do not let your fire go out

"Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours."

ayn rand

Live Your Values

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." - Joseph Campbell

I was so excited to begin 2010. On New Year's Eve day, I went downtown to get my hair done. I had a long walk from the train station to the salon and I found myself locking eyes with strangers on the street and saying, "Happy New Year," to them out loud. I never made a conscious decision to do it; it just came out of me like I was speaking in tongues. It was oddly exhilarating and my bursts were all met with smiles and the same response in kind. I'm so glad I didn't censor myself, which would have been a classic Dana Joy move of old. Nope, instead I chose to go with what felt good; I let the joy fly and just kept going.

Real Food Rehab isn't your typical food blog. As I have evolved and changed over time, it has evolved with me. Real Food Rehab is essentially documenting my process of attempting to live what I value most and sharing all the resources, discoveries, tips, recipes and ideas with you along the way.

These are the values of Real Food Rehab:

Health, Pleasure, Authenticity, Quality, Beauty, Integrity, Creativity/Personal Expression.

My goal for this new year is to be the most authentic version of myself that I can be. This is not some fluffy aspiration. I take it very seriously. And I believe what it takes to get there is living what I value everyday. What does that mean? Stay tuned, because we are going to explore this in depth, in all kinds of creative, fun ways.

I've asked someone I greatly admire to step in and give us her take on this topic. Her name is Alie McManus and she is my (favorite) yoga instructor. I love Alie because she makes me laugh out loud in yoga class (traditionally unheard of), and she's radiant all the freaking time and I'm reminded of that scene in the deli in When Harry Met Sally, after Meg Ryan has her "orgasm," and the woman at the table next to her says "I'll have what she's having." That's how I feel about Alie. If you are thinking about taking up a yoga practice, Alie teaches a great beginning yoga series at yogaview in Chicago. So, here she is to give us a much needed boost for the start of our New Year...


Alie McManus:

As we begin a brand new year bright with inspiration to be our best, the question I find myself asking is "what do you value?"

This is an excellent question.

I have freshly realized that what I value is what makes me feel good!

Okay, so this may be an obvious answer at first, but curious and profound as we begin to explore what it is we do value in our lives.

To start, things that make me feel good are life affirming, empowering, and fun. The idea is to get out of my habitual mindset and ditch thoughts like, "what should I do” in favor of going for the joie de vivre!

Being happy and feeling good are natural. But we often forget this.

It's the DOs and DON"Ts and SHOULDs we impose on ourselves that can make keeping our New Years goals feel like climbing Mount Everest.

What may serve us most effectively in discovering what makes us feel our best is the act of getting out of our habitual-thinking mind and sensing how we really feel. Immersing ourselves in our actual experience is the single most powerful act to affect positive change on a daily basis.

What can we do to get out of our habitual headset and into the moment? Here are some ideas to try:

Breathe. Allow your lungs to fill up, retain that energy for a moment or more, and then let it out slowly and smoothly—maybe even sounding a sigh of relief.

Get in your body. Let it be as simple as a seated side stretch or seated twist. When you stretch you are focused on the sensation happening within your body.

Savasana. This is a classical yoga posture for deep relaxation. Lie flat on your back with your knees supported by a pillow, or a rolled up blanket and notice the feeling of your entire body with your eyes softly closed. Notice the subtle expansion of your body as the breath flows in and the softening of your body as the breath flows out. Keep drawing your attention to your body as you breath even as you find your mind luring you in other directions.

Stay True. Be willing to say No. Be willing to say Yes. If you are not sure, be honest and say, “I don’t know, let me think about it.”

Take your time. Do less and enjoy yourself more.

Just do it. When you feel the energy or the excitement of inspiration, do it, whatever it is you want to do, do it! Or take the first baby step needed to reach your inspired goal. Look at Bob Wiley, from the film What about Bob. Bob outlived his fears by taking baby steps, as well as a “prescribed” vacation from his problems!

Pause. Pause frequently and often. Pause, breath and relax.

Meditate. As long as 5 min-30min. Try as many mediation techniques as possible, there are lots.

Have fun. Paint, play, run, walk, look, visit, watch, and be, without questioning or doubting your self.

Forget it! Forget whatever is not serving your best interest. If your energy level goes down, if you are not excited, it you do not want to do it, then don’t!!!! Get rid of whatever is not working and focus on what is working!

