  Volume I, Issue 2
A Quarterly Publication
Winter 2012
A magazine to nourish the mind, body, and spirit for the community of Berks County
Body
Mind
Holiday tips & recipes to keep you healthy this winter!
Relationships and Mindfulness
Skin Brushing
How to cope with Anxiety
Yoga for the Holiday Season
Spirit Daily Affirmations & Visualizations Keys to Healing Shift 2012: Celebrating a New Age in Reading
Homeopathy
http://www.livingwellinberks.org
Living Well In Berks mission is to educate the community about healthy lifestyle choices & wellness services in Berks County.
A letter from the Editor, As we move into the winter season, take cues from the natural world, slow down and go inside. This gives you an opportunity to reflect on your own life and determine what you would like to change. Acknowledge what no longer serves you, reconnect with your Self, and restore balance in your life. This issue of Living Well in Berks is filled with articles from local practitioners providing suggestions to make positive healthy choices to increase your own health and happiness. Lucine Mackow demonstrates a few yoga postures to detoxify and restore balance. Phoebe Canakis and Kelly Wisner provide recipes to warm you as the weather cools. Dorthory Paschall offers suggestions to keep a healthy glow. Sandra Seaman provides homeopathic remedies beat cold and flu season. LuAnn Liberatori discusses the benefits of yoga to help with anxiety and depression. Dr. Jeffrey Lupowitz shares keys to healing the self. Craig Schollenberger provides tips for healthy relationships. Susie Hartman suggests positive affirmations for the New Year. Diane Trieb explains the conscious evolution and the Living Well in Berks event, SHIFT 2012: A New Age in Reading, all are welcome! If you desire to create a healthy and happier life, Berks County offers a wealth of educated professional wellness practitioners and in person workshops and events. To learn more about the Living Well in Berks community, visit www.livingwellinberks.org. Wishing you peace, joy, and happiness through the winter season, Diane Lauer
Starting December 2012
New and improved website - Enhanced Provider Directory - Search by Provider Name, Location, or Category - Robust Event Calendar - More Educational Resources !
Interested in joining the Living Well in Berks community? Contact me at: Diane@LivingWellinBerks.org "#$%!&'!($!")*+,((-.! /)*+,((-0*(123#4#$56+778$9+:-'!
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Yoga for the Holidays
By Lucine Mackow
The months of November through January hold many joyous holiday celebrations across cultures worldwide. These holidays can leave a yoga practitioner feeling overwhelmed, over fed, and unable to make time for practice. We have put together a few postures for home practice that will help restore the spirit, calm the mind, and detoxify the body. Remember, a little bit of yoga is better than none at all! May the holidays you celebrate bring peace and joy to your heart! Easy Pose
Sukhasana
Centering
1
Childs Pose Balasana Gratitude & Grounding 2 Gently bring your forehead to the mat and relax your muscles. With each exhale, feel your body sink closer to the ground. Focus on gratitude and allowing time for self care.
Find a quiet area and bring yourself To a comfortable seated pose. Close your eyes and relax your muscles. Concentrate on your natural breath as it gently moves in & out of your body.
Camel
Utrasana
Heart Opening
3
Start in a kneeling posture. Use both hands to support your lower back. Begin to inhale and lift your chest to the sky. As you exhale, relax and make sure you can swallow. Feel the opening of the throat and heart center. Hold for several breaths, and inhale to release posture slowly and bring head back to center.
Seated twist Manchyasana III Digestion 4 Begin in a seated position with legs extended. Bring right knee to chest, and hug with left arm. Place right hand by
left hip to sit up straight. Move your chin to look over your right shoulder. Bring head out of posture first, and reverse sides.
Reclined leg inversion Viparita Karani 5
Final resting pose 6
Restoration
Stillness of the mind and body
Scoot your bottom to rest flat against the wall, along with your hamstrings, calves, and heels. Relax your quadriceps and other muscles. Place your hands palms down on the outside of their respective hips. With your exhale, let the shoulders, back of the neck, and lower back rest gently into the ground.
