Happy Spring! two exciting events are happening soon… don't miss out!

Happy Spring!!!

Creek, Creek, Creek.. yes I am slowly opening the doors of my cave into the world only to find out that Spring is here! and OMG I have not written in a very long time!!! Didn't you know I'm a modern cave woman... a cave woman at heart after all!

Yes, snow is still here and spring is in the air! The birds are out, the grounds are peeking through (ok, just a bit), the sun is still out at 6pm and there is a freshness in the air... I'm so excited! Spring is the time of letting go of the old layers that no longer serve us, of letting go of past thoughts and behaviours that keep us limited, clearing patterns that hold us back, clearing our attachments to relationships that no longer serve us, but not necessarily letting go of the relationships themselves rather shifting our perspective, expectation and attachment to them. It's time to let go, detox and refresh! It's time to create new daily habits that serve us, that leap us forward and allow us to connect deeper to Spirit. It's time to make peace with ourselves allowing us to feel safe within the boundaries of our skin and the potential of our breath. It's time to be the best possible version of ourselves we can be ... sounds to good to be true?
Naaaa.. you can do it.

Must I remind you that there are many steps along our own personal yellow brick road ? One baby step further onto the best possible version of ourselves is a HUGE step!!!

So this Spring let's think about some of those HUGE baby steps that we've been waiting to take... it's time to take them and knowing that there are other people out there taking them with us seems somehow less intimidating doesn't it?. It does for me. Feel the ripples of goodness from your HUGE baby step(s) benefiting your life already... expect greatness and greatness will come to you.

Let the real power inside yourself come out! let it transform your life.. let it shine! let it be... Breath it into existence.

Affirm to yourself what you want to attract into your life... and witness the magic at work..

So come on by, step by step, and join us for two great events that I will be hosting this spring:

Sunday March 23rd, 5-7pm, is the come back of the Rawllygood Potluck, celebrating the Spring Equinox, with a twist of Raw goodness.  So check the guidelines out, and come on by… please rsvp.



Saturday May 3rd, 9-5pm. Homesteading for Raw Nutrition. Full day workshop. Presented by Phill Collins from Foggy River Farms, and myself.

The moment we have all been waiting for….. my first Raw Food Nutrition class along with my friends from Foggy River Farm.  Phil Collins will be teaching about nutrient dense foods to grow on your own edible garden, how to start your own Orchard, tree planting and garden soil preparation.  I will be teaching Raw Food Nutrition.  We will have hands-on activities, such as tree planting and garden bed preparation.  It is a day jam packed full of greatness and inspiration!

For more information and to register for the full day workshop, please visit  http://restorativefarming.com/workshops/may-3rd-raw-nutrition-home-gardening-workshop

Raw vegan breakfast & lunch are included in the cost of the workshop.

I hope you are able to join us.

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Quote of the Day
"Embrace each challenge in your life as an opportunity for self-transformation."- Bernie S. Siegel

The best gift ever!!!! on the road less travelled & Happy Valentines Day!

As a mother of 3, I sing my song and dance my dance, in hopes that my journey may inspire and have an effect on my children and the choices they will make in their lives.  But truth is we just don't know.  We, or should I say, I don't know what really trickles down.  I know some things do. I know it in how I  see them making their choices, and the questions they ask me, particularly with foods, health, honouring your truth, and walking lightly on this planet yet leaving an imprint of your soul along the way.  But with the world moving ever so fast, with the constant pull between community and friends, and home lifestyles, or just simple being 10, 8, and 4 and almost 40. There is a difference in how we see the world.  There is a difference in how we engage with the world.  Yet there can also be a lot of similarities, a lot of support and companionship along the road less travelled.


A few days ago I received the best gift ever!, I was joyfully asked for a favourite green juice! my specialty of course!

I must admit, I felt such honour, warmth in my heart and  joy when my middle son Theo, after finishing his homework, asked me: mom! can you make me my favourite juice? to what I replied, which one? my favourite GREEN juice, of course!  well well…. yaaaaaaa

Of course I can! and then more voices echoed in the back .. me toooo!….. me toooo!

