(This post steps outside the typical posts I write about health as this film must be shared!)

The Stoning of Soraya M. is an award winning film which tells one woman’s tragic story, yet she is not alone.

If you want to see the film before I spoil it for you in this post, stop here.  I watched it on Netflix.

My heart aches because of the injustice that this woman suffered, and THAT THIS STILL HAPPENS.

We can not point to one religion as the culprit, however, we may point to religious fanaticism.  We find it all parts of the world at different times of history.  Falsely accusing women and stoning them to death has been done in the name of God, Allah, whoever, whatever- any culture can take a religious entity and use it to manipulate our family and friends  in to committing hateful and evil actions.

But the thing that devastates me, is that with our advances in society, this injustice still occurs all the time.

Are we closing our eyes?  Do we not know it is happening?  I don’t know what I am supposed to do sitting here in Phoenix, Arizona that can help save and heal a woman’s life in a remote village in Iran.  But I do know that I can post this on my blog.  Maybe a few people will read it, and maybe those people will pass this information on to other people who will read it, and as it trickles down the line, we can help effect change by raising our levels of awareness?!

So please, if you haven’t watched the movie, watch it. Then share it.  Share this post.  Connect people who can help effect change.

Let me know your thoughts.

Recently someone posted this YouTube video on Facebook.  The short video is a CNN clip of a man in India who feeds those who can not feed themselves.  I watched it, cried, watched it again.  It is a poetic reminder that there are many people in need, and it is our privilege and honor to do for others what they can not do for themselves.

Please watch this video, and let it touch your heart.  ”The food that you give them will give them physical nutrition, the love that you show them will give them mental nutrition.”  Simply amazing.

Like the faint glow of sunrise, hope shines every more brightly…read on…

“Much-Afraid,” said the Shepherd again, “tell me, what is the matter.  Why were you so fearful?”

“It is the way you have chosed for me to go,” she whispered.  ”It looks so dreadful, Shepherd, so impossible. I turn giddy and faint whenever I look at it.  The roes and hinds can go there, but they are not limping, crippled, or cowardly like me.”

“But, Much-Afraid, what did I promise you in the Valley of Humiliation?” asked the Shepherd with a smile.

Much-Afraid looked startled, and the blood rushed into her cheeks and ebbed again, leaving them as white as before.  ”You said she began and broke off and then began again, “O Shepherd, you said you would make my feet like hinds’ feet and set me upon mine High Places.”

“Well,” he answered cheerfully, “The only way to develop hinds’ feet is to go by the paths which the hinds use- like this one.” Much-Afraid trembled and looked at him shamefacedly. “I don’t think- I want- hinds’ feet, if it means I have to on a path like that,” she said, slowly and painfully.

“Oh, yes you do,” he said cheerfully.  ”I know you better than you know yourself, Much-Afraid.  You want it very much indeed, and I promise you these hinds feet…I don’t know anything more delightful than turning weakness into strength, and fear into faith, and that which has been marred into perfection.”

The first time I read this I cried. The second I was still awestruck.  The third time when my breath was still taken away, I knew I had to share with you.  God knows I’ve been fearful, worried, uncertain, anxious…yet walking through those fears has made them vanish.

An excerpt from “The Uncommon Woman: Making the Ordinary Life Extraordinary” by Susie Larson

It is the eve of my 32^nd birthday (to those of you that know me- “26 forever!”), and I sit here in awe of how the last few years of my life have brought me to this place of joy and gratitude that has me weeping as I share this with you.

This time last year I was barely hanging on.  The physical pain was daunting, and my spirit was exhausted.   People wondered what was wrong with me:  I wondered what was wrong with me.  Ten months ago today I found out:  chemical injury.  Thank God for doctors that could find the cause of my chronic illness and help me get well.

