Get Real Winter

GET REAL Igniting a consciously aware life

Trust

your vulnerability

Feed

your potential

Winter 2016 Issue 4

Cultivate your roots

Get Real | Winter 2016

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Refractions

M

y neighbor was writing a play about water in western Kansas beginning with the Mennonite settlements in the 1800. Most of the water in western Kansas is underground in the Ogallala Aquifer.

The play’s first readings offered inspiration and this painting developed.

One of several veins of story found in this work is the Greek myth, The Odyssey, in which Odysseus plugged his sailors’ ears with wax and had himself tied to the ship’s mast so he could hear the deadly Siren’s song. This Ogallala Siren's lure is so powerful that there is nothing for it, you must have what she offers.

It is your only truth. She is giving you what you need now, to hell with the price that might be paid.

In the painting, she is presenting you with an empty glass of water while holding a cheeseburger on a plate of golden corn. Water is so cheap that we use the aquifer to grow corn in country suited to prairie or dry land farming. The western Kansas farm likely raises genetically modified corn for biofuel or to feed to beef, which the cattle have difficulty digesting.

The mythical siren has the Moon Nimbus behind her head and crop circles in the background soil. A seemingly endless supply of water flows from her robes. There is no blame placed on ancestors who took advantage of the aquifer’s resource. But now we know much more about the tenuous nature of the aquifer and the value of it.

Flying over western Kansas and eastern Colorado the ubiquitous crop circles dot the land horizon to horizon. Irrigation techniques have improved, but the Ogallala Aquifer’s limited supply of water should cause us to think critically about how the Aquifer’s water is used. Genetically modified crops and monocultures are also important topics for discussion.

~ Nancy Marshall Ogallala Siren Oil on Canvas 72x24 diptych

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Get Real | Winter 2016

Editorial Team

Brenda Steffon

is the Creator and Editor-inChief of Get Real magazine.

She holds a double Bachelor of Arts in psychology and business from Nazareth College in Rochester, NY. A certified life coach from The Ford Institute for Transformational Training in La Jolla, CA. She finds joy in sharing her life with her husband, kitty and her created family. Simplicity is her secret to maintaining a happy life.

Melissa PletscherNizinsky

is the Assistant Editor and Primary Researcher at Get Real magazine. She completed her Master of Arts in liberal studies at Nazareth College in Rochester, NY and holds a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology and history from the University of Buffalo. When not pursuing her academic studies and writing, she enjoys spending time with her husband, raising their three young children, working in her gardens baking and dancing.

Julia Kracke

is the Lead Photographer and Designer for Get Real magazine. She holds a Bachelor and Master of Fine Arts in photography. As a professional photographer she loves taking pictures of everyday life and finds joy in the little things. She and her husband run a successful photo studio in Rochester, NY. She loves her husband, their three cats, gardening and learning new things, except for cooking ...but that’s ok. www.krackephotography.com

Get Real magazine is an online paradigm shifting publication designed to showcase everyday people sharing their consciously awakened journeys and gained experiential wisdom via written word, visual representation and personal testimonial to a community of like minded people around the world. We value the long road taken and experiences turned into wisdom along the way. We realize the sources of inspiration and personal growth shift internally from season to season. We value interconnectedness within towards each other and our Mother Earth.

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Frequencies

and remember, no matter where you go, there you are.

Confusius

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Get Real | Winter 2016

Photo by August Bach

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Get Real | Winter 2016

Contents FREQUENCIES – 4

CONTRIBUTORS – 8 ENGAGEMENTS – 12 EDITOR’S NOTE – 14 GIVING BACK – 15 LIFESTYLE

Andrea Chervenak "Redefining Resolution" – 22

Colleen Flaherty "Loving Selfishness" – 32 HAPPINESS

Katie DeTar "Sunshine in a Box" – 23 FUNDRAISER

Romanda Hines "Get Real Fundraiser by RE-UP" – 24 RELATIONSHIPS

Dawn St. Martin "Mirror, Mirror" – 30 HEALTH & WELLNESS Elizabeth Hornak "Refreshing the Spirit" – 34

Get Real Goodies, oils – 38

Kathleen Mugnolo “Connecting With Our Innermost Self” – 60

Get Real Goodies, herbal foot bath and facial steams – 61 CREATING WHOLENESS

Lauren Celentano "A Mindful Journey to Self-Sufficiency" – 40

Ellie Orbanek "A Vegan Journey" – 46

Melanie Strang-Hardy "A Vegetarian Story on Why Eating Vegetables Can

Help Your Meditation Practice" – 50

Colleen Flaherty “Enhance or Detract from Your Health With Every Bite” – 52 PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Sheila Kennedy "Sweet Expansion" – 56

Tracy Martorana “From Searching to Connecting” – 64

Sue Weibel “Thoughts on Procrastination” – 66 SPIRITUALITY

Barb Klein "'The Great Paradox” – 58

Anne Wimer and Len Bell “Winter It Surely Comes” – 62 GET REAL PRACTICE – 69 INTIMACY

Brenda E. W. Steffon "The Mother Tree" – 70 GOLDEN TRUTHS

Sally Weed “Changing Tastes” – 72 DEEP DIVES

Melissa Pletscher-Nizinsky "Birthing Our Inner Knowledge" – 78 SWAN SONG – 86 Submissions may be sent to: Info@GetRealMag.net comments to the editor may be sent to: Info@GetRealMag.net

© 2016 GET REAL All rights reserved.

A BAMF production Winter 2016 • Issue 4 www.facebook.com/GetRealMag

GET REAL is an online paradigm shifting publication independently owned and published in Rochester, NY.

Cover Image Julia Kracke Facing page: Julia Kracke

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Contributors A. Len Bell

A. Len Bell divides his time between making contemporary American Indian dance masks and illustrating. A retired Marine Corps Combat Correspondent, he now works out of Loime Studios in Baltimore, MD. Amongst his artist endeavors he is also the ongoing artist for women’s empowerment movement Waves of Freedom and for poet Anne Wimer. You can find out more at loimestudios.org or on social media at Instagram, Tumblr and Facebook.

Andrea Chervenak

Andrea is the author of The Heart Project: Messages of Love, a coffee table style book of heart images accompanied with poems and quotes related to love. Also, a certified special education teacher, currently working to raise her three children, Maya (11), Alex (8) and Claire (4). She also enjoys photography, writing, decorating, gardening, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.

Anne Wimer

Anne is a Poet and Dancer residing in the Washington, DC metro area. She enjoys writing on subjects of spirituality, nature and personal integration. Also known as ‘Sama,’ she is a professional Middle-Eastern Dancer who can be seen performing in many local and regional dance venues. Anne is currently working on her first publication featuring Len Bell’s illustrations and her poetry entitled ‘Prayers Under a Blue Moon.’

August Bach

August is a life photographer based in Richmond, VA. He defines his work as "being ever at the ready, seeking life and experience in it's natural state and striving to capture it in a way which conveys the whole of the beauty that comes before me." He is also a practicing yogi and yoga instructor. His work can purchased at www.augustbach.bigcartel.com. You are invited to follow and like his page at www.facebook.com/augustbachlifephotography

Barb Klein

Barb Klein is sole proprietor of Inspired Solutions. She is a life coach, retreat facilitator, teacher, and writer and is passionate about self-care and helping people live lives that are meaningful, rich, and fulfilled in all ways. You can find her at www.barbklein.org or https:// www.facebook.com/barbkleininspiredsolutions

Colleen Flaherty

Colleen empowers women of baby-bearing age as a certified strength and conditioning specialist who holds her bachelors in art therapy. She owns Baby Bump Academy in Piano Works plaza in East Rochester, NY. You can find out about her offerings or contact her through her website http://babybumpacademy.com.

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Dawn St. Martin

Dawn received her training at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City. She is a Holistic Health Coach who specializes in helping busywomen find their unique wellness path. She’s “Momma” to Joseph, 2.5 year old, and she uses sports and CrossFit to be able to keep up with him. Find out more at www.dawnstmartin.com.

Elizabeth Hornack

Elizabeth is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Bella Avani, a Rochester based company that specializes in transformative natural botanical products to soothe and nourish the skin. She is also the Divine Forum Director at Aromahead Institute School of Essential Oil Studies, a premier on-line school that specializes in the safe and therapeutic use of essential oils. Find out more at www.bellaavani.com.

Elllie Orbanek

Ellie was born and raised in Rochester New York. She spent her younger years competitively swimming, reading, exploring nature and socializing with friends, family and various animals. She will graduate in the spring of 2016 with a degree in sustainability studies and plans to move to Hawaii to go WOOFING then continue traveling and working with the planet and its animal life.

Kathleen Mugnolo

Kathleen is a mother of 3, holds a BA degree in English Litereature and Art, and finds satisfaction working as a community herbalist and doula. Kathleen’s passion for herbal medicine arose out of a desire to take control of and expand opportunity for her own health. Hawthorne and Poppy was born to help facilitate the needs of the local community by providing herbal education and products to support natural well being.

Mark D. Head

Mark D. Head is a photographer who walks up to 12 miles a day. He always has his camera with him so he doesn’t miss capturing life’s unexpected moments. He enjoys taking pictures of sunrises, sunsets, landscapes, nature and birds. Recently Mark took 1st place in the Brunswick Beacon Calendar Photo contest. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Marks-ImagesThe-World-Through-My-Eyes

Katie Detar

Explorer, writer, TV host, and seeker Katie DeTar encourages others to get out and enjoy daycations and adventures. She lives in Western New York State with her husband and dog, and has a passion for food, the outdoors, and travel. You can find out more about her through her website www.fringebenefitstv.com

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Contributors Lauren Celentano

Lauren is originally from Long Island and moved to upstate N.Y. for a bachelor's in English and a Masters in Liberal Studies. A little over year ago she settled down in Muncie, Indiana to begin learning through research and mentors to be sustainable and self reliant through healthy living, growing and farming. There's always something new to learn. You can find out more about her through her website https://ttrcranch.wordpress.com

Maureen MacGregor

Maureen is a native of Northeast Ohio and a 2015 graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology photojournalism program. Working with both still and moving images, she tells visual stories that help viewers better understand and empathize with the world around them. Maureen is currently the 2016 Cleveland Indians photography intern and is based in Cleveland, OH. You can see her amazing work at maureenmacgregor.com and contact her at maureenmacgregorphoto@gmail.com

Melanie Strang-Hardy

Melanie was raised far far away in the city of lights, wine and cheese, Melanie followed her heart to the East coast of the USA and then further south to New Orleans. She practices and organizes Permaculture events and shares her wisdoms with people through food and eco travel experiences. Until the site at Travelingroots.org is official, and if you are curious to know more, you can ask about unofficial travel experiences in New Orleans or Paris at melstranghardy@gmail.com or check out her unofficial blog at https://evolutionaryroads. wordpress.com/

Nancy Marshall

A Kansas artist, Nancy Marshall paints soulful portraits of people, places and things. Her favorite paintings are an imaginative combination of all three. She works on commission and her paintings and projects can be seen on her website https://nlmstudio.wordpress. com

Rome Hines

Rome Hines lives in Lawrence, KS. She has been sewing since she was 10 years old.

She loves to sew things for friends and family to show her love and appreciation. She loves fabric, its textures, colors and patterns, and her stash is enormous.

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Sally Weed

Sally is a lifelong avid gardener of Northeastern native plants and goes thru 3 pairs of gardening gloves a year. She appreciates how plants show different sides of themselves through the changing seasons. In her off time, she enjoys completing the daily newspaper crossword puzzle with her husband of 63 years.

Tracy Martorana

Tracy Martorana is a daughter, mother, wife and friend. She is a nutrition & wellness consultant, a herbalist, an educator and a meditation aficionado. As the owner of Holistic Wellness w/ Tracy, she combines her knowledge, her passion and her empathy to inspire others to live in a manner that feeds all aspects of self, and to therefore live a healthy, happy and balanced life.

Shelia Kennedy

Sheila, aka THE Confidence Coach is a lead by example kind of girl. She shares what she has learned about building confidence in life and in business. Sheila helps entrepreneurs build their confidence so they can build the business they desire. You can contact her: sheila@confidenceatyourcore.com or find out more info at www.confidenceatyourcore.com

Sue Weibel

Sue has degrees in engineering and psychology. She lives Upstate New York with her husband and cat, and has many hobbies.

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Engagements

(conversations in your words) This fall we asked our readers to tell us about their food lifestyle choices and why their choice was important. As our populations grow and our palates become more global, the question arises where is our food coming from? How is it grown and what effect does the methods of growing our food have on us both health-wise and environmentally? Below you will find some of the results of our food survey.

How have you chosen to eat?

67% omnivores 8% Pescetarian 4% Flexitarian 4% Paleo 17% Other

Why have you chosen to eat this way?

“It’s how I grew up.”

“Just a combination of personal preference and ethical beliefs.”

“I feel better eating this way, and I lose weight.”

“Health reasons.”

Is food sustainability important to you?

80% Yes 20% No

What are your concerns?

“I think the US has food production all wrong and I fear if we continue on this path the quality, quantity and variety of our foods is in jeopardy.”

“I like knowing where it comes from and try to eat locally as much as possible to help local farmers and get fresher food that is less likely to be tainted with preservatives or chemicals.”