Savasana
Bring your body to rest on your mat. Gently cover yourself with a blanket to keep yourself warm. Close your eyes and begin to relax every muscle in your body. Practice stillness of the body and mind. Bring awareness to your natural breath as it enters and exits the Nostrils. Stay as long as you need to in this posture.
Visit Lucine’s website: gayatriwellness.vpweb.com Find out more about private/community/corporate yoga classes and events.
Pumpkin Parfait serves 4
A Warm Hug with Herbs and Spices Together we can change the world one bite at a time. By Kelly Wisner, Herbal Peasant
Pumpkin filling 3/4 cup pureed cannellini beans, optional, offers fiber, protein and body 1/4 cup prunes, soaked 20 minutes, remove pits 1/2 cup pumpkin puree 2 tablespoons agave, brown rice syrup or maple syrup or to taste
Many moons ago I owned an herb shop called Herbal Heaven.
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, 5 spice powder or 1 teaspoon cinnamon
It was an educational based retail herb shop. We sold bulk herbs, spices, and all things herbal. We taught folks how to grow, harvest and the benefits of herbs for every day use.
Topping
Word gets out around Berks County when someone is a little different from the norm. It's a magnet, maybe out of curiosity, maybe in the hopes of advice. I remember a woman came in complaining that her feet were always cold. After a few minutes of chatting about circulatory herbs and spices a few suggestions were offered. During our chat I mentioned an article that I had read about sprinkling cayenne pepper in gloves and socks to keep the hands and feet warm. Cayenne is one of the circulatory spices; it gets the blood flowing. If you ever had the experience of touching your eyes after cutting a cayenne pepper, you'll understand the concept. A few weeks pass, the lady came back and was happy to report it works! The side effect? Turned her feet orange, but they were warm and she was happy. My mom and I attend herbal lectures. Mind you not always your run of the mill lectures at universities. We tent camped in a cornfield in Iowa, the woods of New Hampshire and rustic cabins in New York. We had a blast. We have drummed and danced around bonfires, attended a sweat lodge, applied hennas, learn how to self breast massage (use ginger massage oil) to promote circulation to abate cancer and did the "boob wave" which we have passed on to many woman. A few of our teachers were Rosemary Gladstar, David Winston, David Hoffmann, Dr. Tieraona Low Dog (my fav), Ryan Drum, Patch Adams and Diana De Luca who wrote Botanica Erotica. Diana told us a story where one of her friends came to stay. He wanted to take a long soaking bath. She offered him a bath blend that contained peppermint. As he soaked to ease the tension of the day all of a sudden the peppermint oil started burning the nether region. He jumps up and yells, "Goodness gracious great balls of fire!" To this day herbs and spices are still the mainstay in our culinary sessions. To name a few more circulatory herbs and spices: Black Pepper, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Garlic, Horseradish, Rosemary and Turmeric.
6 oz. of any complementing yogurt, dairy or vegan, try plain, lemon, honey, blood orange 2 tablespoons frozen, grated ginger 1/2 tablespoon orange zest Extras 1/4 cup dried cherries or craisins, soaked in water 20 minutes, drain 1/4 cup dried cherries, raisins or craisins, not soaked, optional 1/2 cup chopped favorite nuts or seeds such as pecans, sunflower or pepitas, divided To prepare the filling, pulse beans in food processor or high speed blender until coarsely chopped. Add, prunes, pumpkin, sweetener and spice, puree. Topping: Add all topping ingredients to a bowl. Stir gently until well blended. Serve in a small shallow wine glass. For each parfait add a heaping tablespoon nuts/seed, topped with a heaping tablespoon cherries, 1/4 of the pumpkin purĂŠe, add 1/4 of topping. Garnish with another heaping tablespoon of nuts/seeds and dried fruit.
Seasonally chic, seductively wholesome Apple Cider The best addition to meals this season! By Phoebe Canakis, Phoebe’s Pure Foods
Quinoa Salad • 1 cup dry quinoa • 1 cup water or broth • 1 cup cider • 2 tsp dried thyme • pinch salt Bring the liquid to a boil, add quinoa, cover, lower heat to simmer, cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and fluid with fork. (Will yield approximately 4 cups cooked.)