I am often making them, often offering them…. sometimes my fresh juices are greeted with joy, sometimes with ahhh!, sometimes with not now.. sometimes with no way!… so it was such a gift to receive the asking of what I think is one of the most important tools for health and longevity in today's world….. green juice!

Sometimes the road less travelled is a lonely road, an awkward road, a different road.. but as the world becomes one, as we open our doors of perception, and the doors to our hearts, we see there are many walking beside us, quietly gathered, moving towards an awakening in consciousness.

Our generation is opening the door to higher levels of health and awareness of spirit.. frankly we got tired of feeling sick and reached out for other possibilities where life is radiant, where life bursts our hearts open into the magnitude and alchemy of this universe.  It is our job, more so our duty, to raise our kids with the empowered awareness that health is our innate state of being, that what we put in equals the state of our health - physical, mental, emotional and spiritual, that we are here to grow, to nourish, to be of service, to be in alignment with our own dharma, and our own purpose.  It is our duty to kindle the light within and allow them to shine bright.

So as I give back gift to such honours… and because today is Valentines Day, along with a mighty green homemade juice… we are feeling the love of raw cacao in our hearts…. there are many good, and great ways to celebrate love, raw cacao chocolate is one of my favourites.

Raw Cacao comes from the Theobroma Cacao tree…. (something my Theo can't get over!)… It is referred to as 'food of the Gods'.  It is magic and alchemy.  It is a powerful way to get goodness into us.    It is healing medicine and can be used as a tool to get herbs, medicinal mushrooms, roots, & super foods into the best tasting way one can only offer the Gods that live within us!  So lets roll the drum and scroll down the benefits of this mighty nut:

• It is high in antioxidants, helping us deal with free-radicals and stress.
• It is high in magnesium, which supports the heart, increases brainpower, relaxes menstrual cramping and muscles, increases flexibility, helps build strong bones, and increases alkalinity. note- our bodies need magnesium in order to absorb calcium.
• Contains high levels of Iron, Chromium, Manganese, Zinc, copper, Vitamin C
• Raw Cacao contains essential Omega 6- Fatty Acids. (note- in cooked & processed Cacao these become rancid)
• And on and on…

So here is a easy basic recipe for Raw Cacao Theobroma Magic, I am giving you a basic recipe, where your inspiration can take into great goodness heights….

1 cup of Raw Cacao Butter,  cut into small chunks.
1 cup of Raw Cacao powder
1 tsp of Maca powder
2-4 TBPS of raw honey, maple syrup, or Xylotol
pinch of salt (what? - yes, salt makes sweet food taste sweeter.)


In a pot, on LOW heat, melt the Cacao Butter.  Once melted, take off the stove.  Add raw cacao powder, macs, sweetener of choice, salt.  Mix it up.

Have your chocolate moulds ready, pour chocolate into moulds, freeze for 30 min. and enjoy!

This chocolate is best kept in the freezer until serving, it literally melts in your mouth with goodness!

You can add any superfood to this recipe, substitute maca for spiruina, chlorella, etc.  Add bee pollen, add goji berries… your imagination is the limit.

Enjoy & Happy Valentines…
May you lead your life always in joy & love.

Naty
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"Where there is love there is life."- Mahatma Gandhi

Receiving the gifts of Alignment. What do Juice Fasting and Meditation have to do with each other?

As the door into new and magical sacred lands open up, I find myself spontaneously Juice Fasting to cleanse, to rebuild, to tap into my own sacredness, to stay deeply connected, to allow new insights into my consciousness and ground my feet deep beneath the Earth as I go along for the ride, to deeply nourish myself in times of transition and to tap into the essence of my nourishment. I am on day 6, but this time I am doing a Liquid fast, not just a Juice fast in that I am including smoothies, nut milks and raw soups into my fast. It just feels so right.  Fasting is a way to align ourselves with our true self.  It is a way to increase our Prana, our life-force.  It is a way to connect more deeply, to allow the silence within to become the humming vibration that guides my being.  I also mediate for longer when I fast.  They seem to go together, and they seem to enhance in synergy the positive effects they both have on the body, mind, emotions and spirit.  I am not sure how long this fast will last, I am deeply listening.

