Know Any Literary Animal Lovers?
Hi there PureJeevan readers! We wanted to let you know that Jim's new novel CHROO is available on Amazon. It's a crazy adventure involving a billionaire heiress, her Chihuahua BFF ("Chroo") and a host of human and animal characters. Find out more on Amazon! Here are some links:
We're here to inspire you...that's our overall focus here at Pure Jeevan. So, when we ask you what you'd like us to do more of, less of, or to consider doing here on the blog ... we take your responses to heart. Of course, it's impossible to please every single person since we all have different personalities and needs. However, we'll always do our best to create a balance in order to inspire as many individuals as possible.
Below are suggestions for what some of you'd like to see happening here on the blog, along with some responses from us. If you have more suggestions, please send them our way anytime. We read everything that comes in and will always give your suggestions serious consideration.
Jim here... Yesterday, we talked about exceptions -- those non-raw food items that raw foodists sometimes allow themselves to eat. I listed mine, and a number of people here and on Facebook noted some of their own. (Seems a lot of us enjoy olives, by the way!) It struck me today that a natural follow-up to a list of exceptions would be a list of non-exceptions -- basically a list of things I personally never ever ever ever consume.
This makes sense, right? I suppose all people generally have three basic lists: (1) those things we eat regularly, (2) those things we eat sometimes, and (3) those things we never eat. Hopefully, none of us keep these lists etched in stone, as diets are dynamic things that tend to evolve over time. A few of the items I'll list below may only apply to my current practices, while others (like refined sugar) I hope to permanently exclude. So, let's see:
Read more: Yesterday: Exceptions. Today: Things I *Never* Consume
I thought I'd share some recent pictures with all of you. Let me know what you think!?
Carob Peppermint Hearts
This is a recipe I created to take the place of a packaged raw cacao dessert that Jim loves. I don't like to eat cacao, because it disturbs my heart, so I use carob. A new raw friend asked for a recipe for this dessert, because she loved it so much, but I don't have one. I dump walnuts, coconut, agave, and peppermint oil into the food processor and mix until it's a consistency that can stick together. For Valentine's Day I shaped the mixture into hearts. Sweet!?
We've got three incredible posts coming your way this week, and we're going to get started right here and NOW with a one-hour interview with the incredible Kevin Gianni. As most of you know, we postponed our RV Tour recently.As part of that, we'd planned to stage a fun event related to the All Raw Directory.We'd planned to air this interview with Kevin (conducted back in December 2008) for that event.
Fast-forward to today and we realize that, like our raw RV Tour, our All Raw Directory promotion will have to wait. It's funny how things trickle down like that. But, all is not lost. This is still an incredible interview -- and guess what ! It's only part one of a two-part interview, as well as a special super-fun surprise we'll be announcing on Friday. We promise: No one in the raw food community will want to miss Friday's post. All we'll say now is that it's a truly unique, limited opportunity unlike anything you've seen here before! Trust us: You couldn't possibly guess what it is!
Read more: Part 1 of a 3-Part Series Profiling the Multi-Talented Kevin Gianni!
Sometimes you meet someone and you just know they have tapped into something special, something most of us search for but never quite find. That was the case when I met this lovely woman I'd like the rest of you to meet. There's a centered peace about her, down deep in her core, and yet she's overflowing with an energy that I've never seen matched by anyone else. She's delightfully insightful, intelligent, and playful all at the same time. ?
Take the Time to Meet
One of our readers, Julie, asked me to update her on what kind of diet I'm doing and why I'm doing it. The last time I publicly made changes with my diet, I received many similar questions. So, I figured maybe it would be a good idea to respond to her question here on the blog for anyone else wondering the same thing.
I did explain, in a long post, about experimenting with my diet being important to me.If you didn't read that entry, it will answer a lot of your questions. For many of you, I think I know what you are thinking: "Wendi was pretty much morbidly obese, her health was horrible, but she's now healthy. Why would she change anything with her diet when she has already found what works "?
Well, it's true. I am extremely healthy compared to how I was before I started consuming raw foods. Here are some pictures to show the changes, to motivate some of you currently struggling with eating more raw foods...
I was sitting here today thinking about all of you, our lovely online friends who visit this blog. You follow what's going on with us, learn from us, find inspiration in the things we share, and even offer support to us in many ways.
Some of you reach out by leaving comments, many of you send emails, and a larger majority of you are quiet friends who haven't made contact with us, yet. Each and every one of you means so very much to me (and to Jim, too).
We don't keep this blog for ourselves; we keep it for all of you. It is our desire to share all that we've been through, and what we've learned, in order to help you with your own journey. Most of all, however, my personal desire is to inspire you to live the life you truly want to be living (in more ways than just through what you eat).
I received some very sad news about the holistic doctor I've been seeing during my raw journey. Dr. Amy Ruth Stine died Saturday after a rock climbing accident. This news breaks my heart. Dr. Stine was an amazing woman and doctor. She was extremely intelligent, acutely in tune with how we are all connected and one, compassionate, loving, thoughtful, and had a gift of really getting to know each patient as an individual and friend.
It was with Dr. Stine's care that I was able to track my progress with the raw food diet. She encouraged me to follow my instincts (which were telling me that raw is the way), cheered me on with the many changes that I was going through (physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally) over the years, and told me many times that I inspired her! Imagine how wonderful that made me feel---to be inspiring someone as wonderful as Dr. Stine.
[Sorry, we lost the pic in a web update... will repost if we find it!]
Last night, Jim ate the first warm food he's had in over a year! I created a dinner that was placed in the dehydrator for about an hour before it was served. This dish is delicious at room temperature, also, but I thought it might be more special if I served it a bit warm. Jim thought it was a nice change to the colder temperatures of the smoothies he's been practically living on!
Here's the recipe, if you think you'd like to try it.
Today I answer the second part of a letter Jim received from a Pure Jeevan member who was seeking advice about her daughter who has decided to become a vegetarian. Rather than quote parts of her letter, I'll summarize the questions (because they are general questions that we hear a lot and our answers are given for everyone, not just the individual who sent the most recent letter).
1) I don't have a lot of money for all the produce and kitchen appliances, so how can I eat a healthy diet2) I live with others who don't eat the same diet, so how can I possibly make this work
Read more: Financial Stress and Group Living Concerns (Part 2 of 2)
Last year when I organized a raw food spiritual retreat at an ashram, I met some very lovely people. Two of those individuals were Patty and Denny (you can visit their blog to say hello to them). They were new to gourmet raw foods, so they were enthusiastic learners at the retreat. When they returned home after the blissful weekend, they began using their new raw food knowledge. Here are some excerpts of emails I have received from them since the retreat last year:
Well, you said you're motive in putting on this retreat was simply to pass on this valuable information and to help others; you were very successful where we're concerned - it is no exaggeration to say that you have changed our lives forever.
We've been almost 100% raw since the retreat. ... We're so excited about this new way of eating that we bought a new Vita-Mix. ...We can actually say that this has been our most notable and enjoyable dining experience - ever, in our entire lives! No one would ever put that much work into something if it were just for money; it is obvious that you did it from your heart. We feel blessed to have received such a gift.