The Eden Magazine September 2022 by Maryam Morrison

MAGAZINE EDEN RICHARD THE THETHATCONVERGENCEKINDLEDFLAME THE HEALER WHO WE ALL WANT TO VISIT BY HOWARD G. CHARING HTE 2022SEPTEMBER GARNIER WHAT'S IN YOUR MIND IS IN YOUR BODY BY KAMRAN BEDI SELF-CARE & THE ORGANIZED HOME BY KATE EVANS

The Eden Magazine @The Eden Magazine @The Eden Magazine BaileyJessbyPhoto

Discover the path to a peaceful life among other living beings. We are all made of vibration and light in the universe to manifest our energy around all livingness. RUENISABELLEbyPhoto DETERMANPHYLLISKINGSHERI ZEE SANTOS,JOE JR. DUNNINGANGELA TEAMOURMEETISABELLERUENDOHERTYGREG MARDIROSIANARTIN HAKOPIANEDWARD MELOCCHIALEXIA Maryam Morrison PAZZAGLIAGRETA MORRONECORTLANDSHERRIDINA 4 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 ROLLINSBENLISAPHILIPSMITHJOYWALTON JOE MAGNANI AND JARED SCHLACHET JSQUARED PHOTOGRAPHY CONNOLLYHEIDI

The Eden Magazine is a free online publication focuses on spreading compassion to all Sentient Beings living in a healing and peaceful world FOUNDER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF MARYAM MORRISON EXECUTIVE CONTRIBUTINGEDITOR/WRITER DINA MORRONE COMMUNICATIONCONTRIBUTINGDIRECTOR/WRITER ALEXIA MELOCCHI CONTRIBUTING WRITERS PHYLLISZEE KING JOE SANTOS, JR. ANGELA DUNNING SHERRI CORTLAND HEIDI CONNOLLY JILL LEBEAU MS,LMFT & AMIT WEST M.A. GUEST WRITER PHILIP SMITH CONTRIBUTING STYLISTS + MAKEUP ARTIST EDWARD HAKOPIAN LISA JOY WALTON GRAPHICS & PHOTOGRAPHY GREG DOHERTY BEN GRETASHERIISABELLEROLLINSRUENDETERMANPAZZAGLIA ARTIN MARDIROSIAN (Nexision) JSQUARED PHOTOGRAPHY @J2PIX WEBSITE www.theedenmagazine.com325N.MapleDr.PoBox5132BeverlyHills,CA90209 Eden Magazine is a non-profit monthly online magazine. We aim to create a better environment where we live among other living beings in peace and harmony. We support artists that their work matches our criteria. If you would like to submit your artwork, article or/and your photography for our future issues please contact Maryam Morrison at; maryammorrison@theedenmagazine.com Since 2010 To purchase a copy visit us in www.theedenmagazine.com EDEN T H E MAGAZINE The Eden Magazine reviews article content for accuracy before the date of publication. The views expressed in the articles reflect the author(s) opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher and editor. The published material, adverts, editorials, and all other content is published in good faith. 5 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

6 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 8 RICHARD GARNIER By Phyllis King 16 THE CONVERGENCE THAT KINDLED THE FLAME By Howard G. Charing 20 JON SHIN FOR DOGS AND CATS By Tina Stümpfig 24 NO MORE GAME By Mike Gallo 28 DR. RAY CHU Interview by Alexia Melocchi 38 HOW YOU CAN HELP REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT AT LEAST THREE TIMES EACH DAY By Vanita Rahman MD. 48 AS LIFE MOVES FORWARD, GRIEF MAY CONTINUE. JOY & PLEASURE ARE POSSIBLE TOO By Elena Lister, MD. & Michael Schwartzman Ph.D ABPP 50 SELF-CARE & THE ORGANIZED HOME By Kate Evans 56 FALLING IN LOVE WITH MY NERVOUS SYSTEM By Angela Dunning Cover by JSQUARED PHOTOGRAPHY @J2PIX Table of Contents 16 20 24 38 48 56

7 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 60 SUJATO BHIKKHU DHAMMA GANGSTA By Phyllis King 64 CHANNELING INTUITION & THE FOUR CLAIRS By Sherri Cortland 66 LOVE IS A CURIOUS CALLING By Zee 72 WHAT IF WE ARE ALL VACATIOING ANGELS By Heidi Connolly 76 THE MIRACLES OF WOMEN RISING & THRIVING TOGETHER By Jill Lebeau MS, LMFT & Amit West M.A. 82 WHAT'S IN YOUR MIND IS IN YOUR BODY By Kamran Bedi 86 THE GOOD NEWS IS... THE FUTURE IS BRIGHTER THAN YOU THINK By Coach Michael Taylor 98 HOW CLIMATE CHANGE MEGADROUGHTSSPURS By Shannon Osaka Life is Essential, Feel it 64 66 72 98 82 76 60

Richard Garnier is a hybrid of healer, mentor and scholar. Along his journey around the globe to acquire tools and wis dom he was given the title of “Mongu”, meaning Magic Healer. A title bestowed upon only a few by Balinese masters. Richard heals with his hands and his heart. He is nothing short of remarkable for helping people experience life-altering results. His book, “Your Health with Your Eyes Closed” shares secrets and wisdom about healing and how we all can live happier lives.

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By Phyllis King Richard Garnier

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One of the most renowned Daoist masters in France wrote books about Chinese and Indian traditions. He became my master. I asked him many times, "Please teach me so I can heal people with my hands." He would say, "One day." One day he taught me something magical. That night something happened inside my hands. The next day I could heal people with my hands. I try to be fully connected to theDivine to guide me. I am just a tool. Everything is energy. And when I have a good connection, I receive a lot of information.

I read that your grandfather was a big influence early in your life. Please tell us a little bit about some of the things you learned from him when you were a young man? He was a farmer. He gave me my first knowledge about listening to the moon. If you want to plant anything, listen to the moon, the planet. It opened my mind. It was also very practical teach ing. For example, if you want the lettuce to grow, plant seeds when the moon is down; otherwise, it will not grow as well. He taught me that animals have intelligence and how we can receive teachings from them when we use our imagination. What did you witness when you were eighteen that changed you? A friend told me about this guy who heals people by touching them. I had a problem with my knee. I went to see him and said, "Please heal my knee." He said no. I said, "Why not? You heal everyone else." He said, "Not you. You need to learn." That was the beginning of opening a door inside me. After that, I received Daoist and Tibetan teachings. I learned to take charge of my problems and stop being a victim in my life. From there, I decided to create a publishing company. I began to publish books in French about Daoism.

Then at twenty-five, I received a transmission and learned how to help heal people with my hands. Prior to that, I was a sales director for in a car company. In the same year, I helped my grandfather pass on. I had my first son, who, at three months old, received a blessing from the Dalai Lama. At one point, you traveled to Bali. Why did you go there? During my divorce, I took a trip with my children to Club Med in Bali for three weeks. I had read about a healer in Bali. So, I asked the locals for a real healer, not someone for tourists. I began to see all kinds of strange people. I met three masters before I met my Balinese master. I received teachings from this master in Bali. I was one of the first white guys to become an official monk, a Mongu. What does Mongu mean? In Bali, the magic healer. If you see or read the book of prayer, the little Mongu, it is like spiritual teacher. I was given an initiation for the title. My initiation name is Jerumonkubal ian. Did you begin healing people in Bali as well? Yes, because after my teacher would say, "Richard, you agree to heal people?" I said, "Yes." My teacher said, "Let's go. I know someone with cancer in the hospital." We went to the hospital. There were four people, all with significant problems. I began to put my hands on them. The doctor and nurse came inside and saw me do it. They said, "Everyone outside. Just you, Richard, you stay here. You need peace." They respected it. They knew I was a Mongu. If I were to do that here in a hospital, I would go to prison for sure. Respect for the healing arts. When did you leave Bali? I did not really leave. I just made trips. I met a psychic in Paris who said, "Richard, in your future, you will heal people with AIDS." I said, "Hmm." When I spoke of that with my Bali master, he said, "Yes, I think so too."

My first client in the USA was a girl. She had a tumor in her liver. We removed the tumor in one full session. She said, "Richard, you didn't just heal me; you changed my life". we must do that for full results. I try to be fully connected to the divine to guide me. I am just a tool. Everything is en ergy. And when I have a good connection, I receive a lot of information. You cannot lie. You can try, but you cannot because each time I ask a question, I receive the answer at the same time. I know if you are right or not. We hear about the roots of problems being psychological or emotional, but does it matter? No. Sometimes it is interesting to know. Sometimes the root is not the real world. I will give you an example. Many years ago, when I first opened my office, a woman came to me and said,"Richard, I need you to heal the sexual abuse I experienced as a child." I said, "Okay." What I received during the session was that she never had any abuse. But the fact that her mind was thinking it was true was enough to cause a problem. So I gave her a session like it was true and removed the problem. For me, the result is more important than what you think. Now she is free. That is more important.

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It is so funny now because Professor Luc Montagnier wrote the forward of my book. He was one of the discoverers of AIDS. How did you meet him? My mentor in Paris was a popular doctor. One day he said, "You must meet Professor Montagnier." He organized a lunch. I showed him my research. He said, "Richard, it's in credible what you can do. I want to do some thing for you. I know you are writing a book. I will put something in it for you because of all you do." When did you come to the U.S. and why? In June of last year. A friend of mine who works in show business told me that show business people need my help because many are depressed and have addictions. Do you always ask what the person wants from you, or do you just perceive it? I always ask. Many times people say, "Oh, Richard, I have pain here." I say, "Oh yes, but your problem is here." "No, no, it's here."

Tell us about the Holiseat. Holiseat is the prototype of a chair. I created a technology that can change the physical body and increase the size of the telomere. "I creat ed a technology that can change the physical body and increase the size of the telomere, the region of repetitive DNA sequences at the end of a chromosome. Is there an ideal client or patient for this type of healing? For me, no.

Do you need to be open to it, or does it work on anyone?

example: a very good friend of mine in Paris came for a session and said, "Richard, I need your help with my stress. My daughter is taking exams in school. I'm worried for her." I said, "I will help you stop smoking." She said, "I don't want to stop." I said you need to stop now because I feel it inside your body. She said, "You can try, but I don't believe you can help me stop." She stopped smoking in one session. Sometimes, it is not necessary that you believe. What is most important is your spirit. If you are sure and believe in me and if you agree, we can do anything together.. That is why my signature session is three days back-to-back. What do you think is the prescription for a healthy life? Is there a formula? To be connected to your soul. What are the steps to make that happen?

Oh, no, it is not always that easy. For example, someone may come to me and say, "I want to stop smoking." I say, "That's not true. You don't want to stop." They must be ready to stop. Oth ers say, "Richard, I don't believe in what you do, and I don't want to stop smok ing. I just came because my wife told me to come." There must be a willingness of Anotherspirit.

For me, it is more mystical. The more you are connected to yourself on all levels, the more you will be at peace in your life. The more you are in your destiny, the more you will be at peace.

There are many ways to try to grow. Sometimes through meditation or with more spiritual study. I do not mean re ligious. For me, it is more mystical. The more you are connected to yourself on all levels, the more you will be at peace in your life. The more you are in your destiny, the more you will be at peace.

Spiritual awareness and depth, we need that. Is that enough? I am sure if you are connected to your spiritual path, and if you increase that, life will improve-- One of my last teach ers, Dr. Jeriana Johnson, said that when you are in service and when you heal people, a lot of obstacles will come in your life. It is testing you. It is like when you are a surfer on a good wave. Every thing is simple. Sometimes you think that it is hard to see. What is "meeting your soul."? If you listen to your soul, everything is simpler. The problem is most people lis ten to their brains. If you listen to your soul, everything becomes easier. Is that how we know we are listening to our soul because things are become easier ? That is a very good question. If you see your life, and everything is wrong, it is your mind. If you are looping with many problems in your life, you are not listen ing fully. Do you think laughing is good? I think for everyone, it is a personal way. I have a saying, "if I cry with you at the end of the day, I will feel it inside my body." If I do not play with humor, I become crazy with another person's in formation in my body. This is why some therapists become very dark inside or outside and dry because they receive all their patient's bad energy. To remove that, you need to play with the energy. But at the same time, to play with your mind and love for self. I discovered this with my first Tibetan master. The first time I met the Dalai Lama, I felt that he loves a lot. When he loves you, love becomes contagious.

In 1981, when my son received a bless ing from the Dalai Lama," He stopped for a moment to speak and became very serious. He said, "there are only two types of problems." If you can resolve them, you can laugh." Then, he paused, became very serious again, and said, "there are problems you cannot resolve. If you can't resolve them, you need to laugh about them too." It is the easy way. It does not erase your problem, but this is an easier way to be with the problem. Is there another book coming out soon? I am writing another book with more se crets inside - How it is possible to change the body of people inside and outside.

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Yes. In general, my best way to find clients is word of mouth. In the US, I have my first website. People here told me, "In the US, you need a website." In every other part of the world, like in Par is, I never had a website. Word of mouth? For me, word of mouth is better ad vertising. For example, when a girl in California who had cancer speaks to someone about her experience, they want to meet me. So for me, it is the best way. Is there anything else you want to share with our readers?

Something very strange about West ern people. One thing is old people ask you, what is the name of what you do? Why do you want a name? It's so funny. In Daoism, the Daoist master says, if you try to describe and define Dao, you limit the Dao because the world is unlimited. I created the word 'hypnomagnotism' because people want a word.

In another way, I received a certification for the specialty of sexual problems, to heal them by hypnosis; my master from China taught me about alchemy. It is more profound. For me, it is so strange to see how much, especially in the US, you need to be very careful of what you say. For me, when I do a session, I am channeling, and I cannot control what I say. If you speak about sexual energy, people can be shocked by that. It is the most powerful energy inside of a body. If people are afraid of that, they lose one part of their life potential.

One of my Daoist masters in Santa Monica said to me, "Richard, you can't believe it. Some women, especially in the US, do not have orgasms and think it is normal." She can have pleasure. It is enough. It is the wrong way because her brain and the energy and your soul need this very specific frequency. If you do not have it, you lose one part of your Forself.

me, people need to discover how im portant it is. For instance, each time we have a physical relationship with some one, we keep a link for life with their energy. If you know that, you will think about that before you have relations. All teachers of alchemy know this. That is why when people say, "Oh no, you can't speak about sex." It is not just sex. It is about the energy link because of sex. It is completely different. Women are stronger than men. Normal ly, not at the physical level of most girls, but every other level - for energy, for sexuality, for everything. Men try to abuse women. Women try to prove they are equal, the same as a guy. As a result, they both lose their power. We are complementary. We are not the same. For sure, for me, women are more important. For me, a woman is a moon. Without the moon, the sun kills life on this planet. For me, a woman is a moon. Without the moon, the sun kills life on this planet.

You're somewhat of a dichotomy because you look like a businessman, but you are a spiritual master. I stopped the part of businessman some time ago. For me, life is always about learning something new. I have met a lot of masters in many traditions on this planet, but it is never enough. I want to learn more. I want to discover more. I want to discover new technology. The idea for me is to help people. Are you always taking new clients?

Neuroscience says you need to be stressed to change. Without stress, there is no change. You keep your habit. Some of my teachers used provocation and shock for everything. They might speak about a very dirty thing or some thing like that to shock you. One part of you can be blocked. It is a way to play on another Peoplelevel. need to agree sometime to change!

To contact Richard: 310-309-7366hypnomagnetisme@me.com

The same teacher in France said to me that the most important spiritual quality is discernment. Discernment requires you to look at all sides of something. You cannot have discernment in only one way. During the COVID time, I was in Paris. Peo ple went crazy. Some people thought COVID was real. Some thought it was not. Some peo ple thought the vaccine was real, and some did not. When you study the manipulation way of hypnosis, the more you create a problem like that between two parts of people, the easier it becomes to manipulate them. When you speak with people who say, "the vac cine is not good." Okay. Not efficient. But if you try to speak with them to see if there is any discernment, they have not looked at both sides.

Special Thanks to: Editing: Dina Morrone JSQUARED PHOTOGRAPHY @J2PIX

All my teachers tell me the answer to life is to open your mind more and more. You do not have to believe it; just listen. For example, when the Dalai Lama teaches about Buddhism, he says, "Try this practice. If you do not find it ef ficient, stop it. It is not for you." It is not like religion, where you do what you are told and do not think for yourself. It is the opposite. See for yourself. It is very hard to open the mind of people who do not want to listen.

