Judge Not!

This is a post I’ve been needing to write for quite a while.  I don’t know why it seems so hard to make a post now that I’m out of the ‘habit’ of a daily post.  Honestly…. I liked it better when I was disciplined to do it daily!

Because of several recent events that have happened, I’ve had a real awakening about judging people.  I’ve always thought I was a pretty open and accepting person, but I guess when you have some things slap you in the face, you become aware of just how judgmental you really are.

Last week we spent several days in Vegas.  Let me just preface this by saying I have never liked Vegas.  It’s not my kind of thing.  I don’t like the smoke, I’m not into gambling and I just don’t care for the all and all feeling of the atmosphere there.  With that said… we went to Vegas for my husband to play in a softball tournament.  At the time we booked the hotel we stayed in, we were not sure what softball diamonds they would be playing on so we got something sort of central to a couple of different softball parks.  Knowing what I know now, I would have booked a hotel very differently than I did.

The tournament ended up being in Henderson and I would have much preferred to stay there!  But alas…. we took the advice of the softball tournament people and stayed in one of the hotels they recommended.   Big mistake…. but it was very cheap.  Much cheaper than we could have got on our Choice Hotels card.  But then again….  we kind of got what we paid for.

Actually, the rooms themselves weren’t terrible.  The bed was too firm for me but that’s not that uncommon in a hotel room.  The rooms seems fairly clean, but we were suppose to be in non-smoking room and you could tell the room had had smokers in it.  So…. it wasn’t really the room itself that made me, shall we say….. nervous?  It was what I perceived to be going on around me in the hotel area.

When we first arrived at Arizona Charlies on Boulder Hwy…. we went to find a parking place without having to park in the parking garage for the Casino.  Since the hotel rooms are separate from the Casino, we drove around that end of the building and ended up in the back of the hotel room area.  Now, I realize…. I wasn’t in Utah anymore….. but before we got to the back of the building, we saw a few young ladies in the vicinity that I may have wrongly tagged as hookers….  but what we saw next made me feel very uneasy and think that perhaps my ‘tagging’ may not have been wrong.

As we approached the end of the driveway in the back of the hotel…. (which meant there was no other way out other than turning around and going back) ….  we passed a group of men…. (or should I say boys?)…. standing outside a hotel room area.  OK… here comes my third point of judging right off the bat….  I just kind of felt like they were there passing the ‘girls’ around…. if you know what I mean.  I haven’t got proof… nor did I want proof….. it’s just what I perceived.  Now a lot of that perception came from me judging what they were wearing and the color of their skin…. which is not fair….  but it’s just what it felt and I didn’t like the idea that that sort of thing may be going on in the hotel we were about to check into.   And…. of course…. when we check into the hotel, where does our room end up?  Yep…. pretty much about 2 doors down from where they were.  What are the chances of that, considering it was a fairly large hotel with lots of rooms?  No…. I was not a happy camper!  Luckily, they had all gone not too long after we had checked in.

Again…… I know I was passing undo judgment without knowing all the facts.  I guess I didn’t expect to see that kind of thing happening outside of the Las Vegas strip.  Probably a pretty naive assumption on my part……  I know that those things go on in Vegas all the time….. but I’ve never had to deal with it right under my nose before.

As we were coming back from finding the ballpark so we’d know where to go the next morning…. we were stopped at a light when a group of people crossed the street.  Again…. my judgement falls in!  Based on what they were wearing and how they carried themselves…. I was passing judgement on the kinds of life they lead.  One man in particular that was covered in tattoos and pushing a stroller made me concerned for the child in the stroller.  All I could think of is, “What kind of life is that child going to lead?”  Most of us are a product of our environment, and I became concerned about the environment that child was in.  Before you going bashing on me….. I realize that tattoos do not make a bad person!  Again….. it was just my first impression, which probably came because of a conversation I had had with my niece several days earlier.  She fears for her little grandson because of the environment he is being raised in.  I think that was fresh on my mind when I saw this man with the tattoos.

The next day, at the ballpark, as I was comparing stories with some of the wives of the ball players, I was told that one of them had gone to McDonald’s for breakfast that morning and were ‘hit up’ by beggars.  Hence, when we ended up at McDonald’s a day or so later because that was one of the few places I could get free wi-fi, I was very aware of what was going on around me.

The first thing I looked for when we walked in McDonalds was if anyone else was using their wii-fi.  One older man in the corner seemed to be very consumed with what ever he was doing on his computer and seemed oblivious to what was going on around him. However, another young man sitting a few tables away from him made me nervous.  If you’ve ever used wi-fi in public places like that, you know that you aren’t always protected from someone else stealing your information.  This young man, while using his computer, seemed to be scoping out the place and was using his cell phone a lot while on his computer.  I became a  little suspicious and therefore closed a few of my pages I had open before I connected to the wi-fi.  I felt he had his eye on me.  Again…. I was passing judgement, but I wanted to take precaution.  Then… as we were leaving McDonalds and had just gotten into our car, we were approached by a young girl trying to give us some story about how she was just trying to get her sisters some food and she only had $3 to her name.  Now…..she wasn’t dressed shabbily, which was my first suspicion…. but it was her poorly delivered ‘canned’ speech that made me pretty much know she was lying to us.  However, we gave her a couple of dollars anyway and then drove away.

