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what do you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?

A wintry snow storm outside. One foot of snow and now freezing rain. For a nice crusty covering to crunch through. It’s the inside-by-the-fire time. After shoveling the walk and the driveway. After several spins down the hill on the new blue plastic sleds.


When it’s over, I want to say

All my life

I was a bride married to

Amazement

I was the bridegroom, taking

The world into my arms

When it’s over, I don’t want

To wonder

If I have made of my life

Something particular, and

Real

I don’t want to find myself

Sighing and frightened,

Or full of argument

I don’t want to end up simply

Having visited this world

                                         ~ Mary Oliver


Mary Oliver died one week ago.  Let me live in her honor. Let me live in my own honor. Let me live in the honor of God, the Great Spirit who gave me this body, mind and spirit. Who gave me this life. Who gave me this material to make meaning of. Let me die only after knowing that I have at least tried to dive into and expand each present moment.


This moment.


The white expanse outside beyond the window. The sparkling magic crystals spiraling down. The stark dark trees becoming glazed in glass. The children quiet after strong play and work in the snow. This is my moment of quiet and wonder, my moment to muse and ponder.


I sat down to share some words about organizing time, about plans for the new year, about the hearth. But I changed my mind.


Instead I want to know how you want to feel this year.

What is the energy you want to sit in most of the time?

Passion?

Joy?

Awe?

Excitement?

Peace?


Make a list, write it down. Feel it. Expand it.

Do this every day. Every morning.

Like a mantra. Like an incantation.

Beginning from there, you can move in reverse to create the one wild and precious life you want to live.


And to help keep you nourished and your heart fire strong this winter.....a few of my favorite winter remedies:

1) Fire Cider - one Tablespoon a day

2) Sinus Blaster - this is a tincture made of horseradish. It will clean everything sinus-y out. Take it seriously! One whole dropperful in water 2x/day if you are in the thick of it. (click here to find online)


3) Herbs/Spices: Cinnamon, Cardamom, Paprika, Black Pepper, Cloves, Cumin, Ginger

4) Warming Foods: Congee (any kind! see recipe below), Lamb, Slow cooked foods, meat or veggie stews, french lentils, black rice (also known as forbidden rice), dark sautéed greens, mushrooms.

5) Laughter! Joy! An Attitude of Astonishment & Gratitude! 



A YUMMY WINTER RECIPE

  • CONGEE Congee (or hsi-fan : rice-water) is a common food in China. It is essentially a porridge, made by simmering rice in five to six times the amount of water. Millet, spelt, and other grains can be used in place of rice. Congee is a wonderful recipe for the winter months; it is warming, supportive of digestion, and good for the kidneys and adrenal glands. To make congee, combine rice, mung beans or yellow lentils with any other ingredients you’d like to add (see below). Cook the mixture in 5-6 times the amount of water for 4-6 hours on the lowest possible simmer, or use a crockpot. It is better to use too much water than too little, and it is said that the longer a congee cooks, the more “powerful” it becomes!

Benefits of Congee:

Easily digested and assimilated by the bodyTonifies Blood and Qi, harmonizes digestion, deeply nourishingGood for inflammation and other heatsymptomsAids in assimilation of other foods added to the congee

Some Common Congees:

Aduki Bean: diuretic, curative for edema

Carrot: digestive aid, eliminates flatulence

Chestnut: tonifies kidneys, strengthens knees and loin

Chicken Broth: recommended for wasting illnesses and injuries

Eggplant: softens hardness, moistens, lubricates, replenishes fluids

Fennel:harmonizes stomach, expels gas; cures hernia

Ginger:warming to viscera; used for diarrhea, anorexia, indigestion

Leek: warming to viscera; good for chronic diarrhea

Liver: benefits diseases of the liver – very powerful (*use organic)

Miso: promotes disease resistance

Mung Bean: cooling, reduces fevers, relieves thirst

Mustard:expels phlegm; clears stomach congestion

Black Pepper:expels gas; recommended for pain in bowels

Pine Nut:moistening to heart and lungs; harmonizes large intestine

Seaweed: eliminates mucus, promotes water production and metabolism

Sesame Seed: moistening to intestines; treats rheumatism

Spinach: harmonizing and moistening to viscera; sedative

Yogurt and Honey: beneficial to heart and lungs


  • Basic Congee In a large pot, combine 1 cup white rice with 8 cups water. Bring to a boil, then let simmer for 1 ½ hours, stirring occasionally. Add ¼ tsp salt. In a separate pan flash sauté ½ bunch green onion heads with 1 T of olive oil. In the meantime, soak dried seaweed until fully reconstituted. When congee is ready (pudding like consistency), add 1 T chopped ginger and seaweed. Mix well. Serve.


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