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Howard G. Charing THAT KINDLED

16 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 CONVERGENCETHETHEFLAME

Around the same time, a friend, L.M.J., had completed transcribing over five hundred pag es of Pablo’s typed and handwritten notes onto the computer. Pablo’s estate and family fully support and endorse this project. This Angel Oracle card set is not only based upon Pablo’s art but also incorporates his spiritual wisdom, meditation, and creative practices. For each Angel, I made a visualization medi tation. During this practice, I would see each Angel, their appearance, their attributes, and their message. It was the ineffable or the form less taking shape in my mind with a sense of connecting to a high-order vibration. It was both a personal healing journey and a voyage of discovery; for example, when I started to write about the Angel of Peace, what came to mind was war, ethnic cleansing, genocide, and rivers of blood. The next morning, at my desk, ready to continue writing, I said to myself, “Okay, Howard, you got this off your chest, so now write about peace.” Each time I had to go into the dark to be able to write about the light, as each of us has both attributes, and our spiritual work is to bring these polarities into Thebalance.Angel Oracle card and book set contains thirty-three compositions of Angels and ce lestial beings inspired by Pablo Amaringo’s visionary work. Accompanying the images are detailed narratives, each with a dual reading. Many names of the Angels have been sourced from Pablo’s notes and discussions with him. Although these images are not original Amar ingo drawings, they are inspired by Pablo’s art and visionary palette.

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Pablo Amaringo and I had many discussions over the years regarding the nature of angelic and celestial beings; during these discussions, he shared his illustrations of these beings and his preliminary paintings of them. Many of these beings appear in his main body of paintings--not usually as the main subject but in the background as a supportive context and narrative texture. After Pablo died in 2009, I maintained on going contact with his son, Juan Vasquez Amaringo. On one of my visits to him in Pucallpa, he showed me an archive of even more sketches and preliminary paintings of Angels and nature spirits that I hadn’t seen before.

Weindoctrination.possessthe resources and the abil ity--in terms of science, technology, and engineering know-how--to feed the hungry, preserve natural habitats, house the homeless, and heal the sick. However, we are conditioned as a soci ety to maintain the status quo, which is the real challenge. Aramu Muru has thrown down the gauntlet at our feet. Do we pick up the gauntlet to acknowledge and face this challenge? If we can transform our consciousness and vision, yes, we could magnificent ly use these brilliant precious gems to benefit all of humanity. have with great discernment if this is indeed the song that speaks to our soul. It is the right moment for to reassess your life in terms of what brings you true happiness and what doesn’t. Switch off the news, take a break from social media, and be present in your center.

ArtCharingG.Howard

Despite a myriad of vicissitudes and iniquities, civilization is unde niably one of humanity’s most out standing achievements. Holding this book in your hand and reading the printed words is just an exam ple of this accomplishment. Ac cording to conventional history, civilization started around 10,000 BCE, and the rise of cities began from 6000 BCE. How did this come about? Here we see Aramu Muru, who according to local legend first appeared close to Lake Titicaca in Peru from a structure that you can see in the upper left, carved out of solid rock, known as Hayu Marca (Gate of the Gods) around 10,000 BCE. These legends say that he came from the ancient continent of Lemuria just before a great flood destroyed it. This legend has so many parallels with the mythologies from other cultures that also speak of mysterious bene factors bringing the gift of knowl edge to humanity from an advanced antediluvian civilization. Holding the Amphora of the Moirai (the Three Fates), he pours a spar kling cascade of brilliant precious gems and stones; among them are emeralds, rubies, diamonds, jade, sapphires, and pearls. These repre sent the great teachings, the jewels of antiquity that still inform and shape our culture, medicine, mathematics, agriculture, architecture, monumen tal construction, science, the arts, and However,writing. gifts from heaven are not always what they seem to be. Perhaps the hidden purpose of Aramu Muru is nothing less than to tease our minds and souls in so many paradoxical, sub tle, and bewildering ways for human ity to evolve.

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Aramu Muru Angel of Human Civilization

In Pablo Amaringo’s painting titled Puñusca Muscuna (Revelación Pro funda), he discusses how unscrupulous shamans secretly harm their victims with sorcery using the same plants that can otherwise perform wonders for our physical and spiritual health. The plant itself does not distinguish between good and evil. It is easy to be seduced and enticed by the song of the sirens, and in this case, it is the song of civilization. We don’t need to forage or hunt for food or find tinder and firewood to keep warm. Instead, we can go to the store or order home delivery and switch on the heating system. Entertainment is literally at our finger tips. That’s the glossy aspect of civiliza tion, and the darker side is that it can become a cold, remorseless machine whose only purpose is the continu ation of its own existence. For better or worse, this is the direction we are heading. We must draw upon our humanity and address this crisis of in difference and both overt and covert

to listen

you

• Heed Joseph Campbell’s words to “follow your bliss.”

• It is the right moment for you to reassess your life in terms of what brings you true happiness and what •doesn’t.Switch off the news, take a break from social media, and be present in your center.

Howard G. Charing holds work shops internationally on shamanism as well as plant medicine retreats in the Peruvian Amazon. He is the author of The Accidental Shaman and co-author of Plant Spirit Shamanism and The Ayahuasca Visions of Pablo Amaringo. He lives in London.

The Meaning of This Card

If you have drawn this card, Ara mu Muru brings to the surface your awareness that the world you live in is not exactly what it seems, and at times you feel as if you are living in some one else’s dream; this, for sure, is not a comfortable thought or feeling. There is a kind of enchantment in our cultur al milieu--invisible, ubiquitous threads of influence either charm or coerce us into slowly but surely surrendering our cognitive and physical freedoms. This allure, at some level, is mundane: the fashion, the entertainment, the trav el, and the celebrity lifestyle industry paints an alluring picture to seduce us into buying their products and services, this you know, and it passes by you. At a deeper level, this is about per sonal freedom and how you navigate through the anomalies and contra dictions in the conundrum we call society and how society imposes its cultural ideals and belief systems. You live in a time of a dramatic ret rospective reassessment of these ideals, intending to reach a more egalitarian social structure. This reassessment has not been seen for generations in the West. According to recent studies about “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,” it is the free dom of personal autonomy that makes us the happiest. You are fully aware of the value of the freedom to be your self. You live your life with cognitive and personal independence--with your instinctive nature’s full expression, and you are helped by a quick-wit ted choreography through the labyrinth of life in our civilization If you have drawn his card reverse, Aramu Muru reminds you have reached the stage in your life where it’s the time to raise your awareness of the invisible and visible threads of influ ence around you. Awareness is the first step to cognitive and personal free dom, knowing that you are in a lab yrinth, a veritable construct of social order and ideals. The song of the sirens does indeed enchant us with its ex quisite sound. We have to listen with great discernment if this is indeed the song that speaks to our soul. It is the right moment for you to reassess your life in terms of what brings you true happiness and what doesn’t. Switch off the news, take a break from social media, and be present in your center. What is it that you seek and desire in our society? What are your personal ideals? Aramu Muru advises you to re flect on your objectives and make your decision. If you heed Joseph Camp bell’s words to “follow your bliss” and be free at a cognitive and instinctual level, you too will be dancing through the labyrinth.

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• We must draw upon our humanity and address the crisis of indifference and indoctrination.

• You are fully aware of the value of the freedom to be yourself.

Thoughts for Reflection with Aramu Muru • If we can transform our conscious ness and vision, then we could use civ ilization to the benefit all of humanity.

Reverse • Now is the time to raise your aware ness of the invisible and visible threads of influence around you.

• Awareness is the first step to cogni tive and personal freedom, knowing that you are in a labyrinth of social order and ideals.

General Harmonizers The following hold is very suitable for starting a treatment: Place one hand on SEL 13 and the other hand on SEL 10. This is a good hold to say hello, to attune, and to begin to relax. It brings the exhale and inhale into balance, facilitates a state of rest, and fosters engagement with the Thistreatment.isanimportant hold for

You can use Jin Shin Jyutsu to help your cat or dog if they are under going veterinary treatment or are about to have an operation. Jin Shin Jyutsu has a strengthening effect af ter surgical interventions, supports the healing process, and makes it easier to tolerate anesthetics. By holding certain points on the body, you help to “jump-start” life energy so that it can flow harmoni ously, evenly, and powerfully again. Health and well-being rely on this harmonious flow of life energy. Even if your cat or dog has no symptoms or other issues, you can use the flows as a preventative mea sure. You can strengthen the health and resilience of your pet with just a few minutes of treatment. Here are some of the key holds.

· all breathing issues, · allergies, · coughs, · chest colds (bronchitis), · pregnancy, · neglected and abused pets, · and very shy animals. & CATS By Tina Stümpfig

in Shin Jyutsu is a form of intuitive healing knowl edge that all humans car ry inside us from birth and often unconsciously use repeatedly. When we put our heads in our hands while thinking, for exam ple, we activate certain parts of our brain and thereby help ourselves to remember things. At school, chil dren often sit on their hands, which helps them to focus, listen more carefully, and to remember what they have learned. When we cross our arms, we touch a point in the crook of the elbow, which helps to align us with our own authority and power. We also intuitively place our hands on painful areas, on ourselves or on an animal, as a means of re assurance. Everyone knows Jin Shin Jyutsu—we need to remember it Jinagain.Shin Jyutsu is a gentle healing art to harmonize life energy, which can be applied to humans as well as animals. By placing our hands on certain points in the body, life en ergy is brought back into the flow, self-healing potentials are stimu lated, and complaints and symp toms are alleviated or completely eliminated. Holding Jin Shin points is a wonderful and easy way to re gain mental and physical balance.

JIN SHIN

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FOR DOGS

· supports the legs on the corresponding side of the body,

Getting the Energy Flowing

The Paw Flow

The Supervisor Flows The supervisor flows also harmonize the whole being. They are two ener gy pathways that run symmetrically along the left and right sides of the body. The name comes from their task, which is to look after and sup port both sides of the body—and, at the same time, to support all SELs located on these pathways. The su pervisor flows, just like the main central flow, have a very strong and comprehensive effect. You can use the holds described below for gen eral harmonization and also when you are not really sure what to har monize. They help every time and with everything.

This simple hold is also good for initiating treatment. It gets energy flowing and, at the same time, has a deeply calming effect. It is also a helpful hold for very restless cats or dogs that generally do not like to be touched. Likewise, it is a good first aid hold for all injuries, accidents, shock, and overheating.

· helps the hips and is very helpful for end-of-life support

And reverse this for the right side of the Rightbody:hand on the right SEL 4 and left hand on the right SEL 13. This

· dispels general fatigue,

For the left side of the body: Place the left hand on the left SEL 4 (directly under the base of the skull) and the right hand on the left SEL 13 (on the left side of the chest, approximately at the height of the third rib).

· strengthenshead,

The paw flow corresponds to the finger–toe flow for humans. For this flow, always hold a finger with the opposite toe on the other side of the body. In other words, the thumb of the right hand and the left small toe, the right index finger and the second smallest left toe, etc. For the paw flow for cats and dogs, hold the entire paw: one front paw and the rear paw on the other side of the body, i.e., the right front paw with the left rear paw and the left front paw with the right rear paw. This is a very simple yet extremely effective flow that can be used anywhere and

Theanytime.paw flow regenerates and re news the entire body, helps with broken bones and sprains, strength ens the spine, and helps with all back issues. It is an important flow in the event of a stroke and serves as a first aid hold for injuries.

21 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

· helps with everything related to the the eyes,

· harmonizeshold emotions,

Tina Stümpfig is a psychologist and experienced Jin Shin Jyutsu prac titioner, working with people and Theanimals.author of Jin Shin Healing Touch: Quick Help for Common Ailments, she offers individual treatments, Jin Shin Jyutsu training, and work shops. Tina lives in Wangen, Germany. www.InnerTraditions.com

Application on the left side of the body:

· strengthen

STEP 2: Keep one hand on the left SEL 11, and place the other hand on the left SEL 15 (in the groin).

For the right side of the body, reverse the hold: STEP 1: Place one hand on the right SEL 11 and the other hand on the right SEL 25.

· support · promote· strengthendigestion,thespine,thehealingof

· help

· can

· support

· and

STEP 2: Keep one hand on the right SEL 11 and place the other hand on the right SEL 15. The Supervisor Flows always be applied, the entire energy system and harmonize the whole being, harmonize breathing, broken bones, to reduce stress, and harmonize all SELs, are very helpful in all critical situations.

22 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

STEP 1: Place one hand on the left SEL 11 (lower end of the cervical spine) and the other hand on the left SEL 25 (under the hindquarters).

By Mike

Gallo

An excerpt from G mesNoMorea master1305/AdobeStockbyPhoto

Fathers act like they are inter ested, but if you don’t come out with it right away, you are dismissed. It’s not that fa thers don’t care; it’s just that they’re different than mothers. A father always seems to have better things to do or doesn’t always want to get caught up in the wash of a young kid’s emotions, but mothers are seemingly built for this

“Unfortunately, we all have to deal with the consequences of our choices,” said David’s mom. “Do you think people can change, mom? I mean, do you think people can change and be better?” David asked. “Well, I can tell you that change isn’t easy. I don’t know if I know anybody who just changed on their own before something bad happened, but I do think people can change for good or for bad.”

How do you tell the person who is your entire world “thank you”? The person who helped make you a man and was there to hold your world together when you didn’t feel like one?

Aspurpose.kids, you’re never fully aware of how your life compares to others. You assume that what you have and what you experi ence is normal until you see something else that makes you think otherwise. By that summer, David was aware of how different things were for him at home from his friends, and he spent many days and hours isolating himself, trying to fig ure out what he had done to cause these Daviddifferences.thought about what to say. No body had ever asked him to describe himself before. “Well, my home life isn’t the greatest. People think that because I don’t live in a trailer or a rundown ranch, I’ve got it good. They see me wearing nice things and get jealous because my parents spoil me. The truth is, my par ents pretty much ignore me. They only give me nice things after they’ve had a big fight. Instead of talking to me about things, they just buy me a gift and think that everything is better. My dad tells me that my friends and I are losers and that I shouldn’t bother with baseball. My mom means well, but she doesn’t know what to do. Plus, they both work odd hours, so I never see them, and they never really ask about me and how I’m doing. Lots of people think it’s great that I can come and go as I please, but it’s lonely. Sometimes I feel like a prisoner when I’m at home.”

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“I grew up thinking that people couldn’t change and I didn’t fit in, so I should just leave here as soon as I got the chance, but recently, I’ve thought that maybe they can change. Maybe even I can help make some of those changes.”

26 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

Dusty began trying to get the conver sation “Psh...yeah,”going.

Dusty now got off the bed to look at his friend and walk out a bit of his growing anger. “You see, that’s the type of crap I get sick of with you some times, David. Is it possible for you to think about anyone but yourself for a few minutes?” Dusty paused to let that sink in. David looked at Dusty, which signaled that the message was deliv ered. “Yeah, you know there are other people that are going to play tomor row besides you. Did you ever think of that? Beating Fox Creek in baseball might be the highlight of their athletic careers. Did you stop to think about Gary? Did you think about how he stepped up for you the last couple of days despite losing every game he’s ever played against them in his career and never being asked to play for them? Do you think he would agree to play them and lose again if he didn’t think we had a chance? What if me or the younger guys go out and play well tomorrow? We could send a message that they’ll have to deal with us for the next couple of years. You ever think of that.” Again he paused to let things sink in with David. “Tomorrow isn’t just about you! It’s okay to be scared. I’m nervous too. I don’t want to embarrass myself, no body does, but it’s about all of us in Riverview, not just you.”

“So, you nervous about tomorrow?”

Both boys sat motionless after Dusty’s speech. David, as usual, was sitting there processing everything that Dusty had said and realizing that he was right. Dusty took his non-reaction different ly and called him out even further, “Heck, if you had an ounce of ability to think about anyone but yourself, you’d understand what’s going on with Becky too.”

Mike Gallo is a sports enthusiast and endless dreamer who lives in northern Indiana, where he has taught and continues to teach social studies and language arts to middle school and adult students for nearly twenty years. During that time, he has spent countless hours grading and evaluating his students’ writing while putting his own passion and desire to write off to the side until recently. He is grateful for his wife and her unwavering support and encouragement to pursue his goal of writing a novel and to all past and present students whose success has inspired him to act on his own dreams beyond teaching. His goal was to show them and his three kids that if you work hard, you can achieve your dreams.

