?

Another interesting thing: the blood type diet! I saw a discussion  about it and got curious. I have always thought that the blood type diet was bogus, but maybe there is something to it. I clearly do better on temperate fruits and interestingly that is what is suggested for people who have blood type AB. ;) Alas, it is somewhat true in my case that orange juice can upset my stomach, I have always thought it is due not optimal quality oranges! And I used to drink water with lemon juice every morning some time ago and felt amazing doing that. I stopped this habit because I read somewhere on 30BaD that lemons are not a good thing to put into your body. I also love grapefruits. So, for now I will do a temperate fruits only experiment. (Although some of the melons and other fruits I consider temperate are imported from more tropical countries.)

So, again: mono meals - or rather one type of fruit and greens at a time - and no overt fats AND all raw are my priorities. Starting now - because I am worth it and deserve the best.  ♥ And you do, too! ;)


PS: Here you can see some foods recommended for AB:

• All kinds of Grapes and Plums, Berries (Cranberries, Gooseberries, Loganberries), Cherries
• Pineapples
• Grapefruits, Lemons
• Kiwi
• Tomatoes
• Celery, Green Leafy Vegs, Cucumber, Parsley

 Not recommended:

• Mangoes, Guava, Coconuts, Bananas and other tropical fruits except Papaya (which I love)
• Oranges 

precious fluids and goals ♥

Hello beautiful people :)

The positive message first: I have been eating exclusively sweet, juicy fruits and tender leafy greens for over a week and felt fabulous.♥
Then I decided to donate some of my precious blood plasma - I get some money in return and I figured since they check my blood they can tell me which blood type I have. I had to work on Friday and Saturday (need to get up at 5am in the morning) and in addition to that I had lectures on Friday and Saturday like every other day of the week except Sunday. Saturday afternoon I went to make my donation. The nurses were really nice and explained everything to me very kindly. The doctor and secretary were not very helpful at all. They wouldn't give me my blood results and could not tell me my blood type! (The only thing they told me was that my iron level is perfect and that my blood protein levels are more than fine.)

The donation process itself took only about half an hour (unlike about one hour with most other donors; I think this is partly because I am so short and partly because my blood flows much better than the blood of high fat animal products consuming people!). The machine separated the plasma from the other blood particles right before my eyes. I sent positive messages to my blood and felt very grateful for having such amazing fluids streaming in my temple body! However, a lot of doubts came up during the procedure as well. My blood was piped through plastic tubes, got stripped off the plasma, mixed with a citrate solution and pumped back into my veins. Doesn't sound very healthy, does it? I could actually feel the strange taste in my mouth resulting from the citrate. Not ideal. Do not try this at home. ;)

After the donation I came home hungry for fruity sugars and mineral-rich tender leafy greens to recover properly - only to find that my grapes and lettuce were everything but fresh and enjoyable, I had to compost a good part of my food! I got a headache, drank lots of water (I was sooo thirsty!) and went to bed very early at around 7.30pm. Then I slept (with pee breaks) until 8am the next day. I think my body needed rest! I still felt weak the next day. However, since I have been neglecting my running all week until Sunday, I decided to go for a run. I ran about 5km and then walked home with pain in my chest. Of course, I still had no ripe fruit at home! Bummer! So, I decided to go to one of the very few shops that were open. (Shops are closed on Sundays in Austria.) Did I find good fruit? Well. Maybe the melons would have been alright. Apples from the supermarket do not appeal to me anymore. The rest was under-ripe. I craved greens. The greens available did not look very palatable. I ended up buying lots of veggies and some overt fats! (Avocados and cashews.)

I decided to 'treat' myself  with some nicely prepared vegan food (plain cooked vegetables, no salt, no oils). Honestly, I enjoyed the taste and textures. But I got a belly ache and cramps in my stomach from the cashews. I needed a lot of sleep and water. I did not feel fully rested today and continued this day like yesterday: I started with a little bit of melon (amazing!) and had some slightly under-ripe bananas (they need unusually long to ripen this week!) and then I prepared some vegan food again. I typed it all into my Cronometer and it showed that I have filled up on ALL the vitamins (except B12 and D) and minerals! Over 100% in all the vitamins and minerals, including calcium, zinc and iron! At least something, I hope my body can absorb what it needs. ♥