So far, I’ve told you some examples of things I passed judgement on that probably many other people may have felt the same way about.  It doesn’t make it right….. but it’s a fact of what happened to me!  However…. because of those things I had mentioned…. I think I was allowing myself to be a little coldhearted about other real possibilities going on around me that deserved some understanding.  The second morning of the tournament, we decided to try and find some breakfast a little closer to the ballpark area.  Since the ballpark was in Henderson and the surrounding area seemed very nice and clean, we figured we wouldn’t see the beggars around that we were seeing down on Boulder Hwy.  We finally stopped at a Subway close to the park to have one of their breakfast sandwiches.  When we walked in the store, there was a very shabbily dressed man with a long beard, sitting in the corner with only a cup of water in his hand.  My first thought was…. “Oh, great!  Here we go again!”

I ordered my sandwich and then my husband went to order something different from me and the girl behind the counter said, “Are you sure?  It’s two for one on the sandwiches before 9am.”  So my husband decided to just order the same thing as I did.  Now….. if I had been on my toes and realized that the man sitting in the corner was not coming up to us an asking for anything…. he was just sitting there with some water and trying to keep warm (it’s a little brisk in the desert in the mornings…)  I would have totally changed my attitude and taken that ‘free’ sandwich we got, ordered my husband something else and given the man the other sandwich.  But no….. I was still in the mode of this man being a beggar and being tired of what I had been seeing.

I realized that morning that I’m not as Christ like as I hope to think I am.  I felt very guilty after we drove away.  We did get our order to go, so it’s not like we sat there and felt guilty eating in front to him….. but I sure felt guilty after we left and I realized that I could have taken the opportunity to feed someone in need.  I told my husband I don’t think I passed Christ’s test very well that morning.  ”As ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me”  Matthew 25:40

I still feel guilty about that even now.  How could I give $2 to a girl that I was pretty sure was lying to me and yet ignore this man who was most likely legitimately in need?   It did help to bring an awareness to me about how judgmental I really had been during this trip.  It’s not something I’m very proud of.

I’m grateful for the awakening the trip to Vegas gave me., but I realized when I got home, that I wasn’t doing much better with the things around me here.  I’ve been very judgmental of the guy my daughter is dating.  They’ve been through some really rough times this last year or so and it hasn’t left me with a very good impression of him.  At least his record hasn’t been improving much and because of that….  I haven’t been his biggest fan.  Only because I’m worried about my daughters happiness.  I realized that I was passing undo judgement on him as well.  Everyone deserves a chance to improve their life and become a better person.  Don’t get me wrong…. he’s a good guy in a lot of ways…. he was just raised very differently than my daughter was and therefore his value system is very different.  It’s only what he knows.

This whole thing has made me very aware of the fact that I’m very guilty of passing judgement on many things and many people.  It’s something I’d like to not do any more.  I don’t think it will necessarily be an easy thing to do…. but at least by being aware that it’s something I need to improve on, I can hopefully catch myself doing it and make myself STOP!  In fact, it was re-listening to a talk given by Dieter F. Uchtdorf at LDS General Conference this last April Conference titled, “The Merciful Obtain Mercy” that actually brought me to tears and made me realize how bad I’d been.

In his talk he said:

“This topic of judging others could actually be taught in a two-word sermon. When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges, or wanting to cause harm, please apply the following:

Stop it!

It’s that simple. We simply have to stop judging others and replace judgmental thoughts and feelings with a heart full of love for God and His children. God is our Father. We are His children. We are all brothers and sisters. I don’t know exactly how to articulate this point of not judging others with sufficient eloquence, passion, and persuasion to make it stick. I can quote scripture, I can try to expound doctrine, and I will even quote a bumper sticker I recently saw. It was attached to the back of a car whose driver appeared to be a little rough around the edges, but the words on the sticker taught an insightful lesson. It read, “Don’t judge me because I sin differently than you.”

We must recognize that we are all imperfect—that we are beggars before God. Haven’t we all, at one time or another, meekly approached the mercy seat and pleaded for grace? Haven’t we wished with all the energy of our souls for mercy—to be forgiven for the mistakes we have made and the sins we have committed?

Because we all depend on the mercy of God, how can we deny to others any measure of the grace we so desperately desire for ourselves? My beloved brothers and sisters, should we not forgive as we wish to be forgiven?”

Wow….. pretty powerful words!  And they did humble me as I listened that second time.  In fact, how easy would it be to change out some of those words on the bumper sticker?  ”Don’t judge me because I have tattoos”  or  ”Don’t judge me because I appear to be poor”.  There are many things we could put in that phrase.