David definitively re plied. You saw us out there yesterday. We’re going to get killed.” “Why would you say that?” Dusty asked, now sitting up in his bed. “You know, we’re not as bad as you think we are.” David just shrugged and con tinued to look up at the ceiling. “You know, your dad doesn’t know shit about us. You can’t let what he said im pact “Right,”you.”David said out of obligation without “Seriously,flinching.man, we can beat those guys. If you throw like you did the other day, they won’t have a chance. Everybody is behind you. Don’t let us down,” Dusty implored. “Yeah, well, that’s what I’m afraid of,” David confessed while still staring at the “Whatceiling.are you afraid of, David? Do you know how relieved Fox Creek was when you pitched the opening round game in sectionals? It’s all they could talk about. They knew they didn’t have a chance against you then. I know Car terville wasn’t as good as Fox Creek, but you only gave up five hits and one run in the opening round of section als. My dad and I went back for the sectional championship game, and we overheard the Fox Creek parents talking about how glad they were that you threw the opening game and not against them.” David perked up a bit and sat up. “Yeah, I’m serious, David.” David took a deep breath and pondered what Dusty had just said before speak ing, “It’s just that I feel like nobody has anything to lose except for me. I mean, if we get beat, it’ll be my fault. If we lose, it’s what we were expected to do anyway, but the Fox Creek guys will see that I’m not good enough to pitch with them. What do guys like Ricky and Joey have to lose? We’re already at the bottom, and this will just be another reminder, and it will be my fault.”

While at Cedars Sinai Hospital, he leads clinical trials on brain tumors and disorders of the brain and nervous system and uses minimally invasive surgery.

By Alexia Melocchi

28 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 The Brain Miracle Health ay

RDr.Chu

Dr. Ray Chu is a Stanford University graduate neurosurgeon in Los Angeles, California, and affiliated with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He received his medical degree from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and has been in practice for over 20 years.

It is not unusual to take the medical profession for granted, though our very life is in their hands more often than not.

EXTRAORDINARY PEOPLE ARE DOING EXTRAORDINARY THINGS FOR THE HUMAN RACE AND THE WORLD

Was being a doctor a calling you had as a child? I think I was influenced by my father, who is a physician. He's a gastroenterolo gist, and he deals with stomach disorders. So, as a result, I was definitely always in terested in science when I was younger. My dad would come home, and you'd find stuff in his pockets - pictures of somebody's colon, for example. I found it Whenfascinating.Iwent to medical school, I found out that I liked surgical things more than medical topics. And how is the brain not fascinating? Yes, exactly. And people do not under stand that sometimes the way the brain works is not just a spiritual thing. It's a balance between glands and the left brain and right brain. There is a great deal of courage in being a surgeon. Do you ever fear having someone on the operating table knowing their life depends on you? It's incredible what a surgeon can do with training, a number of hours, and good mentors. To be an excellent pilot, for example, it takes all those things to manip ulate, and some scary moments you have to handle under stress. You are right. You have to be able to control your nerves. When I have something frightening hap pening on the operating table, it doesn't always slow me down. You have to learn how to push forward, fix the problem, and not get bogged down by your anxiety. How do you respond to health questions such as why do I get sick? Why do I get cancer? Is there a medical reason for this happening, or is it kar Isma?there something that predisposes you towards a type of condition in the body? For example, tumors are not all deadly. Benign tumors are also very treatable or removable. But having a tumor diagnosis is a little bit of a misfortune. I'm not sure I would always call it karma. Sometimes there is a genetic predisposition, but it's rare. Some people also have a rare, herita ble family syndrome. Most tumors we see are what we call sporadic, or they're spon taneous; they have to do with how our body cells divide and what regulates from dividing improperly. And our own im mune system also takes care of cells that divide improperly. In big cities like Los Angeles, many peo ple will take care of themselves, exercise, and work on their diet. And try not to smoke two packs of cigarettes a day as smoking is a definite risk factor for multi ple types of cancers.

29 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

I know some patients with tumors that escape to a foreign country, do some exper imental treatment, sign up for some healer, and come back, and they have a rip-roar ing problem. But, unfortunately, we also see science deniers in these COVID times, people who don't believe things about vaccines or masks, and people who refuse to believe in science. You can't just go to the internet for a couple of hours and claim to be an expert in all these things.

It's hard to say that our mindset influenc es whether or not we develop a tumor. But I feel sometimes we see people with the right fighting spirit. Then some people that get a diagnosis start to give up. But I think the challenge is how we channel our energy and resources to fighting this thing and knowing we can make some headway.

It's hard to say that our mindset influences whether or not we develop a tumor. But I feel sometimes we see the people with the right fighting spirit.

Do you believe there is such a thing as a mindset that can help potentially slow down the spread of any disease?

Clearly, as a surgeon, I'm more involved in surgical trials. We're certainly not at the point where we have a clear idea of what drives brain tumor growth or predict who might have it at some point in the future and apply the prevention.

When was the last time you read about a ter rific heart surgery that you only heard about on social media? Unfortunately, that's not really how this stuff works.

You are working with clinical trials on how to handle brain tumors, brain epilepsy, and other spinal issues. Where is science going with that? We are working on things on all fronts.

For the surgical trials, there are some things we're trying to be less invasive than what we do. We open with smaller incisions and smaller craniotomies than we have in the past. A craniotomy is where you remove a window on the skull to do the work of surgery and put it back on. All those things are getting smaller and smaller each decade and very different than when I graduated residency.

Sign up for "real" treatments, the ones rec ommended by specialists. Of course, there is nothing wrong with wanting to be covered in all areas, both spiritual and physical. Say you have a broken leg: are you going to walk around with a broken leg and hope that it just heals? The body is a miraculous thing, but why not have a cast to help it and the bones grow back together?

30 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

What do you say is the best way to handle disease?

I think it's reasonable to have options. There are monoclonal antibody treatments, and there are several good treatments. They're also treatments for somebody who already has the problem. But the idea is whether we're talking about preventing the virus ver sus what we do to keep people from needing a ventilator on possibly dying from the vi rus. And that's where monoclonal antibodies come into play. The trick with things like Iv ermectin and other treatments from the in ternet is that they are not based on rigorous scientific data. People randomly try things, but when you look at the bigger medical trials, those things don't work. The vaccines have been shown to work. Monoclonal antibodies have defi nitely been shown to decrease the number of people that can be really sick or suffer death from the virus, like the vaccines, but a lot of these other things promoted on widespread social media are things I am worried about.

What are your thoughts on alternative approaches to treatment against COVID?

What is your approach to patients who are just plain scared of a brain operation? American doctors seem to be very cautious with what they have to say because they could get sued, which may appear as a lack of empathy. I think you're right. It's a tough scenario when someone's talking about things like a brain tumor. Patients will tell you a story like this doctor walked in and said, you have a brain tumor; you should get your affairs in order. And then they said they wanted to transfer to Cedars Sinai and walk out. Here, when people come in with a brain tumor, they already have some symptoms, and those symptoms tell you a little about where the brain tumor is in that part of the brain and what can be affected.

31 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

I have a collection of cards that patients send me. There is this one trauma story about a young woman working in Los Angeles. She's originally from Missouri. She was running and got hit by a car and came in comatose. I had to do this series of surgeries that sounds like nothing any regular person ever wants to hear about- remove part of her skull due to swelling and replace it later when she is better. This woman was in the hospital co matose for a couple of months. Her family kept coming in and out to see her. She even tually became able to wake up and walk again and became a motivational speaker, and it's terrific to know that you can, once in a while, influence somebody's life in that way. What a beautiful story. And it goes to say about the miracles and beauty of science and medicine, paired with the warrior spirit that somebody may have, and the proper care of a Doctor such as Ray Chu.

How do you balance your work life with your personal life? I have seven-year-old twin boys who still want to talk to me. Yes, it is a bit of a chal lenge, such as a lot of evening and weekend texting to check on patients and look things up. But you have to compartmentalize your self a little bit. If I bury myself in my work and burn out early, what have I done to help people in the long run? Is there anything special, like a thank you note or letter you received from one of your patients? Something that moved you and has stayed with you?

A lot of these other things promoted on widespread social media are things I am worried about. When's the last time you really read about a terrific heart surgery that you only heard about on social media? That's not really how this stuff works. u

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oseph ORAZI

Joseph M. Orazi received a BA in English and Theater from Villano va University. His plays have been produced in Philadelphia, Pitts burgh, and Chicago. His work, “The Lion and the Lamb,” won him a Pennsylvania Playwright Fellowship. In addition to writing numerous TV and radio commer cials and industrial films, Joe was a staff writer for the ABC daytime drama “Ryan’s Hope.” He is also an accomplished lyricist. His song, “Rescue You, Rescue Me,” received a 2016 nom ination for an American Songwrit ing Award. The documentary film, “Prison ers Among Us,” which he wrote and associate produced, won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Docu mentary at the New York Indepen dent Film Festival. Author of L'AMERICA

Joseph M. Orazi is the author of the book "L'America." A playwright, his plays have been produced in Phila delphia, Pittsburgh, and Chicago. His work, "The Lion and the Lamb," won him a Pennsylvania Playwright Fellowship. In addition to writing numerous TV and radio commer cials and industrial films, Joe was a staff writer for the ABC daytime dra ma "Ryan's Hope." He is also an accomplished lyricist. His song, "Rescue You, Rescue Me," received a 2016 nomination for an American Songwriting Award. The documentary film "Prisoners Among Us," which he wrote and associate produced, won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the New York Independent Film Fes tival. Why did you choose to call your book L'AMERICA? Back in the heyday of immigration (the late 1800s – 1923), when immi grants from Italy spoke about com ing to the United States, they called it L'America. I think it speaks to the naivete of the typical immigrant. These simple folks were just seeking a kind of renaissance in a world they didn't understand. Can you imagine the fear? People isolated from ev erything they knew and loved and calling their new home L'America? I think it conveys a vulnerability. You previously wrote the story for an award-winning documen tary, Prisoners Amongst Us, which vividly shows personal stories of Italians assimilating into American culture through World War 2. Was it during the writing of that project that you discovered little-known facts, such as Italians being held in imprisonment camps? In 2004, we released Prisoners Among Us. I was the writer and associate producer. We did several years of research, and during that period, while I had always been fascinated by my heritage, I learned a great many details of what they endured to make a better way for us. They were very proud and didn't really speak of the brutal travel, the extremely dif ficult assimilation, internment, or relocation. But I never wanted the documentary and the subsequent book (and now the miniseries) to be about complaints and retribu tion. I remember telling my elderly aunt about the work I was doing on the documentary. And all about the labeling of enemy aliens and intern ment and relocation on the west coast. I thought she'd be proud, but she just stared at me. Finally, she said, "Don't make a movie about complainers. Italians aren't com plainers." That resonated with me. And that changed the film's tone (and ultimately the book). They are all stories of victory. In your book, you tell the stories of three families who leave poverty, the war, and their loved ones to start a new life in America. As a first-generation American, did the personal stories of your family help the writing process? A bit, but not as much as you'd think. I sat at the feet of my grand parents and great aunts and uncles, listening to their stories of the old country, but they never included the pain. They were almost celebratory. I never heard stories of the incred ible poverty, the brutal and danger ous travel in steerage—the belly of the beast in those steamships. And then the squalor and hardships they

34 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

Most of us are here because of the ones who made the journey, not just from Italy but from all over the world, for what the Constitution promised: the pursuit of land, liber ty, and happiness. But we often for get the hardships they endured.

Most Italian immi grants took their first steps on American soil in a place that has now become a legend—Ellis Island. The wave started in the 1880s, and in the decade after that, more than two million Italians were processed to start a new life and pursue the American Dream until they repre sented more than 10 percent of the nation's foreign-born population.

35 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

endured once they arrived. I only found those elements in the histor ical references. And now, I respect and honor my ancestors even more for their love and their determi nation to make way for not only themselves but those of us in sub sequent generations. That's what L'America is all about. How was the research process of the era (Italy and Cleveland, Monterey and New York), and how much did it contribute to the storytelling? It was essential. Interestingly, I'd of ten have very clear intentions in a particular chapter, but then the re search took me in an entirely differ ent direction after discovering both wonderful and disturbing elements. For example, when I studied the lives of Italians in the Mezzogior no region (that area south of Rome where poverty was rampant in the late 1800s and early 1900s), I was amazed at how they lived. In the book, you'll see that very vividly. The conditions in New York City were less than ideal. I had to tell the details of that squalor. I learned about rag and bone men and what they had to do 12 hours each day to earn a nickel. The Little Italy sec tions of Cleveland were filled with primarily stonecutters and masons. And I know more about sardine fishing in the 1920s in Monterrey than I care to admit. The research allowed me to capture the smells, the tastes, and the sights in a way that hopefully pulls the reader into the scenes. I spent ten years writ ing the book. I would estimate that eight of those years were devoted to research. You recently garnered the support of private investors and a Holly wood producer to turn your book into a miniseries. The tag line for the upcoming series is "It's not their story, it's everybody's story."

Do you feel stories of immigrants are highly relevant to today's landscape, and if so, why? Actually, the new line is, "It's not just their story. It's your story too." And that's extremely relevant. These are Italians, of course, but their story is no different than everyone else here who isn't a native Ameri can. We are all sons and daughters of immigrants. It makes the story so universal. I remember when we screened the documentary at the New York Independent Film Festi val when it was first released, we had a booth there. And after one of the screenings, an Asian couple came up to me and said, "I know this is about Italians, but we can see our ancestors in this as well." As far as immigration is concerned, it's real ly a hot button right now, isn't it? I think it's extremely important that we study history. We need to know where we came from, and we need to know what occurred to allow us to live the lives we do today. We owe that to those who came before us. That's what I am attempting in the book and, hopefully, the miniseries. I simply want to tell the story with honesty and accuracy, and respect.

L'America. I think it speaks to the naivete of the typical immigrant.These simple folks were just seeking a kind of renaissance in a world theydidn't understand.

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How important is it to abandon stereotypes when speaking of specific cultures and races? Now you're going to get me on my soap box. To me, it is imperative that we counter those stereotypes We don't just own pizza joints and off people. We have contributed so much more to the landscape of America. I believe that reso nates with the Italian American community in Hollywood. Finally, a project about Italians that doesn't focus on the Mafia. Yes, they are certainly a part of history, and there are occasional refer ences in the book, but by no means should we be defined by that element. Our ancestors con tributed so much more to the tapestry we call America. Please share with us a memory from your childhood (growing up an Italian/American) that brings a smile to your face whenever you think about it? And something you miss from that time. That's easy… Sunday afternoons at my grandfa ther's house. He lived about an hour away, and we'd all pile in the car after church and drive to his little house in Tarentum, PA. The entire day would be spent around that dining room table. It was meant to seat eight, but 20 of us were often there. Great food, great conversation, laughter. And it always ended with music. Mandolins and accordions and guitars. It was magical. It was so simple. I miss a lot of the traditions. I try to keep them up for my kids and grandkids, but it's a different world. And now I sound my age. But the Friday bread-making. I'd come home from school and smell that baked bread from the drive way—Easter pizza. Layer, after gorgeous layer, of meats and cheeses surrounded by dough. Zeppo li every Christmas. That fried dough smothered in honey and sugar. Guess that says a lot about me. All my memories involve food. Where were you born and raised? I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylva nia. Most of my ancestors from Calabria were tailors and artisans. They rarely used a machine. Everything was by hand. Gorgeous suits. I some times watched my great uncles sew for hours. There is still a rather large population of Ital ian Americans in and around Pittsburgh. My grandfather wasn't a tailor. Believe it or not, in the 1920s, he went to chiropractic school. There weren't too many chiropractors back then. There is still a relatively large population of Ital ian Americans in and around Pittsburgh. I think fondly of those days when we all lived within a short distance of each other (my grandmother was right around the corner) and saw each other almost daily. It's where I learned the importance of family. What are the most important aspects of being Italian? I think faith, love of family, food, culture, and a solid work ethic. We are a very passionate bunch. It's revealed in our worship and our family gath erings, the way we shop for ingredients, prepare the food and share it with loved ones, laughing and celebrating around the table. It is, of course, in our art and literature, and traditions. I often say I know I'm 100% Italian when I cry equally hard when landing in Italy and taking off to go home. What are the most important aspects of you being an American? That's tough these days. But I love our country. I love our freedoms and the access we have to lit erally anything. We are the melting pot of melt ing pots. You can strive for anything in America without fear. But we have become so divided, so contentious. It saddens me at times. Maybe because our freedoms are so extensive and com pelling, it has the opposite effect. It often leads to divisions in culture, theology, and politics, putting us at odds at every turn. I believe our ancestors would be saddened by the current state of affairs. If you could get on a plane right now and trav el to Italy, which city would you choose to visit first and why? Some years ago, my family rented a villa out side of Lucca in Tuscany. I fell in love with that area. But I would also not miss Milan (my home 1966-67) and Calabria (the home of my ances tors). I always feel at home when I go to Italy. It sounds corny, but I feel the presence of my ances tors as I walk cobblestone streets and sip espresso at an outdoor café and engage the locals in con versation. I feel a part of them. I don't think it's my drama. I believe we have an ancestral bond that can't be denied. It always makes my vacation there so much more enjoyable and important in a Interviewway. by Alexia Melocchi Edited by Dina Morrone

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What is less well known, however, is the positive impact of a plant-based diet on the environment. As it turns out, high-meth ane-emitting animal products tend to be the worst for our health. Here’s a list of the top methane-emitting foods and low-meth ane alternatives that are healthier for humans and the planet.

