These are my friends. I love them. Please don't eat my friends. (free roaming, tagged cows a few miles from where I live)

As a child I was not fond of eating animals (aka meat, poultry, seafood). Something about it repulsed me. Probably the fact it was another Being, just like myself. They had families and feelings too. It just didn’t feel right. And I never knew I had a choice. I thought I had to eat it or I wouldn’t eat at all. I also did not realize that deli meat was in fact an animal. If I did, I probably would have been totally grossed out by eating that too. It was the obvious, things with bones and veins that struck a nerve with me. Guilt even. I held onto these feelings for a long time and watched my mom cook, so one day I could prepare my own food. When I was 14 I made the conscious decision to go Vegetarian. Luckily it caught on with a majority of my friends and even my boyfriend (and his sister, who I believe was the first of us to do this) at the time. That sure made it easier.

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I thought I knew enough and never dared to watch any of the slaughter videos. Why should I? I knew I did not want to eat animals. That’s all that mattered. Right? Why would I want to go Vegan? It never crossed my mind. What harm was there in drinking milk and eating cheese? Ahhhh, that innocent teen mind of mine. I thought the Vegan food I tried, was very bland (I don’t feel this way now). That was enough of a turnoff (and my lack of knowledge) to walk down that road. Knowing myself, if I learned more about Veganism and some tasty recipes, I would have quickly changed my mind and walked that path. Yet, I know where I am now and where I have been is in perfect order.

Organic Raw Vegan dinner. Veggie & Garbanzo Bean salad, Squash noodles with Broccoli & Cauliflower mixed with Bragg's Liquid Aminos AND a Spinach & Asparagus Lemon Salad.

I stayed a Vegetarian for about 6-7 years. And did not eat seafood for about 10 years. Looking back, I really was not eating for optimum health. One of my staple meals was spanish rice with red potatoes and onions. I was pretty much a junk food, carb eating, Vegetarian. I always liked veggies, yet I was not creative enough with them. I also did not purchase the groceries. I started eating meat again sometimes after living with another boyfriend, a total meat and potatoes kinda guy. The fact that I was slightly anemic, nudged me along as well. I was getting very sick with my unhealthy portrayal of a Vegetarian lifestyle. I still remember my transition. I started out with chicken cutlets, then turkey, then pork and I still remember my first taste of steak. Awful! It tasted like flesh and I saw flashes in my head of a cows face, a close up of it’s eyes. I saw the misery. I felt the misery. Gosh, what was I doing??????

Fresh Green Juice. I love juicing!

There was always a Vegetarian living inside of me. Even when I was still eating meat. There was only time until that me, would surface again. During a Spiritual Awakening on 1/1/08, I experienced many visions and messages. I knew I had to detox, drink lots of water and go back to being a Vegetarian. I inched my way back into it. It felt so good. I was very happy to be back in that space, this time with a greater awareness to our planet and truly eating right. I met my good friend, Elle who is a Vegan.  I was again unsure of the Vegan idea. Though it sounded better this time around, than from when I was a teenager. I watched a documentary she gave me called “Eating”. It inspired me to even consider going Vegan. Elle and I decided to do Kathy Freston’s 21 Day “Quantum Wellness Cleanse”, in March of 2009 and started a support group together called, “The 21 Day Cleanse Group“. The cleanse asked you to refrain from consuming all animal products, sugar, gluten, caffeine and alcohol for 21 days. In 21 days you can quit a habit and form new ones. It was fairly easy for me, as I did not consume alcohol, caffeine and animal flesh. I did however, have a huge sweet tooth, was unsure about giving up cheese and new to learning about gluten (wheat, rye and barley products). With my surprise, after the first cleanse was over I never ate cheese again! And I had cut back drastically on sugar and gluten. Between cleanses, I ate a few vegan cakes that had sugar in them, though I no longer purchase sugar. I was using agave nectar for a while and have shied away from that as well. After medical testing, I know I am not allergic to gluten. However, I have a reaction to it. My stomach bulges up so much that I look pregnant. It hurts too and makes me feel very lethargic. Plus, once you educate yourself on what these things do to your body, they really become less appetizing.

Fruit smoothies!

For some time I was interested in a Raw Diet. My first spark of interest came when I was living down in FL in 2006. I was doing another cleanse and thought, “Oh, it would be great to eat a raw diet. But I could never do that.”.  Ha! When I first started the Kathy Freston cleanse, the thought of doing a raw diet pranced in my mind again. This time I had more of a belief that this was possible. Doubt myself? Pffft. A thing of the past. That I can do it! I had the intention. The desire was alive, I was just unsure of how to get there. And with baby steps I made my way. I started to challenge myself more on these cleanses – since I was already for the most part,

Organic Raw Vegan Mango Mint soup.

living the lifestyle. I would spend the last week of it going raw, cutting out processed foods and not using a microwave. I eventually did one going raw for the full 21 days. We were doing 4 cleanses a year, at the beginning of each season. These past two cleanse I have done completely raw. The last one I did not do as a group, though a coworker is doing it with me and another friend or two just hopped on. We are no longer holding cleanse workshops under the “21 Day Cleanse Group” together.  However, there is still a community on our Facebook page with lots of helpful information.  I have ventured into the Raw Food world and would still like to contribute my services in some form or another. If I do another Cleanse workshop, I will focus on Raw Living Foods. I have been educating myself on Living foods and boy (and girl), does it feel good! I’m currently on day #37 of a Raw Food Cleanse and doing a lot more juicing than I have in the past. My intention is to be at least 75% Raw on the regular. I feel RAWesome! I feel better than I did as a cooking Vegan. MY skin looks great. I feel light, like a baloon. I feel so close to nature; the trees, plants and animals. My intuition is heightened. I have super fun, laughing, happy spells.

Breakfast! Fresh fruit cut up and ready to be juiced.

My eyes are clearer. This list goes on! Overall I’m feeling amazing and learning what works and does not work for me. Recently, I have allowed myself to occasionally have some cooked food (mainly beans and small amounts of rice). I don’t have the same desire for it, so I know going 75% Raw will be a breeze. I’m so thankful for this journey and for the willingness to do this for myself. I have learned how to truly love myself over the past few years and cleansing is a part of the process. This body I reside in is my temple, and I will treat it with respect, nourish it and take care of it just like it takes grand care of me. I’ll be on this planet for some time, operating a machine (body) that works, is strong, flexible, tone, happy, bursting with endurance, increasingly vibrant and super healthy!

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I will continue to write about this journey in greater detail. And I will provide you with information that inspired me and allowed me the opportunity to change. So stay posted and let me know about your eating habits, questions and advice. We are all teachers and students. Let’s learn from one another.

Thank you!

Beauty From Love: “I am a conscious eater. I consume food knowing that the sun blesses it. I eat with peace and love for all of humanity and nature.”

Love, Light, Laughter & Living

Tara 🙂