I spent the holiday weekend camping in the mountains above Sedona. It used to be easy to get quiet inside and relax. With all of the busyness of late I observed that peace did not come without first wading through the clutter in my head and letting go of the temptation to be "on".
Tranquility seeped through me slowly as I took off on Sunday afternoon for a walk by myself in the woods. Walking has always been my mode of transportation to another state of concsiousness. It lifts me out of the day to day, and into a magical world of tranquility. As has always been with me, I sang songs to entertain myself as I walked along the dirt path far into the woods. For two hours I walked without ever coming upon another soul. To me this was nirvana. I had no choice but to connect with myself, and connect I did.
When all is quiet within one's own world, there is time to think about how life is going and whether or not it is working. I realized that my world needs an overhaul, and that the delicate balance that I strive to teach to others must also be demonstrated in my own life.
The peace that came over me was long overdue and came to an end much more quickly than I would have preferred. But while I experienced it, it was joyous. This joy is what every soul needs to feel to live a balanced and healthy life. Joyousness must be the underlying emotion that pushes us to greatness and service. Keeping the joy in times of great spiritual, emotional, and physical demand is the key to a balanced and healthy life.

This is my first entry in my blog. I am getting up to speed with all of the available forms of communication on the internet. My husband, Michael, just finished creating a message board for me on my website and now, at my request, he created this blog. We will also be recording weekly podcasts that can be downloaded and listened to on your IPOD.
It is my intention to reach as many people as possible with my message of health and weight loss through holistic nutrition. Last night I was up quite late writing an article for a local magazine and I was reminded how discouraged I am at the deep denial our country is in regarding obesity and its related illnesses. The weight loss surgery industry's pockets are getting as fat as the people it claims to help, meanwhile no one is addressing the real problem. Each day in the news there is another story about the tainted food supply. The other day there was a story about benzene formation in soft drinks from a chemical reaction that occurs in the can. Benzene! We should be outraged! Benzene is on the EPA's list of highly carcinogenic chemicals. It is one of the most stable compounds and can hang around in the environment and in our bodies for years.
From the sound of the article, it was as if the whole thing was being shoved into a corner without much cause for alarm. When are people going to wake up and smell the benzene? Haven't we had enough "chemicalization" of our food?