Gothic Granola

In order to focus on the transition between jobs and to maintain good self-care, I am taking a brief hiatus from posting. Regularly scheduled posts will resume on Saturday, 2 February. I try to take life one thing at a time, dear readers. Stay up to date on my adventures via Instagram and Twitter (@undead_q). Chocolate Pecan Torte and Golden Assam Tea Bread await you.

To touch is to heal To hurt is to steal If you want to kiss the sky Better learn how to kneel  On your knees boy --“Mysterious Ways” by U2 My virtues pick was “Forgiveness” a few times in the last few months.  Even if you can't make reparations to the exact same person--you never really can, anyway--you can do better by others, to improve yourself.  I think I know why it’s coming up so much; there are four or five years of bad habits of which I need to let go in order to make my health coach studies my healthiest student experience yet. On Sunday, I stocked up on grains, I cleaned my room, I recycled old clothes, and I made the rice kickasserole of the previous post.  By taking care of my life, I got ready to do (one of) my art: cooking and learning about nutrition.  Anton Chekov said, “If you want to work on your art, work on your life.”

For real and for…the “working class university of life” as I saw someone listed as their school on Facebook.  I’m from the deconstructionist school of eating, but that’s a whole ’nother story. On Monday I officially began the Institute for Integrative Nutrition ® program to become a health coach.  What is a health coach?  A health coach works with people who want to make positive changes in their physical, spiritual, and mental health by encouraging said people along their wellness journey.  A health coach makes recommendations for sustainable changes and holds hir clients accountable for making gentle changes in their lives in support of the clients’ goals.

Stretch it, psyche! “Everyone comes to shame through a people that cannot profit them, that brings neither help nor profit, but shame and disgrace” (Isaiah 30:5, NRSV).  Yes, dear readers, like many before me, I’m doing a circular, self-referential hermeneutic of the Bible.  Speak English?  I’m reading my life into and from the Bible and/or other sacred text I find on the path.

Take a seat; there’s a sermon in here somewhere. Last week, I read Isaiah 24:16 before going to bed: “For the treacherous deal treacherously/ The treacherous deal very treacherously.” (NRSV) Treacherous cat is treacherous.

Of the inspirational folk who I follow on teh interwebs, I noticed a theme in the past few days. Be yourself. Cassey Ho of Blogilates posted this on her Instagram . Bertice Berry wrote this meditation on doing what is right for you, no matter how unpopular . Media messages regarding "a new year, a new you" to me sound like a harsh break.  Gradual change over time is more sustainable, and is, hello, how the world works, than suddenly, perhaps, trying to eat six cups of kale a day instead of meat.  Or suddenly trying to stop thinking negative thoughts. Take a breath, take another, and notice--without judgment--what you're doing.  Notice what you'd like to let go of.  Think hard on how you want to do it.  Then get to it.  Notice when you slip from your goals.  Get up.  Keep going.  Most things become less difficult with time.  I saw this quote on my quote-of-the-day calendar from 2011 that I turn every time I go home:...

Slow down or be slowed down.  Prophetess of doom that I am, I’ve learned this one a few times during this time of year the hard way (November-February).   At age 22, I’m sick of making myself sick by trying to raise my energy to the wrong vibration for winter.  For the past eight years, I’ve had midterms or finals in January during the rush-rush madness of the Thanksgiving to St Valentine's Day gauntlet, meaning I did a bunch of concentrative, intense, mentally loud work when the energy around me was quite expansive, hushed, and contemplative.  I ended up out-of-phase, out of sorts, and out of breath.