Alie McManus loves traveling around the world and currently lives and teaches yoga in Chicago. Join Alie for class at yogaview and Moksha. Find out more about Alie at www.aliemcmanus.com

The Inspiration Issue

Today I took a long walk in this lovely park by my house. It has a circular, gravel running path and I go there every other day or so to get some exercise. As I walked toward the middle of the park, I heard the most beautiful sound. There, on a bench, was a young man playing the cello. There was no hat or instrument case open - there was no pressure of donation, he was simply practicing in the open air. I made it around the bend of the path and started walking back in his direction and stopped for a long while to lean against a tree, close my eyes, take in the sun and his beautiful music. The unexpected combination of the cello and the crisp fall weather touched me deeply. It completely made my day, and I made sure to tell him so.

For me, these last two years have been hardcore, soul-searching times. Throw in the impact of the recession and now, the holidays and that's a whole lot of pressure. But if there's one thing I've learned in my attempts at self-preservation, is that in dark times, it's crucial to seek out inspiration. Every single day.

Inspiration keeps you moving forward, striving and focused on your path, even when you don't quite know what your path is. Inspiration keeps you in the creative mix. Inspiration makes you feel rich even when you're poor. Inspiration is a reminder that anything is possible. Inspiration is a life line.

A while ago, I started by making a list of things I love; things that bring me joy and pleasure and actively searched them out. Then, I took it a step further and started writing down memories of experiences when I cried because I was happy. Specific books, movies, shared experiences with friends, my African dance class, yoga, being in the mountains have all had that effect. It was a big, glaring 'note to self' that I needed more of those types of experiences in my life.

Another thing I've found very hopeful is returning to memories of childhood. The experiences, music, books, toys and television that I loved as a child are great inspiration. It shed light on who I am and what's important to me.

I'm always on the lookout for new things to inspire me. I especially love to read non-fiction about people who've triumphed in the face of adversity or who've succeeded beyond their wildest dreams by bravely being their truest selves in the world without apologies.

Being in nature is perhaps my greatest inspiration - it's my first layer of protection against all the fear, violence and mediocrity in our culture. It's my echinacea or vitamin D. I am a city girl, born and raised, who discovered a love of nature late in life and I'm constantly seeking out-of-the-way green space for walks and quiet reflection. I am someone who tells trees that I love them out loud. Hey, it's not like I have a choice.

I also seek out beauty and bold personal expression in the form of brilliant performances and art. It inspires me to be brave in sharing my own creative contributions to the world. It reminds me that a lot of people society regarded as strange or outcast have made some of the most important contributions to our culture.

Being inspired helps me keep the most important promise of all - the one I made to myself to never, ever give up.

Here are some ideas and resources that have inspired me. I want to know what inspires you - I encourage you to share your stories and resources with me in the comments section or on the Real Food Rehab Fan Page.

Search out and spend time with people who inspire you - who are authentic, healthy and whole; who don't judge and criticize, who encourage and support and aren't threatened when good things happen to you. I find the people that inspire me most are those who have traits I admire and would like more of myself. It's like having the most delicious carrot at the end of a stick.

Take out old photos from the best times in your life and reflect back how you felt in those moments and why. What was present that made you feel so good?

Sit down in a book store or library and flip through photo, art or interior design books. Notice what moves you.

Have a dance break in your living room with the lights out to your favorite music. I do this one all the time!

Choose to mix up one pattern in your life like changing your route to work or getting off the computer when you find yourself aimlessly adrift in Google-land. What else might show itself if you broke up your patterns?

Here are a few videos I find particularly inspiring:

Here, writer Elizabeth Gilbert of Eat, Pray, Love muses brilliantly on creativity and genius.

This is a beautifully humanist audio-visual series of stories of New Yorkers from all walks of life called One in Eight Million. Some of my favorites are the blind wine taster and the animal rescuer.

If this doesn't make you feel good, nothing will: Madeline Kahn singing with Grover from Sesame Street circa 1975.

I am a huge fan of a very young Barbra Streisand. In these short performances, she's between 23 and 25 years old! Keep in mind, when she started her career, she was considered an oddball. She wore shabby, vintage clothes and was repeatedly discouraged by her mother who ignored her gifts. She would sneak out her bedroom window in Brooklyn to go perform at open mikes in Manhattan when she was under age! These are powerful performances, I hope you enjoy them. Click here for her classic duet with Judy Garland singing Happy Days Are Here Again which I find especially poignant during these hard times.



Lastly, I need to acknowledge my photo, which was taken from a brilliant slide show by Maira Kalman. It's about what would happen if we got away from industrial food production and got back to the land. It might inspire how you eat day to day...