After these two days of high raw vegan I long for all raw fruity goodness once again and I am ready to create a goal list for the future. So, here goes my goal list:

• always have bananas ripening in my cupboard
• have dates in the room for emergencies (I have never had datorade!)
• move more: go for a long, fast walk or run on a daily basis again
• concentrate on mono meals of juicy, sweet, ripe fruit
• overt-free 
• buy more than I think I need!
• forage wild greens and make green smoothies with them
• buy good organic greens and have about 2lb of greens a day
• mindful eating: eat when hungry, stop when satisfied, do not overeat
• be grateful for what I have ♥ 
• work on my Vision Book every day 
• more sun on my skin and less time online!
• continue going to bed early 
• and last but not least: more water! 

So, here it is, my list of goals, I think it is always helpful and also very important for personal success and evolution to set goals for oneself and reflect and re-adjust after some time. I will let you know, how it goes.
Hope you have a great week! ♥

tracking my progress

Hello beautiful people :)

I've just come back from going fruit shopping once again - it is raining today and the air is super fresh and I enjoy the cool breeze. I carried home four hands of bananas, four kilograms of green grapes, a head of lettuce, 4 bags of mixed greens, a kilogram of tomatoes and two kilograms of kiwis. :) After that I blended some bananas, grapes and a bunch of mixed greens into a beautiful green breakfast. It was so good, I highly recommend it!

These are my new special friends, grapes:

This is the beauty of bananas, grapes and mixed greens combined:

And here is my bowl of goodness topped with greenness:

So, I figured that it would be a great gift to myself to track my progress like my fruity friends Lissa and Michele. I think their blogs are so beautiful and inspiring, thank you, ladies!

I also want to say thanks to Barb, who was so nice to mention my little blog in one of her posts. I feel very honoured - now I feel like I need to work on my blog to make it better! :D

I wish everyone a nice day,
I'm off for class (Walther von der Vogelweide, I'm coming!)
Jasmin

best foods for academic performance?

Well, as a student, the title of this video sounded very interesting, and indeed, what Dr. Doug talks about makes so much sense to me. I love his holistic approach to health. Eating fruits and vegetables provides our bodies with the best fuel and nutrients in order to function properly. Also, our mental clarity is best, when eating these foods. Diets high in fat not only result in all kinds of physiological problems like high blood sugar and candida issues, but also result in brain fog. Garlic is known for its negative impact on the brain, it hinders the proper communication between the left and right brain hemisphere. The brain loves simple sugars. ;)

Enjoy!

ready. set. go!

Hey!

So, I have had another 2 and a half low fat raw vegan weeks, when I was suddenly shocked at the end of the month: I used more than double the amount the money that I had planned to use for food. :o

Needless to say, I got quite sad and frustrated, I checked in the shops what other possibilities there are and found that grain products (whole grain bread and rice) are quite cheap (counting per calorie). Also, potatoes are cheaper than bananas right now. What did I end up doing this week? I experimented. What would happen if I eat cooked carbs vs. raw fruity carbs?

First. Whole grain bread. There is salt in it. Ouch. I don't know, if it was only because of the salt or also because of the gluten, but anyway, I got extremely thirsty, a bit bloated and I felt very itchy and I had very bad sleep on one night. This experiment lasted 2 days.

Second. Potatoes. They work much better for me. Also, I bought some very cheap veggies to eat with them and it tasted really OK (mangoes, melons, bananas etc. taste better though. They are just less stimulating and more expensive per calorie.) Then I had notice something: My pee smelled so bad. Ew. Must be because of the cooked veggies (broccoli, chard, carrot). I like it when my pee does not smell (bad). Also, digestion was not bad, but the elimination process after having a mono fruit day is SO much better. I think I would be OK eating potatoes once in a while, when I do not have ripe fruit at hand. So, this is my second day incorporating cooked potatoes, and I am already ready to end the taters experiment, LOL.

Result. I feel best on fruit and I do not want to let money determine what I eat completely. I considered dumpster diving and just living from the fruits and veggies markets throw away (hello, capitalism!) plus supplementing with cooked rice and potatoes for cheap carbs. But that would mean less (good quality) sleep - I love to go to bed early and dumpster diving is best done late at night. Maybe I will do it once in a while, but not to sustain myself from that.