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In addition, we focus on four different individuals with four different food lifestyles in our Creating Wholeness column.

Lastly, our first participant in our new column, Golden Truths talks to us about how she came to make the food choices she has in her life and what the path to her food habits looks like.

Do you feel empowered to make choices around those concerns?

42% Yes 58% No

Do you feel there is a problem with our food supply?

30% Yes, Definitely 70% Yes, Globally

Where do you place responsibility in guarding our food supply?

17% Individuals 4% Farmers 13% Communities 30% Government 38% Other

How do you personally safeguard the food supply?

“I make consumer choices that affect the market.”

“I grow my own and buy local.”

“By shopping as much as possible locally at farm markets and stands and local grocers.”

“Try to support local, organic food and fair trade for things like coffee and chocolate.”

“I try to know where all my food comes from.”

What is one change that you are ready to make?

“Making sure to buy produce that is in season.”

“Stop eating meat.”

“Grow my own food.”

“A bit less red meat.”

“Less processed sugar products.”

“Be a more informed consumer when shopping. And try not to waste food ever.”

In Spring, Get Real will be using the Engagements column to look at the power of words, particularly focusing on words used in our interactions and reactions to others within our communities. What are our unexamined habits of thought (biases) that we fall back on in reactionary moments to events happening within our communities?

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Editor's Note Things can really suck, some of the time

By Brenda Steffon

Admit it. Life at some point has strong-armed this static entities. They are part of a dynamic process that acceptance out of you. Those moments that have taken teaches us something amazing about ourselves - we can the wind out of your sails and made you feel a failure, rise from our own ashes. deep disappointment or loss can bleed you dry. Maybe My pregnancy test came back negative a week later. you’re reading along and wondering if this is the same I plunged into a swift moving river of grief as well as “feel good” magazine you remembered. To make sure, newly discovered health problems. I felt like a dung beetle you have dropped down to the last struggling to push my oversized ball paragraph for the inspirational tieof poop uphill only to have it roll in. Or, maybe I’ve walked into your back over me. So, I sat in my pile our 2 day embryo worst day, acknowledging things of life shit and accepted this really can really suck, some of the time. sucks, for now. Because I allowed Suddenly, you don’t feel alone myself to sit there and ask what but comforted hearing this fact are the root causes to my current blatantly celebrated. state, I discovered a key reason why Sometimes just hearing a I have trouble getting pregnant "The wound is where blunt realistic reply when life sucks as well as the easy treatment for the light enters you." makes the burden feel easier to that condition. I gained a deeper ~Rumi bear. Early this winter my husband understanding about why having and I did our first round of IVF a child is important to me. At (in-vitro fertilization). Right before the same time I loosened up how Christmas I had one beautiful little embryo transferred I am willing to approach it to make it a reality. More back inside my uterus. Those first days following my importantly I discovered a powerful conviction to my embryo transfer I can hardly remember my hopes or voice, my truth, no matter if I’m happy or sad. Out of my feet touching the ground. As strange as it sounds, one of the worst life experiences I was reborn smarter, I felt that little fertilized egg and I were a team. One stronger and more accepting about myself. My wound morning after the Christmas weekend, I woke up with ripped open by grief became a badge of courage and a start hearing a very definite internal voice of “I” not motherhood. “we” tethered to my pregnancy hopes. I would have to At times, feeling “life sucks” offers the perfect clarity wait another week to find out if I was actually pregnant. to see our sadness, failure, loss or disappointment My gut feeling was the embryo hadn’t implanted. Yet, through the lens of root cause. When seen at the I felt if I wasn’t positive and overly hopeful then I was rudimentary level root cause will open your heart to giving up on my biggest goal for a child. I had to as my the interconnectedness of everything in your life, from late coaching mentor, Debbie Ford, used to say, “Put past to present. It is a loving and vulnerable decision to ice cream over poop.” It still doesn’t make it ice cream. allow a part of your old self to “die” and in the process “After a few scoops you realize, it is still poop.” Meaning rebirth a more empowered, loving part of your Self. It you can’t cover up or fake what is really happening in feeds new roots that in turn manifest new growth and your life. In fact, it is very healthy to not push the pain expansion for living this consciously awakened life. away too quickly. It’s okay that life sucks sometimes Thankfully most of the time, life can be really amazing. because those emotional wounds slashed open are not 14

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Giving Back

Creating Mindfulness for Campbell Rec.

By Melissa Pletscher-Nizinsky

Photography by Julia Kracke and Maureen MacGregor

This past summer the Get Real Editorial team initiated a four week program at the Campbell Recreational Center in Rochester, NY focusing on mindfulness. The Campbell Recreational Center is located in one of the most poverty stricken areas of Rochester and the neighborhood often sees much gang activity.

Over the past year and a half that Montina Langston has been the director at Campbell, she and her staff have worked diligently to deter gang activity and create a safe place for youth. Although they work hard to achieve this, it is not always possible to completely isolate the youth from gang activity occurring in the surrounding neighborhood.

Words can be powerful tools, use that power to spread kindness rather than negativity.

When gang related incidents happen within the neighborhood, it often disrupts the normalcy and flow of the rec center. Even though the youth themselves are not directly involved in these incidents, the kids are impacted on an emotional level at the very least by what is occurring within their community. They can be on edge, moody, or more restless than usual, makGet Real | Winter 2016

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bright spots and moments of growth and learning.

Each week we met with the Campbell Recreation youth for one hour. In our four week program we had various projects which we worked on with the kids.

Our goal was to bring awareness, personal identification and demonstration of mindfulness to 6-12 year olds and further show how it can be used as a life skill.

Our hope was that through these projects, the kids would be able to learn what it meant to be mindful, become aware of how they influence their own and others’ feelings, and see how their positive traits help create a community at the recreational center. We also wanted them to be able to share what they learned and experienced through a simple community project. The end of summer picnic held for recreational centers throughout the city of Rochester provided the perfect opportunity for the kids to share with other centers what they learned.

After the four weeks were completed we followed up with Ms. Tina to get feedback from her. Like us, she was excited about the opportunity this endeavour created. It allowed for the cross exposure of our team with the youth of Campbell street and created a numing daily activities more challenging. Our hope was to teach these youths how to bring moments of inner tranquility to their often high pressured urban environment.

Through this project, both the Get Real team and Ms. Tina (as the kids call her) felt that to create positive change, we needed to utilize mindfulness, collaboration, interaction of ideas, and then share those ideas with a larger community. Our original goals, in addition to working directly with the youth of Campbell Street, included creating a process to show how to cultivate positive social change through teaching mindfulness to young children. We also wanted to help them use these newly understood emotions to create something beautiful within their communities.

As sometimes happens in these endeavours, our goals were lofty and the end results were not always what we had envisioned. As the reality of our idea came to fruition, we quickly realized that what we had hoped for as an end result could not be achieved in the short amount of time we had allotted for this project. Despite this realization, this project resulted in many 16

Get Real | Winter 2016

ber of positive outcomes. For the youth, this project allowed exposure to knowledge and perspectives from individuals outside of their community. It also gave them a sense of the impact they had on their neighborhood and community as well as giving them a sense of pride in themselves. For the Get Real team, she hoped this project allowed us to see the circumstances of some of her youth’s reality and their resilience. In addition, she hoped this project and resulting interac-

youth to create their own mindful jars. This is a simple project which included filling pint size clear mason jars with a mixture of clear school glue, fine glitter in a variety of colors, and water. After being sealed, when the jars were shaken it created a whirl of glitter.

The purpose was to watch the glitter slowly fall to the bottom of the jar while focusing on taking calming breaths and relaxing. We found not only was this something which was helpful for us as adults, but the

They offer a neutral ground where the kids can come and explore their world. The adults in this center are an extension of family and offer that support we all need from others throughout our lives, but especially at crucial times in our youth. tions would have a lasting positive impact on the kids.

Both the Get Real team and Ms. Tina agreed that the two individual projects which were the easiest to facilitate and had the biggest impact on the youth were the mindful jars and compliment sheets. During the first week of our program, the team worked with the

kids seemed to benefit from it and enjoyed the activity as well. It was a tool for them to have in moments of stress or anxiety, and helped tremendously when we needed to focus the group for the next task at hand.

For our project to connect the community, we chose to create compliment sheets with the kids. The kids Get Real | Winter 2016

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helped to brainstorm compliments they could give to others as a small gesture of kindness. We then designed a flier with the compliments at the bottom as tear away slips. The kids then placed the fliers up around the community center as well as distributed them to individuals at the end of summer picnic. The idea behind the concept was kind words can sometimes have the potential to turn around a situation.

Words can be powerful tools, use that power to spread kindness rather than negativity. Ms. Tina related to us after the project was complete that the compliment sheets were a huge success and the department commissioner as well as the office staff loved the concept behind it.

One of the biggest realizations we had as a team, was that we took on too much for the time frame we

had available. Although we were personally connected with Montina Langston, we were still outsiders coming into the environment. There needed to be more time to create the trust between us and the students which would have allowed for potentially deeper impacts to be made on the kids’ day-to-day lives. On a practical note, we also attempted to do too many activities within the short time frame we had at each meeting. In addition, because attendance was not always consistent, the structure we had chosen of projects building upon each other over the four week program didn’t work as well as we had hoped. When we wanted to apply the lessons learned the week before to the current week’s project, it was difficult to do if there were kids who hadn’t been there the week prior.

For the Get Real team, this ended up being an im-

...if we dare to live and love boldly we can create change, whether in others or ourselves.

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...we as individuals can be powerful in creating something beautiful. pactful project despite the bumps in the road with our own learning curve. We were especially touched by the fact that each of these children had a willingness to try something different than what they were used to and to experiment with it. (This was particularly evident with the Mindful Jars.) Even though we were outsiders coming into their center, they were willing to trust us and join us in this project. We were also particularly aware of what a huge impact Montina and her staff make on the lives of these children. She and her staff not only provide a safe environment for these youth but also offer them opportunities to have experiences which they may not have access to on a day-to-day basis. They offer a neutral ground where the kids can come and explore their world. The adults in this center are an extension of family and offer that support we all need from others throughout our lives, but especially

at crucial times in our youth.

Through this project our own thoughts and biases about what it means to grow up in a poverty stricken area were challenged. Not only were we given a better understanding of what their day-to-day often looks like but how it affects the classroom environment. There is a belief that poverty often equals lack of community support and isolation. Those living in poverty stricken areas are often seen as individuals fighting in a sea of chaos with little or no connection to anyone around them. The reality which we experienced was far from that belief. What we saw was strong community ties and the majority of individuals connecting as an extended family trying to do the best they can for each other and particularly for the children. This is not to say that there are not tremendous challenges within this community, but when looking at these challenges

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Help us share the message of the Campbell Recreation Center around the globe.

Click here to download this PDF to your device. Post it up and share it out there.

one e m o S Make y!! a d o T Smile

Plea Take se One!!!

Free Compliments For you or someone you love!!

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Get Real | Winter 2016

You inspire me.

You look really good today.

You have a beautiful soul.

You amaze me.

You are beautiful.

You have a gorgeous smile.

I like to hear you laugh.

Thank you for bieng you.

from the kids at Campbell Recreation Center

we often forget to look at the positives which are there as well. As Brenda said after this project was completed there was a deep “awareness of how our words, even though they may be so programmed and conditioned, influence the environment and the immediate outcome [of a situation] both positively and negatively.�

In being mindful, we as individuals can be powerful in creating something beautiful. Add a community of like-minded people behind that, and you can create social change.

We would like to thank Montina Langston, the Campbell Rec. staff and especially the youth for their willingness to work with us on this project. We learned a lot from each other. There were some bumps in the road, as there always are in life, but if we dare to live and love boldly we can create change, whether in others or ourselves. ~ Postscript: We are currently working with Montina Langston and the Campbell Rec. Staff to set up an ongoing mindfulness Pictured above Montina Langston Get Real | Winter 2016

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Lifestyle Redefining Resolution

What do you want for this new year, he asked.

I want to breathe the crisp air and feel it circulate through my lungs.

I want to take long car rides into the country and photograph old barns.

I want to drink a glass of red wine feeling the summer grass between my toes.

I want to laugh and savor each of my children's laughter.

I want to dance like a fool until my muscles ache.

I want to grow flowers, vegetables, and fruit in my own gardens.

I want to spend time with family and friends: cook meals, play board games, sing and reminisce.

I want to create and share my creations with the world.

I want to live each day without fear.

I want to be open and honest with everyone.

A resolution? Nah. It's simply living my life with gratitude and love.

By Andrea Chervenak

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Happiness

Sunshine in a box

By Katie DeTar

Photography by Julia Kracke

The sweet citrus aroma radiated from the nondescript cardboard box even before the packing tape snapped away to reveal this mid-winter prize. Many Februaries had I spent as a child eagerly anticipating such a delivery, running to the front porch after school hoping to spot the brown parcel with the hand-lettering in black sharpie; To: DeTar, From: Grandpa Jim. His Florida house was another world, a paradise for me as a small child. So many of my relatives lived parttime in Florida that it was years before I even realized that Florida was not a town in Western New York. In reality, I soon learned, it was a plane-ride away to reach this tropical world. Comparing Daytona Beach, Florida, to Rochester, New York in February is like comparing Barbados to Antarctica. My hometown is cold and gray in February. The color of the sky matches the dreary salt stained roadways and sidewalks. Growing up, my friends and I would make bets as to whether or not the five-story tall piles of snow in the plaza parking lots would melt before Memorial Day. When I was a kid, fresh produce was scarce from Thanksgiving straight through May Day. I remember that first trip to visit Florida. Those were the days when air travel still included wearing your Sunday best and kids received plastic wings from the “stewardess.” The sunshine warmed us to the core and filtered into tiny places within our bodies that had not felt that kind of natural warmth in months. We arrived

at Grandpa Jim’s house and there it was; the four-tree collection that was his citrus grove.

