My Nurture Diary #5

My Nurture Diary is a quick end of week check in to keep my Nurture Mindset (and habits) on track.

I’m barracking for you in your nurturing endeavours.  So by sharing mine I hope we can support & encourage each other. 

It was holiday time again…and holidays for me mean nurturing mind & spirit with NO LAPTOP access.

6 days in Hawaii sans family came and went with only a few huddles around the Wifi access point, iPhone in hand (and no blog posts).

So my nurturing moments in the last TWO weeks have been

1. A break from the computer…
2. A break from the family…
3. Seeking out wholefoods in Waikiki to stock up on nourishing raw, organic foods (instead of resigning my self to the muffin / donut breakfast on offer at our Waikiki hotel)
4. Discovering interval training (thanks to my friend Suzanne). Not only training with friends on Waikiki Beach, but importantly continuing to do so solo once back at home.  Which also means not driving to the gym so a few car journeys less for me.
5. Stocking up on the greenest airplane reading material – pre-loved books from Vinnies!
6. Paying the small extra to carbon offset my flights.  (I understand there is a debate about the validity of carbon off-setting, but in my books it can’t hurt…)
7. Using up the leftovers!  I was inspired by Ozharvest Ambassador & celebrity chef Richard Fox who is visiting Australia as part of his Love Food Hate Waste campaign (listen to his interview with Margaret Throsby here). I am making a conscious effort to reduce waste and re-use/re-invent leftovers.  And it’s quicker! Which leads me to…
8. Getting my hands on Jamie Olivers’ revolutionary new book – Jamie’s 15 Minute Meals.  Of course us amateurs may not whip them up in 15 minutes, but even 30 would be fine by me.  I can foresee a bit of a learning curve, and the need to stock up on the “Jamie pantry items” first, but his enthusiastic presentation of nutritious, quick, tasty food served with love is always going to win over the take out in plastic containers scenario.  Watch this space…

Small & simple things…but effective…and necessary!

And if I sometimes think my contribution is too small, (which I usually do!) I try remember

“Better to light a candle than curse the darkness.” 

I’d love to hear in what ways (big or small) you’ve been able to  nurture yourself & your world this week?

My Nurture Diary #4 – On the road & home again.

My Nurture Diary is a quick end of week check in to keep my Nurture Mindset (and habits) on track.

I’m barracking for you in your nurturing endeavours.  So by sharing mine I hope we can support & encourage each other. 

I have been delightfully absent.

Yes…on H-O-L-I-D-A-Y-S!

Which would seem to be on some level a kind of nurturing experience.  Though a 1200km road Solo Mum Road Trip with 3 kids on board is quite an ambitious agenda for me.

Still…there were nurturing moments when I could connect with nature.  Notably…

1. A brief late afternoon walk to the beachwhilst I most irresponsibly left the 3 kids in our cabin watching TV.  The sea, the wind, the sounds & smells of the ocean..An almost deserted beach…Magic!
   

   One Mile Beach, Port Stephens – showing her late afternoon mood

2. First swim of the season in the surf. (Chilly.  Brief.  Beautiful.  Wonderfully invigorating)
3. Sitting on the verandah watching the view (with a unconvincing gestures to actually reading a book) and enjoying the Peace & Quiet
   

   Verandah…

   

   View…(or part thereof)

4. And back in the Big Smoke, I rallied to go to a gig I had bought tickets for months ago, but wasn’t quite in the mood for getting organised / presentable enough to attend.  Damien Leith rocked the State Theatre and I’d forgotten how good it was to laugh, cry and dance in your seat (No standing allowed!) Music is unquestionably a powerful form of nurture for me…and live music even more so.

Sydney icon The State Theatre. Who wouldn’t feel special here??

Small & simple things…but effective…and necessary!

And if I sometimes think my contribution is too small, (which I usually do!) I try remember

“Better to light a candle than curse the darkness.” 

I’d love to hear in what ways (big or small) you’ve been able to  nurture yourself & your world this week?

A Recipe for Self Nurture

I have been reading Robyn Vicker-Willis’ book Navigating Midlife. (Courtesy of a neighbourhood garage sale)

Amongst many interesting, inspirational & thought provoking points she raises, one is the importance of self nurture.  (Music to my ears!) This is true at any time, but even more so as we transition from one stage of life to another.