Today, I am vibrantly alive and healthy!  My pain is gone, and my spirit is revived.  Today I am more joyful and whole than any other time I can remember.  I had no idea that the loss of everything would result in the gain of internal blessings that cannot be purchased, achieved, stolen, rust, or expire.  I have peace, contentment, joy, hope, and faith.  Those are pretty sweet birthday gifts

So tomorrow, I am going to celebrate all of these blessings with some of my favorite people at my favorite place- the beach  My heart has been forever changed by the love and generosity from my friends, family, medical professionals, and wonderful strangers.  I wish everyone could join me for a toast tomorrow night.  But since that isn’t possible, please know that when the sun sets over the Pacific, I will be thinking of and honoring all of you when I raise my glass.  Cheers

This morning I woke up and have a craving for sushi!  I looked through the pantry and found cool foods to toss together.  It tasted great and totally hit the spot, so I am gonna share it with you

I’m all about easy and convenient in the morning.  All the ingredients were already made, just chillin out, waitin to be used:

Yellow quinoa

Seaweed (Seasnax with olive oil- got mine at Whole Foods)

Avocado

Bragg’s Aminos

I took out a sheet of the seaweed, placed about 1/4 cup to 1/3cup of quinoa on the seaweed, then added the avocado in slices, sprayed some of the Braggs aminos on that, and rolled it all up like a burrito.

I love spice so I dipped my little burritito in Cholula Sauce.  This might wipe out the sugar free part of the recipe but I think it would have just a small amount if any.

I will definitely be making this again soon

It’s time to go to the dry cleaners again.  But not a regular cleaner that uses solvents etc but rather an ORGANIC, NON-TOXIC dry cleaner.  I am going to try Fresh Cleaners in Chandler (Arizona), right next to Whole Foods at Ray and the 101. The last time I had dry cleaning done was at an organic cleaner in San Diego, and the clothes came out beautifully, and odor free.

Why would I want to use an organic, non-toxic dry cleaner?  The reasons are endless.  Dry cleaners are incredibly toxic places.  I was inspired to research exactly what was used in dry cleaning facilities 6 months ago after I tried a class at a yoga studio that was next door to a dry cleaning facility.  About 45 minutes into the class, I was shaking, and falling on the floor.  When I left the building I was dizzy, and by the time  I got home I was so spacey that I could not put sentences together.  Check out this link for some technical information regarding dry cleaning compiled from MSDS sheets.  You will quickly see that it’s really not so good for you or your loved ones to breathe in

And btw, I just found a coupon for 30% off at www.FreshCleanersChandler.com for a purchase of $10 or more!

Recently I had a client tell me she wanted to lose weight.  She also told me that her doctor told her she has Crohn’s.  While I have had a lot of experience in many digestive disorders, I wanted to be sure that I did not recommend anything that might contra-indicate any of the instructions my client may have had from her MD.

I was able to connect with a childhood friend who manages her Crohn’s using a diet called the Specific Carbohydrate Diet.  She told me that she no longer has to take steroids, and feels like she has life back, and she got it by following the SCD.

When I took a look at the diet myself, I was simply amazed to find that the diet is very, very similar to what I’ve found makes me feel the best- no processed foods, grains, or dairy.  It is a diet intended mainly for Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, diverticulitis, cystic fibrosis and chronic diarrhea, yet I was stunned to find out that it children with autism are being treated and helped through this diet as well!

If you suffer from any digestive issues, have a look at the Specific Carb Diet.  It seems to be a pretty simple, back to basics way of eating…where you’d most likely lose weight and feel much, much better

“The Cracked Pot”  (for years my Mom had this hanging on the inside of the spice cabinet door, where I must’ve read it at least 100x!).

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck.  One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master’s house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.  For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master’s house.  Of course, the perfect pot was proud of it’s accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of it’s own perfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do. After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself and I want to apologize to you.”

“Why?” asked the bearer. “What are you ashamed of?”

“I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half of my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master’s house.  Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don’t get full value from your efforts,” the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the master’s house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers along the side of the path, and this cheered it some.  But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so it again apologized to the bearer for it’s failure.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were only flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot’s side?  That’s because I’ve always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it.  I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you’ve watered them.  For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master’s table.  Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house.”

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We’re all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, the Lord will use our flaws to grace His Father’s table. In God’s great economy, nothing goes to waste.