• 12 oz organic carrots, sweet potato or winter squash, brussels sprouts, chopped • 1 small onion, chopped • 2 cloves garlic, sliced • Sprinkle of extra virgin olive oil to lightly coat the veggies • Optional: nuts and dried fruit
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss the chopped veggies in a splash of olive oil to lightly coat. Prepare a layer of aluminum foil, on a baking sheet, with non-stick spray/olive oil. Spread the veggies on the pan and cook for 8 minutes at a time removing after the first 8 min to stir the veggies for an even roast and prevent burning. Once the veggies are golden mix with the quinoa, nuts, dried fruit and dressing to serve warm or chilled. Dressing 2T extra virgin olive oil, 1T red wine vinegar, splash of agave or maple syrup, dash of nutmeg & cinnamon
Apple Cider Chili • • • • • • •
1 1/2 lb ground chicken or turkey 1 T extra virgin olive oil 8 oz mushrooms, chopped (baby bella or portabella - not white) 1 medium onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1 small jalapeño pepper, diced 1/4 c roasted red pepper (i love to freeze roasted red pepper to have on hand for recipes like this) • splash Worcestershire • 1 tsp salt • 1T thyme • 1 T all purpose seasoning (mrs. dash) • 2 cups broth • 2 cups apple cider • 3, 14 oz cans diced tomatoes • 1 cup dry brown rice • 1 cup corn, organic • 2 cups dried beans, that have been reconstituted = 6 cups cooked beans yield approximately 6 lbs or 8, 12oz servings This recipe can easily be made vegan/vegetarian. Substitute the ground turkey with diced winter squash, extra mushrooms or potatoes. I prepared this dish in the crockpot but you can simmer it on the stove until the ingredients are thoroughly cooked. In a large pot (3-4 quarts) sauté the onions, garlic and olive oil on mediumhigh heat for approximately 15 minutes, until they start to caramelize, add the mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms have softened (5-8 minutes). Add the ground turkey, jalapeño pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and thyme continuing to cook until browned. Add the liquid ingredients, corn, rice, beans, roasted red pepper and tomato, cover and simmer on medium-low until the rice has cooked
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Skin brushing for a natural & healthy glow
By Dorothy Paschall
We are always pursuing soft, healthy, glowing skin. We purchase and try tons of products to help us achieve that beautiful "Glow". I'll bet the industry makes more than a billion dollars a year providing all types of products, one better than the last! Do we really need all these products on our skin? With winter on its way, I thought this would be the ideal time to share a somewhat forgotten beauty secret with you. Actually I was re- introduced to this technique through my colleague Cheryl Calautti, of Calautti Reflexology, in Gilbertsville, Pa. Once I did the research and started the twice-daily regimen on myself, I saw immediate results! Dry Skin Brushing, or just "skin brushing", has been used throughout the centuries across many cultures. Some Native American tribes would use dried corncobs to brush their skin. In Asia, rough natural sponges rubbed on the skin always preceded a hot bath. In ancient Greece, even men used scrapers on their bodies to remove the mud and grime build upon their skin before entering the baths. Today we use washcloths, soft sponges, back brushes, exfoliating mitts, nets and various products. The big difference is that these items are always used in the shower or bath. The exfoliating process is sometimes effective but incomparable to a skin brushing technique using a dry natural bristle brush before your shower or bath. Using a proper dry bushing technique, you will increase the lymphatic drainage and quickly accelerate the flow of lymph throughout the body. The venous blood flow is also affected, exciting and toning the muscles and nerves of the skin as it improves circulation leaving you a warm and invigorated feeling. Dry Skin Brushing promotes beautiful, naturally moisturized skin; you can feel the difference with the first brushing and see the difference over just a few days. You'll notice as the dead cells are brushed away the natural oils are able to replenish the skin giving it a silky smooth sensation and real all natural glow. I have read that cellulite is a disturbance in the structure of the fat tissue. Fibrous nodules apparently surround a fat cell giving the typical puckered appearance. So if cellulite forms in areas of our upper & underarms and inner and upper thighs could it possibly be related so some lymph congestion? Regular and proper skin brushing may help to alleviate the appearance of this condition. That has been my personal experience I have been skin brushing regularly almost everyday. It does take me about 10-15 minutes before bed & again before my morning shower. Along with increasing the lymph movement in my body, it has had a direct effect on the discomfort in my arms & shoulders that I experience due to muscle over use as a Massage Therapist. Also my dry skin issues with itching have disappeared and I have not used my in shower moisturizer in 3 months. The appearance of puckering under and around my upper arms has improved 75% since I began skin brushing. If you have any medical conditions, a history of blood clots, varicose veins or even skin conditions or you are under the care of a physician you need to check with that physician first. Here is some helpful information to consider as well: In the beginning of your brushing regimen you could experience some skin redness or itching especially at the chest and ancillary area. This is a sensitive area and it does subside as your skin completes a detox process. If you notice a rash or skin eruptions discontinue brushing that area until it returns to normal, you may be over brushing that particular spot.