Robyn’s take on Self Nurture is:-

1. Take rests often.
2. Run to greet those you love.
3. On first waking, stretch your limbs.
4. Take time out to daydream.
5. Be conscious of who you allow into your personal space.
6. Find ways to experience the ecstasy of fresh air and wind on your face.
7. When you are feeling joyful, dance around an wag your tail.
8. Delight in simple pleasures such as a walk in the garden or a lie in the sun.
9. Keep searching and digging until you find those precious things you have buried.
10. Make your needs known – a gentle reminder is often enough
11. Nuzzle up often to those you love.
12. When it feel cold outside, curl up where it is warm – and dream.

She goes on give examples of how these ideas are reflected in actions she chooses in her own daily life.

• burning aromatherpay oils and incense
• listening to all kinds of music depending on my mood
• enjoying a full body massage
• taking a bath with essential oils
• watching the moon from my front verandah
• making time for all the things I love to do such as dance, sing, drum and chat with friends
• structuring my days so that as much as possible there is an easy flow to them.

I think the physical manifestations of Self Nurture will be different for all of us. Certainly relaxation enhancing acts such as massage, yoga, warm baths, incense are often a part of it.  But for some training to run a marathon can be nurturing. (Remember the definition of Nurture includes to foster or train.)

For me what resonates most with Robyn’s recipe is the recognition of the Inner.

No.5 - Be concious who you allow in your personal space.  That’s your mental space, if the physical is sometimes beyond our control (boss or work colleagues, school teachers/parents, family members…??)

No. 9  - Keep searching and digging until you find those precious things you have buried.  Ah those precious things we have buried!!

No.10 - Make your needs known.  Even those nearest & dearest to us, can’t (usually) read our minds.  I’ve found if I ask the first few times, people get the idea (my Big Kids will often offer to make me a cup of tea now!  Or say “What can I do to help you Mum?”…not always but they are aware because I asked often enough)

What are your thoughts about Robyn’s recipe?  How is the Inner vs Outer Self Nurture going in your corner of the world?

My Nurture Diary #3 (Yes, the gym goes with home made ice cream)

My Nurture Diary is a quick end of week check in to keep my Nurture Mindset (and habits) on track.

I’m barracking for you in your nurturing endeavours.  So by sharing mine I hope we can support & encourage each other. 

1. Going to the gym. Which is kinda interesting as a couple of weeks ago my self nurture was NOT going to the gym.  Ah…the phases we move through.  Saturday morning I was feeling totally blah…couldn’t be bothered…felt like sitting round the house in my pyjamas reading & drinking tea BUT…I knew an energy recharge was required so made the effort and…sure enough…felt ALOT better for it!
2. Spent up big at a neighbours garage sale ($7.00!) for some fantastic vintage cook books, other books, serving dishes, soup bowls…All of which is nice to have but not necessary to buy new.
3. Re-discovered the mood lifting properties of  peppermint tea.
4. Answered and sent some long overdue emails to friends in far flung places.
5. Cooked with quinoa! (Quinoa/rice & veggie filled pastries…ie. pseudo sausage rolls…Master 4 loved them!)  I know quinoa is a nutrional powerhouse but always a bit of a mystery to me…
6. Unearthed the 1990′s (80′s?) vintage Ice Cream Wizz  to make ice-cream for the family. This came into my possession in the early 90′s  at  a car boot sale…unwanted wedding gift apparently…imagine!  I don’t do much dairy and I went through a stage of not wanting dairy in the house so packed it away in favour of raw icecream!  But kids love the dairy stuff and I figure if they are going to eat it, better it’s home made than shop bought.  (Better for health & purse).

Seeing daylight again…the funky Ice Cream Wizz.

BUT….

The fantastic Ice Cream Whizz didn’t work (didn’t charge it up enough?)…So some furious googling to find “how to make ice cream without an icecream maker”  (how hard can it be, they were doing it for centuries?!)  we tried to rescue it and…it was of course edible and much loved by 3 munchikins.  Not sure if the Whizz is terminally ill or not…More experimentation required.

Small & simple things…but effective…and necessary!

And if I sometimes think my contribution is too small, (which I usually do!) I try remember

“Better to light a candle than curse the darkness.” 

I’d love to hear in what ways (big or small) you’ve been able to  nurture yourself & your world this week?

