Day 123 of Gratefulness: My Commitment to My Health

I am about 2. 5 weeks into living a plant-based diet and I have had no cravings.  Don’t get me wrong I have thought about buffalo chicken wings, crab cheese wontons and even Thanksgiving dinner.  I have not craved them though but have just realized that I wont have them anyone, not even just one last taste.  I have even thought if it would be okay to just have it on one special occasion a year and my instinct is no.  The idea of meat, dairy, eggs and sugar mortifies me now and to be honest I am getting close to eliminating oils since they are not sitting well with my stomach.  I feel like these foods are the most toxic thing ever and in many ways these foods are toxic, even if most of western civilization does not agree.  I have evolved as a person and I proud of my commitments. 

As the clock hit midnight and 2013 began I had no faith that I would be able to kick the cravings I had for the rich foods I loved but I knew I wanted to get into my cute black and white dress.  I knew something would need to be done but I just did not know what that something was.  I had put together several actions steps to start moving forward in the direction of this commitment to my health.  Yes, I wanted to add plant-based foods to my diet as there was barely any in it.  Yes, I wanted to start running again.  Yes, I wanted to do a 10-day cleanse to help kick-start everything and yes I was going to do one-month of yoga. 

The switch that made my current path so visible to me was three things- the emotion and excitement I felt as I imagined myself in that dress.  The norovirus I got that empty my stomach out and made me appreciate good food and the fact that eating one piece of meat had me in pain for over 6 hours.  The last piece that tied this all together was the documentary, Forks over Knives.  I am not saying that everything in that movie was 100% truth as it is one perspective on health that had a lot of scientific evidence but than again the complete opposite probably has the same amount of evidence.  The big message of the movie just resonated with me and I knew that I wanted to be on a plant-based diet.  I think once you shift from needing something to wanting something your commitment towards it totally changes.

I am truly grateful for the commitment I have towards my health and the changes that I truly want to make and enjoy making. 

Day 122 of Gratefulness: Jamie Van Leeuwen

This one is a long time coming but today it really hit me how much I really appreciate Jamie.  I have not given him the credit he deserves for the work he has done in the community and around the world.  I do not know how he finds the time and the energy to do all the things he does but he is so passionate about making a different and he is so tapped in to many great things happening in this community.  I truly appreciate the passionate he has and the service he provides to others and to making a better community.  I feel fortunate to have worked with Jamie even when we did not see eye to eye and I feel lucky to still call him a friend.  I could learn a lot from him and I am excited too.  

Day 121 of Gratefulness: Supportive Friends

You do not realize how much you appreciate your supportive friends until you need them.  Recently I decided to live on a plant-based diet and I have shared this with many friends through many avenues.  What has been surprising is the ridicule that I sometimes receive for making this decision.  I had no idea being a vegetarian would draw so much negative energy.  My honest opinion is that these folks need to say something to validate their own belief systems and chooses.  Those friends that support me, even if they are living the lifestyle I choose to live, are amazing and I so appreciate them in my life.  These are the friends who have learned to accept people for who they are and respect the decisions you have made. They are open to hear new ideas and they will not judge.  They are open to share their ideas and know you will not judge them.  You feel completely free to be who you are when you are in the presence of friends like these.  I appreciate those that are supportive of me, those that let me be who I am, those that help me create a space to be free.

Day 120 of Gratefulness: My Dad’s Health

I am truly grateful today for my Dad’s health.  A week ago my father was feeling symptoms of a heart attack and took himself to the hospital near him.  They reported that he had a mild heart attack.  Though my instinct told me he was okay and was rather bothersome that he was there.  He eventually moved to Boston where his doctor was and they went in to see what the issue was.  They went in and found that the blood was flowing great and they felt they did not have to due open-heart surgery.  That was good news #1 for me but not for my dad.  You see he wanted the symptoms he was feeling to go away and he depended on them to fix it.  I was pressing him to change his diet and lifestyle to fix it himself. 

I believe if you created the problem you should fix the problem.  But I also understand the fears and worries he was going through and sometimes you need the doctor to intervene.  So the doctors were struggling to figure out what was wrong with him.  Well my father started to feel the symptoms again as the doctor was in the room chatting with him.  They quickly took his vitals to begin the processes of figuring out what was causing him to feel this way.  Low and behold he has significant low blood pressure.  This is not normal for a man taking blood pressure medication for high blood pressure.  They have lowered his medication and hope that gets rid of the symptoms.  They discharged him but he is determined now to charge his diet and exercise more and several of us are going to support him through this new life he is creating for himself.

Day 119 of Gratefulness: Arlan Preblud

I feel extremely lucky that I continue meeting so many amazing people.  I really do believe that when you put out into the Universe the type of people you want to in your life and you fully trust that it will happen it does.  I want more people in my life that are optimistic, generous, humble, kind and honest.  Specifically in my professional life I want clients that fit this role and I want to work in an environment where you can be yourself and there is real passion around the work you do. That is when the job does not feel like work but something you desire and enjoy each and every day. 

Last Spring I came across a post on facebook about an organization called We Don’t Waste.  I checked it out and discovered this amazing organization and began thinking about how it might fit into the Green Up Denver project that I was working on. I contacted the Executive Director only to find out it was Arlan.  I had met Arlan several times before when I worked at Urban Peak as his wife Leigh was on the board member and on the Event Committee.  Of course he took a meeting with me and I learned more about the work he was doing.  I really wanted to find a way for We Don’t Waste to partner with Green Up Denver- they were just a good fit.  From there our relationship started and it has grown ever since. 

The thing I appreciate must about our working relationship is that I get to be myself 100% of the time.  There are no games I have to play, I do not have to dress a certain way or name drop.  From the moment he met me I felt like I was working on a clean slate.  There were no preconceived judgments about me or judgments based on my appearance or the network I had.  He treated and still treats me as equal as anyone else.  Maybe it is the lawyer inside of him that you must treat them with kindness and respect until they prove you otherwise.  I feel blessed everyday to have an opportunity to work with him and We Don’t Waste.