A byproduct of fermentation, methane in the food and agriculture world comes from ruminants or grazing animals and other animals in concentrated farmed environ ments, aka factory farms. When animals, even fish, are kept in high numbers, and close quarters, their waste concentrates and causes a release of methane.

As a physician with years of experience, I have seen firsthand the dramatic changes that occur when people choose to follow a plant-based diet, and numerous scientific studies tell the same story. A plant-based diet can help people reverse diabetes, lower blood pressure, improve heart health, and maintain a healthy weight. This same eat ing pattern also benefits the planet because livestock produces methane, a heat-trap ping gas, while plants produce oxygen.

Methane is one of the most significant contributors to global warming, yet it is also relatively short-lived. It remains in the atmosphere for a shorter time compared with carbon dioxide. However, during this short time, it makes a significant impact on warming the atmosphere because it’s more efficient at trapping heat than carbon diox ide is.

Consuming more plant-based foods rather than animal products helps reduce the emis sion of methane gas into the environment. But that is not the only positive outcome.

Hamburgers: When it comes to food, beef is the highest greenhouse gas emitter, and half of that is methane. Red meat, like beef, is also associated with heart disease, diabe tes, and certain types of cancer. These health risks are mainly related to the high content of saturated fat, cholesterol, and heme iron in the meat, which causes damage to blood vessels and cells. Instead, try bean burgers, a great replacement for a hamburger. Beans emit no methane gas in their production. Beans are also low in fat, are free of choles terol, and are known to balance blood sugar and reduce cholesterol.

39 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

The summer 2022 heat wave, which caused prob lems as inconvenient as canceled outdoor events to tragedies as significant as deaths due to heat stroke, was just one recent example of how climate change is impacting daily life. Cli mate change and its associated problems can seem overwhelming to the point that we are left wondering whether altering our daily routines by recycling or taking a train rather than a car will ultimately make a dif Thereference.is one very practical measure people can take each day that we know will help reduce emissions of at least one significant heat-trapping greenhouse gas—methane.

Dairy Products: Because cows produce so much methane through their digestion, dairy farms can be a significant problem for greenhouse gas emissions. Products like milk and cheese are the No. 1 source of saturated fat in the American diet. Satu rated fat and cholesterol from dairy can contribute to heart disease, and milk and cheese are also linked with prostate, breast, and ovarian cancers. Try oat milk instead. It is a delicious, creamy alternative that is growing in popularity. It does not have any of the same health concerns as dairy milk and can be used on cereals, in coffee, or in cooking. The process of growing oats is sustainable and does not emit methane.

When doing our weekly grocery shop ping, we can remember the benefits to both our own health and that of our environment and reduce our con sumption of meat and other animal products. In fact, eating a plant-based diet is by far the most powerful action we can take to restore our health and the health of our planet.

Farmer, sales of plant-based food products grew 27% in 2020—twice as fast as overall food sales. The subcategory of plantbased meat grew by 45%, and the top makers of plant-based meat use crops grown by U.S. farmers.

Lamb and Goat: Just like cows, these grazing animals release methane in the process of digesting food. Since lamb and goat are red meats, they carry similar risks to beef. When heated to high temperatures, the meat can form heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and poly cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which may lead to cancer. Seitan, a minimally processed food made from concentrated gluten, is a healthful al ternative. Try seitan in a teriyaki bowl with vegetables and brown rice. In addition to these individual chang es, there is a nationwide, promising trend underway that could bene fit people’s health while reducing heat-trapping emissions. Many farm ers are voluntarily phasing out animal agriculture to grow high-demand plant protein crops. Dairy farmer Paul Jerec zek is planting hazelnut trees because, as he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sen tinel, “five or 10 years from now, I don’t think we will be milking cows anymore, Accordingrealistically.”toModern

Methane emissions are a significant part of the climate crisis. By reducing the intake of high-methane-emitting foods, we can reduce overall methane emissions and make an immediate improvement in the short-term con sequences of climate change. With healthier alternatives, making these simple swaps is the best option for both the environment and our bodies.

Vanita Rahman, MD, is a board-certified internal medicine physician, certified nutritionist, and personal trainer. She is a native of the Washington, D.C., area and earned her undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Virginia. She completed her internal medicine residency at the Washington Hospital Center and has authored several books on plant-based nutrition. Prior to joining the Barnard Medical Center, Dr. Rahman spent more than 15 years practicing internal medicine with Kaiser Permanente, where she launched a very popular and successful plant-based weight loss program. While medications and surgical procedures can be necessary and lifesaving, Dr. Rahman firmly believes that nutrition and lifestyle play a crucial role in the prevention and management of most common diseases. She maintains that it is important to treat all aspects of a patient's health, including diet, exercise, sleep habits, and stress management. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, exercising, and experimenting with plant-based recipes.

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A plant-based diet can help people reverse diabetes, lower blood pressure, improve heart health, and maintain a healthy weight.

Prawns and Fish: Farmed prawns and fish cause methane release and are generally unsanitary when kept in these conditions. They can also impact the environment through damage to coastal mangrove swamps. Fish and shellfish accumulate toxins, including mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), chlordane, dioxins, and

besatisfyvegetarianintivelybody.(DDT),dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanewhichcanbeharmfultotheSeaweed,bycontrast,isrelafreeofthetoxinsaccumulatedotherseafood.Aseaweedsaladorsushicanbeagreatwaytoaseafoodcravingandwillalsoagoodsourceofiodine.

Pork: Concentrated pig farms are a source of methane due to the pigs’ waste breaking down into slurries and liquids. Pork is commonly eaten as processed meat like sausage or ba con, foods classified as carcinogenic to humans by the World Health Or ganization. For every 50 grams of processed meat (a couple of slices of bacon), a person eats each day, their risk of colorectal cancer increases by 18%. Try tempeh bacon instead. It is a smoky and healthy alternative to pork bacon. Tempeh is made from whole, fermented soybeans. In contrast to tra ditional bacon, tempeh bacon (soy) is actually associated with a reduced risk of certain cancers, especially breast cancer.

FolscherCharlbyPhoto

Healthy for Busy CEOs

Busy CEOs tend to neglect one of the most import ant and common areas that directly affect all areas of life—HEALTH and self-care. Achieve personal and pro fessional success as the CEO of your own wellbeing and Explorehealth. these 6 tips by LaJune Singleton, Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach, Mindset Strategist, Nutrition al Lifestyle Coach, the author of “Releasing My Trauma: The Root of Self-Sabotage,” Podcaster, Cycling Instructor, and Personal Trainer. Singleton boasts more than 10 years of experience work ing with busy career wom en, mothers, and girls, in the areas of obesity/weight loss, fitness, chronic illnesses, mindset, nutrition, wellness, mental/physical health, trau ma, injury recovery, and be havioral change to live a more successful and healthy life.

Certified Health & Wellness Coach, Mindset Strategist, Nutritional Lifestyle Coach, the author of Releasing My Trauma: The Root of Self-Sabotage. Podcaster, Cycling Instructor, and Personal Trainer with over 10 years of experience working with busy diverse women and girls, in the areas of obesity, fitness, chronic illnesses, mindset, nutrition, wellness, mental/physical health, and injury recovery.

WOMEN'S

EMPOWERMENT

Tips to Stay6

LaJune Singleton

1. Sleep: 6 to 8 hours of rest ful sleep is so crucial for emo tional, mental, and physical health to operate daily. Rest is needed to assist regulate, restoring, or rejuvenating ev erything from the nervous system, major arteries, mus cles, and brain. Also, the abil ity to eliminate diseases and improve immunity and me tabolism.

2. Nutrition: Eating or drink ing foods rich in vitamins and nutrients fueling the body and mind daily. Drinking half of your body weight of water, add lemons, limes, berries, cucumbers, or oranges for fla vor if you don’t like the taste of water. Packing snacks in a sandwich bag of fruits, veg gies, nuts, or low sodium/ sugar snacks. Protein drinks or smoothies for a meal re placement instead of skipping meals.

Singleton’s mission and ultimate formula for success is to empower girls, families and women to become healthier—mentally, physically, and nutritionally—by gaining the courage to come to terms with releasing their past.

3. Meditation: Taking a few minutes throughout the day to meditate helps to offer balance, release stress/anxiety, stillness, silence, and restful sleep, and relax the body and mind.

4. Exercise: Some form of phys ical movements, such as a walk, chair exercises, indoor/outdoor bike rides, jog/run, yoga, Pi lates, HIIT, or your exercise of choice. Physical movement is important to help prevent car dio vascularly and arthritis as well as reduce stress, increase energy, and improves sleep.

“Theneurs.only way to achieve the impossible is to believe it is pos sible.”

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5. Vacation/Mental Health Days: CEOs need a vacation, weekend road trip, or mental health days to unplug from work. This can be a day, week end, or a week without your laptop, business phone/tablet, just time for fun, relaxation, family, friends, or you-time. That will help with rejuvenating the mind and body with new and fresh ideas for the compa ny.

6. Self-Care: Annual physicals to stay on top of your health. If you are not feeling well or have an injury go to the doctor or urgent care within one to five days. If you are feeling mentally and emotionally overwhelmed, seek a therapist, coach, or both. Take a pamper day for a mas sage and a soak in the tub. The worst thing you can do is ignore your emotional, mental, and physical health. Invest in your self to stay healthy, and health is wealth, which helps you to be successful CEOs for life.

The possibility is a Mindset Singleton’s passion for educat ing, advocating, and helping individuals transcends beyond her own experience and break through formula applied by the most successful of entrepre

~Charles Kingsleigh Singleton’s book Inspired by and the company stands apart in her ability to deeply reach people who do not understand how releasing their fears and past are the root of self-sabo taging behaviors. With her own experience and trauma, Sin gleton reaches girls and wom en alike to teach the strategies to overcome grief, depression, suicidal thoughts, molestation, sexual assault, injury recovery, and abandonment that have contributed to their self-sabo taging Singleton’sbehaviors.mission and ultimate formula for success is to empower girls, families and women to become health ier—mentally, physically, and nutritionally—by gaining the courage to come to terms with releasing their past. www.lajunesingleton.com

Wellness Entrepreneur Rises from Mental Health and Illnesses to Launch LAJEANELL a Clean Beauty, Vegan Skincare and Cosmetics Line

Eco-Friendly Friends Spiritual Attunement Cruelty-Free Cosmetics

SEA WITCH BOTANICALS IS COMMITTED TO SUPPORTING AN ENVIRONMENTALLY-POSITIVE FUTURE. A women-owned business, they are passionate about creating a clean, sustainable, brand with the environment in mind. They are a certified B-Corp, certified vegan, and run a certified Towards Zero Waste operation. They also donate to 1% for the Planet. All products are free of synthetics or animal byproducts and are crafted with plant-based ingredients and minimal packaging. All products are plastic free, with the exception of atomizer bottles and dropper bottles!

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In Giving Hope: Conversations with Children About Illness, Death, and Loss) Elena Lister, MD, and Michael Schwartzman, Ph.D., reach out to help parents make even the most unbearable experiences more bearable for their kids—and themselves—by sharing their feelings and staying openhearted to gether.

“We believe it’s in children’s best interest to learn about death from their parents early on in their lives,” Drs. Lister and Schwartzman stress. “You will build a lifetime of connection and trust in each other, and your child can grow from your conver sations, moving forward with greater compassion, more empathy, and the capacity to know and man ageWhilefeelings.”speaking directly to parents, Giving Hope is also a valuable resource for extended family members, mentors and coaches to youngsters, and classroom teachers. According to a national survey conducted by New York Life, nearly 70 percent of teachers currently have at least one student in their class or classes who has lost a parent, guardian, sib ling, or close friend in the past year. Grief takes a toll on kids in school. As observed by their teachers, students who have suffered the death of a loved one tend to have difficulty concentrating, decreased in terest in class participation and completing assignments, and increased absenteeism, among other troubling issues.

Devastating though a loss can be, we believe that if you are open and together with your child in the face of it, can talk and embrace its impact, then your lives will be deepened by it as you move forward.

Dr. Lister, a psychiatrist who lost a young daughter to leukemia, met her co-author, Dr. Schwartzman, eight years ago when she was called to be a grief consultant at the school where he serves as the consulting psychologist. Drawing on their decades of professional experience and driven by their personal dedication, Giving Hope offers all adults a compassionate and practical guide to turn to in those dreaded, distressing moments when they need to talk with children entrusted to their care about matters of death.

USEFUL OR PRODUCTIVE PAIN

Grief

By Elena Lister, MD, & Michael Schwartzman, Ph.D., ABPP

We have talked about the term “useful pain” or “productive pain” as a way to help you to understand the value of opening yourself up—and encouraging your child to do the same—too difficult emotions while grieving. We believe that when the multitude of feel ings brought up by grief is faced and felt, they move through us and become less disturbing over time.

48 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 AS LIFE MOVES FORWARD, GRIEF MAY CONTINUE JOY AND PLEASURE ARE POSSIBLE TOO

does not fade away and sud denly disappear after death, and we believe an understanding of this will help parents and their children learn to live with loss. In our work with grieving children and families, we have found that there is no definite timeline for grief, nor is there a prescribed order for pass ing through different stages—or any stages at all—or a linear movement toward a light at the end of the tunnel. Instead, each per son’s grief experience is unique. We would say, however, that by allowing your child to grieve at her own pace with your love and support along the way, you will help her through to the other side. There, she will find healing, an ability to remember with less pain the person who died, and the possibility to incorporate those memories into her life story. Processing takes place over the years, not only at the time that someone dies. It is true that children are resilient, and they can still thrive after a power loss, but that doesn’t mean that they are “fine.” Our minds automatically help to dose out the pain, so some measure of this “seeming fine” is adaptive, but it is likely that their hearts are still aching even while they are continuing their daily activities. We find it is helpful for you to continue to model for your child throughout your griev ing and let him see your own sorrow or confu sion when you are in control of it, to articulate that expressing such feelings is a good thing. You can show smiles and laughter, too, when you are able, demonstrating that we all feel a full range of emotions when we are grieving, often within the same day. Remember that your child may feel emotions such as anger, fear, guilt, bitterness, relief, and shame as part of grieving and should be given the oppor tunity to communicate them without judgment. Many children are surprised that they have emotions other than sadness after death and often need permission to show them. We also recommend that you go one step further and state directly to your child that it is okay to not have any particular thoughts and feel ings, but when he does, it is helpful to express Ifthem.the person who died was significant in your child’s life, we recommend keeping a photo graph or two in a visible place so your child sees that the person is remembered and not hidden away. You could bring them into con versations, “Do you remember how Natalie loved banana bread?” as you enjoy the baked treat together so that your child knows it is okay to talk about the person. In this way, she sees that the person lives on in memories and is still connected to events in her own life.

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four weeks after her younger daughter’s death, Elena spent Thanks giving with her family and their close relatives. It was a really painful time for everyone. One particular after noon, after making a salad with her sister-in-law, Elena sat alone in the living room, deep in sadness. The three children—Elena’s older daughter, Molly, and her two older cousins—were upstairs. Elena could hear them giggling, and through her sorrow, she was glad that Molly was able to enjoy herself. Sud denly the girls came bounding downstairs in grown-up clothes snagged from their parents’ belongings, even a sequined top hat, and ran into the living room, fizzing with excitement. They’d been working on a play for the adults, and now as Elena watched their performance with her hus band, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law, she was astonished to find that she could feel pleasure. She sat, recognizing Molly’s courage and resilience, the love that had gone into the girls’ show as they hoped to ease the adults’ pain. She realized that her heart was able to open to other feelings than agony amidst her grief. And while she knew it wouldn’t last, this glimmer was a precious hint that her capacity for joy and for feeling the love offered by others might one day return. It was a revelatory and transfor mative moment.

Elena Lister, MD, is an associate professor of clinical psychiatry at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and senior consulting analyst for grief at Columbia Psychoanalytic Center. She treats adults and children facing all life issues, specializes in grief, and is a frequently sought-out expert on dealing with loss in schools across the country. Dr. Lister is the co-author of I Will Remember You: A Guidebook Through Grief for Teens.

