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An Invitation To Come To Your Senses

7/30/2023

The definition of this phrase has two meanings:

Regain consciousness
Start to think and behave reasonably after a period of foolishness or irrationality

My invitation does not imply that you have behaved unreasonable. It is a request for you to be fully present and use all of your senses the next time you cook or sit down to enjoy a meal.

Cooking can be set as a time to slow down and connect. We’re all so busy and making dinner can feel like just one more task to hurry and get done. It doesn’t have to be that way. With a little bit of a mind shift, cooking can be a time to slow down and connect. Here are Seven Steps to create a scent-ual and spiritual experience while you cook:

To help you enjoy your food before you eat it, pick a recipe that has fresh, vibrant ingredients.
Set an intention to fully enjoy the experience of creating. When you set an intention, you create with purpose.
Pause. Enjoy the colors of your ingredients.
Enjoy the scents, breathe them in.
Say a prayer or statement of gratitude.
Open your heart and mind and ask for inspiration.
After your meal is prepared, and before you eat, take a moment to pause and enjoy what you have created with wonderment and gratitude.

I recently read that the reason our lives speed past us the older we get, is that there is nothing new; no wonderment - everyday is a rubber stamp of the day before. The great news is that you can create fresh and memorable experiences by changing the way you cook! It’s probably something you already have on your to-do list, so it’s not something you need to add to your already full schedule.

A great recipe that has lots of fresh ingredients is my pesto recipe. It can be used over pasta, in sandwiches, over veggies or grilled chicken. It’s one of my very favorites and I think it will become one of yours.

Here is the link:
Mai's Pesto.pdf

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The Definition of Food

7/16/2023

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What is food? "any nutritious substance that people or animals eat or drink or that is absorbed in order to maintain life and growth”.

There are a lot of things that are NOT nutritious that we absorb. Chemicals, preservatives, carcinogenic dyes - not food. So, for the purpose of this blog, food is defined as anything that can be ingested because we take in a lot of things into our body, mind, and spirit that are not nutritious.

So, what are you feeding yourself?

Let’s start with the body. What are you eating and why? Are you eating real food? An easy description of real food is that it’s fresh, colorful, and not processed. Take a moment to reflect on what you ate today or yesterday. What percentage was real food? What percentage was not? If you are not nourishing yourself by eating what’s best for you, why not? Is it because you don’t feel worthy of the best? Think about that for a minute.

I had food poisoning several weeks ago and it really evoked some deep questions for me around what I eat and why. I have been paying close attention to my body and have had some big realizations. Here are a few:

An empty stomach does not equal hunger.
Craving does not indicate hunger.
I often eat just because of the time of day, NOT because I’m hungry.

Eating when I’m not hungry usually indicates I’m trying to feed a different aspect of myself that IS hungry. For example, I gained 10 pounds when my Mom died. I was definitely trying to fill the void of her presence. The thing is, eating when you are not hungry, never serves you. Figuring out which aspect of yourself really is in need of nourishment does serve you.

I’m challenging myself to really pay attention to my body and discern when I’m truly hungry and eat only then. I feel like the extra 30-40 pounds I’m carrying will be released if I listen to my body in that way. I’m going to pay attention to what part of me needs sustenance. Do I need to spend more time in prayer and meditation? Do I need to feed my mind? Do I need some fun with family and friends? Just as importantly, do I need to cleanse myself of toxins that I carry in my body, mind, and spirit? Examples of that are: negative thoughts, fear, judgment, feelings of not being enough, etc. Can you relate to any of those?

I challenge you to pay attention to what you eat and why. Notice if you eat when you are not truly hungry. What part of you is really in need of sustenance?

In future blogs, I’ll delve into possible reasons people eat what they do. I will also share with you my personal answers to the following topics:

What’s eating you?
Food as medicine
Food for your mind and spirit
The spiritual aspect of food
How to determine what part of you is really hungry
Three reasons it’s important to feed your body, mind, and spirit

I hope you tune in for these! These blogs are a way for me to mentally digest life’s experiences. It helps me and I sincerely hope it helps you too.

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Feeling Anxious?

7/2/2023

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With all the turmoil, chaos, and hate going on in the world, our level of anxiety has dramatically increased. Have you noticed?

There are simple ways you can counterbalance the chaos and create some peace and healing in your home. Don’t worry, you don’t have to add one more thing to your to do list. This is already on your list - eating! Here are five simple steps you can use every time you create or eat a meal:

Set an intention to be present. Start by taking a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. This signals to your mind, body, spirit that you are shifting gears and doing something different. Feel the shift in energy just by taking 1 deep cleansing breath in through your nose and releasing it through your mouth.

Connect to self and Source. Check in with yourself to see how you are feeling. Are you stressed? Are your neck and shoulders sore? Women are notorious for putting themselves last. This is an opportunity to do some self-care. Take another cleansing breath. Let yourself relax. Make this “me time”.
Connect to Source, God, Spirit, whatever name you have for it. I like to close my eyes, and you guessed it, take another deep breath in and out. I then project my essence out in front of me and send an invitation out to God to meet me. I wake a few seconds and then I always feel His presence. This makes me feel loved and assures me that I am known to Him.

Be open to inspiration. Ask for guidance for something that has been troubling you, then actively listen. It helps to tap into your inner child during this time. Enjoy the colors, smells, textures and tastes that you are experiencing. Being in this state makes it easier to be inspired.

Express gratitude. For what’s in front of you. You cannot hold anger or fear when you are expressing gratitude. Counting your blessings really makes you realize what you have and how fortunate you are.

I hope these simple steps help you. I’ve found I need to do this several times a day to keep balanced, and what better time then when you are creating or eating a delicious meal?! It provides spiritual and emotional food to your physical food.

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Mai's Table: Recipes for Delicious Living

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An Invitation To Come To Your Senses

The Definition of Food

Feeling Anxious?

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