I know I have a long way to go, but I am so grateful for the experiences that I have had lately that have made me realize how much I need to work on this area of my life!  Don’t you find yourself judging someone for something as simple as they way their outfit looks…. or we may pass judgement on someone for their behavior.  Perhaps it’s not the way they always act…. but how are we to know that with one meeting?  I know I’ve behaved badly in a store before when I’ve been upset by something the clerk has or has not done…..  I’m sure when I walked away from that situation, the person I was dealing with thought, “What a witch!”  It’s not something that happens all the time, in fact, I think it’s been on rare occasions that I have allowed myself to ‘react’ that way to a situation in public.  And yet…. for people who don’t know me….. what do you expect them to think of me?  That is how we are with others…..

It’s not an easy thing to do….. not being judgmental…  but it’s something I do want to work on it.  After all….. isn’t that what we are really in this life for?  To learn to become more like Christ?  It’s a life long task….. but who better than to try and emulate our lives after?  No one that I can think of.

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Here is President Uchtdorf’s talk in full.

If you’d rather READ it…. click here.

 

Here is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing one of my very favorite Primary (Children’s) songs, ”I’m Trying To Be Like Jesus”.  What a beautiful message!

Here are the lyrics:

I’m trying to be like Jesus;
I’m following in his ways.
I’m trying to love as he did, in all that I do and say.
At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice,
But I try to listen as the still small voice whispers,

“Love one another as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought,
For these are the things Jesus taught.”

I’m trying to love my neighbor;
I’m learning to serve my friends.
I watch for the day of gladness when Jesus will come again.
I try to remember the lessons he taught.
Then the Holy Spirit enters into my thoughts, saying:

“Love one another as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought,
For these are the things Jesus taught.”

Respecting All of Gods Creatures–Including Ourselves!

I don’t normally do this…. but the following is the content of a newsletter I got today from Access Abundance by Teresa Romain.  It hit me pretty profoundly and I wanted to share it with you.  I hope you enjoy it!

I’m in MN right now for meeting and workshops – which have kept me busy (in terms of preparation) all day today.

 

That’s why this letter is going to be one of the shortest I’ve written… at least one of the fastest.   It’s not even going to be a formal newsletter in the traditional sense.

 

Rather, this week I simply want to share an experience I had this week… and from it ask you a question or two for you to reflect upon.   And I’m going to jump right in…

 

It happened Monday.  All weekend I had been out of sorts – I was still getting over a cold and feeling unusually fatigued.    Monday I woke up feeling better physically – but emotionally I felt completely overwhelmed, discouraged, angry at myself and all sorts of things that were getting bottled up inside of me.

 

And I knew I had to express them and get them out.  I pulled out my journal.. but quickly realized this was a day I needed to go on one of my “talk with God walks”.  That means I go for a long walk down our back road talking, ranting, questioning, praying, venting, crying or whatever else feels right to God.  And yes – I do it OUT LOUD! 

 

And I was really struggling through some things on this walk… lots of questions, not many answers and really feeling down about things and upset with myself (and even, I think, God.)  Quite frankly, I was really being hard on myself – and expecting God to be as well.  (Thank God He/She isn’t!)

 

That’s when – through the tears of my venting – I saw them.  Two of my beloved sandhill cranes in the field next to the road – standing quite close to me.   It’s a testament to their calm and tranquility that I didn’t scare them off with all my ranting and crying. 

 

And I just stared at them – awestruck and filled with wonder.  I can’t explain it – but I love cranes.   I watched this pair do some of their funky “dances” and watched them walk placidly through the field.  I heard them “talking” to each other – sometimes in “bird whispers”.  

 

And in that moment… all that had been weighing on me was gone as I was fully present to and transfixed by these beautiful birds.

 

And then I started talking to God again… and the  question that came out of my mouth was profound and healing and challenging (at least for me).

 

Here’s the gist of it….

 

What would happen if I responded to MYSELF the same way I respond to the cranes and so much of the beauty in nature? What if I looked at myself with the same reverence and wonder, curiosity and fascination with which I have been watching these cranes?  

 

The cranes aren’t DOING anything.  They don’t set goals to achieve nor do they feel like failures if they don’t achieve them.  They don’t judge themselves or compare themselves.  They just BE… walking in fields, standing tall, flying overhead, sitting on a nest… and I am absolutely fascinated by them, love them, value them and see their beauty and worth. I do that with so much of creation… in fact, pretty much all of it – except for ME!

 

What if I began seeing myself the same way?  What if I saw and appreciated my beauty for simply BEING me? 

 

And then I started crying again (a healing cry this time) because I realized that the way I look at and watch and love cranes – the way they fascinate me – is a small taste of how God – The Divine who created me – sees and feels about me. 

 

In that moment, as I let that in… I felt my mind and body relax and my heart open again.  And the “stresses” that had been overwhelming me began to melt away.   And life felt abundant and blessed again… I felt abundant and blessed again.   