Michael Schwartzman, Ph.D., ABPP, a senior psychologist and board-certified psychoanalyst, has worked with children, adolescents, adults, and families for more than forty years. In addition to his private practice, Dr. Schwartzman is the consulting psychologist at two independent schools for children and regularly lectures parents and professional colleagues on child development, parenting, and school-related issues. He is the author of The Anxious Parent: Freeing Yourself from the Fears and Stresses of Parenting

We believe this is possible for you and your child as well. Embracing grief can bring renewed appreciation for the ev eryday or small things in life and build a deeper capacity for love and pleasure and a different sense of purpose.

FINDING HOPE WITHIN LOSS— MOVING FORWARD WITH During sad and frightening times, it is often hard to imagine much that is positive or to look ahead optimistically. We are here to tell you that within ev ery painful situation, even after the death of a loved one, there are things to be hopeful about. It might be that feelings do get easier over time. Or it could be as simple as the fact that your child will have a play date next week and that there will be other fun events in the future to look toward. It can be hopeful to find meaning in the loss, and it can be import ant to show this to your child. If she has made a video sending love to her teacher who is dying, or she has painted a picture for her grieving grandpa, you can high light for her that out of the pain, she has done something good and kind. She has made a difference in someone else’s life, a powerful thought. Some people find meaning in their grief by channeling their energy to help ensure that the kind of loss they have experienced does not happen to other people or to help those who have been through it—by raising money for research into a disease or volunteering at an organization, the loved one believed in. The underlying message you can give to your child when you find positives in the negative is that life is filled with dif ferent and sometimes seemingly conflict ing emotions. That this duality is natural and can be embraced as part of being hu man. When you find uplifting thoughts, feelings, or actions amid emotional pain, you are paving the way not for moving on but rather for “moving forward with” this loss as part of your story and your child’s Devastatingstory. though a loss can be, we be lieve that if you are open and together with your child in the face of it, can talk and embrace its impact, then your lives will be deepened by it as you move for Justward.

Avoiding feelings of sadness comes with a cost, as it is impossible to shut down our capacity to experience sorrow without cutting off our access to other emotions, including happier ones. In our work, we have seen unprocessed grief turn inward, causing struggles for people as they try to move forward with their lives. It can manifest as fear of intimacy, a reluctance to experience love, and in the develop ment of stunted relationships. For your child to be able to find her capacity for a full range of emotions again, it is im portant for her to process sadness and the many other feelings she may be experi encing. If you facilitate her grieving fully, she will enhance her ability to ultimately flourish.

50 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 ORGANIZEDSELF-CAREANDTHEHOME By Kate Evans

CARING FOR YOUR HOME

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hile self-care has got ten the reputation of being about manipedis and bubble baths, it’s really about much more than that. Self-care is anything you do that helps you feel stronger and more satisfied with yourself and your Thelife. woman who takes control of her life feels confident.A confident wom an will care for herself because she knows she deserves it. When a woman takes care of herself, she feels stronger because she has more resiliency and greater resourc es to pull from. Because of that, she can do the things she needs to with out the stress and pain, which feels Aspowerful.awoman in today’s world, control is essential to feeling empowered to live the life you want. It can be hard to hold onto, though, when every day is filled with taking care of every one else’s needs, from your children, to your spouse, your parents, your friends, your boss, your co-workers, and on and on. To get to that place of empowerment, we have to be willing to put ourselves first. Not just now and then, but all the time. To be the best mother, wife, daugh ter, friend, or employee you can, you need to feel good. If you don’t feel good, the alternative is to feel impa tient, irritable, scattered, ashamed, and guilty. These are not feelings that give you the strength you need to live the life you want!

My clients often question me on this idea. How can taking care of a house be self-care? Isn’t that just what we’re supposed to do? The idea that you’re supposed to take care of your home leads to feeling ashamed when your home isn’t tidy and perfect. We fear being judged for the state of our homes as if they somehow dictate our worth.

An area of self-care that rarely gets attention is the home you live in. Our houses get a bad rap as the places we are trapped in, perpetually clean ing in a cycle that never ends. What if your house was a place you looked forward to coming home to? What if it was a space that was tidy and organized instead of chaotic and stressful? What if you didn’t feel suf focated by laundry and dishes, yet they still got done? Creating that home, the one that makes you feel good, not frustrated, is a form of self-care.

It was when I stepped back and looked at my home in its new tidy state that I realized caring for your home is, in fact, caring for yourself. With new systems in place, I have been able to maintain my home in a state I thought was reserved for ev eryone except me. My own life expe rience, combined with my years as a psychologist, is what came together to create the work I do now.

When you tidy and organize your house because society, your mother, or any other outside voice says you have to, it doesn’t feel like self-care. But when you care for your home because you want to, because it feels good, and you take pride in the out comes, you want to keep it up so you can feel like that again and again. I experienced this myself the first time I decluttered and truly orga nized my home. I thought there was just something wrong with me be cause I had never been able to keep my house tidy. After I had worked on myself mentally, emotionally, physi cally, and spiritually, I was ready to create the home I deserved.

DeanerDanebyPhoto

CHANGING YOUR MINDSET

2. You feel ashamed of that clutter.

3. You think that clutter defines you to others, so you become fearful of judgment.

5. Your home gets more cluttered because you continue to not take care of the space you live in.

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Having a pantry or a closet that is clutter-free and organized will seem like a unicorn you could never have. Your mindset will be filled with either limiting beliefs or hopeful beliefs; you decide. My clients come to me both with homes filled to the brim with clutter and with otherwise tidy homes hiding clutter be hind closet doors and in basements. They feel ashamed of the clutter and feel bad about themselves because of it. Feeling badly about yourself leads to thinking you don’t de serve to be taken care of, and a vicious cycle is created:

1. An area of your home becomes cluttered.

4. Self-care becomes a luxury instead of a right or necessity because you think you don’t deserve it.

6. You feel ashamed of that clutter…and it all repeats. I work with my clients to let go of limiting beliefs about them selves and develop positive beliefs. This leads to decluttering and organizing their homes, which leads to them feeling proud instead of guilty.

SYSTEMS OF ORGANIZATION

Once you’ve decided you deserve to live in a home you love, you start to create changes. You finally go through those piles of paper. You get rid of the expired foods in your pantry. You donate any clothing that doesn’t fit any longer and that you no longer love. You’re feeling great! You’ve taken control by saying clutter does not run your home; you do. You’re taking care of yourself by taking action. You feel empowered because you’re making de cisions and making progress. And then you hit a wall. You’ve been traipsing around your home like Snow White, with little birdies helping you tidy and clean. But Disney didn’t show us how Snow White was going to keep the dwarves’ home in that state without feeling like a slave to housework.

To get to that place, I had to change my mindset. So will you. The way you perceive things becomes your reality. So, if you see caring for your home to be a burden, it will be a burden. That will then ensure that your home is a place filled with stress instead of peace. You’ll see that pile of papers on the kitchen table as a stressor. You’ll see the dishes as a stressor. The laundry will be torture.

DeanerDanebyPhoto

EMPOWERING YOURSELF TO HAVE THE LIFE YOU WANT To feel empowered, you will need to trust in yourself and prioritize Letyourself.the magic happen. Start put ting yourself first. Give yourself permission to care for yourself and the space you live in because you want to, not because someone said you were supposed to. Take control of the choices you make for your self and find your inner power.

Kate can also be found on Instagram and Facebook @soulfulspace.coaching.

How do you maintain the tidiness of your home that you’ve created and love? With systems. Systems are routines. Routines are how we keep our lives hum ming along with as few bumps and bruises as possible. That pile of paper will reappear if you don’t decide what you’re going to do with papers from this point forward, other than piling them up on a flat surface. Your closet will fall back into disarray without a system of organization and a plan. Your pantry will revert to chaos without a system the entire family can follow. All of that empowerment you were experiencing will disappear in a poof of smoke. To avoid that, you need to decide how you operate. What systems work best for you? Just because something works for your best friend doesn’t mean it’s the right system for you.

•

Personally, I go with what I call “Simple/Stupid.” All that means is that every system in my home takes as few steps as possible to maintain. I know myself, and I know the more steps something takes, the less likely I am to do it. Being honest with yourself as to who you are and what works best for you is the only way to create an organization you can keep up with. Being honest with yourself is not as easy as it sounds, though. I work with my clients to understand and accept themselves so they can be realistic when creating their sys tems. That requires them to look directly at themselves and stop judging themselves for not being perfect.

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•

• The outcome of your efforts Give yourself permission to let go of those expectations that hold you back. When you do, you’ll find the life you’ve always wanted sudden ly becomes a reality instead of a dream that’s just out of reach.

PERFECTIONISM “Perfect” implies zero flaws. That isn’t possible. So, if you keep look ing to do things perfectly, you’ll ei ther become frozen and never start, or you’ll chase your tail trying to achieve something that isn’t possi ble and feel like a failure. The enemy of the empowered life is perfectionism. Taking control and taking care of yourself requires letting go of do ing things “right.” You can only do what is right for you. You can only control what is actually in your Thingscontrol.that are in your control: How you think about yourself and others The actions you take • The amount of energy you give to your endeavors The goals you set for yourself Things that are not in your control: What others think of you What has happened in the past

Kate Evans is the owner of Soulful Space, a life coaching service specializing in Integra tive Life Coaching and Virtual Declutter Coaching. Kate helps overwhelmed women declutter their lives and homes. She has worked in the field of psychology since 2004, and, in addition to being a life coach and decluttering expert, she is a certified yoga teacher and a writ er currently working on a book bringing self-help and declutter ing together for lasting change. To learn more about Kate, the work she does, and to read her weekly blog for your mind, body, soul, and space, go to comwww.soulfulspacecoaching.

Welcome to our Contributor Writers ' neighborhood

OUR TRUE SELF By Angela Dunning AdobeStockbyPhoto

When our body is going into certain states related to being traumatized, it is acting he roically. The body is helping us, it is saving us, and our body is not failing—it’s attempting to help us survive. We need to understand that our body has done wonderful things for us, and we are proud of it and not embarrassed.

57 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022

It’s taken me an awfully long time, with tons of resistance and even more fear, but finally, I am at a point where I am beginning to recognize, acknowledge and LOVE my own nervous system: This ingenious, evolutionary part of myself, and every other person and animal, that has tried its hardest always to keep me safe and alive.

Stephen W. Porges

Two years ago, I plummeted into the most difficult period of my life. This activated Complex-PTSD symptoms, yet, after two very intense painful years, I have now arrived at this rather surprising and wonderful revelation. Things had to get really, really bad before I began to see the light at the end of the tunnel and slowly inch my way out and forwards from the very stuck, frozen place of fear I was in. I was barely able to work, socialize or even physically move most days due to horrendous and debilitating physical pain and low energy. ,,

WITHINFALLINGLOVEMY SYSTEMNERVOUS

Angela Dunning is a regular contributor to The Eden Magazine. She is the author of The Horse Leads the Way: Hon oring the True Role of the Horse in Equine Facilitated Practice. Angela writes regularly on Facebook: ebook.com/thehorsestruth. You can learn more about Angela and her work helping people and horses at: www.thehorsestruth.co.uk.

So while my journey is really only be ginning in terms of finding ways to help my nervous system respond to non-existent threats differently and to change a lifetime of automatic re sponses, particularly in relation to other people, because that is where my traumatic responses stem from, it’s a wonderful feeling to now feel a sense of enormous gratitude for my nervous system and body generally. I am now learning to regard my own physiology as I do my beloved animals, with huge amounts of gentle kindness, compas sion, patience, and above all: Love. I am now treating my body as I would a scared animal in my care or job. I am sending the same amounts of pure love and kindness to my own animal body as I do to my cat or horses. I am sooth ing my nervous system with the same kind of gentle vocal tones, so essential to soothing any mammal, as Stephen Porges describes in the ‘Social Engage ment’ part of his Polyvagal Theory. And I am slowly learning to tend to my body in different ways. Not least of all, in terms of sensory, sensual, and pleasurable ways, as a life lived in frozen trauma leaves very little room for feeling or enjoying normal bodily pleasure when our feeling capacity is turned right down or even off com Onepletely.of the ways I am doing this is by trying to follow my body’s yearnings and desires for different environments and sensation-based experiences. For example, my favorite place to be and where I feel at my most grounded and relaxed is at the beach. Yet, it’s an enormous physical and psychological challenge for me to take myself to the nearest beach. So I have made a com mitment to myself to do this more often and to see it as a vital and highly enjoyable sensual and sensory bodily experience. As if I am taking my ner vous system off for a mini-break, to reset, resettle, and re-attune to na ture and the rhythms of life, as that is something that trauma also shuts off: our capacity to experience the natural rhythms and flow of life, which are so healing to our nervous system and Somind.now, I softly whisper words of thanks and love to my body and ner vous system before I go to sleep, in the shower in the morning, and during meditations and heart-focused breath ing practices. I speak directly to my nervous system, thanking it for all the ways and years it has worked so hard to help me. And I gently suggest that together, we find new and healthier ways to go from here. Working TOGETHER now is vital because all my life, we have been at odds. I have literally been frightened of my own body and its responses. Whereas now I am starting to see the incredibly intelligent and effective ways my body has served me. Like the heroine of my own story, my body has protected and served me faithfully and with as much force as was needed, yet leaving me either locked away, shut down and in pain, or spiraling out of control in terror, and fear or rage. So my hope is now that I can consciously embody some of this heroism in my attitude and daily practices as I start to move for wards in an entirely new way, handin-hand with my nervous system, to gether, rather than at odds. It feels like the start of a very beautiful friendship.

But now I am starting to finally begin a dialogue with my own nervous sys tem and to crucially, thank it for keep ing me safe in its many different ways; ways that for a very long I thought were working AGAINST me, instead of FOR me. On the contrary: Every thing my nervous system was doing was designed in a very natural, in stinctive, and reactive way to keep me safe in the only ways it knows how to.

Quote by Stephen W. Porges from ‘The Pocket Guide to The Polyvagal Theory: The Transformative Power of Feeling Safe.

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Sujato is a nontraditional Buddhist monk, lovingly called the Dhamma Gangsta. Born in the UK, he found his way to Thailand during his own healing journey to manage his own substance abuse challenge. 30 Years later, his mission continues to be to bring practical tools and teachings to disenfranchised populations. This includes the house less, those in recovery, those seeking recovery, and those who simply need human Hecontact.haspartnered with the Tiffany Project, a recovery organization, to launch the Dhar ma Project. His appeal is his humor, groundedness, and ability to “be with people.” He uplifts others no matter how dire their circumstances. This makes him beloved by those who follow him and Buddhist teachings. For more information about Sujato and the Dharma Outreach project, visit. www.dharmaoutreach.com

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60 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 ABUNDANCE CORNER By Phyllis King

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You are a nontraditional Buddhist monk. You are known lovingly as the Dhamma Gangster. What touched me so deeply about your work is the focus on disenfranchised people and people in recovery. The Dharma Out reach project works with the Tiffany recovery center. You are uplifting peo ple with the most challenging circumstances. Can you share a bit of your story with the EDEN readers? I lived in Thailand for eleven years. I am originally from East London in the UK. I went to Thailand on a Buddhist spir itual pilgrimage. I went there because I had a huge drug problem, specifically crack. I was in a very fortunate situation. A lot of people do not have resources. At the time, Thailand had the death penalty for classified drugs. That is an incentive That was a pretty good deterrent. Did you go straight to a monastery when you got clean? No, it was not one step. The Buddhist practice was ongoing. The meditation aspect has been with me now for 30-plus years. It was never my mission to be the atypical Western monastic who seeks out ordination. That was the furthest thing from my mind. I wanted to stay alive and out of jail. That was my biggest am bition. Well, you succeeded, I used to visit temples. I visited one in particular, a small forest temple. Easier to describe as a shamanic path. A bit of Buddhism but also plant medicines and other things. I studied with this guy considered to be the old crazy guy in the village. I was quite happy doing it. He asked me if I would like to stay. And that is how I ended up staying for such a long time. Are you a teacher now? Are you a mes senger? Are you a practitioner? How are you? I just hang out with folks. Be with them. People call me a teacher. People ask if they can be my student. I have nev er called myself a teacher. I learn more from anyone sitting in front of me than I ever teach them. It does not make sense to me to call myself a teacher. I literally hang out with both. That is what I do. You now have the Dharma outreach project affiliated with Tiffany Recov ery. What is that about? It is a collaboration with me and a longtime friend, Marshall. Marshall is the driving force behind Tiffany recovery, and the Dharma outreach project is a section of the Tiffany Recovery Center as a 501c3. You focus on people in recovery, disenfranchised populations. This is the approach I have taken since my first four years in Thailand. It is aimed at disadvantaged communities. It is aimed at people in recovery or peo ple wanting to be in recovery, or people struggling with substance use disorder. It also aimed at the houseless commu nities. It is my intention to also become approved for prison visitations. The focus of the project is to give folks access to what I call the tools. The whole Buddhist aspect is about practicality for me. I am not about ritual and ceremony, which I am often criticized for. I do not care what I look like and what I do not look like. I go with whatever makes me more approachable to the community that I am in at the time. Would you share a couple of the tools?

