The Changing Face of Mother by Panache Desai

May 13, 2012 by Panache Desai
Filed under •-Feature, Family & Relationships, Spiritual Guidance, Spiritual teachers, Spirituality

Healthy Mother’s Day Recipes by Carolyn Scott Hamilton

May 12, 2012 by Carolyn
Filed under •-Headline, Family & Relationships, Food and Recipes, Holistic Living, Parenting tips, Relationships, Vegan, Vegetarian

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It’s the day we ask mom to stop, relax, kick her feet up and be pampered by the very people she pampers all year long. Be sure you shower her with gifts, take her to be primped at her favorite spa and finish the day with a lovely meal. Check out these healthy and vegan Mother’s Day recipes as well as last year’s brunch menu!

Pink Le-MOM-Ade

10 sliced lemons
2 cups raspberries
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 cups water
2 1/4 cups tequila (optional)
Mint, for garnish

Combine lemons, raspberries, and sugar in a large pot. Pound the mixture firmly with a large wooden spoon, extracting as much juice as possible, about 10 minutes. Stir in water. Pour through a sieve into a large bowl. Press the solids until all juice is extracted. Discard the solids, stir in tequila and serve over ice.

Water-Cado Salad

2 avocados, pitted and peeled and cut into small chunks – about 1/2 inch
1 1/2 lbs. watermelon, seeded and cut into small/med chunks – about 1 inch
2 limes, juiced
1/2 red onion, peeled and sliced thin
1 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste

Add all ingredients into a bowl and toss gently.

R & R Risotto

3 quarts water
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1 stick vegan butter
8 ounces mixed fresh mushrooms, such as porcini, chanterelle, and oyster, sliced if large
1 medium onion, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 cups Arborio or Carnaroli rice
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup grated vegan Parmesan (recipe below)

Bring water, dried porcini mushrooms, and peppercorns to a boil in a medium pot. Reduce heat, and simmer gently for 1 hour. Strain stock (you should have 7 to 8 cups); discard solids. Return to pot; cover to keep warm.

Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook mixed mushrooms until tender and slightly browned all over, about 3 minutes; transfer to a plate.

Melt 3 tablespoons butter in saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion until tender and translucent, about 5 minutes. Season with salt. Stir in rice, and cook until coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine, and cook until almost completely absorbed, 3 to 4 minutes.

Ladle 1 cup reserved stock over rice, and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until almost completely absorbed. Continue adding stock, 1 cup at a time, stirring constantly and waiting for each addition to be almost completely absorbed before adding the next, until grains are al dente but not crunchy, about 30 minutes. (You’ll probably only use 6 to 7 cups stock. Add remaining stock to loosen the risotto, if desired.)
Remove from heat, and season with salt and pepper. Stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the vegan Parmesan. Top risotto with sauteed mushrooms (reheat if necessary), and garnish with some more Parmesan.

Vegan Parmesan

1 cup soaked and dried Brazil nuts
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
⅓ teaspoon salt
Pinch nutritional yeast
Pinch oregano

Place all ingredients in a food processor with the “S” blade on. Process until well incorporated and the consistency of bread crumbs.

Sweet and Spicy Sorbet Sandwiches

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted vegan butter, room temperature
1/3 cup plus 5 teaspoons sugar, plus more for rolling and flattening
1 egg replacer
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons finely chopped candied ginger
1 pint vegan strawberry sorbet
1 pint vegan lemon sorbet

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk flour, ground ginger, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and cloves in a bowl.

With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Mix in egg replacer, then add molasses and candied ginger. Reduce speed. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Wrap dough in plastic, and refrigerate until slightly firm, 15 minutes.

Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, drop balls of dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Roll each one in sugar, and return to sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Using the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar, press dough to flatten into 3-inch rounds. Bake until edges are golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool completely.

Sandwich one scoop of sorbet with 2 cookies. Repeat, alternating sorbet flavors. Serve immediately, or freeze in airtight containers up to 3 hours.