All brushes need to be natural fiber bristles. Boar始s hair is a good starter brush, as you get more comfortable with the sensation you can move to a Tampico brush or another firmer vegetable brush. At least 2 different brushes are needed, I suggest 3 different ones, personally I have not included the foot brushing (I cannot stop laughing long enough to complete it!) Brushes: 1 small brush for your face neck & breast area 1 short handle curved body brush 1 long handle body brush 1 small brush for feet only Brush care: It's best to comb your brush to remove the skin dust. Remember these are natural brushes so they have and will carry a slight smell. I find washing the bristles makes it more apparent so I only comb them. If you choose to wet the bristles, I would not submerge the whole brush. Your brush will need to be replaced eventually, depending on how much use it gets. For me it's every 3 months. Self care Remember Dry Brushing means just that, no freshly applied lotions, oils, powders or perfumes. Brush first. Brush your skin before your shower or bath, not after, or brush before bed. Brush vigorously but not harshly and use care around sensitive areas to avoid scratches. To get the most benefit out of Dry Skin Brushing, it is suggested that you have proper instruction on the brushing technique.
www.massageandbodyworkcenters.com
Private instruction, including a brushing session & 2 brushes, for $45.00. A single brushing session is $20
Yoga to Reduce Anxiety
By LuAnne Liberatori
Do you feel your heart beat fast when you are stuck in traffic and you may be late for work? Do you feel like you can’t breathe or feel your chest tighten like a vise during a tense situation? Do you get butterflies in your stomach while waiting for your test results from the doctor? Do you feel overwhelmed during the holidays or with holiday related responsibilities? Do you get high strung while paying your bills or during income tax time? These experiences or feelings are what is called an anxiety or panic attack. If you experienced any of those descriptions, welcome to the world of anxiety. Anxiety and panic disorders are defined as the crippling conditions that cause the person to suffer from unpleasant anxiety attacks. The effects of the attacks are so frightening and depressing that the victims are sometimes forced to take on extreme lifestyle habits to curtail the symptoms to achieve stress relief. It is documented in some medical literature that anxiety disorders are the most common cause of disability in the workplace in the United States. How does yoga help with calming anxiety and stress relief? Yoga practice teaches calmness and a relaxed state of mind through deep breathing and meditation which focuses on inner peace. This is the opposite of the anxiety symptoms. Having a yoga practice is a great way to manage anxiety and stress. Yoga focuses on the combination of gentle physical movements known as poses and breathing practice; relaxation and meditation are made to “harmonize” the workings of the nervous system and to relax the physical and mental body. Practicing yoga has shown to regulate the stress response system that results in lower heart rate, which in turn lowers the blood pressure and eases respiration. As a recovering “Nervous Nellie”, I no longer jump out of my skin every time I see a “White Coat” aka doctor. Finding yoga has truly been my lifesaver. By practicing yoga that includes breath exercise, yoga poses and meditation, I have found relief in my anxiety symptoms and my blood pressure and heart rate has decreased from my pre yoga days. I am on my journey to be free from the bondage of anxiety attacks. Wouldn’t you want that freedom as well?
