Saturday, November 15, 2008

Raw-newing my commitment

Lentil sprouts and date.
(An archival shot)
*
Tomorrow, November 17th will make it 6 months since I've been raw. I don't regret it at all, for a number of reasons. And I can safely say it is not a 'fad' or 'diet' but a lifestyle change. However, I admit I have slacked a little lately with my preparations and have not been making the elaborate meals, smoothies, juices, etc that I used to in the beginning. I have not been exploring exciting combinations and concoctions, have not been going to the market every other morning to buy new produce and I've not been drinking my (at least) four litres of water a day. Instead, when hungry, I toss together something quick and simple and eat it. When thirsty, I drink anywhere from a glass to a litre. When I need ingredients I run down to HiLo (supermarket). I have not even been thinking about the raw recipe book I wanted to do or taking photos of my concoctions (not that there have been any exciting ones anyway, as I mentioned above).

Raw can be/is fun when alone, but is better when shared - at all stages (shopping, preparing, consuming), as when T was here. It's also great having someone else who can prepare such great eats and drinks. So ... I guess I got 'spoiled' by that experience and became temporarily 'lazy' in the raw solo aftermath. Also, I've been 'distracted' by various things and have not been spending as much time in the kitchen as I used to ...

However, the time has come and I hereby raw-new my commitment to myself and the journey.

Incidentally ... in today's yoga class, after doing our kriya to exercise the chakras, my students and I will be embarking upon our 5th week of the 7 week chakra journey we are on. We just emerged from the heart and are moving into the throat/5th chakra/Vishuddha. I had thought it would be refreshing to celebrate our progress by sharing some 5th chakra foods (fruit and liquids) after the class. I'm thinking of preparing a simple raw 'Vishuddha' fruit feast (see here for foods that feed the various chakras). So I've got to dash off to the market now to get my 'ingredients' ... since I'm having the class at 10 a.m. instead of 5 p.m.

A bientôt!







4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Going raw over here in St. Vincent. I'm really looking forward this. And you're absolutely right in saying that it's not a diet or "fad," but a lifestyle.

It's fun to in trying to come up with recipes using the ingredients that are available here, which can be sparse at times.

Thanks for blogging about being raw. It's good to have a Caribbean perspective to relate to.

Elspeth said...

Hi - great that you are going raw in St. Vincent. Are there many rawists there? I know what you mean by 'sparse' ingredients. Which ones are you exploring with?

Anonymous said...

I don't know of any other rawist here besides my great uncle Eddie, and this fact about him I only food out about after I mentioned going raw to my aunt. He's a wonderful treasure trove that I've stumbled upon. Who knew?

I'm really fresh out of this box with this. I've been raw for about two weeks now. I'm starting to feel a little disheartened because I don't know what to eat. Right now my staples are spinach, avocados, pak choy, carrots...the standard veggies. I tried sprouting some lentils but wasn't all that thrilled with the taste.

I eat TONS of coconut -dried, jellied, any way, any how. Coconuts are my new God. I'm also going to try and get some cocao beans and experiment with that so we'll see.

All in all I'm thrilled about the whole thing and love the fact that I feel a sense of "rightness" when I consume my raw food. There's grace, spirit and some kind of awakening in it. I just feels right.

Elspeth said...

Great that you have an Uncle Eddie as a resource. I know what you mean about the sense of rightness and awakening - and I hope you don't feel too disheartened. Yes, the lack of variety can be a 'limitation', but ... in every limitation is an opportunity - in this case to have fun exploring/being inventive/experimenting with what is available ... and you will learn more as you go along. I think also having support is important - knowing others who are doing it too - whether near or far. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Of course I don't know everything, being only 6 months old - or 6 months new ... but I'll help where I can.