HOW DO WE COME CLEAN?

           I just finished reading the book “CLEAN” by Dr. Alejandro Junger.  I found it located in the health section, so I knew getting “clean” was a good thing.  Just below the title reads “The revolutionary program to restore the body’s natural ability to heal itself.”  If we each had the option, I’m pretty confident we’d all want to choose a natural way to heal our bodies.  Within the pages of CLEAN, Dr. Junger lays out a practical new detox plan that can be used as a tool to restore, rebalance and heal.

           

            Written by a cardiologist, I was intrigued to hear how a physician from the west would evangelize a safe and effective prescription that would clean out my entire system and heal by body from the inside out.  At the core of CLEAN, Dr. Junger’s program is supported by the cutting-edge understanding of how our organs, hormones, and enzymes function together.  In a nut-shell he bases the CLEAN program on three important facts:

1. Toxins and stress create obstacles for the normal functioning and self-healing capabilities of our bodies.
2. Modern eating habits and lifestyles pollute our bodies and don’t provide the nutrients necessary for us to function at optimum levels.
3. By removing the obstacles and providing what is lacking, our bodies bounce back into health and our energy is restored.     

Dr. Junger writes, “This modern detox program came to life in the same way that many great discoveries are made, when one person went on a journey to find a solution for his own suffering.  In the case of CLEAN, that person was me.”  CLEAN is broken down into three one-week easy to follow plans.  If I know anything about myself, it’s that I am much more apt to follow a detox that’s not the result of multi-million dollar clinical trials or pharmaceutical company sponsorship.  Everyone seems to tout “natural” these days, but it often ends up to be a play on words.  CLEAN appears to be the real deal.

Becoming a three year cancer survivor isn’t the end of my journey.  My health goals now focus on overcoming the ravages of chemotherapy and radiation treatment.  Reaching mid-life was a celebration, but it has come with a depletion of my energy and less vitality than I know is possible.  Every day I tell myself, “I am living my best life – now!”  But when I listen to my body – it tells me otherwise. 

My journey back to optimum health, free of pharmaceuticals will demand that I embrace a scientifically based wellness plan centered on eating high quality organic food.  Reducing my  stress level and eliminating the many forms of pollution in my life (more on this point in future posts).  Like the majority of people out there, I want a healthy plan that won’t take a lot of time and will give me positive results quickly to assure I stay motivated. 

The overwhelming results documented in the book have given me the motivation to commit to trying the CLEAN three week program. We all deserve to live healthy, happy lives with the time we have left.  I promised myself that once I made it through cancer treatment, I would do everything I could to completely restore my health.  I have come a long way since then, but I’m not quite done yet. 

If your body isn’t feeling like you are living your best life now, I encourage you to read “CLEAN.”  Dr. Junger’s program just might become part of a paradigm shift for you in how you approach food and maintain optimum health at any age.

I’m jumping into CLEAN head first starting today.  Hears to each of us living our best life now!  

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

May you be in heaven a full half hour

before the devil knows your dead.

May you live as long as you want and never want as long as you live.

May your heart be light and happy,

May your smile be big and wide,

And may your pockets always have

a coin or two inside!

Always remember to forget

The troubles that passed away.

But never forget to remember

The blessings that come each day.

Natures Fury



Laguna's Main Beach

 After weeks of incredibly warm February weather, nature reminds me we are still in the midst of winter. Grey pewter skies have blown in across the great expanse of the Pacific Ocean, bringing large waves roaring into Laguna’s Main Beach.

Looking out across a wide stretch of sand there are no beachcombers today. Their absence reveals the beauty and love affair I have with the wildness of the sea. In the emptiness, I see life everywhere as the wind blows and rain steadily begins to fall. I watch sea gulls ride the thermal air gusts, twisting and dodging in flight as they try with all their might to enjoy the ride.



Laguna's windy shores



Off in the distance, smoke curls rising out of chimneys leaving behind the memory of past loves fury warming my soul on cold wet days. But for today, I am left with only the warmth of a good book and the beauty and power of nature before me.

Laguna is a place like no other with a personality and magnet all its own. The mega rich live in large rambling houses that hang over the ocean looking down on a more laid-back earthy crowd. Somehow their differences blend and enrich this community, creating the unique art colony that it is.

I find places have a way of molding us into who we are. If we let them, communities have the power to transfer life into each of us. If we are lucky, we find the hidden gems in the people and the beauty of the landscape and are drawn to give back and contribute. In the end, it’s all about connection to the earth, having the courage to share yourself, respecting the wonder of nature and believing we are where we should be.



