Easing through changes...the Angel Way

Any time we're confronted by changes, whether they are changes of our own choosing, or changes that life presents us with, the Angels urge us to be extra gentle with ourselves.  They urge us to slow down, even if only for a few minutes, and really pay attention to ourselves, to our hungers, to our wants, desires and needs on every level of our bodymind.  Even changes we decide we want or need to make - adding in exercise or a meditation program or a few minutes of yoga - can be difficult to sustain.  Conventional wisdom says it takes 21 days to turn a new behavior into a habit, and more recent research shows it actually takes four to six weeks.  Dr. Mala Matacin at the University of Hartford spoke extensively to Karen about how hard it can be for individuals to make proactive changes. 

The Angels suggest that if you wish to incorporate a new behavior - say, for example, eating more colors, or walking or meditating - that you pick one or at most two behaviors or activities to focus on per day.  Allow your focus to be on something you decide to succeed at.  Celebrate that success, and then the following day, try something different, and focus on that.  Alternate your focus according to where your energy feels like it wants to go, or even, where it might not want to go but you know better...like, for example, to the gym.  Going to the gym,every other day ultimately will result in your working out on average four days a week.  Meditating and doing yoga on the days inbetween mean you also do that four days a week.  In this way, you can address all the needs of your bodymind with flexibility and sensitivity and without pressure to change everything all at once. 

 In this way, you will build an experience of successes, and the cumulative effect, over time, will be an overall healthy one.  You will also be a lot gentler and kinder to your self. 

Eating organically...the broader implications

The eighth guideline, "Eat as locally and organically as possible," is at first glance as simple and straightforward as it sounds.  But the reasons for it are not. 

All foods contain energy.  The energy in food is shaped by the experience of the food as it was raised and produced.  It is affected by the energy of the people who harvest and handle it, so that by the time it reaches our tables, it can carry energetic imprints both positive and negative. 

According to the Angels, these energetic imprints, whether or not we are aware of them, can affect us over time.  As you follow the guidelines, you may find as I did, that you become more sensitive to the energetic imprints in foods.  It therefore becomes easier to make the organic choice more often than not, because of the "feeling" in the food.    

According to the Angels, as more and more of us make the organic, humane, respectful choice more often than not, the broader world will begin to shift.   Because food production is the fundamental human activity upon which our entire culture rests, this is an area where our personal choices can have some very public impact. 

Remember when you're thinking of detoxing your body that detoxing ourselves is as much about detoxing our environment, and that environment includes not only the food we put into our bodies, but where it comes from, how it's produced, who brings it to us and how all those beings are treated.   We can begin by making the kindest, healthiest, most respectful choices for ourselves, but ultimately, true detoxification can only happen when all of us extend those same loving, kind and respectful choices to the entire planet and every being on it. 

Light on Brown Foods, Sweets, Comfort and Cushion

Having not had recent experience with brown foods as foods one turns to for comfort and for grounding, I understood Annie and The Angels words in theory more than practice. The past few weeks, however, there has not been much sweetness nor much grounding in my life. Emotionally, I've been all over the map. I paid attention, as The Angels encourage, to my moods, my cravings and my actual choices for what I would eat at any given moment of the day.

Where I lacked sweetness in my life--due to a few hardship events that left me feeling black and my outlook bleak-- I noticed cravings for chocolate or some kind of sweet treat. I put it off and put it off-- choosing hot chocolate, carob coated raisins and all natural pudding to quench that craving. Didn't do much go. So, when we ordered my daughter's birthday cake, we ordered the healthiest version of the Tinkerbell Cake. For three days (we had a lot of cake), I had a small piece of cake each day. Sometimes just a bite or two was all it took. After EnJOYing my cake, I observed feelings and thoughts. I looked at my recent troubles through a new lens by writing in my journal.

Also, through this time, I noticed I wanted more protein and more grains-- bread or crackers, in particular. The protein need was mostly physical, tied to changes I'm experiencing in the cycles of womanhood. The grains-- that was something different. I always seemed to want more rice, or more bread or an extra handful of crackers and peanuts than is usual for me. Again, I looked at what was missing in my life or where I was struggling with something.. The LIGHT went on... my energetic body needed grounding. Grains tend to have the physical effect of soothing frayed nerves and slowing us down.... exactly what my body needed.

Knowing all of this... I was able to choose the best foods for those energetic needs to be met AND to choose activities that would help me -- in healthier ways than I might have chosen had I stayed unconscious through this process-- to reign in my energy, focus it, and ground myself for actions that may be required.... Yoga, deep breathing, Reiki.... all were part of this process.  BodyMind communication...BodyMind healing.

What LIGHT has Eating... The Angel Way turned on for you?
KMR