Fasting is considered a detoxification tool along our journey, but as we detoxify and let go of what we no longer need in many and all levels of our existence, we also create room for rebuilding our new selfs.  As we fast we allow our bodies to balance and realign themselves with our natural rhythms.  In the Science of Ayurveda these rhythms are of ultimate importance in our journey to balance and optimal health.  These rhythms govern every process in our bodies.  Think about it for a second, the beating of our hearts has its own rhythm, our breathing has its own rhythm.  From the rhythm of each and every cell process, to the patterns and rhythms of our days, rhythm is everywhere, inside and out!

In Ayurveda, the more we are in alignment with our own bodily rhythms and with the rhythms of the Macrocosm, the more we will experience radiant optimal health.  It reads so easy, doesn't it?, yet its a process to do, to stay in tune with your self and the rhythms that surround us as to stay open for the gifts of alignment to shine in.

As 2014 moves along, and we find ourselves, day in and day out, in our routines and daily habits, doing something like a Juice or Liquid Fast, breaks the rhythm of routines & habits, for better or for worse, it breaks down the wall of delusion, it allows our soul to shine a mirror to our ego, it allows us to think and question, allows us to quiet our self, our minds, our hearts, and our bodies so we can then establish new or re-establish old rhyhtms that serve us better.  Think of it as a breathing break in the midst of climbing to the summit.

The best time to start a Juice or Liquid Fast is when your body is asking you for it! Either we will be in alignment and know that it is right, or we will be spinning out of control, emotionally, physically, spiritually and suddenly something happens that points us in the direction of taking time to restore.  A good idea when fasting is to also align ourselves with the rhyhtms and cycles found in Nature.  Many civilizations prior to us, practiced fasting in alignment with the Full & New Moons, as well as, at the time of Seasonal Change.  The energy is different at these times, and the veils between the physical and the sacred become more palpable.  Aligning ourselves with these energies or change in the energies,with the intention of Alignment of Self has magical synergistic effects on every aspect of our being.

The meditation practice is a great support tool when Fasting because it allows us to be a 'witness' to ourselves and find more compassion and self-love in our process of letting go.  Meditation also restores our nervous system, something that the process of fasting and what we 'release' can sometimes challenge.  It provides the space for Sacredness and for the unseen to become seen.
 
As tomorrow's Full Moon approaches I invite you to dust-off your juicer and juice it up! I invite you to sit in meditation just for 5 minutes at the beginning or at the end of your day or both if you can!!! I invite you to participate in the 7th Annual "Winter Feast for the Soul", a free 40 day commitment to the personal practice of stillness.

It's been two years since I did my fist 40 day Juice Fast and the 'Winter Feast for the Soul'.  Since then I have found new depths in my meditation practice and the stillness within, in my awareness, in my understanding of energetics, in my relationship with food, with life, with love and with Spirit.

Juice it up and bring it on! Align yourself with the forces of the Universe and keep your heart open to receive the gifts!

n.
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Juice it up and bring it on - check this recipe!

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"The real skill is to raise the sails and to catch the power of the wind as it passes by."- Thomas Berry

When one door closes, another one opens... wide open!

It's an old saying.. "When one door closes, another one opens".  But what happens if we are really attached to what we do, where we are at, our passions, dreams and desires?  What happens when the door closes, when we realize that if we want to have a different result, we are going to have to change what we are doing?  At first, fears happens.  Then a lot of questioning happens.  Perhaps some anger.  But then answers also start to happen.  Then a deeper sense of how much we have changed, and what the desires behind some of our dreams really are.  A different level of peace and trust enters into my heart and I surrender, I accept, I move, I breathe, I get onto my mat, I connect with the Wisdom of Spirit within me.  I surrender to the Magic of it all, because I feel it giving life to the beating of my heart.