Wondrous might be the best way to describe that first plucking of an orange away from its waxy leaf, off the tree and into my seven-year-old hands. Before this moment, I, like so many suburban children, had little concept of the travels of fresh fruit from tree to table. As a child, these realizations on the life of an orange beyond my local grocer’s shelves sparked a lifelong interest in cooking and gardening.

Those fresh oranges from Grandpa Jim’s grove became my family’s coveted prize.

Grandpa Jim died in January of 2002. Never again would a ray of sunshine arrive in the shape of a cardboard box on a gray winter’s afternoon. For years we tried to fill the void with store-bought tangerines or grapefruit, but it was never a fit replacement. The fruit from his grove was special.

Now here I was, many years later, staring at this paper package. Curious, I slid my kitchen knife under the packing tape to reveal the contents of this parcel dropped at my apartment door. There, enclosed in the beautiful simplicity that is brown cardboard, were three rows of fresh Florida citrus.

Swirls of emotions rushed through my veins as the sugary sweet scent radiated into my kitchen. This was not only a gift of fresh-picked Florida sunshine amid mid-winter gloom. It was also a ticket back in time. ~ Get Real | Winter 2016

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Fundraiser

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goodies

The Get Real Team is constantly striving to provide you, our readers, with a high quality publication. We have consistently felt omitting advertising from each issue was a necessity. We want our message and the messages of our contributors to come through loud and clear without added distractions.

Over the last year, we have discussed how to continue to create a visual content heavy magazine which not only supports our message of the value the everyday person’s story adds to our collective knowledge, but also helps support budding entrepreneurs and artisans. In addition, after receiving frequent requests from readers, we are hoping to take Get Real to print some time in the near future.

With a team of three, financially supporting these goals can often prove challenging. We could go the traditional route and turn to advertising sales for our revenue stream, but we strongly believe this is not the path for us and it’s time to do things differently than what has been done in the past.

With that being said, we are happy to introduce three new endeavors which we feel will help us meet all these goals.

The first, is our Get Real Goodies. These unique and quality products will be offered for purchase through our website. Second, we will be offering paid sponsorships as partners on our website. Last, each quarter we will showcase a product which is in line with our message and the current issue. This product may be something created by us in-house or created for us by an artisan. The items will be for sale as a fundraiser to help us continue producing this publication and enable us to eventually pay our contributors.

This issue’s fundraiser product is a shopping bag created for us by Rome Hines through her company, re*up. Find out more about re*up and check out these fantastic bags on the next few pages. With this issue’s focus on food choices and sustainability, we thought providing our readers with a Get Real bag to take with you on your shopping adventures would be perfect.

Get Real | Winter 2016

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How to use your re*up bags...

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Get Real | Winter 2016

GET REAL

goodies By re*up

re*up

By Rome Hines

My label re*up was born out of a desire to use my creativity and sewing skills to make useful objects that could generate some income for me. As well as a reality that included no capital for purchasing fabric at retail stores.

I was thrift store shopping one day and was struck by just how much good fabric was available in the form of clothes and household linens. Wool, silk, cotton and linen were all at my fingertips. As I walked among the racks of clothing I decided used fabric would be the ideal choice for my designs.

As a culture, I believe we no longer see fabric as a valuable resource, like past generations, but rather as something disposable.

Something to wear once and then throw away. My heritage is German Mennonite, a frugal culture rooted in sustainable living, and I felt connected to that frugality as I began to design purses and bags that were made entirely of fabric recycled and upcycled from the clothing and linens I found at thrift stores and garage

sales. I liked the idea of taking a ready­-made piece of clothing and turning it into something completely different.

No matter what I design I always turn to used fabric.

Sometimes, for inspiration, I will go to a thrift store not looking for clothes to wear but rather for textures, colors and patterns to inspire something new within my designs. My grandmother, and great-grandmother were quilters.

They pulled their fabric swatches from worn out clothing to make beautiful heirloom bedcoverings.

I feel that the spirit of my grandmothers’ recycling reborn in the bags and purse that I make.

My first messenger­style bag design was made from a man’s suit jacket. I used the lining of the jacket for the inside of the bag and incorporated the suit pockets into the design. But, there was still some waste. I wanted to create a bag of some kind that carried virtually no waste in its creation. The pillowcase shopping bag was the result of that creative mission.

I am pleased that our culture is embracing the idea of reusable shopping bags, but we still have far to go. Most reusable bags are made in China. They are barely one step away from the plastic shopping bags they are trying to replace.

They might hold more than a standard plastic grocery sack, but they are made from cheap polyester material which is not washable and not very durable.

I wanted to make a shopping tote with a large capacity and be highly durable and washable. The nice thing about the fabric used to make sheets and pillowcases is that it is strong and meant to withstand many launderings. Washability was one of the requirements of my design. A pillowcase is already a type of “bag” so I started trying out designs. I wanted the bag to have pocket and look less like a pillowcase once I was done.

As a result, I've created a sturdy workhorse of a tote that is environmentally upcycled. ~

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GET REAL

You will be able to order these amazing bags on our Get Real Goodies Etsy shop. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for the link.

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Whats in the bags...

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1 bunch of carrotts 1 celery 1 pint of grape tomato's 1 box of baby spinch 4 tomato's 1 bunch brocolli 1 package of cheese slices 1 package of ground sausage 1 lb of ground beef 2 frozen chickens 3 lemons 2 large onions 1 eggplant 3 cucmbers 2 bottles club soda 1 1/2 gallon Half & Half 1 bottle of wine 1 dozen eggs 1 jar of pickles 1 boxof cereal

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Here at Get Real we try to be mindful of the choices we make in our day-to-day lives. This holds true particularly when making choices which impact our environment, like what kind of bags to use for purchases (groceries or otherwise).

There’s been a huge push for stores to have their own re-usable shopping bags which consumers can purchase to take the place of the ubiquitous plastic bag.

Although these are great in theory, practically there are often a lot of problems with them. They are usually made of materials which aren’t washable, don’t always hold up as well as they should and are often made overseas, not to mention many are also made with plastic.

Not so for these awesome re-up bags! Not only do these bags hold a tremendous amount (2 re-up bags hold the equivalent of 10 plastic bags full of groceries!) but they are all hand-made here in the United States using upcycled pillow cases. This means they are also washable and highly durable.

By using our re-up shopping bags we are not adding to landfills and reusing our resources, not to mention the design of the bag itself makes it so much easier to carry our purchase from store to home.

Plus, these bags are great for more than just shopping. Whether put to use as an overnight bag, getting supplies to a meeting, transporting the kids toys or diaper supplies or even as a flexible picnic basket, you’ll find you’re using your re-up bag all the time!

And, when not in use, these bags fold up nicely for easy storage. Get your unique re-up bag from Get Real today!

goodies

Strong comfortable handle

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Large outside pockets on both sides for keys wallet, phone & wine bottles.

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Expandable inside allowing for the contents of 5 regular plastic grocery sacks.

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Relationships

rorriM Mirror

By Dawn St. Martin

Photography by Julia Kracke

I have a mirror in my bedroom that belonged to my grandmother. I love the intricate woodwork, its sheer size, and I love enjoying a piece of my grandparents’ house in my own house. The mirror is a bit hazy… or something…maybe a little worn, a little reddish.

But this mirror is my favorite mirror in the house. In addition to its story – who it’s from, the life it’s known, and all the love and smiles it saw in my grandparents’ formal living room – I love this mirror for its image.

It’s in my bedroom, on the wall I face as I get ready to crawl into bed for the night. Its image always stops me, making me pause for a moment to look further.

This mirror makes everything look perfect. My crazy hair looks fun, my skin looks smooth, my shoulders sculpted, and my body just the right size. My smile comes naturally. I think to myself, "Hey, looking pretty good!" and then crawl into bed.

I did this for months before even noticing I was doing it or appreciating the routine. I might have my doubts about my appearance throughout the day – as I put on a shirt that doesn’t fit right, as I grab a scarf to hide my belly, or when someone asks me if I’m pregnant just as I think I’m no longer looking it – those doubts don’t exist at night. That mirror sees a different me, and reflects it back, and I’m grateful for that peaceful thought as I head into bed.

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It could be my grandparents sending their love to me through the mirror. I like that thought. As though all those happy years and all that love got absorbed in the glass and wood and will radiate it back out for the rest of time. The room where it lived in my grandparents’ house was only used for holidays (and gift storage in the ‘off season’), so all it ever saw was love, giving, and graciousness. Play-rivaling cousins, loving aunts and uncles, laughter to the point of tears, grandparents who reminded us over and over again that ‘family is everything’. It’s all there. Felt, rather than seen.

What is seen is this image of myself that I don’t see elsewhere. It is possible that this is how I actually look. That the rest of the day, I have a manufactured, defective image of myself, and that this mirror actually reflects my true image. That maybe the REST of the mirrors of the world are wrong and this one is right.

Or maybe this mirror reflects how OTHERS see me versus how I see myself through all other mirrors.

Or maybe it’s a reflection of how it doesn’t matter either way. That I am who I am regardless of how I look. That as I feel love and send love out to the world, this mirror channels it and sends it back to me in the form of loving and accepting thoughts before I end my day. Love, I see you. Thank you. ~

"Well, now that we have seen each other," said the unicorn, "if you'll believe in me, I'll believe in you."

- Lewis Carrol, Alices's Adventures in Wonderland And Through The Looking Glass

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Lifestyle

�ovin� Selfishness

By Colleen Flatherty

As the cold weather permeates our days, we start to settle into the cozy habits of Winter. This slower time is a time to settle, reflect and build our foundation. We have the time to observe ourselves just as we observe nature, the beautiful changes occurring all the time. I urge you to honor your natural cycle of change and ponder the questions I ask below like a caterpillar building its cocoon. As we head into our long, cool months, how will you emerge with the freshness of spring?

What if your only purpose right now was to reach your full potential by taking the greatest care of yourself ?

In these slower, long dark days, we have much time for contemplation. Where is your life going? Do you want it to go there?

If you are to take the greatest care of yourself, how will this change your daily tasks? How will this change what you put in your body? How will it change what you think about yourself ?

Well lady, whittle it down. Simplify. Even if it means subtraction. Don't think about the calories or the steps you've taken. Think, apply this to everything in your life.

Your environment, your commitments, your food, your activities. Are they nourishing you? Are they nourishing your family?

Truth is, you've only got one life. And you’re solely responsible for it. You'll never get yesterday back. You don't know what tomorrow holds. All you can do is control right now. And I'm asking you to make choices

that will always influence your future self and leave your past self behind.

I'm asking you to get selfish. Selfish from a place of love. Loving selfishness. Selfish for your longevity and joy. Selfish for the health of your children. Selfish for the health of your future children. Selfish for the relationships that light you up like a firecracker.

When you make choices that are in your best interest, magic happens. Things get easier. You feel more energized. The weight comes off. You get the new job.

More money is earned. When you say ‘YES!’ to your betterment, you can be your best woman, wife, mom, sister, aunt.

You know what you have to do and you have to commit. What will help you take that step into the uncomfortable to better yourself ? Is it a support system?

Is it a companion? Is it writing things down? What works for you?

What’s going to help you take the first lovingly selfish step? Ponder this, then take action. Nothing will happen unless DOING is involved.

Go on! Conquer, breathe, expand into the Radiant Lady I know you are. I believe in you. I’m supporting you, even if from afar, even if we’ve never met. Fear a little less, knowing that I am sending love out there for you to grab on to. ~ To complete the worksheet click here to download to your device. Print off to compete.

Your only purpose – reach your full potential by taking care of yourself 32

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Your 3 simple steps (take the time and think about these!)

What do you need to do?

_____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________

What or who will help you get selfish? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________

And how will you DO it?

_____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ Get Real | Winter 2016

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Health & Wellness

Refreshing the Spirit

By Elizabeth Hornak

The 1st chakra is also known as Muladhara, the root chakra, and is located at the end of the spine. Concerned with the fight or flight response, earliest memories, family ties, feelings of survival, belonging and guardedness, this chakra is our instinctual center.

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"While the earth sleeps, take time to inventory your emotional needs. If you feel unmoored, rebuild your foundation so you can move forward on your life’s journey with a sense of security and peace."

Winter, while the earth sleeps in preparation for the coming spring, we may find ourselves turning inward, needing to feel more grounded and connected to all that represents warmth and light.

In this season of rest and renewal, don’t lose touch with your authentic self, rather, tap into your chakras, which can help bring you back into balance. In last quarter’s issue, we covered the 2nd and 3rd chakras and defined chakra as the Sanskrit word for “wheel.”

Chakras are invisible swirls of energy that are associated with a part of the body, a sound or a color, and are networked through our mind, body and spirit. The seven chakras correspond to seven parts of the body: top of the head, center of the forehead, base of the throat, heart, waist, sacrum and the base of the spine.