I concentrate on the basics of Buddhism. We start with the five basic precepts and go from there. The first one is that you endeavor to abstain from taking life. You take that as far as you want. Some peo ple go to extremes. They are so worried about stepping on an ant that they get run over by a bus. That is a bit foolish. Then we have no harsh speech or false speech. It can be interpreted in a lot of ways, but it covers things like telling the truth. Or to not intentionally cause harm to another with your speech. Then we have no stealing. We have an interesting one that most people translate as to endeavor to abstain from sexual misconduct. It means your social contact should not cause harm to either yourself or someone else. And the Try to be available. Just smile and say hello, especially to folks you do not want to say hello to. For a lot of folks, that smile and that hello are better than a couple of dollars you give to them. Because it is a connection

Known as the Common Sense Psychic (tm), Phyllis King has worked with tens of thousands of peoplein 25 countries. She is known for her practical and down to earth approach. She has been featured on, ABC, CBS and NBC TV, radio programs across the country, and has been published in over 70 print and online publications. She has four books, including Bounc ing Back, Thriving in Changing Times, with Dr. Wayne Dyer. Her latest book The Energy of Abundance is available in bookstores now. Phyllis holds a B.A. in Sociology. www.phyllisking.com

Well, I would suggest the website. www. dharmaoutreach.com We also have a Facebook group. My personal Facebook page, Sujato Bhikkhu What do you think we as individuals we can be doing that we are not? Try to be available. Just smile and say hel lo, especially to folks you do not want to say hello to. For a lot of folks, that smile and that hello are better than a couple of dollars you give to them. Because it is a connection, it is people. And all people deserve other people. Do be careful. Do not go on a mission where you think you will save the world and go into dodgy areas. We do that. We have been there before. We are used to dodgier areas. So be sensible with it. Sup port local organizations that are trying to Whatempower.many people on the street need is a stable living environment, and it is trying to empower them to get that for them selves. Stay connected with people and stay human. Well, you have a beautiful heart. Thank you so very much for your time today You're so very welcome. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you.

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fifth one is the big one for me, which is to endeavor to abstain from the use of in toxicants. How do you speak to people who may still be using? Everyone has to come to it in their own time and from their own angle. I do not try to sell anything to anyone. I put something in front of you and say, “take a look at this if you like.” I am not going to hold your hand and walk you through this. You have to put some effort in be cause it does not work if you do not. The bigger problem is that a lot of folks from disadvantaged communities do not have access to this information. Yes, I understand. When we speak at various places, it is about what the people want. Some people just want to be heard. If that is what they want, then I will give them that. Down the line, maybe they will pick themselves up. They are just glad someone is giving them their time. What I am doing now is my passion. I have gone down the traditional route. It has a place. What I do is certain ly not for everyone. We go out on the street into what is an open-air drug market with intravenous drug users on the street, and they are dying every day. You can sit in a nice temple with beautiful fresh flowers and chant and meditate on your soft cushions. That is fine. But it is not for me. What is your goal with the Dharma project? To see it grow and become multi-state within ten years. Is your current residence in Massachusetts? Yes. I will be in Massachusetts for the foreseeable future carrying out this mis sion. To bring these teachings and the benefit they can offer to disadvantaged communities. And if possible, I want to bring a bit of cheer. Do you have a team who works with you? We're building a team. Marshall is my rock and Marshall's girlfriend, Sam. There are a lot of people who do what they can. It is slowly building. There is a reluctance from the establishment to sup port this, but we expected that. As mo mentum builds, there will be a chance for more support. Could I ask you about your tattoos? Is there a story behind them? They're from all over the world. I have pictures of my children here on my fore arms. My daughter was seven, and my son was two. And now they are 30 and 34. Where are you appearing? What is the next thing for you? Where can people connect with you if they would like to do so?

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2. For those who want to channel but feel they could never do it, the clairs are a gateway to illustrate that they absolutely can and are channel ing.

64 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 By Sherri Cortland, ND Spiritual Growth Checkpoint: CHANNELING, INTUITION, and the Four CLAIRS

Since channeling my last four books, I’ve spoken with many, many people who felt that there must be something special about people who channel and that they wouldn’t be able to do it. After exclaiming, “Poppycock!” I always ask those folks if they have ever had a gut feeling about some thing. The answer is always “yes,” and that opens the door for me to point out that they are already chan neling since gut feelings are both a form of intuition and messages from our Guide and Higher Selves. This revelation has helped many who have taken my workshops to relax into it, stop worrying about what they can and cannot do, and go with the flow of connecting with Spirit. In this article, we’ll take an introductory look at the four clairs of intuition: claircognition, clairvoyance, clairaudience, and Hereclairsentience.arethree things to keep in mind as we go through them:

1. Many people are more comfort able talking about, learning about, and working with their innate intu ition as a way to receive guidance.

3. We all come into this world with the ability to tap into the clairs, so why not hone these skills and use them to guide us as we move for ward on our spiritual path?

Clairaudience Audient means to hear. So, clairaudient messages are heard in side of our minds. In my experi ence, the voice is my own, although others have reported that they hear the voice of someone they know. It has also been my experience that messages are short and sweet—like a gut feeling put into words. How to develop clairaudience: Sit quietly, ask a question and listen. What do you hear? Trust yourself and the answer you receive. Clairvoyance Clairvoyant messages are imag es you see in your mind. I never thought that I would ever receive a clairvoyant message, and then I realized that I get them all the time, and I bet you do, too. My reali zation came when I was searching for my car keys and got a picture in my mind of them sitting on my desk in the other room. My picture messages seem to be pretty straight forward, but others have shared that the pictures they see are meta phorical in nature. You could expe rience both—it’s a personal thing.

Howguidance.to develop claircognizance: Whenever you need an idea, or you need help figuring something out, simply ask your intuition (or your Guides or Higher Self) to give you the answer through claircogni Aszance.you work with your clairs, you’ll quickly see how you can use your intuition to receive guidance and answers that will help you on your way. One last thing—like working out at the gym to strengthen physi cal muscles, your intuition muscles will get stronger as you practice the “three P’s”: Patience, Practice, and Namaste.Persistence. No matter which clair you decide to work on, apply the three P’s: Patience, Practice & Persistence”

Claircognizance Claircognizance means “clear knowing.” It’s when you know something, but you don’t know how or why you know it. This happens when one of your Guides or your Higher Self relays infor mation, creative thoughts, inspira tion, or ideas to you it is a type of

Sherri Cortland has been communicat ing with her Guide Group, the “GG,” since 1987 via automatic writing. Much of the information she has received is included in her four books, which were originally published by Ozark Mountain Publishing and are currently available on her website and on OnAmazon.Sherri’s website, you will find several free classes and meditations, along with more articles and workshops on video. www.Sherri-Cortland.comtlandAuthorhttps://www.facebook.com/SherriCor

Let’s take a look at each of the clairs and how you can work on strength ening each of them. No matter which clair you decide to work on, the “No matter which clair you de cide to work on, apply the three P’s: Patience, Practice & Persistence.”

How to develop clairvoyance: 1. Whenever an image pops into your mind, be mindful of it and pay attention to it; 2. Some folks practice clairvoyance with a deck of cards (regular, tarot or Pickoracle).acard, hold it face down, and see what image comes into view in your mind. Clairsentience Clairsentient messages are like gut instincts—they are feelings about things, people, and emotions. In some ways, clairsentient messages are like reading the energy of a per son or even a room full of people. If you have a deep feeling about something, you are probably receiv ing an important message. How to develop clairsentience: Pay attention to your gut feelings as well as what you were doing or where you were when you felt it. As you look back in your journal on these feelings, you’ll realize how many and how easily these messag es come to you.

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It also helps to keep a journal so you can follow the progress that you’re making.

66 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e JULY 2022 LOVE IS NahornyVladislavbyPhoto A CURIOUS CALLING By Zee

Relax, pause, and place your focus on 3 slow full breaths. Think of something significant that you love and the attached associated feeling. Now open up to that feeling and allow that love to emerge from deep within and express throughout your entire physical body and beyond.

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LOVE is unconditional! Everything else that resembles that represents love, that acts as a mirror image, which verbalizes as love, is not LOVE. No Sir. No matter how many times you express love, no matter who you pro fess all your love to, it ain't LOVE. Love has always been unconditional and remains as such till the end of time and beyond. Everything project ed as love is a construct of the mind to feed, "I feel the need". After all, love is what makes the world go round, thanks, Huey.LOVE is a PURIST. Now that we are here let's get down to the business at hand. Take the practice of Yoga as an example. The common meaning of "Yoga" literally means "union." Moving beyond the physical 10 out of 10 body type approach is not Yoga about experiencing a state of beingness that moves one towards a connection with all that is. Is this not also our limited human definition of the word love? Yoga only means Union because we read it in a book and how we consider the word from our limited human way of thinking. Do we not also think that Love means Union? Yoga is pure and is also be yond definition.Love is Yoga; Yoga is Love, both unconditional These following few words may seem out of context with the topic at hand; therefore, it's important for you to remain open. Every time anyone makes a judgment, one functions as a glass half-empty type of mentality. Why may you ask? As sure as eggs, every judgment is a finality. There is nowhere to go; that's what defines fi nal; it's a dead-end thought. A glass half full of thinking remains open for expansion. Now you will be able to recognize which of these two char acters you play during one's daily living. So why is this off-topic? It's not really. When one thinks of love, it is coupled with judgment. When one functions from love, one is open. Fortunately, there is always room for expansion, as it is with Yoga. Relax the eyes, relax the tongue, and just Lovebreathe.is absolute, so beautiful; it in vites itself into our human lives in un expected ways. Music is a wonder that all humans experience. Then on this no special occasion, one piece turns the body beautiful. Our hairs rise up; tingling invades our whole being, and nerve endings flash across the top of one's head like uncontrolled Allow for a moment a small practice, and consider a single thought.

Love is a curious thing. Have you ever heard that before? Some define love as an in tense feeling, a strong kin ship, or an attraction towards another being. Definitions are prisons in a box, and trying to define Love, well, that's a pretty lame idea at best! And let's not spoil anything by talking about all the over romance parties. Therefore, come for a ride, take a deep breath as we dive, and delve a little deeper into what is love. Let's take a journey with out those make-up stories and go be yond the promise "I'll be yours" and start from the beginning, hello sugar. Can you remember how open and real it was, that feeling when you first laid your eyes on that forever one, your newborn baby, when a feeling ran through you like an uncharted lightning bolt? That's love. That in tense unadulterated love one feels it is the pure love we as fractured beings have been unable to recapture and give to ourselves or to another. From the moment our experiences moved us from a child into the matrix sys tem, our love exists as a mixed blend of emotional impurities coupled with how this world goes around. We have been constructed, now and always. No mind, no thought, Pure unadulterated Magic, that be LOVE.

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LOVE IS….. The FIRE Life is a wondrous thing, and with it comes the juice which can make or turn one away from their opportu nities and potential. It's unfortunate when life's experiences, "how could anyone love me" moves us to dance with our demons rather than to always dance with love and all the splendor that awaits. Love is the first wonder of the world, for it will, can, and does dismantle all that inhibits the best we humans can

There are times when one may doubt them-self, think badly about how one behaved while reflecting on a past in stance, and then bring a dozen or more to confuse the mind's attention. Thus, please be mindful of creating many complications upon each complica tion as one tries vainly to navigate a future through pastactions. Find your inner guidance, or seek out one who can. For now, know there is always a path through the jungle cul-de-sacs of stuckness. Go back to the heart; never wonder who you truly are; you are blessed, a manifestation of uncondi tional love in the flesh Allow for a moment a small practice, and consider a single thought. Relax, pause, and place your focus on 3 slow full breaths. Think of something sig nificant that you love and the attached associated feeling. Now open up to that feeling and allow that love to emerge from deep within and ex press throughout your entire physical body and beyond. One may think this is a challenge and digress. If so, reen gage, find the courage, not as an idea, find that feeling, allow that experience of love to flow, and you will explore experiences beyond the limited love of logic and reason. Once completed, take that expanded feeling out into the world as you walk and interact with your fellow humans. Surprise Surprise. AdobeStockbyPhoto

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Who knew that Love is the creator, the designer of one plus one equals one?

lightning bolts. It's amazing, love strikes again! A sunny day stroll along the beach as rain falls at the water's edge, objects everywhere. You reach down, grasp a dead leaf, and at that moment, you see the beauty in all that is this world. At that moment, you are one with it all. Love gives its gift un conditional.Lovedoesn't come from you it's universal love comes through you it's unconditional always is, always will be, all ways How do you explain to a child caught in the middle when love goes sour be tween two people who insist it was the other? It stands to reason that their lack of adult maturity and their lack of human respect for other inherited thinking will not allow them to turn and face their mirror. This is what we have Fracturedbecome.doesn't begin to express what that child was never prepared to experience. When one understands that Love is and can only be uncon ditional, every other concept is a de lusion, man-made. Those few who experience unconditional love with another have found this world's great est treasure. You are the most blessed humans in this universe!!! Is that all there is…. Is love fantasy, a head trip, or a feeling that is like no other, utterly unexplainable by mere words? Any number of single-focused concepts cannot define love. Love is the all-encompassing peripheral described by Zen's ten directional eyes, together with the emancipating third eye, rolled into one and beyond ever-more. Love can never be easily measured, it remains unknown. Was it love that coined the phrase "crash and burn"?

Any number of single-focused concepts cannot define love. Love is the all-encompassing peripheral described by Zen's ten directional eyes, together with the emancipating third eye, rolled into one and beyond ever-more.

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WISH YOU WERE HERE

This man has waited his whole life to be a fa ther to a son. Happiness now fulfilled, he has his boy's name tattooed larger than life over his entire right shoulder down to the elbow, with all the trimmings, rays of sunshine, and more. This love is an expression, example of a father's love for a child, boy, or girl them they. It is an example of a male's natural love, which society has not yet been able to recognize. Sadly over looked. Is love as sweet as sugar; is it larger than an elephant, taller than a tree? A father's love is all the above and larger than the cosmos!

A MOTHERS LOVE HAS NO OurBOUNDARIESmotherEARTH has cradled and cared for millions of humans during her lifetime. And still to this day, after all the abuse we throw at her, she consciously updates to the needs of all humans. When will we independents begin to notice and act with maturity and respect? When humans begin to hear…LOVE IS CALLING

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The child arrives home from school. The par ents are still at work. Now the child is free to act like an adult and takes the family car out for a joy ride. In time mum realizes and threatens to tell the father. Mothers never tell; their love and understanding are larger than life itself; their love has no boundaries. For they are not moth er and child, they are buddies. No fences exist between age and different ways of thinking, only the boundaries self-created and accepted in one's head.

“I ordered the pepperoni and onion pizza,” said my husband a few weeks prior to his passing and after one of his longer and longer rests in his big armchair. “I saw myself at this place called the Gate way Café. I was told that it’s the place where all beings hang out to choose where they’re going to go and whom they’re going to be the next time around as humans. You get to decide your next life time just like ordering off a menu.”

“Wow,” I said. “But I’m thinking coming back might not be a choice I’d make. I mean, it’s been pretty rocky this time.”

By Heidi Connolly

Angels?

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What If Vacationing

We Are All

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“Ilifetime?amaVacationing Angel, the spirit in human form. I chose to be here. I will make the most of it while I’m here.”

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When her husband Randy transi tioned in 2012, Heidi Connolly’s life took a dramatic turn. Owner of Harvard Girl Word Services for over 20 years, Heidi focused on the work of others; now, through the writing with Randy of her winningaward- book Crossing the Rubi con Heidi, understands that she is capable of much more than she’d ever given herself credit, including abilityher to communicate with the Other Currently,Side.her multidimensional compass is set to the practice of writing, newestahealingshipcoaching,intuitive/mediumspirituallyguidedmusic,andlivinglifeas“VacationingAngel.”Heidi’sbook, The Gateway Café, is the enticing story of a teenager’s journey of awakening through in ter-dimensional travel and angelic intervention.heidiconnolly.com

Ifall.I accept that we are all one ener getically, which I do, then when we “die,” we simply take on a different energetic frequency and state, the way heated water turns to steam. We’re still here but in a different form. I have always believed that when we’re in that different form— in the non-physical—so, why not imagine we’re somewhere like the Gateway Café? Some place where we have and hold an awareness that goes beyond the physical and yet offers us an outline for the physical world we choose? Some place where we have and hold a sense of selflessness along with self-full-ness that propels us to enter the physical realm for another

“Exactly,” he said. “They told me we’re all vacationing angels—a spirit that wants to experience being hu man. As energetic beings, the idea of being human, mortal beings in bio degradable human suits with all the magnificent senses we enjoy, it feels like a vacation.” I thought about it. Here my husband is dying and talking about how be ing human is supposed to feel like a vacation. Although I dutifully jotted down a few notes in the notebook we were keeping of his ideas, the only thing I heard in my head was, “If this were a vacation, we’d both be having a lot more fun—and, oh, BTW, you wouldn’t be dying.” I kept that part to myself.