As some of you know I used to work as a photographer.  I still do it, but not as much as before.  Then I got sick with large quantities of Heavy Metals in my blood that were causing all sorts of reactions.  Then I got tired of being sick and having no answers.  Then I started listening deep within and my life changed.  Everything is the same, yet EVERYTHING has changed.  There was a time in my life when all I breathed, ate and dreamed about was photography.  I couldn't imagine my life without it.  As I continued to heal, I went back to painting.  I need that creative outlet of artistic expression.  It has been my calling for so long.... but for the last couple of months... I started to react to the subtle and not so subtle scents and fumes of the acrylic paint.  Ahhhhh.  What? No! Again? Yes!

I have felt fear, I have felt anger that I can't do things that I love because of how they affect my body.  I have struggled with it.  But I have also sat with it.  I asked questions and received answers.  I surrendered to the powers above, and awoke to a magical world of synchronicity, love and spirit.  As I meditate with it, I realize that most of my work as a photographer and a painter where about the human connection and my own connection to Spirit. Photographically, they were documentary stories about our social conditions, a lot where about the rituals that keep our connection alive.  As a painter, I was fascinated with painting the feeling and energy of a landscape as a way to journey to Spirit.

As that door closes, it doesn't mean that I will stop, but the ways in which I can work both photographically and through painting have to change, a bigger door opens! The softening of the heart, the forgiveness to self, others and lives's circumstances is allowing me to trust in the ability of the Universe to guide me, to allow for personal transformation and a more intimate and deep connection to Spirit.  All sort of wonderful synchronicity, magical moments & people keep showing up in my life and I am most grateful for the awe I feel inside. So another door opens and it's all Rawllygood.  This brave new world has brought me into a different understanding and relationship with myself and with Spirit.  I accept.  I surrender. My heart is open.

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"Kindness in words creates confidence.  Kindness in thinking creates profoundness.  Kindness in giving creates love."- Lao Tzu

The Universe is a Dragon that never sleeps...

Happy Holidays!!! As we grow onwards and upwards as a global culture, I hope that the Holidays that you celebrate are filled with joy, love, transcendence, prosperity and peace.



How are these special days going? How did the summer & fall treat you? or better yet how did you treat yourself during the last few months? The days come and the days go and our habits either build us up, build our health or tear us down towards disease.  Every little habit as unconscious as it may be either builds us or tears us.  It is fascinating to me how many things we do in a day, how many thoughts, emotions we have that perhaps are just part of our conditioning, that we experience at a subconscious or conscious level, that make up who we are today and where we are at.  The Universe is here for us to explore, the potential for anything we dream of doing or becoming is here, so what happens? what happens along the way to that dream? what happens along the way to that new be-coming that sometimes eludes us and seems further away than when we started?

Sometimes as we create new habits, new lifestyles, new thought patters and more conscious emotional responses I seem to move 1 step forward and two steps back, 3 steps forward, 4 steps forward -- uhhuu!!! and then a few more steps back... mmmh. I really like the steps forward, not so much the steps back. But it is in the steps back that I have learned the most about myself, my conditioning, my conscious and subconscious choices and the inner dragon that seeks to dance to the wild fires of my heart.

But every step back is not a full step back. As my conscious choices, awareness and responses have had a deep root healing in my life, what I may feel is a step back, perhaps is that pause between a deep inhale and a deep exhale, that pause that gets the body ready for a deeper inhale, for a deeper exhale. I wish to see it as a moment of reflection & integration.  A moment of self awareness.  A moment to witness myself in the unfolding.  It is my choice to see it as a step back or as what from now on I will call a 'witness step'.

Whatever your journey might be, having the certainty and deep rooted belief and hope in deep healing has allowed my inner dragon to find the freedom I needed to explore new worlds and new therapies, new ways of healing that may seem controversial or perhaps just so different than mainstream therapies and protocols.  It is in having the courage to step away and out of the 'conventional' that I have regained my health, and found the answers that no one was able to give me.  It is in this journey that I have rediscovered my inner Universe and accepted my inner Dragon.  It is in following the beat and rhythm of my inner Dragon that I learned to dance again.