The focus of this article is the 1st chakra, recognizing the signs of chakra imbalance, and essential oils with attributes that can bring the chakra into balance.

While not a substitute for medical care, working with essential oils to bring balance to your chakras can be immensely gratifying and empowering.

The 1st chakra is also known as Muladhara, the root chakra, and is located at the end of the spine.

Concerned with the fight or flight response, earliest memories, family ties, feelings of survival, belonging and guardedness, this chakra is our instinctual center.

Associated with the color red, the earth and the sound “lam,” when this chakra is out of balance, you may feel needy, have low self esteem or make unhealthy life choices. In balance, you are strong, confident resourceful and independent.

If you feel that your 1st chakra is out of balance, there are five essential oils you can explore; Vetiver (Vetiveria zizanoids), Myrrh, (Commiphora myrrha), Patchouli, (Pogostemon cablin), Lavender (Lavandula officinalis) and Ylang Ylang, (Cananga odorata). These oils can be used individually, or synergistically to make a blend that is unique to you. The following monographs of 1st chakra essential oils will help you decide which

oils best suit you.

With the exception of Lavender, all of the oils are base note oils, which are mostly distilled from roots, woods and resins. Base note oils are generally used to anchor a blend, their aroma is long lasting and they are calming, relaxing and nurturing.

When blending with essential oils, less is more. You are encouraging and promoting health and balance, and too much can actually diminish the desired outcome.

The most effective way to experience your chakra blend is by using a vegetable oil such as jojoba, sweet almond or apricot kernel oil, using a diffuser or an inhaler When using single essential oils, or an essential oil blend, the dilution is 1%, which is 5-6 drops of the essential oil or blend in an ounce of carrier oil. This type of aromatherapy is known as subtle aromatherapy, or vibrational blending, and uses a lower dilution rate than aromatherapy for everyday use, or when working with an acute situation. In this case, less is more.

Sourcing the essential oils you use is important.

Choose a company that works directly with distillers and provides a GC/MS report. A GC/MS report shows the chemical constituents that are found in each essential oil. Two companies I highly recommend are Aromatics International and Stillpoint Aromatics. Both are small, membership fee-free companies, owned by women certified in aromatherapy with the highest level of aromatherapy education It is important to highlight the importance of using essential oils safely. Essential oils should not be taken internally or used on the skin without a carrier oil. If you are pregnant, do not use Myrrh as it may be dangerous to the baby due to some of the chemical constituents.

Take special care to research the oils you intend to use.

While the earth sleeps, take time to inventory your emotional needs. If you feel unmoored, rebuild your foundation so you can move forward on your life’s journey with a sense of security and peace. ~ Get Real | Winter 2016

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Vetiver

Vetiver, known in Sri Lanka and India as the oil of tranquility, has a deep, earthy aroma that nourishes the body. This oil is distilled from its roots and has the profound ability to ground, nourish, restore, reconnect and calm. Vetiver’s aroma is distinctive and only a drop or two is needed in a blend.

Lavender

Lavender, which is the universal oil to nourish all of the chakras, has an aroma that is fresh, herbaceous, soft and floral. Lavender oil brings calm and stability to a blend, and has the unique ability to address both physical and psychological needs.

Patchouli

Patchouli, the warm, spicy and musky aroma that defined much of the 60’s and 70’s, is a deeply grounding and renewing oil that can help center and balance if you are feeling a detachment from your physical being or environment.

Myrrh

Myrrh, one of the oldest know aromatics, is very strengthening for the root chakra, as well as the connection between the root and crown chakras.

Its aroma is rich and resinous with balsamic notes. Myrrh promotes a sense of inner peace and quiet, bringing together the physical and spiritual.

Ylang Ylang

Ylang Ylang, has a deeply sweet aroma. Used extensively in perfumery, Ylang Ylang, is very effective in helping quiet the mind, and uplift the spirit.

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1st chakra blend suggestions 1 drops Patchouli 4 drops Lavender

s s

1 drops Patchouli 4 drops Myrrh 1 drop Vetiver 4 drops Ylang Ylang Blend into one ounce of carrier oil, and apply to your pulse points, lower back and feet.

“I am responsible for my life and capable for caring for myself.

I nurture my body in healthy ways and can cope with any situation.

I have a deep sense of belonging and deserve the best that life has to offer; my needs are always met.� ~ Aromatherapy: A Complete Guide to the Healing Art

by Kathi Keville

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GET REAL Stock up on these earthy uplifting essential oil blends with warming comforting aromatics. Now available through our store, Get Real Goodies, specially formulated from pristine quality sources

by Bella Avani. Pre purchase one bottle or lavish yourself with our 3 bottle box collection.

Align

A blend of ylang ylang and vetiver, brings about tranquility and uplifts the spirit.

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Get Real | Winter 2016

Harmony

goodies

By Bella Avani

You will be able to order these amazing oils on our Get Real Goodies Etsy shop. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for the link.

A blend of patchouli and lavender, helps center and calm.

Wayfarer

A blend of black spruce and frankincense, helps ground you and get in touch with your true feelings.

"The quieter you become the more you are able to hear" ~ Rumi Get Real | Winter 2016

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Creating Wholeness

A Mindful Journey to Self-Sufficiency

By Lauren Celentano

...you need to have a “can–do, hard working” attitude to be a homesteader.

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I have not always been mindful of what I was eating or how I lived. Now, however, I consider myself well on the way to being sustainable as well as a chicken owning, pig raising, small farm stand owner. Many call it being a homesteader, but we technically don’t own where we live and grow, we rent. So I don't always feel like a homesteader, I mean what is that even supposed to feel like? Exhausted? Because I'm that, harvesting season was exhausting with the amount of canning I did.

In winter the garden will be asleep, it'll be too early to start seeds and too cold for outdoor projects.

I'll have winterized the watering buckets, closed up gaps in coops, and looking towards when we can finally process the pigs. Winter is a time we tend to focus more on survival. As we experience the loss of sunlight, I believe it makes us reflect inward and lose sight of the beauty in living day to day, despite frigid weather. My journey to being able to raise my own food, being able to cope with loving and nurturing another living thing and then bringing it to my table has been a long process and one I'm still learning. I am still terrible at gardening, but the science of soil is more complex than just throwing seeds in the ground and watering. So, I’m learning.

I grew up on Long Island. For 18 years my food

choices were about eating Sunday meals with my Italian family. Meals of high salt, slow cooked sauce and lots of pasta and meat. Big dishes of leftover “Saturday Night (cream of mushroom) Chicken”, lots of Burger King, Chinese food, bakery treats and pizza were also in my repertoire. Every single day I had no thought as to what I would put in my body because my body worked fine, I was fit from ice skating in winter and swimming in the summer and had the metabolism of, well, a teenager. Even in the beginning of college I wasn’t really focused on food, just eat to eat and move on to procrastinating essays and enjoying the lifestyle of a freshman.

Eventually, I became friends with a farmer whose family owned lots of dairy cows. Grilling steaks from Andy’s farm changed my view on meat and what it should really taste like. (He had raised the cows himself. I noticed such a difference in taste with absolutely no spice altering, no sauces nor nothing added.) I was able to see how the cows grew up with plenty of space, food and grass. We also raised my first batch of chicks, though raccoons got to them on his farm before they were ready to butcher. From there I started working in the cafeteria at college. I rented an apartment on campus and in general started questioning

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the waste of food I witnessed. I also questioned how I could try making healthier choices that tasted better, while not spending my whole paycheck at the local small grocery store. I visited a small place in the woods called Pollywogg Holler that had buildings with no electricity and no running water; just back to nature.

I went for my very first hike and backpack camping trip in the Adirondacks and physically felt ill leaving it behind. I knew that I loved being in nature ever since I was little. But I didn’t realize that being so connected to nature should have meant I should be looking to ground myself through other facets in my life, such as food and a job that meant something to me.

The animals grow better on chemical free, unmodified feed and we rarely have incidences of illness.

While an undergraduate in college I returned every summer to Long Island. It really hit the nail on the head that I just didn’t belong in a place surrounded by buildings with no woods or fields to escape to. I went on Rochester, NY for graduate school and planted roots, working for small business owners at restaurants and a pet store while renting an apartment. I also worked part time at a farmer’s market right down the road from my apartment and talked often with my neighboring booth men (One guy was a soap maker who grew the herbs he used for the scents. The other an organic farmer who grew on only 3 acres and also had chickens.) I asked questions of on the why, how and what being sustainable meant. Why GMO-free? I don’t know if it was luck, my

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Get Real | Winter 2016

passion for good food and drinks, my love of animals and nature or the combination of all three that got me to where I am today in Muncie, Indiana. We live on 38 rented acres, 8 of which we use. The rest is rented to a commercial farmer. We have a 2 acre pond and two big barns. We’ve made two coops in the barns and have a big stall for our pony and donkey that deter predators. In the garden fenced shelter we have 9 pigs. What the pigs actually eat and contribute to the farm is much more than the chickens. We have them turning the garden soil and the compost so that this coming spring I may be able to grow my own veggies and herbs. Because we rent we cannot plant fruit trees, but we will plant bushes that will produce fruit their first year. Anyone who fishes here takes their filets and brings everything else back for the pigs to eat. The pigs eat the feathers, innards and heads harvested (butched and processing) chickens; all which would be wasted otherwise. For treats the dogs get the dehydrated chicken feet. We keep the chickens mostly for eggs. Only raise a few as meat for the occasional customer and for our own dinners. All of the birds are rasied with freedom to roam, be a chicken and fed GMO-free feed. We rarely have incidences of illness using chemical free, unmodified feed for the animals.

We named our farm Til the Rooster Crows Ranch because we didn’t keep any roosters for a while, just geese for flock protection, but now we have a few gentle roosters who help protect the growing flock of chickens and can fertilize eggs. Rather than buy chicks we can begin hatching and raising our own chickens.

The wish list on how we see our ranch expanding grows year by year. We would like to venture into beekeeping.

Also dreams to add milk cow and goats as well as fiber animals to create our own yarn. Although we can be sustainable in many ways being conscious of what we reuse, how much energy we take away, how we grow and raise things, but we also want to be self sufficient.

Jason, my fiancé and fellow homesteader, and I started dating and shortly after “we” got chicks together. We took in rescue hens from the city shelter and eventually built a coop in the city. It was legal. Unfortunately the neighbors' dogs broke into the coop and ate one of our hens. So, we moved out to the country kept our full time and part time jobs and yup... added more chickens.

Soon people wanted some of our eggs. We got more chicks to raise as laying hens and the vicious cycle of what chicken keepers call 'chicken math' began. I found an online blog called Fresh Eggs Daily by Lisa Steele had amazing natural chicken keeping ideas that we continue to follow her methods. Some nuggets of good advice were adding fresh garlic and apple cider vinegar as immunity boosters for chickens, dogs and people.

Using a deep litter method of coop bedding helps add heat, compost and save energy and time for the winter.

Moving from New York to Indiana was a lot of work.

Not only for the chickens and geese we moved or the plants we had to give away, but also our many indoor pets from rabbits, turtles and snakes. I won’t be able to raise rabbits for meat anytime soon simply because I get too attached. I know my own limits within a self sufficent farm.

Each year we will continue to add to what we do here at the farm. This year was pig raising. Next year we may actually breed them. I also learned to can in a

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Photo by Julia Kracke

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Get Real | Winter 2016

"We can be sustainable by being conscious of what we reuse, how much energy we take away, how we grow and raise things..." water bath everything from pickles, sauces, pie fillings, salsa and jelly. To our luck we found people willing to barter fishing rights for lots of canning lids, rings and jars. We now raise ducks and have an indoor pot belly pig that isn’t for food simply because she isn’t the right breed. Jason took up woodworking whe we moved out here. He's created not only our farm stand, but other projects like cutting boards. At this point Jason and I are up for trying anthing on the farm. I think you need to have a “can do, hard working” attitude to be a homesteader, but I think you can do it on a smaller scale in a city setting, too. Chickens have wonderful personalities. Fresh eggs collected in the morning really do make a huge difference in cooking and baking. Store eggs are typically a month old at least and quality is typically lower because of the conditions they live in.

Same goes for packaged meat you buy at the grocery.

I'd love to develop our skills to include making our own unpasteruized cheese. To learn more about what it

takes from start to finish we started helping friends milk their goats and cows to see if we would really want to add dairy animals to our farm. It is shared experience with other farmers that get our ideas growing.

When people visit our farm or our farm page (facebook.com/ttrcranch) I’m not quite sure what they think, but the smiles on their faces from seeing happy animals reassures me that all the hard work is worth it.

We offer free farm tours to help teach others not only where their food comes from, but how animals should be raised. I feel whole when I’m outside with the free ranging pasture chickens and ducks or starting seeds that will grow into organically grown veggies for my family and possibly some for barter learning is what keeps me alive. Be it something to try around the farm or a new recipe to cook. And I love sharing it all. From the food I bake to the stories we make with our whole menagerie a part of it. ~

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By Ellie Orbanek

Illustrated by Julia Kracke

A Vegan Journey

Creating Wholeness

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Get Real | Winter 2016

For some the journey towards veganism is not as easy as simply deciding to go vegan overnight and most start their journey long before the concept of veganism even becomes a thought. Some people have the will power to change their lifestyles overnight. While others take weeks, months or years to transition into veganism. Thinking back my transition into becoming a vegan was in the making since I was young girl advocating for the environment and its animals.