 

Instead of “not enoughing” myself, through my beloved cranes – I began to see myself with new eyes.   And that hasn’t worn off… and when I find myself starting to get down on myself, not enough or judge myself, I remember what I felt as I was watching those cranes last Monday.  Completely transfixed, awed, amazed and appreciative.  And that gives me ACCESS to being able to look at myself – no matter what’s going on – with that same love and respect. 

 

I know I will have to continue practicing this … but it was a gift for me this past week.  I’m hoping that me sharing it with you will be a gift for you as well… that you might be able to see yourself with new eyes as well.  That you might be able to see the inherent beauty in who you BE as well… that you might be able to love and appreciate and fascinate and amaze yourself.

• Teresa Romain is the President & Founder of www.AccessAbundance.com and has trained and coached thousands of individuals around the world access and experience greater freedom, fulfillment, well-being and abundance in their businesses and their lives.  Unique in her approach and dynamic and passionate in her style, Teresa is known for making the transformational process of accessing abundance challenging, fun and powerful in its results.

I read something recently that said something along the lines of:  If we spoke to others the way we speak to ourselves (meaning being as critical as we are about ourselves), we wouldn’t have many friends!  Isn’t that the truth?  We’ve all heard how we are our own worst critic…. and it’s so true!

This article was a good eye opener for me.  How much different would our lives be if we treated ourselves with the respect wonder and awe that we do so many of God’s creatures!  We are one of them!

I’m grateful to Teresa for writing this article and for allowing me to share it here with you.  I felt it went so well with a recent post I made too.  I hope you’ve gained some insights from it too!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Am I Enough?

The past few weeks I have been reminded by several articles and shows about the importance of what we think and feel about ourselves.  One of the most profound thoughts that was brought to me through these media methods was that we are literal children of God, a part of Him, and that by putting ourselves down, we are not showing respect to Him.

I caught PBS a few weeks ago as they were doing their fundraising.  They were showing clips from Wayne Dyer’s new video based on his book “Wishes Fullfilled”.  He made some pretty powerful statements in that show.  Between that show and a blog post from Denise Webster’s blog “All About Becoming” titled, “I AM”… it brought together many of the things I’d been reading and hearing.  Here is part of Denise’s post that brings those thoughts together so beautifully:

First, Dallin H. Oaks was speaking on what it means as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ to testify of His NAME.   He talked about Moses at the burning bush.  Moses asked the Lord, “who should I tell them sent me?”  A Jewish Rabbi gave Elder Oaks some insight into this particular scripture (the Name of Christ – I AM.)  He told Elder Oaks that anciently, the name  of a person was the essence or nature of a person, not the “label” like it is today.  Moses was saying, “what are you made up of?”  What is your nature?  It was simply “The nature of God” that he was trying to find out about.  The word essence comes from the French (or Greek ?)  derivative of “essen” which means essential.  The Lord answered him by saying, “I AM.”  This Rabbi explained that anciently when they changed their “essence,” they changed their name—Abram/Abraham, Sariah/Sarah, Jacob/Israel.  If you are a witness of the name of Christ, in that sense, you are a witness of the NATURE of Christ.  When you see me, you will know me because you will become like I am.  His atonement sets us toward Him and exaltation.

I thought this interesting because I always thought Moses was wondering if it really was the Lord, but with this definition, I learned that is was quite more than that.  I also learned that when one changes their nature or disposition (the essence of who they are), then their name was changed, too.  Had me thinking about new names for those whose lives become more pure and why they changed them.  Saul became Paul after a mighty change.  Is that so good things would be associated with his new name?  When a woman marries, she takes on her husband’s last name (at least in America) and that con-notates  a change.  Interesting to think about what you have done with your current name.

As I came home that night, my good husband said he had recorded a show on PBS for me.  (Video below)  It was Wayne Dyer.  And at some point in the show, he started talking about Moses being at the burning bush and asking the Lord, “who shall I say sent me?”  The Lord answered, “My name is I AM that I AM.”

“Now every single time that you use the words, ‘I AM,’ you are citing the name of God right from the holiest books.   And every time you say the words, ‘I am weak.  I am poor.  I am  unlucky.  I am unhappy.  I am sick.  I am unable to attract into my life what you want; you are desecrating the name of God.  God did not say, ‘I will be.  My name is ‘I hope things will work out well.’  My name is ‘maybe things will show up as I wanted, but possibly not. ‘  He said, ‘I AM that I AM.’  You must be conscious of how you use these words, ‘I am.’   I am strong.  I am well.   I am content.  Even if your senses tell you something different.  I AM……You’ll see that putting the words ‘I Am’ in front of something into your mind and imagination is a very powerful way to attract into your life recognizing your own divinity.   I am God  is not blaspheme.  It is your identity.”

This brought me to tears.  Here I had first heard an Apostle of the Lord testifying of the name of Jesus Christ– The Great I AM.  Then I heard this and understood for the first time, that my own thoughts and words of self-deprecation were not just tearing down me, but were tearing down My Lord, My Savior, My Brother that I love so dearly.  How could I have done this?  How could I continually tear myself down and Him, too?  I was heart broken.  I would not hurt My Lord, but I would hurt myself.  I had never made the connection that if I was hurt, He was, too.  I vowed to watch my thoughts and language from here on out.  I found some renewed hope.