Keys to Healing 1. Learn More Deeply To Sense Each Part of Your Body. 2. Learn to identify your emotion at any particular time, and the human need that you have that is behind that emotion. 3. Honor the feedback from your body and emotions at all times - are they saying "yes, more", or "uh oh, I need help with this..." 4. Engage in thee practices consistently. That is the biggest key -when something is working, continue! If it no longer works, get support.
By Dr. Jeffrey Lupowitz
Happy New Year
Healing the Self and Enjoying successful & sustainable lives!
by Sandra Seaman, C.F. Hom .
Well, this is a BIG subject! There are many, many homeopathic remedies that cover these situations. Colds, coughs and flu call for some of the same remedies because the symptoms of all of these illnesses overlap. The first question is, do you need to treat a common cold homeopathically? If you tend to have mild colds and your body is able to recover from them fairly easily, it is best to allow that natural healing to take place, using old fashioned care with plenty of rest, plenty of liquids and Vitamin C and Zinc, if you like. If, however, you tend to have long, lingering colds and coughs or you tend to develop bronchitis and respiratory infections, homeopathy can be a great help in shortening up the illness and avoiding complications. If these are recurring illnesses, you would benefit from chronic homeopathic treatment. In working with homeopathy, we need to find an individual remedy that fits your unique response to the virus. This can be tricky as we all say the same things, "my nose is running, my nose is stuffy, my throat hurts, I feel really bad, I feel really sick, I'm so tired." These are common symptoms and not helpful in finding a remedy - there are hundreds of remedies that could match these symptoms. Here are some questions to ask yourself to find your unique cold and cough symptoms: 1. What stage is the cold or cough - early (first 24 hours), late (more than a week), or in between? 2. Which symptoms are the strongest, nasal, cough, eyes, throat, chest? 3. What time of the day are symptoms the worst? Do the symptoms change during the day and night (ex., nose is stuffed at night and dripping during the day). 4. What is the color and consistency of nasal discharge? Do nasal discharges or tears irritate the skin? 4. Are you hoarse? Do you have to clear your throat often? 5. For a cough, is it dry or wet? Is there wheezing or rattling? Where is the tickle that starts the cough? Do you cough in fits? What time of the day is worst? What do you do to make it better (ex., sit up in bed, hold your chest)? What is the color and consistency of any coughed up mucus? Is it hard to raise the mucus? 6. What sensations do you feel in your head, nose, throat and chest? (ex, tightness, soreness, dryness, what kind of pain, sore throat that extends to the ears) We are just touching on a few of the most common remedies here. There are many more; many that are indicated more for coughs and bronchitis, some for colds with vomiting, some for croup. The best way to become more acquainted with all the remedies is to purchase a good acute homeopathy book. Here are remedies that work well in the first 24 hours of a cold:
Aconite –
Ferrum Phosphoricum –
Belladonna –
Matches a cold that comes on suddenly and the person feels quite ill. It often comes on after exposure to cold weather, especially a cold, dry wind, and becoming chilled. There may be anxiety, fear and restlessness. Generally worse at night around midnight and may wake up with symptoms beginning at midnight. Air passages feel dry and irritated. Thirsty. Watery, runny nose. May have a high fever. Cough dry, barking, irritating, short, tickling.
This is a remedy recommended for the early stages of a cold that is fairly nondescript. It has less dramatic symptoms than Aconite and Belladonna. If the early cold picture does not have very marked symptoms, give Ferrum Phos. Chill with shivering, fever with flushed face, often round circles of red on the cheeks.
This cold comes on suddenly and fiercely (also a remedy for the beginning of a cold). Think of Belladonna whenever there is a lot of redness, flushing and heat of the skin. Nasal discharge thin and watery. Nose feels dry and hot and there may be a lot of sneezing. The nasal discharge may stop and be replaced by a throbbing headache. Cough barking, hard, exhausting, in fits, irritating, violent. May have a high fever with a dry, red, flushed face. May be agitated but dull.