Growing up with cottages in Canada and the Adirondacks I had exposure to the natural world more than the average person in my

life. I missed all the school events, birthday parties, and sport activities because every weekend for the majority of the year I was in a car on my way to Canada right after school got out on Fridays. I grew up surrounded by nature, cultivating a love for all that it entails that would someday lead me to a massive lifestyle change. Fast-forward twenty years and here I am: happier, healthier and more vegan than ever. I dipped into the world of vegetarianism a few times when I was younger when I started to make the connection between the “food� on my plate and the animals I had interacted with. Without the

proper knowledge of what it takes to be a healthy vegetarian I began loosing weight and the adults in my life started asking my mom what was going on. After a trip to the doctors for a checkup that resulted in their unimpressed opinion of my diet I was put back on meat and dairy. For years I went back and forth between eating meat. Being younger and relying so strongly on my parents I was not ready to take on the task of rejecting how they had raised me. During my late teenage years an older member of my family went vegetarian and replanted that seed that maybe it was time to look into this lifestyle

again. At that point I knew what veganism was but it seemed like such a drastic concept that I thought I would be okay staying vegetarian.

Around a year and a half ago two things happened, I discovered a whole new world of health thanks to Instagram and a family member tried going vegan for a month but decided it was not for her. During that time I had looked a bit farther into veganism and wondered what it took for someone to decide that was not the right lifestyle for him or her. I spent a few weeks looking into the topic but it gradually drifted out of my thoughts. Eight

months ago veganism started appearing in many different aspects of my life. A spark was lit. I dove into a heavy research phase. I watched every documentary I could, read every book I could get my hands on and was constantly online looking up others who lived this way. After watching Forks Over Knives, Earthlings, 101 Reasons To Go Vegan, Cowspiracy and countless other films my mind was blown.

I was so confused as to how I could not have known all of this information already! Why was this information not taught in school?

Why would my parents have never told me about it? Why was Get Real | Winter 2016

47

everyone not eating a vegan diet?

How could this have been public knowledge yet taken into such little consideration?

During the transition into veganism there are generally five stages that you move through.

In order the stages are shock, anger, confusion, acceptance and confidence. All are the mental and emotion stages that most will go through at some point. I quickly moved into the anger stage. I was mad at everyone and everything.

I began questioning everything I was brought up thinking and judging those who did not share my newfound understanding of the world. I. Unforunately, I was lost without much support during those early weeks and took much of my frustration out on my mom.

I started telling her everything I knew, even when she asked me not too. I forced heated discussions about animal consumption on her.

I brought the topic up to friends and family and got shot down every time. Nobody wanted to hear about it. As my research continued and the emotional stages progressed I learned that imposing my beliefs on others was not the right way to spread the message of veganism.

Finally I understand I simply need to lead by example. I stopped walking around giving out facts and judgmental looks. Feeling the need to judge others as well because we are all on our own paths. If others could listen to me that I could 48

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understand their opinions as well.

I kept my lifestyle mostly to myself as I became overwhelmed with the many options involved in a vegan lifestyles. There is vegan, raw vegan, raw till four, fully organic, dirty dozen organic, mostly cooked and the list continues. The best advice I have for choosing is trial and error. I tried out all the ways of eating to decide which one I connected with best. I quit my job. Started working at a juice & smoothie bar to be around like minded people. Since changing jobs I have discovered many more aspects of this lifestyle, and yes veganism is a lifestyle, not a phase or a diet. I have been vegan now for awhile now, I wish I had started years ago. Now I have accumulated a supportive group of friends and family that are starting to make changes in their own habits as well.

As I have been paying attention more and more to what I put in my body I am now feeling a deeper connection with myself than ever before. My body tells me what works and what does not, what feels best in my body, what upsets my digestion, what foods feel best at certain times of the day and when it is time to take a grounding moment. On a plant-based diet I feel as though I have a stronger connection to nature and this planet as a whole. I am in tune to what Mother Nature is saying and feel tremendous grateful for this life. I am constantly meeting

new people interested in a more holistic lifestyle and have made many connections that I believe have changed me for the better. I genuinely love having conversations about veganism with people who are open to the idea. Showing people that it is possible to live a happy, healthy and cruelty-free life is an incredible feeling. I plan on spending my life sharing the vegan message.

Each person has an individual biological background that affects how our bodies react to different foods. Seventy five percent of all people are lactose intolerant. Three out of four bodies are unable to handle dairy. Doctors tell us to avoid certain meats when lifethreatening instances arrive. A plant-based diet is a healing diet.

I can truly say that I feel cleaner, healthier and happier than I have during this life so far. There is a plethora of resources on the Internet that can answer all your questions and spark some flames. I hope this begins new journeys for some. Have fun! ~

"I'm grateful every day that I've been able to have horses in my life and thankful for all of the lessons horses have taught me throughout the years."

~ Cathy Millet

Photo by Julia Kracke

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A Vegetarian's Story: Why Eating Vegetables Can Help Your Meditation Habit

By Melanie Strang-Hardy Photography by Julia Kracke

I have always been weird with my eating habits.

I stopped eating baby animals when I was a little girl because I thought they deserved to live at least to the ripe old age of 30! After being in my thirties for a few years, I realized that if I was told it was my time to die so that someone else could eat me with barbecue sauce, I would not have found that fair. Let's face it, there are other things to eat with barbecue sauce.

So as I fully embraced my vegetarianism back in 2013 and switched to being a full time vegetarian, my meditation habit grew and questions started arising from within and without.

When you don't eat something, people are curious and think you might be nuts or undernourished ( Why aren't' you skinny?) so they need to know more. The question " why don't you eat meat" usually arises while my interviewer is about to take a huge bite out of a bacon cheeseburger. As I wasn't raised by wolves and don't want to ruin your appetite I usually dance around my answer. But today I'd like to answer honestly and tell you why I don't eat meat and probably why some of my fellow vegetarians don't either.

Living in Louisiana and being a vegetarian is a prowess in itself. To a lot of people here a vegetarian must still eat crawfish, because otherwise it is hard to socialize around an Abita beer and a Saints game.

So down here I simply tell people that I don't eat anything with eyes, a mouth, a cousin, a second cousin et al. I don't want you to worry that I have no friends though. I have friends who are either vegetarian and 50

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non-vegetarian The latter just don't invite me to their crawfish boils!

One of the questions that comes back the most I find is, "But you don't like the taste of meat?". This may sound crazy but liking something and going without it is something we might want to think about acting on more often. Would you ask an alcoholic, "But don't you like the taste of whiskey?".

I don't think so.

So, to return to the question at hand, it isn't the taste of chicken or crawfish I don't like. In fact I used to love chicken. What bothers me is the fact that I know the chicken has feelings as well as a spirit. to me, I believe it's a fact he or she deserves respect and is a prisoner on a farm. I'm not only talking about factory farming which we all know isn't respectful to the animals and where animals are treated, well, like animals. (Something is off about saying treating living things like animals.) Also, I'm including organic farms in my argument because I don't think that raising animals to kill them is a wonderful way to make a living even if it is organic or so called humane.

So there I said it, crucify me and eat me after. I'll probably taste better with barbecue sauce though.

In my belief system the only decent way to kill, butcher and eat meat would be like Native Americans hunted. Like Plains tribes who chased bison on the prairies and then hosted a ceremony for the gift of life he/she that living being gave us. But in our world, we often skip ceremonies and we forget the respect we

owe ourselves, the animals, and the planet we live on in order to go faster, be richer and get things done.

We don't respect our bodies, our grandmothers or ourselves in those old tribunal ways. We go to jobs we hate everyday, eat food we know is bad for us and take it out later on our loved ones.

As my vegetarian habit grew deeper and more questions arose, so did my meditation habit. Today I live in unison with my mind and spirit it isn't possible for me to take another living being's life energy in order to feed mine. Especially, when I can find an alternative that actually might be healthier for me (please don't even get me started on the lack of protein myth!) and the planet.

I have “converted" many a friend to at least part time vegetarianism. As an eater of a plant-based diet, permaculturist, herbalist and world traveler, I strive to enhance everyone I host around my table their taste for vegetables and herbs and add in a spiritual mindfulness towards their food source. All the while I hope my choice being a vegetarian makes an impact on people without begin offensive in the process.

Being a vegetarian and feeling a deep connection towards all living things it got me asking a few questions about how to get people thinking about

what and who they are putting into their mouths.

What if we were to combine reverance, ceremony and purpose through how we eat? What if we slowed down and really looked around? What if we meditated everyday? What if you took a step back before you took that next bite? What if you saw that a cow is not so different than your dog after all?

Spend some time meditating on these questions for yourself. ~ Get Real | Winter 2016

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Enhance or detract from y

By Colleen Flaherty

Photography by Julia Kracke

This conversation has been coming up A LOT lately. The conversation of conscious awareness. If this concept is foreign to you, no sweat. It’s not something we’re readily taught in Western societies.

Conscious awareness is simple to explain but harder to practice. It means being conscious, or awake to what you do and why you do it. You’re aware of your choice, your action and what happens after. I say this is harder to practice because a lot of times we check out. Checking out is easy. It requires absolutely zero thought. How many times are you standing in line and automatically pull out your phone to hop on social media? Or you’re so hungry you go for the nearest drive through?

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away. You let the opportunity to enhance your being slip away. Instead of grocery shopping, you pull into the fast food joint. After eating the extremely processed food (Can you say half of the ingredients list without stuttering?), you have an upset stomach and fatigue.

Blah. For probably the same amount of money, you could buy grass-fed beef, rolls where you knew the ingredients, fresh produce for the toppings and potatoes to slice and bake. Yes, it’ll take a few more minutes to prepare meals. But it’ll be more satisfying, easier on your digestion and invigorating. Not energy-sucking on you.

Every action has a positive or negative re-action.

Think ‘karma’ or ‘what goes around comes around’.

your health with every bite Conscious awareness means bringing attention to the now with awareness of what could happen in the future. We never know what will REALLY happen in the future, so we do the best we can in the present.

You might be asking how this relates to food. Food is powerful. It keeps us alive. It’s our fuel. You choose to enhance or detract from your health with every bite.

When you are consciously aware of this fact you act or eat based on it. How do you view the food you eat?

What is your relationship with food?

What you feed your body directly demonstrates the level of respect you have for your body. And if you have a problem with the previous sentence, it means you have some reflection to do. Most people check out

when it comes to food. They’re concerned with easy, fast, portable and affordable.

For example, people complain about organic produce being more expensive. Sure is. That’s why I wisely choose which produce to buy organic and nonorganic using the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen and Clean 15. It tells you the ‘dirtiest’ produce, those that absorb more pesticides and chemicals versus the ‘clean’ produce with thicker skins. Buy the ‘dirty’ produce organic section. Buy the ‘clean’ nonorganic area. Money saved because you’re making a conscious choice based on facts.

When you respect your body, you come from a place of body love. Body love arises when you awaken Get Real | Winter 2016

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to the fact that you only have one body. You awaken to the fact that you want to feel better, be disease free, get pregnant, live longer or run a race. Whatever you want to feel you have the choices to make it happen or not happen. Only you can choose then do it. Body respect and love doesn’t go anywhere until you take action.

How are you showing yourself love?

"Conscious awareness is simple to explain but harder to practice. It means being conscious, or awake to what you do and why you do it."

For me, I’m showing myself love through the ketogenic diet. Well, I’m actually showing my future self the love. I was diagnosed with PCOS or polycystic ovary syndrome when I was in my early 20’s. PCOS causes many small cysts to grow on the ovaires causing a hormonal endocrine disorder in women. I always had the signs and symptoms yet no ob/gyn did anything about it except put me on birth control which is the wrong solution. I want to put in the work now, so Colleen-of-the-future is able to have kids if she chooses and isn’t suffering the consequences of untreated insulin resistance.

The ‘keto’ diet is not a high protein diet. I get a majority of my calories from whole food fat sources.

Because fat is so dense in calories, this means adding a moderate amount of butter, coconut, cream or other natural fat to fresh whole food meals.

A typical meal includes a 3-5 ounces of protein, usually cooked in fat (for example, butter, beef tallow, lard, duck fat or coconut oil) with the addition of green leafy or non starchy vegetables such as salad greens, spinach, summer squash or kale.

The restriction of carbohydrate is the key factor in this diet. When carbohydrate foods are digested, they are broken down into blood sugar (glucose) in the body.

The more carbs we eat, the more glucose is created.

If we reduce carb intake and instead eat more fat and protein, it causes our internal metabolic pathways to switch from burning sugar to burning fat. This switch How can you take action to show respect by simply changing what you put in your mouth?

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produces ketone bodies while at the same time reducing blood sugar and insulin levels. A process key for people with insulin resistance. As blood glucose and insulin levels drop and ketone levels raise the heart, muscle and brain reduce use of glucose and instead use fats and ketones to fuel themselves. This state of "nutritional ketosis" is beneficial. In fact, ketone producing diets are much more powerful than most people realize. There is strong research evidence that low carb, high fat diets are effective for the following medical conditions: cancer, alzheimer's, diabetes, infertility and weight loss.