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Read more from Carolyn Scott Hamilton:

Comic Book Hero Healthy Eats by Carolyn Scott Hamilton

8 Simple Healthy and Green Travel Tips by Carolyn Scott Hamilton

Technorati Tags: dessert, drink, entree, gluten free recipes, Healthy recipes, mother's day recipes, salad, vegan recipes

Tags: dessert, drink, entree, gluten free recipes, Healthy recipes, mother's day recipes, salad, vegan recipes

READ: Forgiving for a Living by Lauren G

May 7, 2012 by the Phenomenal Lauren G
Filed under •-Headline, Family & Relationships, Forgiveness, Health & Well-being, Personal Growth

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Here is the proposition: Forgiveness as a Lifestyle

Some may be thinking that this sounds good, but how practical is it, really? We just can not walk around here letting people beat up on us and saying that it is okay. It is not okay.

The general consensus is that forgiveness means that it is okay for others to do wrong. If they are forgiven, then they should not be punished. This is because the word “forgiveness” has been used loosely in courts and by creditors.

So, we begin to define forgiveness as someone doing wrong and being let out of jail. Having to take no responsibility for their actions. Forgiveness is also mistaken for someone who does not pay their debts being told they don’t have to be responsible for debts they created. This is a perversion of the true meaning.

Forgiveness is for you. It releases you from the pain of the hurt. Forgiveness is only good for the other person, if they use it for themselves. Just because you forgive does not mean that you must allow the person to come back into your good graces.

If a person is intentionally hurting you, then by all means forgive (the painful memory) and move on. Leave that person in your past. You can not change them. You can only change yourself.

Forgiveness is giving up any hope of trying to change the past. You accept that it happened and you can not change it. You deny the memory any place in your mind and heart. What you are really forgiving is the memory, not really the person.

Forgiveness is a simple spiritual release. It is more than just a decision. After you decide to let go, you believe and trust that God (the Divine) can and will cleanse that painful memory from you. God can and God wills to do so.

My favorite and most simple method for forgiveness is Ho’oponopono. It is accomplished by saying and feeling (the feeling is important), these four healing phrases…

I AM SORRY

PLEASE FORGIVE ME

THANK YOU

I LOVE YOU

When you think of the painful situation apply these four healing phrases to it and you will feel the burden of the pain lighten. Say and feel the phrases over and over until you feel a spiritual release. You will be amazed to see how the memory not only feels lighter, but eventually fades all together.

Be healed. Be well. More Love to You.

i AM she ~the Queen of Forgiveness~ 2 years walking the road of forgiveness, and I find that there really is nothing to forgive. If I am going to forgive a few minutes later, then why go through the trouble of getting upset, hurt or angry at all. I just know that I forgive and I am forgiven. This is my mantra to all. Forgive and be forgiven. Forgive yourself (as God already has), and forgive others as you have been forgiven. As you continue your walk in forgiveness, you will find that more than proverbially — there really is nothing (happening outside of you) to forgive. But for now, just forgive. — http://www.LaurenReliford.com

Read more by Lauren G:

The Lost Art of Forgiveness by Lauren G

Inner Peace [Audio] by Lauren G

Technorati Tags: forgiveness, lifestyle, the phenomenal lauren g

Tags: forgiveness, lifestyle, the phenomenal lauren g

READ: Monday Matters – The Circle of Life by Iyanla Vanzant

April 23, 2012 by Iyanla
Filed under •-Feature, Books, Family & Relationships, Health & Well-being, Iyanla Vanzant, Spirituality

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The following is an excerpt from the book, Tapping the Power Within, A Path to Self-Empowerment for Women, pages 26 – 28.

The Circle of Life

One powerful way to honor our ancestors is to embody the principles they taught and continue the traditions they live. African people are a “we” people. We, in a cultural sense, moves us beyond the shallow consciousness of “my life is only about me”. We encourage just to remember that everything I do is a reflection on everyone in my line. We motivates us to be better for those watching and those coming behind.

My sister understood this and lived it. She taught me things that had empowered her as a way of sharing, expanding, and evolving the traditions that sustained her. She taught me what our mother had taught her, what may, in fact, has been taught for generations. Of course, things change, times change; people lose track of stories in the people who passed them on. We can, however, still honor the lives of the ancestors by remembering what we can, practicing and passing on the positive traditions that have been passed on to us.

For example, I always washed and combed my daughter’s hair on Sunday evenings. I was tickled when I saw one of them had continued that tradition with her own daughter. This is a profound and practical way to elevate the spiritual energy of the ancestors to do as they did in order to sustain the group. Without knowing it, many of us probably do it anyway. When, however, we can remember the name of the one who taught the practice, or lived the principle, we create a more intimate connection.