That was worded so well by Denise I had to share it with you!  What profound ideas!  What ‘names’ do we call ourselves because we think we aren’t good enough?  It’s so important to maintain an attitude of love for ourselves.  Have you ever wondered about the scripture where the Lord admonishes us to ‘love thy neighbor as thyself’?  I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel I have no problem loving other people, but when it comes to loving myself……. well…. that can be a different story!  I often allow myself to put the negative things behind those “I am” statements…. don’t you?

I found it interesting that during this time of getting all this knowledge coming at me there was an article in the Meridian Magazine by Vicki Pahnke Taylor titled “A Few Things I Like About Me”.  She started off the article talking about how hard it was for her to come up with these few things she liked about herself.  It’s interesting how we have such a hard time taking note of our good qualities.  I wrote post about that sort of thing a while back.  We aren’t very good about ‘tooting our own horn’.  You can read that post here.  I think the big problem lies in the fact that we are of the mindset that it’s not proper to ‘brag’ about ourselves and that we appear to be conceited when we do.  I think there’s a fine line between conceit and confidence and far too many of us are not even close to the confidence part!

If we can remember and even start to believe that we are literal children of God and that by so being we are a part of Him….. perhaps we can begin to realize our divine potential.  In the Wayne Dyer program, he talks about how we are not our body….. our body is ever changing…. but we are what’s inside of us.  Our spirits.  Echart Tolle and many others also speak of this same thing.  It’s learning to connect with that inner person that we really are that makes us become more aware of our Godly potential.

I am so grateful for these many people that remind me of who I really am and of how profound and powerful words are!  I AM enough!  Part of making this all work in your life is becoming aware!   Well, now…. that’s another topic for another post for another day!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

As a side note….. here’s an article from Meditations for Women that goes so well with all of the above!

Where Do You Get Your Validation

“Completion comes from within.”

Most women have the bad habit of looking to relationships outside themselves for validation. We believe that the love others give us is more important than the love we give to ourselves.

This puts a tremendous burden on those around us. If you really think about it, we cannot honestly expect someone to fulfill this demand. When we do, we are doomed to disappointment.

Instead, recognize that eternal happiness and a true sense of value can only come from within. The bottom line is that there is nothing anybody can say or do to assure you of your value if you aren’t sure of it yourself.

Start taking time to appreciate yourself, what you have achieved and how far you can go. Rely on the power that shines from within. It will never let you down!

 

Here is Wayne Dyers video…… long but full of profound information.

 

 

And of course….. one of my very favorites!  Jessica’s Affirmations!

 

Another New Veggie — Baby Bok Choy!

I think I’ve mentioned before about how my husband likes to buy Bountiful Baskets quite often.  And, usually there are some vegetables in there I’ve never tried and often never heard of.

The last couple of basket’s he’s brought home have had Baby Bok Choy in them.  No…. I’m not a connoisseur of Bok Choy…. so I was at a loss as to what to do with it.  After finally looking up some recipes online…. I decided to give it a whirl.  I ended up combining a couple of recipes I found plus threw in a couple of my own things and I have to say….. it turned out very well!  I would actually make it again!

So…. to make sure that I don’t forget what I did…. I’m going to share with you my own version of Stir Fry Baby Bok Choy.  Unfortunately…. I didn’t think about taking a photo till it was too late…. so I’ll post something similar looking, though it won’t be the exact picture of mine?

Stir Fry Baby Bok Choy with Cashews. While this is not a picture of my recipe... it's very similar in look. This one if from a website called Simply Recipes.

Stir Fry Baby Bok Choy with Cashews

2 Tb. olive oil

1 small bunch green onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb Baby Bok Choy, cleaned, cut in half lengthwise with larger leaves pulled off

1 tsp Sesame Seeds

Salt to taste

2 tsp Tamari

2 Tb Chicken broth

Pinch or 2 of Chinese 5 Spice

1/2 cup cashews

In large skillet or Wok, heat oil on high. Turn heat to medium high and add green onion and garlic and sauté till slightly brown.  Add 1/2 of the Bok Choy and sauté till starting to wilt, about 2 min.  Add remaining Bok Choy and drizzle a little more oil on top.  Stir fry till leaves are bright green and limp.  Sprinkle sesame seeds and salt in.  Add chicken broth,Tamari, Chinese 5 spice and stir.  Cover with lid till heated through, about 3 min or till Bok Choy is just cooked through.  Stir in cashews.  Serve warm.

There you have it!  It tasted pretty good if I don’t say so myself!  Quick and easy!   None of the recipes I looked at called for Chinese 5 Spice…but as I was stirring in the Tamari, my nose thought it could smell a little ginger…. and I thought, that would be a good addition in a chinese type dish!  So, there in front of me, sitting with the spices right above my stove, was the Chinese 5 Spice!  I added a pinch to the mix.  I think I might add 2 pinches next time.  The taste was very slight and I don’t think a little more would have hurt.  Most likely it would have enhanced it even more!