The cause or effect of PCOS is insulin resistance and higher testosterone production, which throws my female hormones out of whack. Insulin resistance means my pancreas produces insulin, but my cells don’t ‘let it in’ with the glucose. This means, more insulin is produced and more glucose floating in my bloodstream.

Not good.

My solution to living with PCOS is treatment through quality food first. Many studies on women with PCOS who follow a keto diet experience a decrease or eradication of insulin resistance and balanced their hormones to appropriate levels. This increases fertility and decreases the chance of medical issues in the future.

"Food is powerful. It keeps us alive, it’s our fuel. You choose to enhance or detract from your health with every bite."

If I didn’t consciously start choosing and acting on this now, what would my body be in the future? I’m not giving my power away. I’m choosing health, fertility, longevity. So many times we sit back and let disease happen to us because it’s ‘down the line’ not bothering us in the present. We check out. We choose poor food because it’s fast, cheap or easy. Do you deserve that?

Does your future self deserve that? This is where respect for yourself ties in with food choice.

Awaken to the possibilities of a better diet and what it means to eat healthier. How can you take action to show respect by simply changing what you put in your mouth? ~ For more info about a keto diet, check this out. http://www.ketogenic-diet-resource.com http://ketodietapp.com

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Personal Development

Sweet Expansion

By Shelia Kennedy

Photography by Julia Kracke

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Have you ever stood at the edge, aching to jump, so you can see how far you can fly? I think we all have probably stood in that moment of time eagerly waiting to expand, but firmly rooted in the security found in what we know. The present moment may not be exactly what we want, but the exchange of freedom for security can be overwhelming.

I am standing on the edge. I am getting ready to leap because honestly I am tired of getting the same results over and over again. I get stuck in a rut and just get too comfortable.

I have been rooted here for a while and am itching to expand, so ... I am moving way out of my comfort zone and have extended an invitation for expansion.

I couldn’t make the decision and carry through with it if it weren’t for one trait especially. That of course is confidence at my core. I have an unshakable faith that I will be supported in this expansion even though I have no idea what it will look like or how I am going to achieve it. I do have evidence to prove that this support is real. The fact that I am here today demonstrates that I have been fully supported in every situation that comes my way. (Oh by the way – so are you!) Why would I choose to believe that support will not continue?

So as I embark on this new adventure, there are a few things that I am doing to invite and prepare for expansion.

1. I said what I want out loud. I told God, the Universe and my own ears and heart what I want to see happen. Apparently now, I am also telling you.

Saying it affirms it.

2. I am using daily affirmations and participating in a bible study to help me stay focused on the possible, and with the right support isn’t everything possible?

3. I begin and end each day with a gratitude list.

There is a new spin on it this time around. I have chosen not to say the same thing twice. I come up with three new things each time. Gratitude amplifies abundance.

4. I have an accountability partner. What I don’t see, she does. She provides feedback and encouragement which are much needed staples for expansion.

5. I am spending time recognizing the greatness in the ordinary things. It is like what Jeff Hoffman, founder of Priceline and The Color Jar, shared with us in Los Angeles in December. Look at everything through the eyes of a five year old and ask why? I am not only asking why does this exist, but how can it help me? I spend too much time imagining the "extraordinary" way this expansion is going to be achieved, when the answer is most likely in the ordinary things that I take for granted every day. Seek out the ordinary and find opportunities to use it for greatness.

6. I believe it is possible. That may seem like a given, but I am really paying attention to the self-sabotaging language and behavior that I typically might default to. That is not allowed this time. I not only believe that it is going to happen, I am visualizing what it feels like, smells like, tastes like, looks like and sounds like.

I am using all of my senses to make this real for me.

I can’t wait for that feeling of deja vu when I finally achieve it!

So is expansion scary? Yes. Does that mean you shouldn’t try it? No! Invite it in. Become friends with it. Share it. Be grateful for it. Advance at your own pace and have the confidence to seek out help when you need it. Trust that what you don’t possess will appear. Be open to resources that may arrive in unexpected ways. ~ Get Real | Winter 2016

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Spirituality

the Great Paradox

By Barb Klein

Everywhere I look, even in my small corner of the world, people are suffering... it most certainly seems to be the thread of our shared human existence.

Pain – emotional or physical – their own or that of one they love.

Addiction – their own or that of one they love. Death, sadness, grief, uncertainty. Heartbreak, loss, financial woes. Fighting for life – even tiny born-too-soon babies. Closing doors and turning away. Darkness and doubt are everywhere.

And, yet, simultaneously, everywhere I look, even in my own small corner of the world, people are rejoicing. Births. Marriages.

Recovery. The hope of a new budding love. The breaking of a 58

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new dawn. New creative projects brought to life. Businesses taking off and flourishing. Inspiration sprouting and mingling with desire to bring something forth into the world.

"everywhere I look, even in my own small corner of the world, people are rejoicing" Joy Laughter. Love. Knowing.

Faith. Celebrating and embracing life. Welcoming in the beauty that is here. Opening doors to possibility and potentiality. Light and illumination are also everywhere, joining us in our shared human existence.

This is the great paradox of a human life – a full, rich life invites us to step in and experience it all, rather than hiding out and playing it safe. There is no sleepwalking through the all-encompassing life.

You can’t miss half of life’s experience and live it all, as tempting as it may seem. It is our greatest challenges, our deepest pains, and our triumph from carrying on that can propel us toward another day. It is these that offer us a unique experience from which we are able to share and connect with another. To touch another with a compassion we could not have felt had our heart not broken or suffered. To offer a love and depth of understanding we could not have without having

"...remember that nothing lasts,

everything changes,

and you are never alone..."

lived through our own loss. To extend a message of hope we could not give had we not found a way to survive in a time that felt impossibly overwhelming. A communion of souls rising together above the murky shadows that otherwise hold us down.

So too we come together through shared joy. Celebrating victories and triumphs together.

Rooting for one another and letting out a joyous sigh of relief as we cross to the other side.

Sharing precious moments of birth and rebirth, union, and commencement. Yes, together we celebrate the grateful moments of life.

We learn and grow through both inspiration and pain, through

shadow and through light. There is not only one way or another.

There is no better or worse way.

The only way is forward into a new day, remembering that nothing

"It is our greatest challenges, our deepest pains, and our triumph from carrying on that can propel us toward another day." lasts, everything changes, and you are never alone. Faith in oneself and faith in something larger than oneself carry us along and through the most difficult and heavy of days and lift us through triumph and

elation.

Sometimes within our very own life we experience the inconceivable contrast of unimaginable blessing and grace and unimaginable horror and despair at the very same time.

When this happens, we may be left reeling, ungrounded, and unsettled – uncertain of which hand to focus on– which side is real? Believing they can’t both be, yet knowing without a doubt that they most certainly are. So many opposing forces co-existing in one small body, being pondered by a mind incapable of sorting it out, and residing in a soul that is limitless in holding it all. This is the embodiment of the great paradox of life. ~ Get Real | Winter 2016

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Health & Wellness Connecting with our Innermost Self

By Kathleen Mugnolo

Winter is a time to connect with our innermost selves. It is a time to rest and reflect. In our fast paced culture, it’s easy to forget to take care of one’s self. It’s truly a revolutionary act to take the time to nurture your body and soul.

Preparing yourself in the dark cave of winter whispers the promise of new life.

Sage is a lovely ally for the winter months. Using sage can clear the mind and bring you to the present moment. Breathing its vapors or sipping an infusion can help you recharge and revive. Placing your feet in an infusion will sooth those paws after a long winter hike in the woods, or when your just feeling the drag of winter.

Creating a cave via facial steam is a beautiful way to satisfy the desire to move inward, and to nourish weather worn skin. Sage revives the spirit and helps keep viruses at bay. Rose and lavender tighten the skin and push out impurities. Comfrey will restore moisture and aid in repair. Take a time out. You deserve this.

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GET REAL Sage Foot Bath

goodies

By Hawthorne & Poppy

Ingredients: Organic Sage Directions for use: Make a full strength infusion by placing herb sachet in a ½ gallon jar. Boil enough water to fill jar. Once boiling, pour water over herbs and cover jar for up to 4 hours. Gently reheat your infusion to desired temperature and place in a basin large enough for your feet. Dilute if desired.

Place feet in bath.

Winter Facial Steam

Ingredients: Organic Sage, Organic Comfrey, Organic Lavender, Organic Roses.

Directions for use: In a large pot bring 1-2 quarts of water to a boil. You may toss in the entire herb sachet, or pour the contents of the sachet into the water (some people enjoy seeing the herbs). Cover and turn off heat. Allow to steep for a couple of minutes. Drape a large towel or tapestry over your head. As you remove the lid from the pot quickly and carefully (steam is hot!) create a cave with your towel that envelopes you and the steaming vessel.

Stay in your cave as long as you can. Take a break then repeat as much as you can stand it. Share with a friend. Once the water cools you may bring it back to a boil and repeat the above process.

You will be able to order these amazing soak's and steam's on our Get Real Goodies Etsy shop.

Keep an eye on our Facebook page for the link.

Hawthorne & Poppy was born to help facilitate the needs of the local community by providing herbal education and products to support natural well being.

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Spirituality Winter Surely it Comes...

By Anne Wimer

now I can see your Frame and the veracity of your real form leaves colorful blaze and the drama of fall's feast that gorges itself on the grief of lose falling falling so buoyant now and I've forgotten the gray-black gray-white reflection of timbered skin in the retinae of windows pulled shut as I'd forgotten the color of my own skin and I've forgotten the lightness of limbs sans umbrageous matter as I'd forgotten the freedom of lightening the load of things I'd thought I'd miss when lost and I've forgotten the beauty of bare bracken tendrils that toast the wan wild heaven with mahogony woody goblets saluting the ease that comes with simplicity it is a Mystery how each Season has it's victory and it's easy to see the triumph in the heady fragrance of full bloom its easy to see the glory in a fist full of happy blossoms and it's easy to see the gain in autumn's astral projection of chromatic dispersion but winter comes right on time reminds of the candor and liberty of the bone the skeleton is only that marrow and rough husk nothing to pretend nothing to pretend behind nothing to lie behind lies that one feels are needed to live to endure rigid expectations of an audience of injudicious others but Winter surely it comes with only bark, branches and Honesty 62

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A. Len Bell

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By Tracy Martorana

Photography by Julia Kracke

from searching to connecting

Personal Development Recently, my husband and I were sitting by a fire, enjoying a glass of wine. I was sharing with him some of what I’ve learned or experienced at some of the workshops and retreats that I’ve participated in over the last few years. These events have ranged from two-hour workshops to weeklong retreats. They have covered topics from vision boards to personal empowerment to meditation. I was feeling good and sharing what I thought were inspiring experiences, and mentioned that I hope to attend another retreat soon, one geared specifically towards women.

"He asked what women seem to feel is missing, that drives them to do these types of things. What are they (meaning me) searching for?"

His response gave me pause.

He asked what women seem to feel is missing, that drives them to do these types of things. What are they (meaning me) searching for?I almost took offense, but didn’t, because I couldn’t say for sure I knew the answer. I wanted to selfrighteously say "I’m not lacking anything", but suddenly I wasn’t sure if that was true. Five minutes prior I was feeling confident and happy with my personal growth, and boom, now I’m filled with questions. Is something missing?

Am I trying to fill a void? Do I

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feel that I’m lacking somehow? As I ponder this, I realize that no, I don’t feel like anything is missing.

I just want to grow and learn and get the most out of life! I want to connect with other like minded people, I want to feel a sense of spiritual fulfillment, and I want to get to know myself.

It is unfair to say that only women seek spiritual fulfillment, because that is not true. However, there is something specific to women; but, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. What exactly was my husband picking up on? And then, as I was reading Eckhart Tolle’s book A New Earth – Awakening to your Life’s Purpose, I found the answer; or at least a window into the answer. "...women are less mindidentified than men. They are more in touch with the inner body and the intelligence of the organism where the intuitive faculties originate.

The female form is less rigidly encapsulated that the male, has greater openness and sensitivity toward other life-forms, and is more attuned to the natural world."

(Tolle, 2005, p. 155) While this is not the complete explanation, it definitely hints at what my husband senses about women and what drives women to workshops and retreats; to connect with their inner spirit.

Eckhart Tolle goes on to discuss some interesting thoughts about the global loss of the sacred feminine

when women were burned at the stake for showing their connection with nature, for caring for animals or collecting medicinal plants. Tolle blames the ego’s overgrowth on the male/female imbalance caused by the Holy Inquisition (Tolle, 2005).

It is a very interesting section of the book. It makes me realize that maybe what we (women) are searching for is the connection to mother-nature and to the other beings that walk this planet with us. Maybe we sense that the world needs to come back into balance.

These are interesting things to contemplate, especially as we come into cold months here in Western New York. It almost seems like the wrong time to consider connecting to mothernature. The snow is coming and being outside in the frigid temps is not very inviting. However, it is the perfect time for meditation, self-care, connection with people and exploring our connection to the divine. How great would it be to set aside a few hours, a day or even a whole weekend to pamper yourself, to journal, to meditate and to spend quality time with family or friends? That is exactly what this woman intends to do. Use these colder months, not to search for something I’m lacking, but to connect with the greatness within me! ~ Works Cited Tolle, E. (2005). A New Earth-Awakening to Your Life's Purpose.