12 Years Later There was a lot of grieving from then to now. A lot of life and living packed into what felt like at first more like an endlessly scorched spiritual ter rain until the rains came, and there was verdant abundance once again. I’ve learned about living alone and living without a partner. I’ve expe rienced the massive benefits of selfdiscovery through meditation. But most importantly, I’ve learned what it truly means to live as a “vacation ing Thisangel.”philosophy has stood by me through thick and thin since Randy’s passing. Sure, it took a while. “Vaca tion” isn’t usually the first word you think of when someone dies and you can barely climb out of bed every day. Yet, with his ongoing prodding and poking and my continued efforts at listening to him from the other side of the veil, the message began to make more and more sense. Here’s the way my reasoning went. For many years the only real thoughts swimming around in my head sounded like this: “What’s the point? What’s the purpose of being human? What’s MY purpose for being here?” Not reassured by the obvious dearth of answers, I continued along a path where nothing—nothing—made any sense. It wasn’t until I began reading books like Conversations with God that my eyes opened. Suddenly, there was another option for looking at life, death, and being-ness. Another option for living with a purpose that included more than a decision about which career path to follow.

Embracing (remembering, one might say) the idea that we have all made our contracts before we live our first, second, or thousandth hu man lifetime opened the door to a whole new world. If I agreed to the contracts with my mother, my father, my sisters, and my friends, then how could I be angry at them or disap pointed in them, or blame them for Myanything?contract = My responsibility. It’s as simple as that. Navigating that lifetime’s contract, however, can be pretty darn challenging because we tend to get stuck in the “why” of it

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They pointed out interesting things to see out the window during the flight, such as The Grand Canyon or Hoover Dam, Eiffel Tower, and London Bridge. They’d offer us soft drinks, magazines, board games, coloring books, or whatever they thought could occupy us during a long flight. I remember my parents being served cocktails and Hors D’oeuvres, and believe it or not, dinner on board included Caviar and Lobster. Good luck scoring a bag of pretzels today! Traveling Animals (pets) were placed in crates with food and water and put in a separate part of the plane. ,

DrachOlgabyPhoto Where HAVE ALL THE FLOWERS GONE?

THE WAY I SEE IT

By Joey Santos, Jr.

Long time passing. Where have all the flowers gone? Long time ago…” ~Pete Seeger How do we bring them back? Do most even no tice they’re gone? I do.

Walking through an airport recently, I looked over at the long lines, the chaos, the lack of service, pleasant ries or warm greetings, and I thought, where have they gone? When I was a kid, traveling was exciting and glamorous. The terminals were peppered with elegant lounges, smart cafes, and all sorts of people to answer questions and or help you to your gate. Trips were well planned. We were well dressed and well mannered, and our “baggage" was luggage, not toys, stuffed animals, soiled pillows, car seats, and strollers. Our Parents were organized and present and were happy to have us in their company. The “stewardesses” (as they were called then) were pleasant, pretty, coifed, and elegantly uni formed. They greeted passengers with warm smiles. Music played in the cabin; they were happy to take one’s coat, help with extra bags, or tuck you into your seat with a pillow and or a blanket. It was a pleasure for them. At least they made it seem so. I remember them being so attentive and friendly to my Brother and me. Asking us questions, telling us about the flight and the airplane, and even introduced us to the pilot and co-pilot and showed us the cockpit.

All the talk about “making something or other great again”…all the talk. When do we take on that responsibility? When we no longer fight or the right?

Well, I think it’s time to wake up and stand up. Bring back the “flowers" we’ve lost. Speak gently and kindly to each other rather than at each other. Remember your manners and if you were never taught any, then go learn some and fast!

Bring back Parents and Parenting. "Children should be seen and not heard” came from a real place! Praise our teachers and schools and give them back their courage and power to in fluence, mold, and grow our children together into respectable, responsible, smart, and decent human beings. Maybe it’s a start. It's worth a try. If we are lucky enough to bring back the flowers in life that were once so bright, beautiful, and fragrant, then maybe we will remember to water them and stop to smell them.

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Joey Santos is a Celebrity Chef, Life Stylist & Co-Host of The Two Guys From Hollywood Podcast on iHeart ARadio.Columnist for The Eden Magazine since 2016. Joey was raised in NYC, Malibu, and Hollywood.West He is the son of Film & Television Actor Joe Santos, and his Grandfather is World-Renowned Latin Singer Daniel Santos. To follow Joey on IG: @jojoboy13 To contact Joey; whynotjoe@gmail.com We grew up with family pets, and they did travel with us on occasion. They al ways arrived safely, happy, and healthy.

Who’s to blame for the world’s changes? Society’s demise? Lack of Parenting? Entitlement issues, food issues, body dysmorphia, the lack of communica tion, conversation, and interest in one another! How did we lose sight? Don’t we care about our neighborhoods any more? What about neighboring neigh borhoods? What about neighbors?

It’s interesting to me that they stopped serving peanuts on airplanes because of passengers with “allergies.” Trust me How and when did we stop caring? Have we become so desensitized as a so ciety that we don’t even notice? Are we so afraid to speak up, stand up that we simply shut up? I recently went out to dinner in Beverly Hills with my best friend since child hood. We were raised with the same principles of life. As kids, our parents treated us to fine dining in the best restaurants, whether in New York or LA or in different parts of the world. We were encouraged to at least try new things. Nine out of ten were enjoyed. We were taught to order our own food and to be respectful of our table, it's set ting, the waiters, and the patrons. Oh Thatboy. is not the case with the people in the booth next to ours. We are talking about a Mother, a Father, a Nanny, an 8-year-old boy, and a 6-year-old girl. My friend and I or dered a couple of Grey Goose Martinis, and oh so glad we did! The evening came complete with Itentertainment.startedwith us over-hearing the Par ents’ bickering (we immediately stopped our conversation and tuned right into theirs); the wife was nagging her husband about eating too much bread and that he should stick to a salad and a pro tein for his entree’. Mind you; the guy was not out of shape in any way. She, of course, ordered Salmon with no oil or salt and steamed spinach with lemon. She looked as if she should have had the bread. The kids were on iPads the whole time and the Nanny was trying to or der the meals for the kids who wanted “chicken fingers,” “french fries,” “ranch dressing,” “apple sauce,” “macaroni and cheese,” and “frankfurters”! This was at an upscale ITALIAN restaurant. It isn’t happening, kid! They settled on Spa ghetti with butter and parmesan cheese but only after 20 minutes of the Moth er berating the poor waiter about not having the certain food items her chil dren wanted and suggesting they alter the menu in the future to accommo date her children's needs "after all we are regular customers" as well as nego tiating with her crying and screaming children, ignoring a Nanny hiding behind a menu and sneering at a Father silent, disengaged but enjoying a love affair with the bread basket.

74 THEEDENMAGAZINE.COM e SEPTEMBER 2022 The Spiritual Sandbox TabakOkanKulkibyPhoto

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Now is the time for all of us to rise & shine like nev er before. A whole new paradigm that illuminates the Law of Oneness.... That seeds the possibilities across the Cosmos. When women come together in mutual sup port of one another, miracles happen!

TakeAnybody?amoment, breathe this vision in… How does that feel in your body? In your soul?

By Jill Lebeau, MS, LMFT & Amit West, M.A

Love is the power that can change anything, right? With love, ALL things are possible. Now is the time to transcend toxic femininity - the old paradigm of competition, jealousy, tearing each other down, body shaming into the new paradigm of heart and soul connection, collaboration, and exciting cocreation. Guess what? There's room for everybody to shine Recentlybrightly!wehad the thrilling experience of welcom ing our very special guest and beloved friend, Sherri Cortland, to our podcast, https://www.spiritualsand boxpodcast.com/ A perfect example of Rising and Thriving Together! As a bonus, and truth be told, it was really more of a mira cle; when we were recording our podcast episode, Sherri received a channeled message from one of her guides, Olexeoporath. We were completely swept up and overjoyed in the moment as Sherri told us she had received a message and asked us if we wanted to hear it. Of course, we did! What prompted this miraculous gift, Divinely Timed, from Sherri's Guide as we were talking about Women Rising Up and Thriving together? Olex eoporath wanted us to know. We wield great power!

As Amit says, "we move mountains, we weave magic and draw each other's gifts out to share with the world... reflecting each other's magnificence and reminding one another of who we truly are."

hy spend another moment, an other ounce of your precious energy and essence feeding toxic femininity, when you can rise and thrive with amazing women who are ready, willing & thrilled to connect, collabo rate, & co-create together? To share our Gifts & shine our ImagineLight!this... sisters inspiring one another instead of cutting each other down. Through projections & the "j" words... Jealousy & Judgment, when you could be focusing on authentic expression, deeper connection, and jumping for JOY! Being the miracle for others, allowing others to be the miracle for us. Sound good?

The Miracles of Women Rising andTogether!Thriving

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To learn more about Jill's please visit;

As a trans formational facilitator, healer, guide, teacher, and ceremo nialist, it’s Amit’s deepest Joy and honor supporting people on their awakening heart consciousness journey. Informed by her own devo tional walk of life. Remember ing together the truth of who we are. Living life to its fullest, sharing our Light, love, gifts, and wisdom. Co-Creating life, guided by our ancestors, allies, and guides who are all here for, with and within us. Connecting reverently with our mother earth, nature, and all sentient beings. Website is: heartpathguide.comhttps://www. So dear ones, how do we access that great power? Through our love.

Amitcom/https://www.easejoylove.West,M.A.-

Starting with love for ourselves. As within, so without. Let's face it; we've all been there. From feeling jealousy towards other women to feeling jealousy from oth er women, we've all experienced the full spectrum of women being pitted against one another. Of course, we have; we've been trained to relate to each other as threats as opposed to allies. Let's forgive ourselves and each other and walk in a different direction together, now! Allow us to remind you that the law of reciprocity is you get as you give. Remember how you felt when your "friends" stabbed you in the back while proclaiming their love and support for you… how shocking, heartbreaking, and shattering that was for your oh-so-sensitive soul. As with all triggers, we invite you to ac knowledge your experience and feel your emotions fully. As you reflect upon those painful ex periences, It's likely that we have all gotten entangled in the clusterfuck of competition, jealousy, shaming, and judging other women. So do we want to continue this painful pat tern? We say no, thank you! Been there, done that. We are living the change we want to see in the world. And the more, the merrier. Come join Now,us!what do you want to create and birth? It is, after all, the time of the Great Awakening, and any youchangemake ripples throughout all of creation. Do you realize your power as Spirit in the form to go forth in full support, not only of your own dreams but as one willing to offer your gifts to be a miracle for others and to actuate their dreams too? Re member, we are each unique facet of the Divine; when we come togeth er in radical co-creation, we allow those dreams to manifest with easy, effortless flow. We return to Olexeoporath's wis dom. We wield great power. And we would say that our power is in our love, not our competition, jeal ousy, and shaming of old patterns of thought and behavior. So, who are we as wielders of great Wepower?are Alchemists and Warriors of Love and Light. So we invite you to take a moment and go within, check in with your self and see how you operate in the world in thoughts, words, and ac tions.. Are you standing in lack, fear, and Judgment? If so, how does that feel to you? What do you think you're getting out of it?

Jill Lebeau, MS, LMFT- As a spiritual psychotherapist and author, Jill’s mastery is guiding people to live in the magical flow of ease, joy, abundance, love and freedom. Jill is here to help you remem ber the truth of who you are, a magnificent Being of limitless love and expansion. As the Creator of your reality, you can be, do, or have, whatever you desire. It's Jill’s joy to show you how fast, easy, fun and thrilling it is to elevate into your highest vibration!

The truth is, our feelings, frequen cy, and vibration are our calling cards in the Universe. When you follow your bliss, as Joseph Camp bell taught, when you follow your joy, your passion, you're beaming a beautiful bright Light that is reflect ed back to you in all directions, and the Universe knows what to give you more of. Abundance? Done. Vibrant health? Inner peace and joy? Also done. Love? Fulfillment and Living your purpose passionately? All are done through you as the unique channel of The Divine that you are! Now is the time for all of us to rise & shine like never before. A whole new paradigm that illuminates the Law of Oneness.... That seeds the possibilities across the Cosmos. When women come together in mutual support of one another, miracles happen!

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Most people have a love/hate rela tionship with Citronella. It certain ly has a powerful aroma, but the benefits of its ingredients are need ed during the summer months.

Broken Top Brands has just released Lemon Citronella, a new line of goods that feature a pleasing, light smell with notes of citrus, lemon & citronella. Plus…they actually Perfectwork! for keeping bugs at bay this season, Lemon Citronella is avail able in four products: 9 oz Soy Candle, 8 oz Outdoor Spray, 2 oz Natural Repellent Stick & Outdoor Incense Cones. Head on over to BrokenTopCandleCo.com for more information, and allow me to re quest a sample if you’d like to work together. Broken Top products can also be found on Amazon, Wayfair, Macy’s, and more.

WHAT’S IN YOUR MIND IS IN YOUR BODY

For many years, various individuals con sidered the mind to be separate from the body. This we now know is defi nitely not the case. There is a constant flow of communication between the mind and the thoughts that are being formed, as well as the body to the brain, through feelings, emo tions, and even physical sensations and symp toms. What you think, you will feel. As you think through your very many thou sands of daily thoughts, from what you imag ine and see in your mind to what you say and hear with your inner voice, your body will be carrying the experience of your thoughts phys ically and emotionally. The thoughts that you think will be transported by electrical impulses along neurons, where neurotransmitters con nect through synaptic gaps, which carry and transfer electric impulses throughout the body. Thought after thought, bridges begin to build and connect pathways that carry and produce the feelings and emotions that you feel physi cally throughout your body. If your thoughts continue to consider anxiety-inducing scenari os or situations, then the feelings that will flow physically and quite easily will be the many feelings of anxiety that can accelerate and grow with ease. It’s the same for happiness, joy, grat itude, desire, and excitement. What you think in your mind will always flow into your body, as thoughts create feelings. The power here lies in your understanding that your mind can and will create the physical experience in your body. This means you can consciously create the feelings in your body that you want to feel, which leaves you in a powerful position.

By Kamran Bedi

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It’s very easy for me to suggest changing the channel of thoughts in your mind or the narrative of fear and anxiety that you often hear, but if you do, then you will get an entirely different phys ical experience, which could be for the better. It can be that simple, powerfully simple, if it is better for you to think of it that way. In taking clients through the process to see, hear, and feel their current environment, they will often communicate to me that they feel calm, immediately relaxed, and free from any difficult thoughts. This is because the process not only helps to direct the awareness of your mind, which increases your focus and leaves you quickly arriving into the present moment along side your physical body with great ease, but it allows you to feel the ease physically, not just mentally. If you watch a horror

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movie on Netflix, you will feel the physical sensations in your body from what you see and hear. It is the same in your mind. What you see and hear in the space and place of your thoughts is always going to influence the feelings and emotions in your •body.How often do you pay attention to your thoughts, and how do those thoughts create the feelings and emotions that you are feeling in your body?

• How often do you pay attention to the physical sensations, symptoms, and even possible challenges that your body is presenting to you, trying to communicate to your aware ness that something needs addressing? What do you think you will feel? – Yes, I am repeating myself because repetition allows you to be reminded that this sim ple formula, mantra, or reminder can help you to interrupt the feelings of anxiety by directing your awareness to your thoughts. You may often feel and experience the very many different feelings of anxiety that could be as panic, fear, stress, worry, nerves, sadness, feeling uncertain, and even being on edge, which can be a clear instigator to check in with your mind and your thoughts. The physical sensations that you feel, whether it’s churning in your gut, jelly in your legs, a weight on your shoulders, or a general whole-body freeze, can be physical communication for you to focus on your thoughts. In changing your thoughts, the way that you are thinking, from what you see in your mind and hear yourself saying, you can immedi ately change the physical experiences in your body. It’s not just the brain and your thoughts that communicates to your body through producing physical experiences; it is the body talking back and even calling out to the mind.