So as we seek ways to minister together, and as God calls you to the tasks he appointed for you, don’t be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and allow Him to take advantage of them, and you, too, can be the cause of beauty in His pathway. Go out boldly, knowing that in our weakness we find His strength, and that “In Him every one of God’s promises is a Yes”

In the last few weeks, people have been telling me “Wow, your skin looks so good!  You look so healthy and are glowing!” I love hearing that!  Especially after spending my youth with rosacea and eczema, and my mid-twenties with acne, and my early 30s with horrible, horrible ezcema.  You’d never be able to tell any of that by looking at me now.

Recently I made a few changes in my skin care.
I increased my dry-skin brushing (to stimulate my lymph!) from 2-3 times a week to 1 or 2 times per day. I recently learned that lymph brushing acts almost as like a vacuum cleaner in our bodies…this lymph brushing causes our lymph to flow more effectively, thereby picking up the toxins and ushering them out of our bodies faster.  One nice side effect is generally smoother and clearer skin!

During my reading online, I came across this cool little video about the chemicals in our every day personal use products.  Check it out!

Thursday I attended a lecture sponsored by the City of Scottsdale‘s Green Build Lecture Series on Indoor Air Quality and Our Health.

Anthony Floyd, the Green Building Manager for the City of Scottsdale, and Dr. Donese Worden were the speakers.  I was very curious how an architect and a doctor would team up and talk about the very subject that has caused millions of people to become chemically sensitive, a subject very dear to my heart as not long ago I was suffering from toxicity due to my previous environmental exposures.

Floyd and Worden were very informative and treated the subject with the utmost importance and relevance to our lives, and the lives of our future generations.

Below are some facts I found interesting and think you will, too.   You need to know, so read on.

The FDA has told the chemical industry they have to regulate themselves, as they just don’t have the staff to do it (ok, really, do we honestly think that the Chemical Industry is going to regulate themselves?!)

62,000 chemicals were grandfathered in when the EPA was created in the 1970s.  That means that those chemicals were never tested, and will never be tested.

There are 42 disease clusters in 13 states.  People are becoming so ill with cancers and autoimmune disorders that the CDC has now started a Biomonitoring project in those areas.

California’s Marin County posts signs (called Integrative Pest Management signs) near parks indicating pesticide/herbicide free play areas (as those elements are neurotoxins and endocrine disruptors…feminizing babies and causing thyroids to slow down!)  Makes me think twice about the parks here in Arizona.

According to Worden, golf courses are one of the most toxic places on earth.  Makes sense to me.

California has a “Cleaner Air” symbol that is posted on buildings where the air is less toxic.  There is a national standard, but Floyd said he does not know of any other states that are following this standard.

Edgar Allen Poe was said to be going crazy.  Well, literally, he was…by “burning the midnight oil”- or writing next to a lamp and inhaling carbon monoxide

There is an international panel trying to come up with resolutions to our environmental problems called the Beneveto Resolution.  I want to know more about this!

Flourescent lighting causes cancer cells to grow in Petri dishes.  Would follow suit that it would do the same in our bodies.   That in addition to flourescent lights causing school children’s ADD/ADHD act up is enough to enough to make me avoid flourescents.

Full Spectrum lighting is the best

LED lighting has been shown to aid in DNA repair

Brain tumors in children has skyrocketed in the last several years…believed to be caused by EMF from cell phones.

Use as little electricity in your sleeping space as possible.  We are electrical systems, and we do not yet know the longterm effects of changing that system with outside electrical influences

You can buy kill switches for electricity (I know very little about this and am probably sounding that way!)

You can buy a device called a Pong for your phone to cut down on your EMF exposure (I am sure there are others, but this is the only name I know)

These interesting little facts (all documented by scientific studies, yet I did not write the studies down!) above have given credibility to the issues we as Americans are dealing with, and provide a warning to us and guidance for the road that we should go down.  Like many other cultures do, we REALLY need to stop and ask ourselves how our choices will affect our children’s children, 7 generations down the line.  So many of the conveniences that our lifestyle offers will make it harder to choose differently, however, maybe with the number of loved ones becoming ill around us we will be more motivated by our compassion and understanding for those we love.

I think that is where I will stop.