Being forced to try new foods is not a bad thing!  I’m grateful that I have that chance and I’m grateful for the internet for giving me a place to go to look up recipes so easily!

Give this one a try and let me know what you think!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Leave A Trail …

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Discovering New Vegetables and New Flavors

When I get in the mood to cook…. (or prepare food as in this case….) I love trying new things or re-making a recipe that was a ‘new’ discovery the first time I made it!

Last week I was in the grocery store and saw some Jicama (pronounced hee-kah-mah).  I decided to pick some up.  The first time I had ever tasted Jicama was a couple of years ago when I decided to try a recipe out of my Clean Eating magazine that used Jicama.  It sounded good, so I decided to be brave and try it.  Jicama is delicious!  It has a sweet crunch to it.  I know it’s popular in Mexican dishes like soups, stir fry and salads.  The magazine info called it the “Mexican Potato” that looks like a flattened beet with the texture of a water chestnut.

Spicy Jicama Salad. See how colorful?l

The recipe I’m sharing with you today is the Spicy Jicama Salad that I made a few years ago.  Since I had the Jicama staring me in the face today sitting on my counter…. I pulled out the magazine and happened to have almost all of the ingredients I needed to make it so I gave it a whirl… with a few adjustments of course!  As you can see as you read the ingredients… if you are into Raw eating… this is a great recipe for that!  It’s bright colorful salad and would be a great side dish anytime but particularly in the summer.

I will list my adjustments and changes out to the side.

Spicy Jicama Salad — from Clean Eating Magazine Vol. 2 Issue 3 — May/June 2009

1 Jicama, peeled and julienned

1 Carrot, peeled, and julienned

1/2 red bell pepper, julienned    (I used a whole pepper)

1/2 green bell pepper, julienned  (didn’t have a green pepper so I used a yellow one…. again a whole pepper)

1/2 cucumber, seeded and julienned  (since I used an English cucumber… I didn’t seed it)

1/2 cup red onion, chopped    ( I didn’t have a red onion, so I chopped 1/2 of a sweet white onion….but I also added some chopped red cabbage for the color)

1 naval orange, peeled and chopped

Juice of 1 lime  (no limes around so I used 3 Tb lime concentrate)

Pinch of cayenne powder  (a little goes a long way here, be careful unless you like it hot!)

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped    (my fresh cilantro was gone, so I used the dried kind… not the best choice, but it works in a pinch)

Instructions:

Combine jicama, carrot, red and green peppers, cucumber, onion and orange in a medium bowl.  Toss in lime juice, cayenne, salt and pepper and cilantro.  Let sit for 20 t0 30 minutes, covered in the fridge before serving.  Unlike most salads that get soggy sitting in the dressing for longer periods,  jicama stays crunchy.  The salad will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Nutrients per 1/2 cup serving:  Calories: 70, Total Fat: Og, Sat. Fat: Og, Carbs: 17g, Fiber: 7g, Sugars: 6g, Protein: 2g, Sodium, 55mg, Cholesterol: Omg

This really is a delicious and different salad.   I am a huge fan of Clean Eating Magazine.  I would recommend it to all you foodies out there that are looking for healthier alternatives and recipes.  You can even subscribe to a digital version now.  In some ways I wish I had that….but other ways I love my ‘in hand’ mags!

I just need to figure out a way to organize all the recipe indexes into one spot so I don’t have to look through all my issues when I’m trying to find either a recipe I’ve tried and liked or looking for some new ideas!  I’d love some advice on that!  The only thing I can figure to do right now is to ‘copy’ the index page from each issue and put them in a binder.  I would think that would save me some time.  I’m sure if I was ambitious enough I could make my own digital index by hand typing in all the indexes…. but that would take hours!

It was really fun today to have enough of the ingredients on hand to just be able to make this salad on a whim!  I guess it goes to show that trying to eat healthy most of the time can pay off when you have lots of fresh fruits and veggies around!  Now I just need to get brave and try making up my own recipes!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Related articles

• Jicama Salad…Light, refreshing and crunchy! (glutenfreemedley.wordpress.com)
• Jicama, Almond and Orange Salad (missalaneyus.wordpress.com)

Green Smoothies — Give it a Try!

Since some of you may not be aware of my 30 Day Challenge tab at the top of this blog…. or even be aware that I was updating my readers with those challenges….. I decided today to link you to the update I posted yesterday on Day 30 of my Drink Only Green Smoothies challenge.

I think many of you will be interested in what I have to say.  If you want more information than the link I’m giving you, just hover over the 30 Day challenge tab, then the Drink Only Green Smoothies tab.  It will show you the date of each update that I gave the acronym of D.O.G.S. to.  Here is the link to the Day 30 post I wrote yesterday.

I’m so grateful that we gave this challenge a ‘whirl’.  Though we didn’t complete it entirely as planned…. it still made an impact on us.  (When I say ‘we’…. I mean my husband and I).  It’s taught me to be more aware of what I am eating and wanting to eat more healthy choices on a consistent basis.