New York: Penguin Group.

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Personal Development

Thoughts on Procrastination

By Sue Weibel

Photography by Julia Kracke

When it comes to preparedness, there are three types of people: ants, grasshoppers and mice. Aesop describes the ant and the grasshopper in the fable titled, (you guessed it) "The Ant and the Grasshopper". As the story goes, the ant puts great effort into gathering as much food as it can carry back to its hill – trip after trip, until the hill is full. The grasshopper prefers to spend its time enjoying life whenever it can. So, while the ant spends its summer scurrying through crop fields, the grasshopper sits back and spends the season drinking sunshine and eating the sweet, fresh grass. Come winter – when the fields are bare and the grass has turned brown –the ant has a good outlook because its hill is full of food. The grasshopper is not as fortunate...The fabled grasshopper, not wanting to starve, turns to the ant for help. It is irrelevant whether or not the ant is willing or even able to share its food. The moral of the story is that working hard and preparing for future circumstances is better than slacking off and ending up in a predicament.

But, let's think a little more about the ant. Aesop's ant was preparing for the winter when food sources would be scarce or nonexistent. From experience, 66

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the ant knew that it would need a lot of food for a long time, but not the exact duration. Thus the idea of "more is better" was born. Although, the actual theory here should have been "most is best" as the ant has a finite period to prepare and therefore will reach a point when "more" is no longer possible.

The philosophy of "more is better" can be a double edged sword when there is no impending situation.

Good in concept, but easily exploited for the sake of procrastination. Wait to buy a house, get married, or start a family until you reduce your debt...Excessive research about a company or profession before applying for a job... Spending so much time planning and thinking about what might or might not happen that you never actually become ready to put the plan into action. We all procrastinate to some degree – from time to time. It is not necessarily because we are lazy grasshoppers, but perhaps because we are mice. Okay, this is a bit of a stretch. But, let's take a look at how Aesop portrays the mouse.

In "The Mice in Council" the mice decide to hold a meeting to come up with a way of dealing with the troublesome cat. The idea of putting a bell around

the cat's neck (to warn the mice of the cat's approach) came up and gained full support from the group until one wise, old mouse pointed out they would need a volunteer to put the bell into place. Needless to say, enthusiasm for the plan fell to the ground as fear of the action rose within each mouse. It is said that happiness is found on the path (in the plan) and not at the destination (in the action). Maybe that is because we feel safe on the path. Putting things off keeps you on the path. Planning ahead helps you feel safe. The question is: does it ever make you feel ready –without fear? So far one might summarize this essay by saying that preparedness is good unless it leads to procrastination. It's a fine moral and a good statement to offer as a conclusion. Then again, MORE IS BETTER. Therefore, I invite you to contemplate another fable. "The Mouse and the Weasel" (by Aesop, of course) is the story of a mouse who hadn't eaten in several days. The mouse got lucky and found a basket full of corn and because the mouse was skinny due to its lack of recent meals, it easily fit through a hole in the basket. The mouse feasted and feasted! Then it decided it was time to go home. Unfortunately, the mouse had become too fat to fit back out through the hole. The weasel entered the story to advise the mouse.

It said that the only solution to the problem was fast and become skinny again. The moral to Aesop's fable: don't covet more than you can carry. This writer's take on it: the mouse was not gluttonous. It was just preparing for another stretch of famine. However, its efforts were in vain because the mouse prepared (ate) so much, it actually weighed itself down and made it impossible to move on. Further, the mouse ultimately changed itself into something it was not. A skinny mouse must be a skinny mouse – not a fat one! It has been 25 centuries since Aesop walked the Earth. Ants, grasshoppers and mice have been living on all the while. So - right or wrong - good or bad - be an ant, or a mouse, or even a grasshopper. Be yourself. Trust yourself. Move forward. Leave fear and the false sense of safety on the path behind you! ~

The Ant & The Grasshopper an aesop fable In a field one summer's day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's content. An Ant passed by, bearing along with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest.

"Why not come and chat with me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling in that way?"

"I am helping to lay up food for the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same."

"Why bother about winter?" said the Grasshopper; we have got plenty of food at present."

But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil. When the winter came the Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger, while it saw the ants distributing every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer.

Then the Grasshopper knew: It is best to prepare for the days of necessity.

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The mice in Council an aesop fable . photo by Julia Kracke A terrifying cat had come to live in the big house. Every time the mice went into the kitchen for a nibble, the cat would send them scampering.

"We'll starve!" they shouted, and decided to have a council meeting. One by one the mice spoke, but no one could think of a plan.

Finally, a boastful mouse stepped forward and proclaimed his idea to be best. He explained, in detail, how a small bell attached to the cat's collar would warn them all of his approach. Patting himself on his own back for the excellent idea, he sat down.

The oldest mouse stood up and said, "You are a very clever fellow to think of a plan like that! But, now tell us, are you BRAVE enough to put the bell on the cat?"

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Get Real Practice - Doodle

Our winter issue explores our roots and the rebirth into springtime. Print out this page.

Grab your colored pencils and settle in. Focus on the drawing. Add your own patterns, textures and foliage. Tap into your creativity while calming your mind.

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Intimacy

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The Mother Tree

By Brenda Steffon

For all the pain you carry, My sweet Sister, slip inside and wrap your arms around me.

You are safe here.

Stay until your spirit comes alive again.

Till then, hold me close.

In the stillness my embrace will shelter your heart.

Photography by Heidi Spitzig Get Real | Winter 2016

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Golden Truths

Changing Tastes

By Sally Weed

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"I think back to the promise I made about a healthy family so many decades ago and appreciate I had made good on that promise."

Daily meals has been an important part of family life for ages. What I found interesting in reading the other four articles included in this issue about food lifestyles was the current abundance of choices around how we eat. That lead me to write about a short personal narrative about how food was available to us over the past 80+ years. Ultimately, as we age we hope our learned experiences after many years on this earth offer some food for thought about your own choices.

In the spirit of this publication, I hope my own life perspective overview offers you insight into how societal and collective awareness has changed over the decades.

So, children, gather round and I’ll tell you what life was like half a century or more ago. I am in my mid eighties now. As a young girl my childhood was spent during the depressed 30s. Food wise, we ate what was put before us on the table or you went without for the night. The menu was basic and the food was locally grown and/or canned for the colder months. Although we had fresh food there wasn’t much variety. One dish meals were the norm. We drank pasteurized whole milk from the local dairy. Ate white bread with every meal from the store (unless your mother baked her own). To our knowledge, food allergies/sensitivities weren’t even discussed like they are today. A kid’s diet involved eating generous lathers of peanut butter, gluten products and

starches. Homemade fudge and popcorn were our after school treats. In the winter we had a choice of hot cereal for breakfast, such as Wheatena, Cream of Wheat or oatmeal. Fresh squeezed citrus was the only way to get your morning OJ. That meant a lot of hand squeezing on someone’s part. Prune juice was a more readily available version of the modern day green smoothie.

When the 40s arrived, I was a teenager living with my parents and sisters in various cities around the US. WWII effected most things in our lives. Shortages and rations were a normal part of living during this decade.

Everyday food items, such as sugar, meat and butter were rationed. During that time we made do with what was available. Clothing, luxury items and food supplies were handled with care and used in small quantities.

A side memory I have is making an apple pie using Ritz crackers with no apples. Can you guess how we made it? The filing was made of crushed Ritz crackers mixed with sugar, water, cream of tartar, lemon juice, butter and cinnamon. Then baked in a pie pastry crust.

Imagination in the kitchen was a powerful tool back then. Margarine appeared in little grocery markets. It looked white like lard until you mixed in a yellow food coloring capsule to mimic the visual likeness of real butter. We could buy small cans of frozen orange juice and packages of frozen veggies. Refrigerators only had Get Real | Winter 2016

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a small integrated freezer compartment; barely enough to hold a couple of ice cube trays. New stand alone deep freezers were still a splurge. So the bags of frozen vegetables, the pint of ice cream and the family pack of chicken breasts were not a bulk staple of your weekly groceries. Spam was an available canned meat and, yes, we were glad to get it. A one dish dinner of spaghetti was a common weekday dinner.

The 50s rolled in. I became a wife and new mother. Convenience was the buzz word for postwar living. “Less work for mother” was a widely used advertising slogan slapped across a multitude of time saving products used in the home. Food was pre-mixed, packaged and frozen. With more frozen food, the modern refrigerator upgraded with a roomy bottom mounted lower freezer compartment. With the boom of convenience, supermarkets popped up and replaced the corner grocery store for weekly shopping. Food began to be transported across the country at faster shipping speeds. Cookbooks got fancier using the latest packaged food item. Every homemaker had a Betty Crocker Picture Cook Book in the kitchen. The age of the casserole sprung onto the scene with classic heavy hitters, such as tuna noodle and frosted meatloaf. Sides were frozen or canned vegetables. Chex-mix was the snack to serve at your cocktail party. If you wanted simple, you served canned soup for lunch or dinner.

"My choices became about keeping my family healthy over convenience" We ate anything and everything from a box, a can or fresh without question. There was no concern over reading the ingredients (many weren’t even listed). Even though we couldn’t pronounce or weren’t familiar with any of the strange sounding ingredients, as a society we took it for granted that any of these processed or pre-packaged foods couldn’t be harmful to your health, other animals or the environment at large. We were caught up by the ease of post war living.

Doubt crept in during the 60s and 70s for many of us, including myself. The social movements of the 74

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time pushed against government and corporate establishments forcing expose reports about depleted soils, cold storage foods, tainted water supplies and mistreated farm animals. Social consciousness shifted towards more questioning sources. As a mother and homemaker, I decided I needed to make changes in our diet for my family’s health as well as make a small stand for my ethics. After seeing pictures of baby calves trapped in way too small cages I decided to stop serving veal in our house.

There was a low economic period during the mid 70s when there was a gas shortage. We waited in long lines at the gas stations to fill up our gas tanks.

As a result, my husband and I thought twice about driving our cars too much. I began to think about how to save money and resources while keeping my promise of better health for my family. I began reading books about vitamins and buying supplements to make up for what was missing in our diets. I purchased a juicer that my daughter still uses and juiced veggies before it as the “in thing”. I switched how I prepared food in ways that kept them more nutritious. For example, switching from boiling our vegetables to steaming them. The idea of growing our own organic food and being more selfsufficient became an attractive idea for us. There was a vacant lot next to our property that was for sale. The land had an open level area suitable for a vegetable and fruit garden. We bought it with high hopes. At this point we had three children to feed. By far, we were novices, but we had organic gardener friends who offered us with patient ears their sage advice. Weekends were spent rototilling, raking and planting our latest plant gems.

For the next 10 years we planted a variety of vegetables, berries, herbs and fruit trees. Each year we harvested our yields, adjusted our garden layouts and

"We ate anything and everything from a box, a can or fresh without question.

There was no concern over reading the ingredients (many weren’t even listed).

Even though we couldn’t pronounce or weren’t familiar with any of the strange sounding ingredients, as a society we took it for granted that any of these processed or pre-packaged foods couldn’t be harmful to your health, other animals or the environment at large. We were caught up by the ease of post war living."

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"we ate what was put before us on the table. The menu was basic and the food was locally grown and/or canned" made plans for bigger and better crops. As a result we needed a much bigger freezer to store the growing volume bags of bountiful harvest of berries and homemade tomato sauce that graced our family table well into the depths of winter. I made pickles, jellies and lots of zucchini bread. Our garage became cold storage for butternut squash and other roots vegetables.

I dried herbs for seasoning. Growing experience paid off as I kept reading about new techniques to refine our organic garden. One expert author, Ruth Stout, advised mulching the garden instead of tilling it in order to reduce the upheaval of the soil’s macrobiotic balance.

We bought hay from a local farmer and used it to mulch our rows and mounds. With all the hours invested working in the garden, we naturally started to enjoy leisure time down there. All the rocks we tilled or dug out of the garden area were piled up until eventually we had a spacious elevated level rock patio overlooking our large garden footprint. My retired husband and I would spend many peaceful late afternoons sitting on the patio bench, sipping our glass of wine and munching off a plate of cheese and crackers as the sunset dipped past our garden view. It was hard work maintaining such a large garden into the 1990s but we were healthier 60 and 70 year olds because of it. To this day I am not on any prescription medications and I believe being so active with our garden work helped me. I think back to the promise I made about a healthy family so many decades ago and appreciate I had made good on that promise to them.

Age has crept up on us both. We see the food lifestyle most elderly who are unable to shop and cook for themselves are subjected to. Most are frequent visitors of hospitals, nursing homes and/or assisted living facilities with eat-in dining rooms. Food often lacks flavor, variety and texture. Not to mention the food in those facilities are rarely organic or locally sourced.

Once again convenience is the name of the game. Most seniors live on a limited budget so cheaper options like frozen dinners, pre-packaged foods, fruit and vegetables out of a can fill their freezer, fridge and cupboards.