What I know now is that how I live my life either honors or dishonors my ancestors. I also know it is not important for me to dissect, evaluate or judge their behaviors and dysfunctions. My job, our job, is to respect the continuum of life. We must embrace and embody with reverence the good/positive qualities that our ancestors demonstrated because it was this essence of their lives that pave the way for us. They have set the example for how to live in family and community.

Dr. Betty Shabazz has always invoked a quote attributed to Alex Haley. “We must find the good and praise it.”

Find the good your ancestors left behind and live your life as an expression of it. We carry the energy of our ancestors in our DNA. Therefore, living the best of who they were, what they taught and what they believed elevates their essence and advances our growth.

What I know now is that every life, every being that ever took a breath and the physical form, is an ancestor. What I know now is that all things fade into God. All things are neutralized, brought into equality, balance out in unity with Spirit.

My sister is now an ancestor. Not just my ancestor, because we do not have the luxury of owning spirits; she is an ancestor. In my heart I knew that it didn’t matter that we hadn’t spoken. It no longer mattered that she had been upset with me or that I had been angry with her. It didn’t matter that people had exaggerated the problem with gossip and innuendo. What mattered now was that the ancestors were watching and waiting to see how we, the family, would behave and what I, the next in age order, would do. My sister had taught me what to do when a member of the family made their transition and it was now my responsibility to make sure it was done with prayerful excellence.

If someone had told me that I would one day voluntarily stand within arm’s reach of a dead body, I would’ve told her she was crazy. Had she told me the dead body would be that of my sister, I probably would’ve lost my mind. But there I stood next to my sister who was dressed in a clear plastic bag covered by a white sheet.

In that moment I did not need to think about what to do. I had to do what I had been taught. My friend Tulani, a master braider, braided my sister’s hair. I polished her nails just as she had taught me; one-stroke up the middle of the nail, one on the left side, one on the right and two coats. Next, I applied her makeup. I pulled her eyes taut just as she had taught me. I made a very fine, very straight line of eyeliner across her eyelids. I added just a touch of blue shadow in the corners of the lid. I lined her lips and added just a bit of gloss. I asked my niece to find a small handbag that my sister especially liked. I filled it with coins. In African tradition you never want your family to show up on the other side without coins.

I also gave her a small white hanky. She had taught me that a hanky is so much better for dabbing the eyes than paper tissues. I also put a few mints in her purse. It just seemed like the right thing to do. I dressed my sister in traditional African garb. I wrapped her head in asoke - traditional woven cloth – just like she had taught me to do. My sister loved Jean Nate so I put a dab behind each ear. Finally, I adorned her with traditional beads and bracelets. I placed an irukere – ceremonial horsetail – in her hands so that it lay across her chest. She was now ready for her children and family to view her remains. Holding hands, Tulani and I stepped back while my sister’s best friends added their final loving touches.

When we were all done we stood in stillness and silence gazing upon the woman who, though she stood only 5’4″ tall, had been a monumental influence in so many lives. In that moment I could not remember why we had grown apart. I just wanted to know if she would be proud of what we had done for her. We had prepared her for a traditional burial. We then blessed her to join the ancestors.

I felt regrets for having missed the last three years of her life. I felt sad that I would never hear her laugh again. I wonder why she didn’t tell me that she was not well. Then I remembered who my sister was. I knew that she probably didn’t want to be a burden. She probably thought I was too busy and she didn’t want to bother me.

Realizing that that was probably the reason, I felt hurt and angry and sad. More than anything I was angry with myself. Then I remembered the love and the spirit of love that existed between us and the anger dissipated. All things fade in Spirit. All things become love.

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About Iyanla Vanzant:

Iyanla Vanzant is the best-selling author of five books on self-empowerment, personal growth and spiritual healing. As the founder and executive director of the Inner Visions Spiritual Life Maintenance Network, she conducts workshops, seminars and lectures nationally. Drawing from her own experiences of family dysfunction, abuse, and poverty, Iyanla encourages us all to look at ourselves, laugh at ourselves and then take the necessary steps to heal ourselves. Her practical message is based on the principles of universal law, self-determination and the power of Spirit. You can learn more about her work at www.innervisionsworldwide.com.

Iyanla has recently appeared several times during Oprah’s Lifeclass webcast segments. You can view the classes here: http://www.oprah.com/oprahs-lifeclass/oprahs-lifeclass.html

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