I’m so grateful for the internets ability to link me to information on healthy eating and recipes to do so.  You’ll find in the link above of yesterdays post that I posted links within that post to a few other websites to give you more information as well as the giving the Basic Green Smoothie recipe we use.

If you are interested at all in making a change for the better for your health…. I would suggest incorporating Green Smoothies into your diet.  It’s a perfect way to start making a difference.

If you want additional information for another way of making a huge impact on your health…. follow this link on a post I made back in August for info on something that could potentially change your life or the life of someone you love.

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Facing the Facts

This is not going to be easy.  Not at all.

As a family, we don’t really think she is ready for this move…. but try as hard as we could to talk the Director of the Assisted Living center into letting her stay if we promised more family visits, etc, to see if that would perk up her attitude…. she pretty much said “No… I’m sorry.  I just can’t have her treating my Aids that way.”  So…. now we have reached a cross roads that brings us to a very difficult decision.

My Mom has been living in an Assisted Living Center since she had her stoke 5 years ago.  She made the adjustment fine in the beginning.  Though she was very reluctant to do it…. she knew that none of us were in a position to give her the 24/7 care she needed…. particularly that first little while after her stroke.  But she adjusted well.  Like my sister said last night as we were talking…. it’s because she had someone else to take care of.  Meaning…. that she felt a big concern for many of the friends she made in her first Assisted Living center.  She wanted to make sure they got down to dinner and such and would go ‘pick them up’ on her way.  She was like a little Mother Hen to many of them.  Most of those people have passed on now.

Then we had to move her about 3 years ago.  She was needing more care and the facility she was in was forcing her out of her beautiful 2 room apartment.  She would need to move to another section of the building that was ‘licensed’ to give her the level of care she was needing.  Unfortunately, those rooms were very small!  She would have had to get rid of most of her furniture (which was one of the reasons she adapted to Assisted living in the first place, because her own stuff was around her).

Consequently, we checked out other facilities and found one that had a lovely room … not quite as big as the one she was in…. but much bigger than the cracker box we would have had to move her in at the first place.  Plus, they gave the level of care she needed.  We felt very blessed to find another place we were able to make a ‘home’ for her.

Now…. she is starting to show signs of getting dementia and seems to be treating the girls that work at her facility unkindly, so they say.  If only it was as easy as telling her to quit being mean….  then perhaps we could keep her there.  She is very demanding and wants things done her way.  She insists the girls stay with her longer than they should be, which cuts into time they need to be spending with other residents.  It’s a hard situation to be facing.

I hate to see my Mom like this.  When we were faced with the first decision to put her into Assisted Living….. she not only adapted well but had a great attitude about it.  She knew she could either be miserable or choose to make the best of it.  She chose to make the best of it and was a pretty pleasant resident to deal with.  This ornery attitude she seems to be getting, is very hard for everyone to handle.  If only she could ‘choose’ to be happy again…  Then again…. the recent fall she experienced would be enough to make anyone ornery!

I can see it’s time for me to do a little studying up on how to deal with dementia.  It’s so hard to see someone turn into someone they are not!  Her older sister had major problems with dementia before she passed.  We are just praying that she doesn’t get that bad.  Hopefully it’s just being a little forgetful.

My sister has been a Saint through all of this.  She’s been through more than any of us siblings have any idea about since she’s been in charge of Mom’s care!

Though I’m very saddened at the thought of having to move Mom again….. I’m so grateful for the time she’s had at both facilities!  They have been so good to her.  It’s just hard to face the facts that this is happening.  I’m a believer that everything is put in our path for a reason….. I just need to learn the lesson I’m suppose to from this…… but that doesn’t make it any easier!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Little Old People Make Me Happy!

Oh boy….. what fun it is to talk to the little old men at my Mom’s Assisted Living place!  I was cracking up.

I took my Mom down to eat her lunch in the dining room this afternoon.  I got her all settled and was just watching some of the other residents as they came in.  It was interesting to see their faces and how they were feeling.  Some of them seemed cheerful…. others not so much.  The one cute lady at the table next to my Mom was helping to scoot the chairs in of the ladies that sit with her.  It was great.  I asked her if she needed my help to push her own chair in and she said… “No!  Oh…. not with my butt!”  I couldn’t help but giggle!  Just as a side note…. I’m pretty sure this was the same  little lady I ran into in the laundry last week that was confused about her own laundry and was trying to do my Mom’s laundry.  She’s as healthy as a horse…. but not so cognizant any more!  Cute and funny though!