Trust yourselves, for the Universe already has the answers to the questions and conditions that you seek.  Seek them boldly.  Know with certainty in your heart that you have the ability to heal yourself, even when the world seems to tell you otherwise.  The journey might seem hard at times, but as we move away from dis-ease, our body will align itself with radiant health. As we build and gather new tools into our lives, new lifestyles, new routines that allows us to manage the world outside of ourselves and allow us to connect more deeply to the world within, our lives change.  Change gives us the courage to go on, and the power to unleash our inner Dragon.

Wake up calls can be scary, I have been there.  They shake your entire world, turn it upside down and leave you and me, speachless and ungrounded.  One of the biggest tools I have found is to daily ground myself.  To daily connect.  To daily awaken myself and recognize that my inner dragon in my Universe wants to be alive, wants to express itself, just wants it to be me.

So as the New Year comes, I like to set new goals and intentions, I like to dream again, I like to step by step walk and build those dreams… so I encourage you to take a little time for yourself, to touch base with your deep self, what is your dream?, what is your calling?, how can you walk towards it?, how can you let it walk towards you? What is your gift to gift the betterment of humanity?

 I encourage you, to take the time, to reflect and meditate, to make it a daily habit, to tap in, to breath in and out, to savour the moment, to be present to your self so you can be a better gift to others, to clear the fog that envelops our minds and hearts and find the essence of who you really are.

May this year be the year where you have clarity of your dreams, where you make them happen, where you connect deeply with the beauty and magic of life, and where you share your dreams and gifts with us for the betterment of Humanity, the Earth and for you, YOU, to be fully your very own best.




HAPPY HOLIDAYS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Keep your Rawllygood Heart going, allow it to shine bright, and inspire others along the way.


In Peace,
Naty Howard

The Power of the Human Heart....

I hope all is well, wherever you may be.  I recently had the opportunity to photograph my friend Maickel Melamed walk the Chicago Marathon 2013, he was the last man to cross the line with a time of 16hr46min. Yes, you read it right.  I wrote an article along with a photo essay of his journey that was published by Elephant Journal Magazine. So please have a read!

http://www.elephantjournal.com/2013/10/the-power-of-the-human-heart-natalie-schonfeld-howard/

Maickel is an incredible person, with an even more incredible soul. He has made it his mission to inspire people worldwide to follow their dreams!, to reach out! and make them happen despite challenges, circumstances and obstacles that appear along the way.  As Maickel says, "Your life is the most beautiful gift you have."  And with that comes the power of Choice.  I am not sure where in the world you are reading this from, but here in Canada, we have the freedom of speech, most of us have the power to choose our lives and make our dreams happen.  But through conditioning, or limited beliefs we close ourselves to the world, we close ourselves to ourselves.  We stop believing.  We stop believing in our selves and in our potential for change, for peace, for a better world.  It is when we encounter inspirational people like Maickel that have made it happen for themselves that a spark gets lit within and we find ourselves making different choices, or perhaps making the same choice with a different awareness.

A deeper question comes up for me, how can I be of service to the world, became a charged inspirational seed for others and how do I extend a hand to those who do not experiences the same personal liberties that I do?  I don't know what the answer is, but I know that it is within my heart.  Perhaps it is within yours too.

So for now, I offer you a read, sit with it... and allow it to touch your heart and let it blossom.

I previously wrote about Maickel on Day5 of my juice fast... long long ago!

May your days be filled of conscious choices,
In peace,
Naty Howard.

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Rawllygood Potluck on this Sunday July 7th! - reminder

Hi everyone!

This is a reminder that the Rawllygood Potluck is this coming Sunday July 7th, 5-7pm at our place.  If you wish to join us, we will be at our friend Anne & Mike's Farmhouse annual farm tour prior to the potluck.  Their hours are 2.30- 5pm. Rain or shine. Dress for the weather.  No pets please.  Their address is: 30 Scugog Line 12, Uxbridge, ON.

For details of the Rawllygood Potluck please check the bar to the right of the screen that says "Details of the Rawllygood Potluck".

Looking forward to seeing you!

Naty