Natures Fury





Making This My Best Year

January 1, 2011 began with crystal blue skies full of large cotton ball like clouds that stretch across the ocean reaching to the edge of the horizon line. As I sit high above the ocean in a beach chair wrapped in blankets, the warmth of the sun penetrates my senses as I close my eyes and drift away with the wind. Seagulls dart across the sky soaring just beyond reach and I’m lost in the repeating roll of the pounding surf. Its roar tempers thoughts of my dreams for this New Year.

Natures wonder is truly our gift from God. The importance of making time to nourish our souls in nature provides clarity, direction and solitude from a life of never ending challenges. Its power simplifies, reminding me to dream big dreams without the need to have all the answers. I feel the universe expand and contract with each breath and believe the Source of all life is here in this moment. The fact that there is very little spiritual truth in our contemporary culture continues to force me to look inward. It is there I find my untapped energy.

I am eager to move forward with expanding awareness, focused on an inner purpose that directs me toward life’s next cycle. Birth brings expansion, growth brings wisdom and I see the inherent connection of letting go of my ego to become more conscious of my inner spirit opening me to a better world. Nature reminds me stress or stuggle are a sign that the ego has taken over my thinking. Negative reactions surface when I encounter obstacles and separate myself from spirit.

On this first day of 2011, I make a conscious effort to align my outer purpose, what I do… with my inner purpose and mental awakening. How I do what I do, will determine whether I am fulfilling my destiny and more importantly what I am able to give to the world. I make a personal commitment today to do things differently. Stupidity is relatively harmless, but intelligent stupidity is highly dangerous. I have only one chance to live my best life and the only way I can think to do this, is to ensure I am on purpose every day.   I will strive to tap into every ounce of my creativity in ways that will expand my thinking. I will give encouragement to those who are sick or feel lost, give my love in abundance, demonstrate the power of my faith to those in need. We each have a choice in how we allow our lives to play out and touch others.  Today, I believe this will be my best year yet.

Happy New Year!

A Tribute to My Mothers Love

My mother died Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1990 at the age of 57. By the time the ambulance reached San Pedro Hospital, she had already fallen into a deep coma. Once she reached the E.R., a series of brain scans revealed the trauma of a massive stroke left little hope she would regain consciousness. Over the coming week, Stefani’s team of doctors continued to run tests while they began to prepare our family for her death. What those doctors had not anticipated, was my mother's ability to wage a tireless fight. For fourteen days, she fought to stay alive hanging on in a deep coma long enough for each member of our family to say goodbye.

Throughout those days, I never stopped believing she could overcome death and live to tell the story. However, this time prayer wouldn’t be good enough to save my mother from an early death; God had other plans for her. I regret never having the opportunity to hear her voice again or not being able to have one more conversation to thank her for all she had contributed to my life. Unlike so many other people who lose a parent, I was one of the lucky ones given time to say goodbye.

Following two gut-renching weeks of holding on to hope my mother chose to walk into the white light, leaving my sister and I to go home to grieve. We both knew then, that our endless prayers to God didn't have the power to change the outcome. Our mother had made the decision to let go on her own to be with God. She faded away, believing it was her time and now we were left to honor her decision.

That first evening alone without her, I remember lying on the bed in her guest room looking out the window at a full moon and a string of Christmas lights dotting the hillside above her home. I wondered then how people could possibly celebrate Christmas, now that my mother had left the planet. How would my sister and I ever be able to celebrate Christmas, New Years Eve, Easter, Mother’s Day, birthdays and another Thanksgiving for the rest of our lives without her leading the festivities? How would I find the strength to overcome my dark depression and muster the courage to let go of her love and begin to rebuild my life in positive, healthy ways? How could I be sure I would not forget her voice, her smile, her laugh, her warm caring touch, her strength, her wisdom, her courage to always follow the right path and most importantly, her endless uncompromising love for my sister Valerie and I? She had never tired in wanting the best for me or my sister and took every opportunity to encourage us both to be wise, capable and strong women.

My greatest fear was that time would have the power to erase my mother’s memory. That night was twenty years ago this week and there hasn’t been a day in between I haven’t thought of Stefani and all the love she brought into my life. She was an incredible human being who always chose the high road in her relationships giving away her love freely. After twenty years, I can happily say that her love has not faded from my memory because she lives on in my heart.

So this year I will celebrate Thanksgiving by giving thanks for the gift of my mother’s love. For it is through her, I learned my values, the meaning of love and the bond of family. Time has erased the pain of her loss, but has proven powerless against erasing her memory.