For a later stage cold: Pulsatilla – This remedy is needed with a more advanced cold. The mucus is non-irritating and has become thick and yellowgreen. The nose tends to run in open air and to be blocked in a warm room and when lying down to sleep. The congestion may alternate sides of the nose. May develop spasmodic coughing. Not thirsty. Craving affection, emotional and weepy.
What about the Flu? Often we refer to colds, digestive upsets and other acute illnesses as the flu. The definition of influenza is an acute infection of the respiratory tract associated with a particular group of viruses. Generally, if you have cold and respiratory symptoms with a strong fever, general weakness and muscles aches, we would call it the flu. You will generally be feeling more seriously ill than with a common cold. The flu usually lasts 3 to 5 days. Care would be similar to that of a common cold. Antibiotics are not helpful unless you have developed a secondary bacterial infection. Here are some questions to ask yourself about your flu: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
What is bothering you the most, tiredness, a heavy feeling or aches and pains? If there is a headache, where does it hurt, and what sort of pain is it? Do you have chills? Are you restless or do you want to lie still? How does moving around affect your aches and pains? Do you (and you aches and pains) feel better with heat or cold?
Gelsemium Think of the 3 Ds - dull, dizzy and droopy. Lies still and wants to be left alone because he is so tired and weak. Eyelids are heavy and face looks dull. Chills running up and down the back. Not thirsty. Headache beginning in the back of the head or neck. May have a runny nose and burning throat. Chilly and wants to cover up to get warm. Good for lingering symptoms after the flu. Some of the remedies above are also good for the flu, especially Belladonna. Treating colds, coughs and flu homeopathically can be a bit challenging because a lot of the symptoms are quite common and it is a little harder to differentiate between the remedies than with some other illnesses. In homeopathy we are always looking for the individualizing symptoms. If you can observe those, you are well on your way to successfully shortening your colds and flu and building your immune system so that next year, your colds and flu may be milder or you may not catch one at all! You will find the basic remedies at your local health food store, usually in a 30C potency.
Looking for a unique holiday gift?
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Relationships and Mindfulness By Craig Schollenberger When I use the word relationships, several different types of relationships come to mind: parent/child, two people in an intimate relationship, employer/employee, employee/customer and teacher/student. So, what do they all have in common that we could hope to address in one brief article that has to do with Mindfulness? One thing all relationships have in common is, people want to be heard and understood. Another thing relationships all have in common is that we have a choice to respond in a way that will improve the relationship or not. So, how can Mindfulness help? When practicing Mindfulness regularly, people may notice they are able to be more fully present, in the moment. That means, if we are having a conversation, and I am the listener and have been practicing Mindfulness regularly, I will be better able to hear your words, notice your facial expressions and gestures to get a more accurate idea of what you are trying to say. A second benefit of Mindfulness is, there may be less chatter going on in my head: one less thing to distract me from what you are saying. Another skill that may be cultivated when practicing Mindfulness is beginning to notice there is a gap between a stressful event and our response to it. By a gap, I mean it begins to feel like there is time between a stressful event and our need to respond to that stressful event. Many of us respond in, what feels like, an automatic response to the stressful event. We end up saying things like, “He made me mad.” or, “I had to... what did you expect me to do?” when, in fact, we have a choice of how to respond. In Mindfulness practice, not only do we begin to notice there is a gap between the stressful event and our response but with regular practice, we begin to notice the gap seems to get bigger. First, this gives us time to recognize if the situation is life threatening or not. Usually, it is not but many of us use the same fight or flight response to everything stressful in our lives, especially in relationships. Second, it gives us the opportunity to notice the anger and frustration we are facing may have little to do with us and not take it personally. For example, parents may notice frustration when their children say something like, “I hate you. Youʼre the worst parent, ever.” Typical responses to these kind of words are, “Youʼre grounded.” “You canʼt talk to me like that.” or, “Go to your room.” Could the relationship be improved by saying something like, “I understand how you can feel that way, you look really upset right now.” This could lead to an entirely different kind of conversation than if the parent had yelled or punished.