Loving literacy in the Lucky Country

What do you think?  Our most valuable public asset would be our:-

a) Democratic parliament

b) Free health system

c) Comprehensive education system

d) None of the above

 

If you answered d) – you’re in full agreement with me.  (But if you answered a), b) or c)…feel free to keep reading…)

I say our most valuable public assets are our libraries.   They are the often un-sung and always under-appreciated heroes of a progressive society.   They are a place where can we nurture both our own mind & spirit, our communities and our environment.  No commercial transactions required (unless perhaps you forgot to pay your library fines…)

Personally, I am not a  book hoarder.  A book-lover? Absolutely!  Hoarder?  No. I very rarely feel the need to own a book.  It’s rare that a buy one.  Partly this is one way I contribute to simplification and stop feeding the consumption monster.  Though I admit  I’m a little stuck on the possible ramifications of this…if no-one buys books, will people still write them?

I cannot relate to ebooks read onscreen in anything like the way I can to a Real Books read in comfort.  They are 2 different animals in my view. And then there’s  the positive environmental impact of paper books if they are shared and not gathering dust on someones Ikea bookshelf having been read maybe once.

In the worlds of Bob Schildgen (aka Mr Green)

“Each time somebody reads a library book, its environmental burden is reduced, because its production requires only a one time resource use, whereas the e-device needs power for each use. Moreover, paper books can survive hundreds of years and readings; the e-reader, if it has its ancestors’ DNA, is doomed to a comparatively brief existence…there will always be a place for public libraries.”

One of my oft-read novels is, predictably, Pride and Prejudice…the subject of many an online ramble itself.  Something that strikes me when I read it (and it’s ilk) is the lack of access to BOOKS!   I struggle to imagine how frustrating it would be without easy & frequent access to a wide range of books -unless you were rich enough to have your own private library.

Whist there were circulating libraries (that hired books out) and members libraries (subscription funded), Public Libraries such as we think of them didn’t come into existence until the 19th century.  (By Public Library I mean one that is tax payer funded, open to anyone to borrow.  I was interested to read a brief  history of how public libraries came about  in the US here, and in Australia here.)

I feel extremely fortunate to live in a country that has public libraries, and indeed school libraries.   I realise it is a First World privilege to be able to access books, newspapers, magazines, ebooks, DVD’s, multi-lingual collections, inter-library loans…the list goes on.

It was inspiring but slightly uncomfortable reading on the Room to Read website:-

• A child born to a literate woman is twice as likely to survive past age five.
• If all children in low-income countries left school with basic reading skills, 171 million people could be lifted out of poverty.
• Data from our cross-national evaluation shows strong evidence for the value of libraries. In one district, students were 80% more likely to read for an hour a day than those without access to a library.

(Also from their website “Room to Read partners with communities across the developing world to promote literacy and gender equality in education by establishing libraries, constructing classrooms, publishing local-language children’s books, training educators and supporting girls’ education.”)

Amazing! South African Rob Hart decided to turn his personal quest to climb Everest as a fundraiser for Room to Read. (Full story on the R2R blog)

 

This post began as a simple reflection on the value of books & libraries in the framework of a Nurturing Mindset.  But having touched on the far-reaching ramifications of literacy & the role of the public libraries, I feel the need for some greater wisdom than mine in closing…

 

“If you have a garden and a library you have everything you need.”

Cicero

My Nurture Diary #2

My Nurture Diary is a quick end of week check in to keep my Nurture Mindset (and habits) on track.

I’m barracking for you in your nurturing endeavours.  So by sharing mine I hope we can support & encourage each other. 

I confess I got rundown this week.  I worked an extra overnight shift for a colleague who was on holidays, and had a couple of Home Ed activities I was co-ordinating, plus the stress of putting a house up for sale…My body sent me the message and I Got Crook.

But I knew there were no pharmaceuticals required.  I just rested, drank liquids and got help (mainly from my big kids) to keep the house running more or less as it usually does.

So my self nurture this week was:

Allowing myself to rest and not try and be indispensable.

But earlier in the week when I was not crook I also:

1. Finished the de-cluttering I began weeks ago thanks to Freecycle!  (Always seems easier to start these things than actually get to the completed stage)
2. Nurtured family (and sanity) by getting out the Monopoly game and ended up having a great time (even Master 4 could roll the dice & move my piece for me).  Turned out to be a multi-session game over a few days. Nurturing Financial Literacy as well.
3. Car-pooled to/from kids activities & shared/swapped some child care duties with a gf.
4. Bought the Certified Organic handsoap refill (there are 4 handbasins in this house)  / made Laundry powder before the old ones ran out...(avoiding resorting to stop-gap nasty chemical versions)

Small & simple things…but effective…and necessary!

And if I sometimes think my contribution is too small, I remember the wisdom of Margaret Mead. 

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” 

I’d love to hear in what ways (big or small) you’ve been able to  nurture yourself & your world this week?