Still, many of us older folks live longer lives than past generations and in our own homes. Much is shifting in "Because of gardening we were more our world climate and increasing populations. As I reflect back there is no question nutrient rich, safely farmed attuned to the natural world. " and harvested food was important to maintaining good health well into our golden years. I’ll end this tale with But there is more to this journey than just growing a challenge to you younger generations. How will you our own food and the hard work to accomplish it. in this current freedom of available food lifestyles use Because of gardening, we were as a family more attuned your time, money and talents towards protecting your to the natural world and its cycles. Our family had a and your families’ health? More so, how will you begin healthier diet. The space offered a place of peace and to pave a new standard of healthy food options in places reflection in a busier and more crowded world. Now like retirement or assisted living senior homes? You are looking back to all those decades left far behind, my the generations that must find it – for your own sakes – husband and I would do it all over again, if we could. if for nothing else. Think about it! ~ 76

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Far Horizons My garden is my altar, My inner, sweet delight.

The earnest of my spirit, God's page on which I write.

Each year I plant new beauty, New patience summers teach; Each year the arms of autumn Outspan my earthly reach.

There never was a winter, There never will be one, When I could close my garden And know the page was done.

Edith Lombard Squires

from her book Luminous Dust,1939

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Deep Dives

Birthing Our Inner Knowldege

By Melissa Pletscher-Nizinsky

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Coming into the winter issue which focuses on learning to prepare and the festival of birth/rebirth, I started thinking about my own birth experiences. I have three children ranging in age from twelve to four.

For each of these pregnancies and births, I chose to get my obstetric care from a midwife. This is also where I’ ve chosen to get my gynecological care when I am not pregnant. For myself, this felt like a logical path to take. I have always gravitated toward female health care providers. Partially this is a result of being sexually abused as a child. I have had little trust of men in general throughout my life and was certainly not comfortable enough to be as vulnerable as one needs to be in a health care atmosphere with a male provider, particularly when it came to gynecological and obstetric care. As a

For centuries, midwives were the primary health care providers for both women and men within their communities. woman, I also feel it is much easier for a female health care provider to understand the physical, emotional and mental workings of another female since they are working with the same biological make up. This is not to say by any means that male health care providers do not know how to treat female patients. I currently have two male providers on my medical team who are both wonderful. That being said, I would still, given the choice, choose a female health care provider over a male in most circumstances and for gynecological and obstetric care I can’t imagine not choosing a midwife.

I have been fortunate to have had uncomplicated, “normal” pregnancies, labors and deliveries so I have never had to face the possibility of not seeing my midwife for care. Pregnancy and birth have always seemed like

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a normal event which my body was biologically made for should I choose to use it for these purposes. I have always viewed hospitals as a place to go when you are sick or dying. Since I’ve never considered pregnancy an illness and felt confident in my body doing what it was biologically meant to do, I really did not want to have my baby’s birth happen in a hospital. Unfortunately (or fortunately as some friends and family would see it, including my husband) the midwifery team I had chosen for my care would not do home births. I really liked both the midwives in this practice as well as the female obstetrician who worked with them, and therefore trusted that even though I would be giving birth in a hospital setting rather than in the comfort of my home, my wishes and concerns would be met and addressed. For the most part, this was the case.

I was blessed with quick and relatively “easy” labor and deliveries. Labor and delivery are NEVER easy. It’s a LOT of work to bring a new human being into this world. Having three unmedicated, vaginal births, I can honestly say to date giving birth is the most pain I have ever been in. They don’t call it “labor” for nothing and when that baby’s head crowns there is nothing to do but pay attention. So when I say I had an “easy” labor and delivery, I don’t want you getting the idea that this was a jaunt through the park while eating bonbons. It was hard, difficult and often painful work but work that I felt prepared for, both physically and mentally.

I’m not sure exactly why this was how I felt when so many of the women I encountered along my journey into motherhood felt so differently. Every woman within my family who had children, delivered them in a hospital setting under the care of a male obstetrician, often highly medicated (and in the case of at least one of my grandmothers, completely unconscious and unaware she was even having twins until she awoke much later and was handed two babies instead of one), frequently without any familial support around and 80

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often experienced complications of one sort or another resulting in surgical intervention or loss. Considering this, one would think my view of pregnancy and birth would not be so positive in nature. I credit some of this viewpoint to a mother who lifted me up and encouraged me through every step of my life journey so far, even when those steps weren’t necessarily the steps she would have taken. I also credit this viewpoint as coming from my unquenchable thirst for knowledge on just about every topic I encounter. Pair these with my stubborn nature to do things the way I want to rather than the way society tells me to, and I guess we come closer to the answer to that question.

As women, we are often taught to ignore our intuition and core knowledge. This can be seen in the history of midwifery. Historically, women have always had other women in the community to turn to for support, whether with reproductive health events or societal/social issues. Midwife(English), sage-femme (French), jordemor (Danish) or ljósmóðir (Icelandic) all refer to women who have “been at the center of the ‘woman’s world’- the part of life and society that women have some control over and from which men tend to be excluded, including until recently, pregnancy and birth.” (Wagner, 101) For centuries, midwives were

with. In order to remedy this situation, newly minted doctors worked in conjunction with the church to level accusations of witchcraft against these midwives. This eliminated the midwife factor either because these women were killed or there was enough distrust placed around them that the local people were no longer willing to risk going to midwives, thereby giving them little choice but to seek healthcare from the university educated doctors.

Much like in Europe, it was the professionalized medical community which eventually pushed midwives out of the medical field in the United States as well.

Although accusations of witchcraft were always a risk in the American colonies and what would eventually become the United States, up until the late 1800s and early 1900s midwives were still an important aspect of early colonial communities. Unlike Europe which had been urbanized for centuries, America was a relatively unsettled country (at least in the European colonists’ view). Initial communities were generally small, agrarian based settlements surrounded by vast “unsettled� areas.

Because university trained doctors from Europe were not often choosing to come to the colonies, midwives were often the sole health care providers in colonial the primary health care providers for both women and men within their communities. This was true of both European communities as well as colonial communities in North America. During the Middle Ages in Europe, specifically during the Inquisition, midwives were often victims of witch hunts. As stated on Gendercide Watch, 60,000 plus people were killed during these witch hunts, 80% of the victims were women and half of those were midwives. (http://www.gendercide.org/case_ witchhunts.html) These accusations often stemmed from the newly institutionalized medical field. At this time, men were attempting to take over the heath care system by requiring all health care providers to be university educated with some sort of degree. Since education in general and university-level education specifically was denied to women at this time, this requirement would effectively put local midwives and other female health care providers out of business. Unfortunately for the newly minted "educated" doctors, local people were unwilling to trust these new health care providers and continued to seek medical assistance from their local midwives whom they had a trusted relationship Get Real | Winter 2016

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communities and greatly respected. “Midwives were responsible for the care of almost all pregnant women during the first 250 years of life in the colonies of the United States.” (Rooks, 17) It wasn’t until the late 1700s and early 1800s when American medical schools started to come into existence that midwives’ hold on the healing professions started to slip. Even then, midwives were still the primary health care providers for women giving birth as well as for community members in more rural societies where “educated” doctors were unavailable and/or unaffordable. With the start of the 1830s and ‘40s, male doctors began to make a bid for taking over the obstetric field. Before this time, birth was still considered within a woman's realm and therefore untouchable by male doctors unless in cases of difficult births. With the increase in professional medical schools, doctors began to see obstetrics as a

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money making field which they were losing out on due to midwives. Rather than using accusations of witchcraft like their European forefathers, doctors started to use accusations of uncleanliness, lack of education and practices based on superstition and old wives tales as ways to sway people away from using midwives for their obstetric needs. They also attempted to blame midwives for high maternal and infant death rates, although there have been studies to show that doctors had much higher death rates due to overzealous use of various interventions as well as unsanitary practices (such as lack of hand washing between patients).

The switch from midwives to doctors happened gradually starting with the upper classes until around the 1930s with the invention of sulfa based antibiotics which greatly decreased maternal death rates. By this point most states required midwives to be licensed, although

few provided adequate training Most midwives at this historical juncture were immigrant women serving immigrant or rural populations. Rooks states “By 1932 approximately 80 percent of all midwives practicing in the United States were traditional birth attendants living in the rural south.” (pg 50) It wasn’ t until the 1950s with the beginnings of the Natural Childbirth and Breastfeeding Movements, and more so the ‘60s and ‘70s, that the US started to see a returned increase in obstetric care provided by midwives in the form of Certified Nurse-Midwives.

Because university trained doctors from Europe were not often choosing to come to the colonies, midwives were often the sole health care providers in colonial communities and greatly respected Although the university trained doctors in the United States did not use witchcraft accusations as a means to eliminate competition from midwives, they did use stereotypes and fear tactics, much like their European counterparts centuries before. I do believe that the male medical field was the main push behind the removal of midwives from health care, but it is important to remember that some of this shift came from women themselves. During the beginnings of the 1900s when birth started to shift from midwife to doctor based care, women of the upper class and eventually the middle class began to demand more comfortable and less painful births. This was often achieved through administration of various drugs, particularly a combination of morphine and scopolamine otherwise known as "twilight sleep." This combination helped reduce pain and caused lack of memory of the childbirth process. These drugs could not be administered at home and therefore required a hospital doctor based birth if a woman chose this option. In addition, women were also being advertised to more in journals and magazines, encouraging them to choose doctor supervised, hospital births for more comfortable and safer deliveries.

Currently, in most industrialized countries outside of the United States and Canada, the majority of lowrisk births are attended by midwives. Why is it that in our society, midwives are seen as less than both in their

knowledge and ability to care for women’s reproductive needs? Why do we in the United States put trained surgeons in the form of obstetricians in charge of a natural process like birth? Dr. Marsden Wagner argues in his book Born in the USA: How a Broken Maternity System Must Be Fixed To Put Women and Children First, you wouldn’t put surgeons in charge of other normal life events, so why do we do that when it comes to birth? He argues because obstetricians are trained surgeons, they think like surgeons and unconsciously view birth as a medical event. (pgs 20-21) Judith Pence Rooks states in her book Midwifery and Childbirth in America, Whereas medicine focuses on the pathologic potential of pregnancy and birth, midwifery focuses on its normalcy and potential for health.

Pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding are normal bodily and family functions. That they are susceptible to pathology does not negate their essential normalcy and importance of the non-medical aspects of these critical processes and events in people's lives. (pg 2) One detail we seem to overlook here in the United States is the fact that midwifery and obstetrics are two different professions. Although they do have overlapping knowledge bases, essentially they are not one and the same. Their philosophies around pregnancy and birth are very different. “Midwives are not practicing from the middle realm of obstetrics. They are practicing midwifery.” (Rooks, pg. 6) In general, midwives focus on pregnancy and birth as a natural process and one which can be life-enhancing. They assist in the birthing process and act as facilitators and support for the birthing woman and her family/support system. They are trained to identify problems and know what can go wrong, but this is not their main focus.

Obstetricians, on the other hand, often view pregnancy and birth as a medical condition, something which happens to a woman rather than something that women do. They generally focus on what can go wrong with pregnancy and birth, and how to treat those problems. They are trained to look for problems, figure out treatments and generally focus on the science without taking into consideration subjective experiences Get Real | Winter 2016

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that go along with all life events.

This is all not to discount obstetricians or argue that they have no place in the birth process, but it is a call for us to take a hard look at how we deal with this life event which is a part of so many people’s lives. There will always be a place for obstetricians in the birthing process, it’s just a question of where that place is.

Should that place be with normal, low-risk pregnancies and births, or should it be relegated to high-risk cases where their expertise would be most beneficial? “When we try to make women believe that they can’t give birth without the help of men, machines, and hospitals, we take away their confidence and their belief in their own bodies - and with their confidence gone, any feelings of power and autonomy also disappear.” (Wagner, pg 190) Now of course, this story may not and probably will not resonate with all women. Although I believe my female body was created to gestate and birth new humans, that does not mean I think as a woman this is my sole role or even that I think it should be my role at all. I chose to go down the path of motherhood with open eyes, heart, mind and arms, but that was my choice and may not be yours. Fundamentally though this story of the stifling of women's voices in the medical field, particularly in the realm of obstetrics and gynecology, exhibits the continued denial of our inner knowledge and intuitions of the workings of our bodies.

The medicalization of birth has caused women to lose the trust we once had in ourselves and our abilities.

We often ignore what we know in favor of what we are told. Where else in your life are you stifling your voice?

Where are you ignoring your inner knowledge? ~

Works Cited Wagner, Marsden. Born in the USA: How a Broken Maternity System Must Be Fixed To Put Women and Children First. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2006.

Rooks, Judith Pence. Midwifery & Childbirth in America Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1997.

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Want to know more? Check out these sources: American College of Nurse-Midwives www.midwife.org Midwives Alliance of North American www.mana.org Birthwise Midwifery School www.birthwisemidwifery.edu

Books: Witches, Midwives & Nurses: A History of Women Healers by Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English Reconceiving Midwifery edited by Ivy Lynn Bourgeault, Cecilia Benoit and Robbie Davis-Floyd The Rhetoric of Midwifery: Gender, Knowledge and Power by Mary M. Lay Sisters on a Journey: Portrait of American Midwives by Penfield Chester Baby Catcher: Chronicles of a Modern Midwife by Peggy Vincent And check out this article about doctors, nurses and other medical professionals who are choosing to give birth at home: http://jennifermargulis.net/ blog/2014/09/why-doctors-nurses-andother-medical-professionals-are-choosingto-birth-at-home/

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Swan Song

Photography by Mark D. Head

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If light is in your heart you will find your way home. ~ Rumi

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