Fall is in Full Swing!

Welcome Back Everyone,

I hope you are all staying healthy despite the viral flu seasons and multiple vaccinations. Take the time to take care of yourself and get your regular physical exams and stick to your wellness plan. In my prior journals, I have discussed dietary habits, recipes and the mental aspect of health. All those things are important to long term wellness. Currently, I am transitioning through a period of slowing down and listening to the clues of what my body is telling me. I have started cleansing my body of toxins through colonic herbal recipes that are safe and time released. Check with your doctor before you begin any colonic or fasting program. I am utilizing my cleansing kit in moderation, meaning I still fit it into my daily routine by eating very moderately and primarily at dinner time with the rest of the family and of course the food choice is healthy as possible because I want to set the best healthy living example as possible for my children. Cleansing my system will also help with various food allergies and rid yourself of toxins and hydrate the body and skin. I have fasted several times before and it has always rejuvenated me inside and out as well as spiritually. I always have practiced a balanced approach to my health. Events and issues just force you to come to terms with who you are and that is a good thing.


Healthy Deserts

In the previous journal, I talked about low sugar deserts. My sons tested and baked a Betty Crocker pre-packed reduced sugar cake with low sugar icing. It turned out fine. You could tell some of the sugar was missing but overall it was flavorful. I did not have him make the cake mix from scatch, although he can but the reality is that when he is on his own and a fully equipped kitchen and food ingredients are not available to make homemade recipes then he still will need to take that trip to the grocery to make informed and wise food selections. Unless it is a passion of your child to cook the following scenario will play out whereby your son or daughter will be influenced by their peers' food choices and not to mention young men and women in college dorm eating unhealthy without their parents looking over their shoulders. So it goes back to healthy behavior, practicality and balance. Don't take the fun out of enjoying your holiday deserts. The best approach is moderation. In otherwords, don't over eat yourself into a nap or have to go find loose clothing to accommodate your full stomachs.

This year, I am continuing Thanksgiving on a Budget and going out to enjoy holiday meals with family, loved ones, friends, neighbors and associates.


Mental Inspiration

I have a few words to share about inspiration. For as long as I can remember, ideas, images and words have come to me in a flow of light. It's hard to explain because it is so intense and personal and unique to who I am. It can happen in the middle of the night in my dreams, while I am driving, in the middle of a conversation, and other places that thoughts decide to drop in or come back to me for a reasons you cannot decipher just yet because the purpose is not meant to be revealed at this point.

During these holidays and everyday of the year, we all ponder the highs and lows of life. Some year you experience the positive upturn of events and other times loss and grief. I have been through both recently. My siblings and I, as hundreds of other families, have a family member that is battling the last stages of Alzheimer Disease. Concurrently, my daughter is happily and stressfully preparing herself for college. I have found that it is important and mentally healthy to release stress through prayer, meditation and exercise. Choose what works for you. For instance, I was on the treadmill one morning with my IPOD earphones plugged in listening to Jazz vocalist Al Jarreau and the song, "Waltz for Debby" melodically flowed into my ears and the harmonic story unfolds about a little girl who treasures her dolls, favorite toys, dances to silent music, revels in her playful inspired antics and how she transitions to a woman. At that moment, the inspiration hit like a lightning bolt and that encompassed my grief for the loss of my loved one to Alzheimer, the loss of my daughter to becoming a woman as she goes off to college, the loss of my age related to youth but happy to find a new youthful inspiration. It goes to show you that the old tale that death and dying does not just come in (3's) three's but so does life. As Al Jarreau continues to sing in my head, I think of myself dancing to the silent music and songs that are spun of gold and the songs that me and my mother danced to and the dances that my daughter and I leaped across the floor to and I laugh with joy because I get the message that love, joy, sadness, grief and peace is as it should be as other life comes to an end and new youth springs eternal and all is as it should be.

So, the lesson is once again as we all grow that there is continued BALANCE. Hats off to artist Al Jarreau for inspiring me to hit my mental inspiration stride as he sings the lyrics, "In the Sun she Dances to silent music, songs that are spun of gold somewhere in her own little head." "The dolls, bears and toys will miss her but so will I." Here my inspirational tribute to my my Mom and daughter; The things you have embraced and touched will miss you and so will I, so dance in the sun and I hope the same wish for you too!


Check it Out:

You can find my other diet, health and cultural commentary artist journals by visiting the blogs:
http://culturalcommentaryartist.ning.com
http://innervoice-rise.blogspot.com

Keep the faith and stay mentally, physically and spiritually healthy!

Gloria J. Harden-Bailey

Week #4: April 20th - 26th

NBCD Welcome Back,

On the whole, I am still maintaining my exercise routines. Last week, it was a bounce ball and treadmill workout. I am starting to eat dinner earlier and keep snacks to a minimum after 9:00pm. I made several cold pasta salads. I made shrimp and crab pasta salad for my family and for a cooking demonstration on healthy food. The recipe is simple and quick and stores well in a sealed container for at least a couple of days. Other snacks that I try are a handful of lightly salted cashews or air popped popcorn. Now, they make several kinds of seasonings for popcorn. For instance, the Kroger foods caramel popcorn seasoning has only 10 calories, 2 grams of sugar and no sodium! For an after dinner dseart, I had one scoop of lactose free vanilla bean ice cream and alternate that the next day with peach yogurt to get me my dairy intake. Again, it is all about moderation and making a choice to not go for the second handful or scoops. It is not always successful but I am getting better at pushing away from any thought of an additional snack. So it is important that I feel to be honest with myself about the positive and negative food behaviors. Otherwise you will be in denial and avoid sometimes making a hard choice. I have added a vitamin supplement for women. (They make vitamins specifically for men also) Furthermore, I continue with my Biotin supplement for hair and nails. Always continue your prescribed medicine and do not cut back or share medications or unknown supplements. Please check with your physician for expert advice on supplements and proper medication for any health conditions.

A Note About Attitude

We all can be a little stubborn when it comes to a healthy diet. We cannot blame it all on food processing and tempting media ads or even cultural and traditional family food habits. It has to start with a positive attitude. I will admit last week and even as early as yesterday, I was complaining about how better my health could be even though I am in pretty good health. During my health check up, I was nagging on about my body changes and how I am learning to make peace with it. My doctor praised me for doing well, but I did not take the time to hear the compliment at first. So I found myself in a cycle of behavior where I was complaining about the effects of the aging process and I should have been uplifting my progress. I am overall a pretty positive person but even I have my days especially when your schedule is full. I found myself speaking with a food demonstration participant about how it was important to take care of her health. Sometime Black women and men are staunch in their belief that desire their serious chronic health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressur eand even to the point of being hospitalized they will not change their diet for the betterment of their health. Fact is, what you eat is linked to your health. I get much attitude from family, friends and participants about how they have been living this long and how nobody is going to tell them what to do while their hands are on their hips or hands folded to their chest. Please be open to the compliments and honest positive suggestions about your health. If can change your negative behavior to a positive attitude.

Black Pearl Reward of the Week:

I had a great score on my blood pressure numbers. I know my consistent exercise and healthy eating assisted in keeping my blood pressure in normal range.

See you next week and stay mentally, physically and spiritually healthy.
Mrs. B.