Help…I’m my diet doesn’t have a label!

Firstly, I hope it’s clear I mean Diet as in eating regime, not Diet as in weight loss programme.  I’ve traveled through a few labels in the wild, wonderful and sometimes just plain weird world of food.  I have finally found not having a label  is fantastically liberating as well as being  the most common sense and compassionate stance I can take for myself.

I don’t eat meat.  My decision 8 years ago not to eat meat was based on ethical, health & environmental issues.  Nonetheless I avoid the term Vegetarian (especially with a capital V!) I usually simply say “I don’t eat meat”. I then get asked “Are you a vegetarian?” and am reluctant to say Yes.  Usually I answer something a little long winded like “I don’t eat meat but do use butter & honey, and will sometimes have eggs if there’s nothing else available…though have no qualms about using eggs & milk in baking”

So…am I a vegetarian?…?

Introducing living juices into my diet, again about 8 years ago,  influenced my eating habits in a huge way.  I also began taking a pre/probiotic which was another learning curve.

From there I quickly discovered the amazing world of Raw Food.  For a time I was quite a wannabe / trynabe Raw Foodist.  I did a couple of 30 day Raw Challenges, and learnt a lot about what makes my body feel nourished and healthy, and what doesn’t.  I still include alot of Raw Food in my diet but couldn’t honestly say with any credibilty that I Am A Raw Foodist.

Later the world of the Paleo diet entered my radar.  Being a non-meat eater it was never going to work for me.  BUT…it did make me feel better using meat bones for making soup stock (which I occasionally do).  And it opened my eyes to the value of saturated fats (which for a non-meat eater are avocado, coconut, nuts /nut butters).

I don’t really buy books, but here’s a few that I have bought or been given and have been keys in my learning. Many more were borrowed from the library shelves and from friends who trust me to return them.

Inevitably Wholefoods showed up all along this path of diet related learning. Hearing the likes of Cyndi O Maeara (Changing Habits) & Jude Blereau (Wholefood Cooking) was like hearing common sense at last!  There are of course many whole food advocates, these are 2 great Aussie ladies whose work resonates with me.

Then it was the GAPS diet that seemed to be the buzzword.  I have always been interested in the link between what we eat and how we feel (and therefore act).  This is a huge area of research, but GAPS certainly seems to solve some chronic health issues for those with particular health issues.  It does seem Alot Of Work to me (and again, meat based…)

Recently the pieces have come together more for me reading David Gillespies book Big Fat Lies (tagline:  How the diet industry is making you sick, fat & poor….now that was always going to get my attention on the library shelf!  So much so I then went and bought my own copy).

Gillespies main points are:

1. Don’t eat fructose. Which means anything with sucrose (table sugar) in it.  Sucrose  50% glucose (good) and 50% fructose (not good)
2. Don’t eat seed oils (and embrace saturated fat)

I would importantly like to point out that I don’t swallow anyone’s advice on diet hook, line & sinker. I’m not totally convinced by some of David Gillespies argument (he is very anti-vegetarian/vegan diet) or Cindy O’Maera or some of my best girlfriends!  In ANY discussion of diet, it’s is important to find what works for you.

I was talking with my friend Bronwyn who is a Medicinal Herbalist (and GAPS specialist) Specifically I asked her about fructose, saturated fat and gut flora (mainly bacteria).  At the end of our conversation I was happy to hear her say that  as long as our gut flora is in good shape, eating a varied diet of wholefoods and listening to your body is a fine yard stick for effective nourishment & well being. I think the “as long as…” is an important proviso.  (Bold  & italics are mine…)

Researching food & diet can certainly be confusing & contradictory.  Personally I believe Common Sense is a wonderful guide for eating.  I also believe:

• human beings have evolved over 1000′s of generations to efficiently extract and manufacture necessary nutrients from a wide variety of foods. (Unprocessed ones of course, Certified Organic where possible)
• In terms of food & nutrtion, we can’t improve on nature.
• Laboratory produced/extracted products have no place in human diet.
• It is not necessary to kill animals to be well nourished.
• Gut flora health is the key to absorbing nutrition from whatever we choose to eat. (Assuming it’s largely wholefoods, and again, Certified Organic if possible)
• Obsession about anything is not healthy.  I am as opposed to fundamentalism in diet as I am to fundamentalism in any arena.

This is where my food learning curve has brought me thus far.  I’m looking forward to incorporating a wider variety of wholefoods into my diet, and to sharing the results.