Future. Bananas are a much better fuel. They are cheap. How hard can it be to manage to have ripe bananas around all the time? Every time I run out of bananas, I run into problems. LOL. Well, considering 100% raw or not. I still refer to myself as a fruit loving vegan - I am not ready to commit to 100% LFRV 100% of the time. The 100% thinking does not do me any good. Usually, if I choose in the moment and have fresh RIPE fruit around, I go for the fruit anyway. :) I sometimes make cooked foods sound better than they are in my head. Plus: I need to be fully honest - I am too lazy and too impatient to cook. I like it simple and instant: mono fruit meals, please.

Also: I HAVE A JOB! Yippie. Finally, I am earning my own money. Hehe. Soooo, I can buy more and better fruit. And I do not have to feel too bad about buying so much fruit. :) Well, my parents were not complaining at all - it is me who wants to feel more... self-dependent. I love my parents and their support. :)

Goal. Being on banana island most days. Eating 2 pounds of greens a day, minimum. I am craving them so badly and I eat them mono. Hehe. Also, to get some Vitamin C and E: oranges and kiwi. Plus, the occasional apples and pears (when they are cheap!).

Well, then, wish me success.

Love,

Jasmin

the minimalist perspective

I really love Leo Babauta's blog and all of his posts, especially the article "addition by subtraction" caught my attention, it really resonates with me.

I want to share the article with you:

mnmlist: addition by subtraction

Oftentimes when we have a perceived need, we look for something to acquire in order to meet that need.

We want to lose weight, we buy weight loss books, workout equipment, diet pills, nutritional supplements, a fitness program. We sign up for the gym or a class or a trainer.

We want to travel, we buy a suitcase, a travel pillow, the perfect carry-on luggage, maybe even special clothes or equipment for traveling.

We want to start meditating, we might get a meditation pillow, or sign up for a class, or buy a book, or get a timer, or get the perfect meditation clothes.

You get the picture — any new endeavor might not only require the new clothes that Thoreau warned us about, but new equipment, books, DVDs, gadgets, software.

But adding these things to our lives brings problems, not just solutions: they’re often added expenses, sometimes adding to our debt or financial problems; they’re more clutter in an already cluttered life; they must be dealt with and tracked and maintained and stored; they each extract a high environmental cost; it takes transportation to acquire the new things; and so on.

And often, these new things bring problems without being the solutions we desired.

Another thing to consider, rather than adding, is subtracting.

If you think you need a new notebook in order to write, maybe the problem isn’t your lack of a notebook, but your desire for a nice new one. Subtract the desire, and you can write without acquiring.

If you want a new iPhone (as I often find myself doing), consider whether this is a true need, or just a desire that can be eliminated. If you want new workout equipment, consider whether you can work out without any equipment.

An empty room (or the outdoors) contains all you need, other than food and water and basic clothing. In an empty room, you can meditate, sleep, pray, think, compose, do a workout, talk with a friend.

What you already have beyond an empty room — books or access to a library, a computer or access to one at a library, pens, maybe some paper, and all the other possessions in your life — are way, way more than you need.

When you subtract the desire, you can subtract possessions, and leave your mind, heart, and life free. Then the possibilities are endless.

sugar rush

ask your doc about meat!

watch this

thank you

How bout getting off of these antibiotics
How bout stopping eating when I'm full up
How bout them transparent dangling carrots
How bout that ever elusive kudo

Thank you India
Thank you terror
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you frailty
Thank you consequence
Thank you thank you silence

How bout me not blaming you for everything
How bout me enjoying the moment for once
How bout how good it feels to finally forgive you
How bout grieving it all one at a time

Thank you India
Thank you terror
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you frailty
Thank you consequence
Thank you thank you silence

The moment I let go of it was
The moment I got more than I could handle
The moment I jumped off of it was
The moment I touched down

How bout no longer being masochistic
How bout remembering your divinity
How bout unabashedly bawling your eyes out
How bout not equating death with stopping

Thank you India
Thank you providence
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you nothingness
Thank you clarity
Thank you thank you silence



I love Alanis Morissette. Her music has touched me since I was a child. Thank you, Alanis, for sharing yourself with the world. ♥

fruit shopping is fun

... and a great workout! This week I bought 20-30kg of oranges, 20-30kg of bananas and 10kg of kiwis. Haha. And some other goodies, like greens, some mangos, grapefruits and papaya. Life is joy- and colourful for sure.



