A new decade emerges
As I approach the end of another trip around the sun I like to take stock of the year past and set intentions for the upcoming year. I write down key high and low lights of the year, reflect upon forward momentum, and set categorized intentions (home, friends, creative, health, career etc) for the upcoming 365 days. These intentions range from tackling specific tasks: “Clean out the basement and make it useable” and “Paint the living room,” to the more general and esoteric: “Figure out gratitude,” “weigh less, or more at this time next year” (to be honest, I’ve never set the intention to “weigh more” but one could), Then I put the paperwork away until 365 days into to future, when I review it and again reflect and repeat.
This ritual has helped me establish a realistic perspective on my life that has served me well. I encourage you to give it a try–especially the putting the intentions away for a year part. You may be surprised by what you discover. So, after this is posted, I’ll be reflecting on the past year and anticipating my future.
And yes, post I shall–despite my resistance. And in the spirit of blogging, I’ve decided to burden the world with yet more opinions per every pundit in internet-land. This appears to be the season for posting the best and worst of the year and the decade. So, to go with the flow, and purge myself of my attachment to my opinions, I proceed.
Best non-fad food of the century
Ginger. I’ve known about the powerful effects of ginger for years and have occasionally drunk ginger tea. This year, however, I took ginger seriously and have been vigilant about using ginger therapeutically, particularly for upper respiratory situations (ie colds). I’ve fended off a number of colds with concerted application of fresh ginger tea with honey (don’t cook the honey). And of course, miraculous ginger baths have been a staple of my cleanses for awhile. Ginger is also a great digestive aid. It’s a workhorse of an herb, is easily accessible, and tastes great!
Worst wellness food-fad of the decade
Acai. I suppose I’ll receive a lot of hate mail for this one but I find the acai berry fad symbolic of the worst of the wellness and supposed “nutrition” movement. For those not in the know, acai is touted as an anti-oxidant super food that is supposedly responsible for all sorts of miraculous results. It is harvested in Brazil and was a huge money-maker for a select group of entrepreneurs earlier in the decade. This New Yorker piece describes in painful detail the evolution of the acai phenomenon and is reminder of how what we eat effects more than just our selves, our egos, and our appetites.
Second worst wellness food-fad of the decade (there are so many to choose from!)
The raw food movement. We need to cook much of our food in order to release the nutrients to do their nutrient jobs in our body. And besides, cooking makes a lot of our food taste a whole lot better.
Best food fad of the decade
NONE! Food fads are just that, fads, designed to line the pockets of those pushing them.
Most gratifying wellness find of 2019
Pilar Gerasimo: Pilar, who hails from the Twin Cities area, focuses her wellness work on the concept of “healthy deviance” which is the idea that those of us who choose to live healthy and happy lives are bucking the establishment. Consequently, we need to see ourselves as existing outside of the mainstream and proceed as such if we want to be healthy. She does a great job of explaining the evolutionary conundrum the human race finds itself in when it comes to our health and well-being. When I saw (and heard) her speak, I felt a sense of relief at finally finding someone who thought the way I did—ie the system is broken (that includes the system that pushes food and exercise fads) and until we see that clearly, we will be continually frustrated in our efforts to be happy. She has a book coming out soon, The Healthy Deviant and I can’t wait to read it.
Most disappointing wellness trend of the decade
Workplace Wellness Programs: While I encourage people to stay healthy and happy while on the job and I imagine some workplace wellness programs may be moderately helpful, I think, based on observation, that these programs, by and large, have simply become additional vehicles for moneyed interests to line their pockets and for employers to manipulate their work forces. If we, in the United States, are truly concerned about the health and well-being of our workforce, I suggest we pay living wages, provide universal health coverage (so people don’t stay at miserable jobs just to get health insurance), and limit the work week to no more than 40 hours. People will then have the time, space, and resources to properly manage their well-being and be happy.
Most hopeful wellness trend of the decade
The eat local movement, along with the upsurge of farmers markets in metro-areas all over the country provide healthier foods to our communities and do a great job of educating us about where our food comes from and what real food really tastes like. By visiting these markets, we come together as a community to honor the most basic of human activities—feeding ourselves and our communities.
Most fun new activity of 2019
Circle Singing! Singing in general is good for the soul, our mental health, our physical health and our universal health; circles are a universal symbol of coming together. The perfect combination!
Circle singing is a form of community singing, developed for contemporary times by Bobby McFerrin, in which a leader directs a group in improvisational song. The group I sing with doesn’t seem to have any links I can provide but it is led by Judy Donaghy Vinar so if you get on her mailing list you likely will receive announcements of the monthly gatherings.
We’re in this together
Whew! I think I’ve expressed enough for now. Thanks for indulging me!
As we head into another new decade I encourage all of us to keep our senses attuned—pay attention. There is a lot to observe out there. Let’s watch the sprouts from all the seeds of love, compassion, justice, and creativity that we’ve sewn over the decade begin to pop their heads out of the ground. Let’s nurture these sprouts as we continue to plant more seeds. Let’s care for all of our “selves”: physical, subtle/spiritual, and universal, never forgetting that we’re all in this world together and together is how we will both suffer and thrive.
Happy New Year and Happy New Decade to all of you, thank you for your support, and enjoy the ride.
Start the year out right and mark your calendars
The Kindred Spirits gathering will re-convene Thursday Jan 23rd, 2020 at St. Peder’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 4600 E. 42nd St., Minneapolis, MN 55406, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.. Note that the sessions will be running a half hour earlier than in 2019.
In the January session we’ll explore awareness, the first step towards making any meaningful changes in our lives.