Then I was standing there by my Mom helping her decide what to order for lunch and one of the little old men at the table next to hers pointed at me and motioned for me to come over there.  He said…. “I just got through shaving my face and I want you to feel what a good job I did!”  Again…. another giggle!  What a cutie.  He sits at a table with all men so a conversation began about shaving…. or not.  Another little man told me how he went to get his hair cut the other day (mind you… there isn’t much there to cut!) and the girl charged him $12 just to buzz his head!  Then he proceeded to tell me how he used to work for ZCMI in the clothing department and he had to be dressed up all the time.  He used to go get his hair cut in ZCMI for a lot less than that!  The first man told him that he was going to open up a barbershop of his own since he could shave himself so well, he would do it for the others.  ”No way am I letting you shave me!” the other man said.  Of course, another man at the table with a full beard was just shaking his head.  It was pretty entertaining to watch.  Made my day.

It amazes me how much these people can be affected by their attitudes.  My Mom’s attitude is usually fairly cheerful…. but since she took a fall the other day…. she’s had on her ‘ornery pants’!  Being in pain can’t be fun, that’s for sure.  Perhaps that’s why I took such a delight in watching some of the other patrons being cheerful.

It’s a shame that more people can’t see the joy and fun that these people can be and give.  I don’t know how much each of these residents see their families… but I hope it is often.  They all have so much to teach us if we will only just watch and learn and listen.

I’m grateful that I have been available the last couple of days to come help my Mom.  Ornery pants and all….  I’m grateful to be able to visit with some of the other residents too.  I’m glad Mom is in such a wonderful place that gives her good care and is full of other cheerful residents.

I’ve always loved ‘old people’.  When my husband and I got married we lived in an area we considered to be the “Newlyweds or the Nearly Deads”.  There wasn’t much between our age group and the ‘older’ people in the neighborhood, so I became endeared to those older folks.  I truly loved them and was a little sad when we moved away.  (Ironically…. those ‘old’ folks were about the age of my husband and I right now!!  It’s all Perception!!)  Now those same people that I loved so much are dying off and in Assisted Living centers like my Mom.

I guess what I’m trying to say is… I’ve always loved older people and consider it a blessing to learn at their feet.  Maybe part of that comes from not having Grandparents as I grew up.  My Grandparents all passed by the time I was 9 years old, so I didn’t have anyone to turn to for wisdom and counsel as a young adult.  Regardless of what makes me feel that way…..  I know there is much to be learned from Little Old People!  So ‘turn up your Bell Tones’ and listen in!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Do You See What I See?

I recently read an article by Leslie Householder entitled: Your Reticular Activating System and a Tranquilizer Gun.  I found it to be a very interesting article which made me start thinking about several things.  The basis of the article talks about how she and her husband were in the same room trying to concentrate on their own tasks when suddenly her husband shouted out of exasperation: “Argh!  I need a tranquilizer gun!”  She thought he was referring to the noise their daughters had been making playing in the tub in their master bathroom when he was in fact, he was referring to the noisy barking dogs outside which she hadn’t even noticed.  It was a profound point for her to realize that they were both in the same room and yet they were hearing different things.  As Leslie put it, “Same environment, different experience.”

How many times have you noticed that in your life?  Someone in the same room as you has a totally difference experience than you? Probably quite often if you are paying attention.  People can see the same movie and have it be a different experience.  Perhaps one person notices something that another person doesn’t, whether it be a message in a story line or a subtle image in the background that one sees and another doesn’t.  It’s all a matter of perspective and where our mind is focused at the moment.  It could even be that one person is ready to hear something, but to another, the same information just slips right on by or doesn’t resonate with them.

Can you see the face?

We don’t always see what other people see.  Have you ever looked at the clouds and seen some kind of a a figure but can’t seem to get the other person to see it?  I recently posted a couple of photos on Facebook that have a ‘hidden’ image in them.  They are fascinating.  If you don’t see the image…. you can’t figure out what the other guy is trying to talking about or you may even get frustrated.   But once you see it, you almost can’t go back to seeing it the old way.  At least it’s harder to do…. but you at least now have a perspective of both sides of the picture.

So, how do we know when someone is ready to see what we see?  Or are we ready to see what they see?  It’s not always easy.  I think it takes being open to another’s opinion and respecting the fact that they may never see or understand your ‘picture’, but you can do your best to try to understand theirs.  It doesn’t mean you have to agree with it, or even like their opinion….  but we can all respect each others opinions.

While it’s important in some situations for everyone to be on the same ‘page’…. it’s still important to respect others feelings and ideas.  That’s where brilliant creations are born!  IDEAS!  It’s just possible that someone else may come up with a better way…. a new idea….  a breakthrough.  And we should respect that.

Maybe we just need to remember that we may all be in the same room of life, but we are all having different experiences…. and that’s OK.    We don’t need to be right…   but it’s also important that we hold onto the things that we know are true according to our own perspective and understanding.  We can still allow someone else to see things their way without losing our own perspective.

What do you see? The horizon or the baby?

That’s what makes the world go around!  Wouldn’t it be boring if we were all the same?

I’m grateful for people who can make me look at things in a different way than perhaps I’ve been looking.  Especially when it comes to seeing myself in a different light than I see myself!

I am Grateful!  How are You?

Do you see the old woman or the young woman?

As suggested from the comment below…. I’m including another picture which is a great illustration of seeing someone 2 different ways.