Have a great day!

new york, new york ♥

Visit Woodstock Fruit Festival

There'll be a Woodstock Fruit Festival! :D

I think, I'm going to New York this Summer.

♥

Edit: I decided not to go this year. I wish everyone who's going a lot of fun!

i'm happy and listen to a talk by jacque fresco on education

I've been eating only fruits and some greens for a few days and I can't help feeling happy and content and calm.

How could I forget this great feeling?

I love it.

Wow.

I feel so much love for myself right now. This is such a gift.



The blood oranges I had today were so amazing and I had great energy all day.

Digestion is so good. I think that this is a major factor why I feel so good.

And the running/walking.



OMG.

I'm grateful.



Just needed to say this! Happy day everyone!

Do what makes you feel best. And be honest with yourself.



I'M SO HAPPY.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm watching this video right now and I'm in awe of Jacque's experience and knowledge. He is an amazing human being with important messages. I always enjoy listening to him, afterwards I feel like I've gained something I was missing before.



He who opens a school door,
closes a prison.
~ Victor Hugo

Some interesting thoughts from this video:
- In this video he talks about education. We ask, 'should we educate our own children?', but actually we can't because we have no clue - we need to educate ourselves first. Children want to learn, they long for new knowledge, new experience.
- Environment makes a gangster or a priest. The minute you treat one kid different than the other, you get the differences.

I pay the schoolmaster,
but it is the schoolboys
that educate my son.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

- We lie about almost everything to our kids, and yet we tell them to be honest!
- A predator is strongly interested in the survival of the species, animal or vegetable, which constitutes its prey.

I love the ending with Carl Sagan ('The Blue Dot').
Cheers!

aus dem buddhismus

der buddhismus sieht das ganze universum wie eine unendliche einheit, in ihr wiederholen sich unendlich oft geburt und tod. wir selbst erleben unsere geburt und unseren tod als teil dieser einheit, aber wir können auch jeden tag beobachten, wie ein teil von uns stirbt und ein anderer geboren wird: winzige millionen zellen sterben ab, haare fallen aus, neue zellen werden geboren, ein neues haar sprießt. unser körper altert jeden tag und dennoch erneuert er sich immer weiter, bis wir eines tages die hülle wieder in den kreislauf der erde zurückgeben, unser physisches dasein beenden, um in anderer form wiederzukehren. aber immer sind wir ein teil des ganzen, des universums.

♥

amazing graze...

... how sweet the taste!

read more here: grazing vs meals

the fruitarian = my inspiration

plus more inspiration to embrace a fruity lifestyle: great blog post by beautiful & vibrant raw fruitarian Michele.

and last but not least, someone special shared this vid with me today, and I must say, watching it was defnitely worth my time. it's about how self-abuse comes into existence and how we can get rid of it.

end self-abuse now!



- do not own the shame and guilt of self-abuse
- no child is ever born violent
- deprived of empathy, some children will direct their anger against themselves
- this can happen in form of eating disorders, drug addiction, depression etc.
- or they direct their anger against other (i.e. war etc.)
- who the hell is society to morally criticize me? fuck them!
- when I'm attacking myself, I know it's coming from the outside, projected guilt
- I push back the guilt
- stand up for children
- no one deserves to be abused
- who are you to tell me how to live my life?
- I'm addicted to life :)

exploding nutrition myths - brenda davis

I met Brenda Davis years ago, at the World Vegetarian Congress in Germany. I was high fat raw vegan back then and she was giving great talks on Raw Food and Vitamin D. She looked vibrant, fit and healthy - and really young, too. She told me, that she's high raw, especially in the Summer months, but also enjoys some cooked vegan foods, like veggie stews and legumes in the colder months. She's a great inspiration to me. (She's one of the people, like Jeff Novick, who inspire me to earn a graduate degree in Nutrition and Dietetics and become an RD. Maybe one day, who knows! I'd love to!)

Myth 1: You need meat to get enough protein!



Myth 2: Fish is necessary for omega-3 fatty acids



Myth 3: The lack of B12 in plants is proof that we need to eat meat



Myth 4: You need milk to get enough calcium



Myth 5: Plant enzymes are of no value to human health



Myth 6: Cooked foods are toxic



Myth 7: Soy foods are dangerous for your health



Myth 8: There are no bad foods