Letter from a Dear Friend...and an Update!

Dearest Michelle,

You have been ever-present on my mind these last few days. I so care for you and want the best for you, dear Michelle! My heart was so heavy for you after reading your blog on Wednesday, to quote: " I savored the popcorn, because i said to myself, "This is the last cooked meal you're eating." It just all made sense in my heart and in my mind. All of my problems lately were as a result of eating cooked food. I made peace with it and am now moving on. It was fun while it lasted."

Well, since then you have had Day One of eating raw -Yeah!! All we can ever do is to take one day at a time. Your struggles remind me so much of what my dear significant other, Jim, used to say to me. When he first became sober and stopped drinking, he had to go cold turkey and not even contemplate having even one sip of any alcohol. To do so would simply lead him down that slippery slope that would lead to, among other things, "faulty thinking" that he could be like other people who could drink socially, who could have just one drink and not want another, and another...

That song from "Crazy Heart" is so applicable to what you are struggling with. Yes, I do believe that God answered your prayer so that you heard that interview on NPR. Your slippery slope has been, of late, to rationalize and say that you can be raw and have just a little cooked food. Starting to think that way, allowing yourself to entertain that thought...

I was goin' where i shouldn't go...
and seein' whom i shouldn't see...
doin' what i shouldn't do...
and meetin' who i shouldn't meet.

Such a powerful message for you, dear Michie, but one that you have obviously heard loud and clear.

I am so so grateful that you are now back on that raw wagon and have had Day One of Raw. I'm sure you had to dig really deep and not think of the cooked foods that you were missing. Having your first day back being a work day at Arnold's was a real blessing, too, because, well, first off, everything there is raw, but also keeping busy, staying distracted can a godsend, too. I have heard some say that "work is therapy" and you had some therapy yesterday to help get you through!

Now, this morning, I read your One Day at a Time blog. You deserve to be proud of yourself that your back on track. You had one full day of raw! Now, today, it's a new day and you awoke feeling fine and energetic. I am so proud of you. As far as the forty pounds that you have recently gained, I'm reminded of something that I heard at a Weight Watchers meeting years ago. A woman who had probably two hundred pounds to lose when asked how much she needed to lose said "five pounds." She had found that if she focused on that two hundred pounds the task would be so daunting that she might not even try, but just focusing on five pounds at a time was very doable for her.

I believe you are on the right track, Michelle, and will be praying for God to direct your path.

With much love,
Jan

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Isn't Jan the sweetest, most wonderful friend? We've been dear friends since we met in OHI over 3 years ago. Jan is now making green smoothies for herself and contemplating incorporating more raw foods into her diet. Let's give her a big BRAVA!!!!!

Just a quick update: I'm on Day 4 of raw. Feels good to be back on track. Cliff is a huge support. He's lost 9 lbs, and just to demonstrate to you his committment, he ordered a salad with me at a deli the other night. Pretty amazing. We have smoothies every morning. I leave him a huge salad for lunch with yummy raw dressing and a huge chocolate smoothie and a huge green smoothie, and with that and fruit, he's set until he comes home after work. He's eating sometimes a peice of pizza out, so he's mostly raw, but just making incredible strides and feeling SO MUCH BETTER!!!

As a treat, Cliffy took me out to the movies yesterday. We watched Jeff Bridges in "Crazy Heart". It was wonderful. Sad, but wonderful. And i got to hear my song "Fallin' Feels Like Flyin'" which fills me with such joy to hear that. I didn't get all of the words correct, so i'll go back and fix them. I look forward to buying the CD from the film to make sure i have them all right and i can sing it correctly around the house. It's my cheering-me-on song the last few days. Nevertheless, I really recommend the movie.

Audition news: I have to go back for my opera restaurant audition, again, next week. They don't use backtracks, but have a live accompanist, so i need to bring sheet music with, and arrive much later, so i can sing when people are eating. Cliff and I got there about 3pm with my backtracks, so we'll have to go back. But it was lovely to meet Franco of the "HIGHNOTE CAFE" at 13th and Tasker in S. Philly. He seems so very nice. And the restaurant is lovely. I'm nervous, but excited about this new prospect.

Some freaky good news - you know we've been taking the E3Live Supplement daily, it's a blue-green algae from Oregon, and two freaky things are happening! Firstly, i think my hair is growing! My bald spot suddenly doesn't look as bald! I didn't realize because i hadn't colored my hair in well over 2 months and with the grey, i didn't really notice. And at work, we have to wear head covereings, so i have kerchiefs or hats on all of the time. Yesterday i colored my hair with a natural vegetable hair dye and i'm like....woooooo.....i have a LOT MORE HAIR in front!!!! Wooo hoo! I've HEARD people say E3Live will make your hair grow and that's exactly WHY i was interested in it. I've been losing hair ever since high school, but especially heavily since going raw. I'll have to see if i can get some pictures together to show you the difference. We've been on the supplement for at least 1 month and are up to 3 Tbsp a day. Wow!!!

Secondly, i went to pluck this hair out of this mole i have on the right side of my jaw? The hair wasn't there...and the mole was GONE!!! I was incredulous, looking all over for it, i thought i was crazy...but, it wasn't there! I called Cliff upstairs...!! I called my mother....!!! She exclaimed, "If anyone else would have told me that, i wouldn't believe it!"

Other news: I made chia pudding. Man, it's GOOD! Did you ever make it?

Today: Cliff and i are going out for the day. i'll go up and pack us a raw lunch.

Oh, yesterday we had a to-go meal from All The Way Live www.alllivefood.com, a local raw foodery only opened on fridays and saturdays. it was luscious. Especially the apple pie...mmmm.. We had picnic in front of the Schulkyll River on Kelly Drive. Romantic!

xoxox michelle joy