Do you feel as if there is negative energy in your home? Do you feel stuck and cannot move forward? Has there been illness or arguing within your household? It may be time for a clearing of your home space with this new system from AA Michael, ASCENDED SPACES. A NEW divinely guided system which uses sound, harmonics, semi-precious gems, oils, imagery, commands and body techniques to raise the wellbeing of a home or apartment and when necessary, to clear residual emotional energy or the energy of entities inhabiting the space. For more information, please contact Melanie Palubicki @ 610.329.2629 or melanie.palubicki@comcast.net. www.namastewisdom.com
Positive Affirmations & Visualizations By Suesie Hartman, Master Energy Healer, Wellness Intuitive
Every thought you think, every word you say, is an affirmation. Think about that. All of our "self talk," or inner dialogues are a stream of affirmations. We continually affirm, positively or negatively, with our words and thoughts. This constant flow of affirmations is creating our life experience, every moment of every day. With that being said, the power of positive affirmations and visualization can be life changing. Words, statements and visualizations can work both ways, to build or to destroy. It is the way we use them that determines the results. Intention is key. Affirmations are positive statements that describe a desired outcome or situation. They are repeated many times, with conviction and intention. These statements can have the power to change your life, if you so desire. Visualization is a powerful tool, known to many top athletes. It is a process of visualizing in your mind, whatever it is, that you want to achieve. During the visualization process, you experience every single minute detail of throwing a pass for a touchdown; of running & winning a race; or completing a flawless gymnastics routine, in your mind. All of this is done in your mind, before you ever pick up a football in the game. The beginning of a New Year is a perfect time to focus on positive change in your life. Affirmations must be positive, and must be present tense, such as "I am successful in all that I do". Consider the use of positive affirmations and visualizations, to help bring about the transformation in your life and/or current situations, such as, "My life is filled with wonderful unexpected surprises and miracles each day".
Shift 2012: Celebrating A New Age in Reading By Diane Trieb This Winter Solstice – December 21, 2012 – is the cosmically expected date of birth for a new age of conscious evolution on our planet. Conscious evolution means we evolve by choice – not by chance. The call to humanity is to choose co-evolution with nature, and co-creation with spirit. When we choose connection with all life from our heart center, we will create a global community. Joined together in universal love and unconditional oneness…….the possibilities for peace, prosperity and joy….. become realities.
A world-wide celebration of this shift in consciousness, spearheaded by Barbra Marx Hubbard, Depak Chopra, Neal Donald Walsh and the Shift Network – will take place on December 22 - the day after the Winter Solstice (see Birth2012.com). Mary Palmer, Diane Lauer and Diane Trieb, are co-hosting a daylong event to coincide with the worldwide celebration.
We begin the day with a prayer breakfast (Complimentary Continental Breakfast) at the Canal Street Pub. All are welcome. Local religious and spiritual leaders will facilitate meditation and prayer for unity and peace in our city and county. We will also explore the positive future this shift in consciousness holds for our local environment.
After breakfast, the T.E.A. Factory - located behind the Canal Street Pub - will be open to all……with a showcase of local artists (see schedule). Chanting, drumming, dancing, singing, eating, drinking – all in celebration of the greatness of the human spirit.
Please come together in community…..on this day…...ready to celebrate and embrace the possibilities this shift in
consciousness holds for us all.
Enjoy Music by: David Dragonfly– 12pm Kirtan Chanting Arielle Peppers – 1pm R&B / Hip Hop Bob Hassler – 3:30pm Acoustic Guitar Mark Seaman – 4:30pm Drum Circle Celebrating Art with: Theron Cook Sharon McGinley Re!gn Photography Danielle Reardon Saint Mary Stoudt Ed Terell Poetry & Reading by: Noah Ayala Craig Czury Flowatress David Nazario Heather Thomas
!
Wine Tasting – 3:30pm Local Wineries