A few years ago, I had experienced various gut challenges where my body, through the physical struggles and challenges that were experienced in my digestive system, attempted again and again to grab my attention. I lived with them for nearly two years, bloated, constipated, and frustrated with the physical challenges that seemed to slowly get worse over time. It was easy for me to ignore them, but my body struggled to cope and

1. Bring to mind a specific time with family or friends where you were laugh ing uncontrollably and feeling happy.

3. Think of two specific times when you were really laughing.

Kamran Bedi is a mental health practitioner who utilises NeuroLinguistic Programming, Integral Eye Movement Therapy, Mindful ness, and Hypnosis in his work as a Transformational Life Coach. His past and present clients include Love Island, This Morning, X-Factor, CEOs, lawyers, fathers, mothers, teenagers, and so many more. The Anxiety Antidote is out on 12th October priced $16.95 and is available on Amazon and in all good Pleasebookstores.visit https://kamranbedi. com or com/coachkamranbedi/https://www.instagram.

4. Close your eyes and picture the mem ory. See it in your mind, hear the sounds and feel the shift in how you feel.

As you may have just experienced to some degree, you can direct the focus of your thoughts and transform the feel ings and emotions in your body from what you’re choosing to focus on. This is helpful because you can’t feel anxiety when you’re feeling joy. You can’t feel anxious when you’re feeling grateful. By changing your thoughts, you can change how you feel, and quickly.

1. Think of two places where you feel safe, calm, or relaxed.

Anchoring: Recalling past memories with positive states is known as “an choring” in NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming), and I use this technique quite often to help people quickly shift their mental and emotional states.

2. Take a moment, think back, and now bring it to your awareness.

4. Think of two specific times when you felt happy and content. Now use the previous steps 1–5, each with two examples you have just listed, where you label each example, to anchor and access the desired emotional state.

From the pictures that you see, the men tal movies that you watch, and the in ner sounds you hear and converse with, these elements of your thinking all con tribute to your emotional experience, both positively and negatively. Now you can actively create more calming, reassuring, positive, and empowering pictures and sounds with your thoughts so that you can dissolve any feelings of anxiety.

Let’s experience the mind-body connection now with some exercises that allow you to change how you feel by changing your thought patterns.

Use the prompts below to come up with a bank of past memories to recall when you need help to shift your focus away from your anxious feelings to then ac cess more resourceful states.

This, in many ways, is the same for your anxious feelings that will be calling out for you to find some healing and inner peace. You may have probably experi enced that the longer you have left your anxiety untreated, the stronger it has become in its desire to get your atten tion. Think of it this way, your anxiety is calling you, asking you, and even telling you that something inside of you needs addressing. The way that your body can attempt time after time to communicate with you that something needs your at tention is perhaps a new way for you to consider in working through the chal lenging feelings and emotions that you are experiencing within. I have worked with people who have gut challenges, skin conditions, panic and anxiety at tacks, severe stress, and burnout, which all have a variety of physical symptoms that are a loop of mind talking to the body and, in many ways, the body ex pressing the state of mind. What do you think you will feel?

3. Hear the laughter and notice the pos itive shift it creates in your body.

2. Think of two places where you feel the environment is peaceful.

Let’s try it now:

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5. Label this memory (example, “fun time with family”) so that you can recall it quickly anytime you want to feel these feelings. The more often you think of it, the stronger the feeling that you’ll feel.

eventually got my attention for a call to action where I consulted a nutritionist. Following the guidance and specific plan for my symptoms, I was amazed at the changes that began to physically happen within 48 hours of me following the advice of my practitioner. If I had literally listened to my gut a lot sooner, I could have eased and even prevented the symptoms that I experienced by answer ing the call from within that my body kept on calling out to me.

By Coach Michael Taylor

A few years ago, I gave a presentation titled, Liv ing With Joy. During the speech, I talked about the importance of optimism and how be ing optimistic is good for your health.

“But what if your dad was wrong? What if smiling has nothing to do with trustworthiness but has everything to do with simply being happy? Are you “Ihappy?don’t have anything to be happy about. Don’t you watch the news? There is nothing to be happy about; the world is headed down a path of destruction.”

“You are definitely entitled to your opinion, but let me share the reason I smile so much and why I am so opti mistic about the future.”

The Good News Is… The Future Is Brighter Than You Think

At the age of twenty-three, I was living the American Dream. I had the house, the wife, the 2.5 kids, the vacations, and the 401K. By society’s standards, I was successful. Within a 6 ½ year time frame, my American Dream turned into the American Nightmare. I experienced divorce, bankruptcy, foreclosure, depression, and being homeless for two years living out of my car. During the darkest period in my life, I received a miracle. I was sitting up late one night because I was too depressed to sleep. I was sitting at the edge of my bed staring across the room at my book shelf when I noticed that every book on my bookshelf had something to do with getting rich or making money. As I stared at the books, this question just popped into my mind; “Michael, what if you took all of the energy and effort you’ve used in trying to get rich and simply figure out how to be happy?”

MagnusonKarlbyPhoto

As simplistic as that question may sound, it literally changed and saved my life in an instant. I really can’t explain it, but all of a sudden, my depression lift ed, and I had this amazing clarity that I was going to be able to rebuild my life, and it was going to become extraordi nary! As a result of asking that question, I stopped reading books on getting rich and making money, and I began read ing books on psychology, philosophy, spirituality, metaphysics, quantum physics, and personal development.

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During the presentation, there was a man in the audience who didn’t seem to be enjoying my talk. After the presen tation, he came up to me and said, “I don’t trust you!” His comment caught me off guard, so I asked him why he didn’t trust me. He then told me that he didn’t trust a man who smiled too much because he said his daddy taught him not to trust men who were always smiling. I could sense that he was a pretty pessimistic guy who probably didn’t have a reason to smile, so I de cided to engage him in a conversation.

“So you believe all men who smile a lot can’t be trusted? What if you’re wrong? What if a man could smile a lot and also be trustworthy? “I don’t think that’s possible.”

As a result of my commitment to my own personal growth and transforma tion, I was able to rebuild my life, and I have now created my version of an extraordinary one. Of course, it hasn’t been easy, and I’m definitely still learn ing and growing, but I can honestly say this very moment as I’m writing this, I am happier now than I’ve ever been in my life.

As I reflect back on my 25-year journey of transformation, I have come to the conclusion that my life journey is a metaphor for how the Universe works. Let me explain what I mean.

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There are Universal laws and princi ples that govern the Universe. When we learn to accept these laws and apply them to our lives, life becomes miracu lous. One of those principles is called the Breakdown Breakthrough Princi ple. Simply stated, every breakdown is simply preparation for a breakthrough. If you look throughout nature, you will see this principle in action. For example, think about a woman’s preg nancy. For nine months, a woman is in a complete breakdown as a single egg and sperm unite to create a new human being. It’s been said that giving birth is possibly the most painful experience a human being can have, and yet that pain is surpassed by the pure joy of giving birth. And what about the amazing miracle of a tree? Think about the beautiful and gigantic redwood trees that begin as tiny little seeds no larger than your fingernail and grow into some of the largest and most majestic trees on earth. It can take years for the root system to grow before the tree breaks the surface of the ground, but that breakdown period prepares the tree to become the magnificent expression of nature it was created to be. On a more personal note, my divorce and being homeless were extremely painful and devastating. However, I now see them as the breakdowns in my life which were preparing me for the breakthroughs I am currently experiencing. As a matter of fact, I can now see how my divorce was the absolute best thing that ever happened to me. If not for my divorce, I would have never become an entrepreneur, author, and motivational speaker. I would have still been trapped in an unhappy marriage working a corporate job, and being absolutely miserable. But my break through resulted in me finding my pas sions and my purpose and also finding the woman of my dreams whom I have been blissfully married for the past 19 years.

In order for everything to work out, we must come to an understanding that there really is only one race, which is the human race, and when we learn to accept we are all the same, then we can come together to make sure the future is brighter than you think.

What also excites me about the future is the advancement of technology. As I look at things like electric and auton omous cars, 3D printing, drones, gene editing, 5G networks, and upcoming space travel, I am filled with optimism that humanity is actually positioned to overcome a large percentage of the social ills that currently plague our world. But in order for everything to work out, we must come to an understand ing that there really is only one race, which is the human race, and when we learn to accept we are all the same, then we can come together to make sure the future is brighter than you think.”

This leads me to my reasons for opti mism about the future of humanity.

First of all, I believe there is a Divine Intelligence that created and is still cre ating this amazing Universe we live in. This intelligence knows exactly what it is doing, and its ultimate intention is to create heaven right here on earth. I be lieve humanity is currently in a major breakdown, but we are being prepared for a major breakthrough. One of my favorite mentors is a woman named Barbara Marx Hubbard, and she theorized that human beings were still evolving. She stated that we are evolving from Homo-Sapiens to Ho mo-Universalis, and this evolution in consciousness is going to lay the groundwork for creating heaven on Thisearth.is my primary reason for opti mism. I believe in Divine Intelligence, and I believe in the perfection of the I’mUniverse.alsooptimistic because of my own life experience. As a man who hap pened to be black and was a child of the sixties, I have very vivid memories of racial segregation and the racial ha tred I experienced growing up. I once had a gun put to my head by a racist white kid who said he hated niggers, and he threatened to shoot me simply because I was black. All of my life, I’ve dealt with racism, and yet I still re main optimistic about race relations in America and around the globe. From my perspective, the progress we’ve made in this country in my short 60-year lifespan is definitely a reason for optimism. If you accept Barbara’s theory of human beings still evolving, human beings have been evolving for more than 250,000 years, so the prog ress we have made in my 60 years tells me we are on the right trajectory to heal the majority of racial challenges we are still dealing with. It may appear to be a slow process, but when you put it in the context of eternity, 60 years isn’t even a blink of an eye. I personally do not believe race relations are getting worse; we simply get to see more stories of racial tension because of television and social media. This does not deny the systemic racial systems and policies that still impact people of color today; it simply shares a different perspective on how to view them.

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After listening to my story, he began to smile a bit. I could tell I had shift ed his perception just a little, and he was rethinking his position on such a pessimistic view of the world. He then looked at me and said, “ I’m still a lit tle skeptical about you, but you have given me something to think about. Thanks for sharing your story. I en joyed speaking with you.” I then put my hand on his shoulder and said, “The reason you said you don’t have anything to be happy about is probably that you are experiencing some breakdowns in your life right now. Breakdowns are always tempo rary. They are preparation for break throughs if you’re willing to see them as such. If you are willing to take some time to find some things to be grateful for in your life right now, I can assure you that you’re on your way to some breakthroughs. Are you ready for some “Ibreakthroughs?suream!”Thanks again for speaking with me.

Life Creationyouris

of Connecting with Intuition DevelopYOUR OWN WAY and the Other Side By Katie Beecher, MS, LPC StupakTaisiiabyPhoto

Intuition and commu nication with spirit, energy healing, and even limitedcommunicationmediumshiparen’ttojustpeople who do that type of work for a living or who have had spe cial, expensive training. We are all capable of it. Do you want to connect to your intuition? Are you try ing to develop mediumship abilities or just want to have a closer relationship with spirit? These are common requests from people I hear from and work with. They tell me that they feel blocked and frus trated, ready to give up because they don’t have “special abilities” as I do. However, contrary to popular belief, learning to connect with one’s intuition is a skill that must be practiced, just like learning an instrument or starting an exercise routine. Intuitive work isn’t one size fits all What is successful for one person may not work for you, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t have the capability to connect. Don’t give up. It is like the concept of learning styles, which are different for everyone. You may be a visu al learner, remembering and absorbing information best through seeing it. You may be an auditory learner, more successful after hearing in formation. You could also be kinesthetic (learning through using touch) or learn more ef fectively by doing, using body memory. Most people have a combination of learning styles. Traditional education can be challenging for people who don’t sit still well and who tune out when listening or writing. They may have an easier time with careers using their hands or that encourage physical activity. Learning styles have nothing to do with intelligence or capability. It can be helpful to learn more about your personal learning style, as it might influence the way you most easily receive intuitive information. There are many options for receiving informationintuitive

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Over the last 30 years, I have been working as a medical and spiritual intuitive and licensed counselor. I have had a lot of practice. I’ve been honing my abilities and learn ing about them since I was a young child but did not truly accept them until much later in adulthood. It hasn’t been easy, mostly because I let fear and lack of confidence get in the way. I can receive intui tive and psychic information using words that appear in my head, scenes, physical and emotional symptoms, just “knowing,” or even through smells that seem to come out of nowhere. As I receive information from my guides, I try my best not to question or interpret what they say and instead write down the exact words I hear. I just allow theinformation to flow as it comes, without judgment. My favorite way of receiving information is through symbolism, includ ing art, movement, music, dreams, psychometry (re ceiving intuitive information from objects), or signs that appear, such as animals, num bers, or songs. As long as you are able to keep practicing and developing your relationship with your intuition and are willing to listen to it and make difficult changes in your life, I feel confident you will be able to progress.

B. See words in your head about the person C. Hear words in your head about the person D. Get a physical feeling

2. When you are in or near an old place, what happens?

5. Have you seen shadows or other indications of spirit activity?

D. I have an overall positive or neg ative feeling

6. Do you often know that some thing is going to happen before it does? Have you had premonition dreams? Have you had warning feelings that changed your plans?

4. Can you hear the words of spirits in your head or out loud?

Before I meet with a client, I create a symbolic soul painting along with a detailed written report knowing only their name and age. People love them and are amazed at what the paintings reveal. My guides give me a color to start with, and then I just start painting. I never know what the finished product will look like. They often take the form of some sort of figure, animal, or plant, but I have also painted fire trucks and buildings. This symbolic information flows more freely than words because I am not immediate ly worried about making a mistake, needing to interpret it, or blocking it with fear immediately. In fact, although I was a professional wa tercolor artist years ago, anyone can create a symbolic soul paint ing regardless of their artistic skills. During the meeting with clients, my guides and I interpret the paint ings, and I ask the client for their impressions as well. I have learned to allow the infor mation I receive without judgment or interpretation. That can be chal lenging. A great example is hearing “tooth enamel” from a 12-year-old girl I was working with. My human assumption would have been some thing negative, that she likely had a lot of cavities, but from experience, I have learned just to write what I hear. I was happy that I did because when her mother read the informa tion, she said that her daughter had extraordinarily strong tooth enamel and never had a cavity! Sometimes I pick up information for family members, for people who have passed, or for another client I am reading that same day. That doesn’t mean that what I hear is incorrect. Clients have even told me that they do not resonate with a piece of information, only to discover later what it means after processing the information. Discovering your unique ways of receiving intuitive information. Answer these questions to help you identify your intuitive and psy chic strengths. There are no wrong answers.

7. Can you pick up the moods of other people? Are you easily im pacted by negative people or being in crowds?

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A. Nothing B. I receive intuitive or psychic in formation about the place or events that happened there C. I receive information about peo ple who were once there

E. I smell or physically feel things about the area 3. Can you visually see spirits?

E. Not get any intuitive informa tion until you touch the person

A. Get an overall feeling

1. When you meet someone for the first time or are told about a person you have never met, do you:

8. When you look at numbers or hear dates, do you see colors or hear music?

Heal from Within: An Intuitive Guide to Wellness, is Katie’s book was released by St. Martin’s Press on February 15, 2022. It is filled with informationvaluable from Katie’s spiritual guides and vast professional and personal experience. She teaches her unique medical and emotional intuitive process and practical, individualized tools including Jungian psychology techniques to help people connect with intuition, find self-love and empowerment as well as heal physically, emotionally and spiritually. The book also describes how she became a medical intuitive and details her own healing from an eating disorder, depression and Lyme disease. www.katiebeecher.com

9. Do you gain weight easily or have trouble losing it? When some thing is bothering you, do you de velop aches and pains, headaches, or stomach issues, possibly before even realizing what you are emo tionally feeling?

• Not being connected to the body.

• Lack of sleep.

10. Do you pick up physical symp toms others are feeling?

• General anxiety, trauma, or anything that prevents you from being in the present moment.

11. If you do massage, acupunc ture, or other hands-on bodywork, are you spiritually directed to where the body needs help? There are names for the various ways of picking up psychic and intuitive information, such as psychometry, when you learn information about an object by touching it. The names are not really important. You may resonate with all of these. Most people have multiple modalities for picking up intuitive, medium ship-related, or psychic informa tion. Learning about your specific skill set can help you strengthen your abilities and identify areas you may need or want more training in. Sometimes intuition is blocked Learning what might block your intuition is also important. These are a few possibilities:

• Believing that if you haven’t had a “mystical experience”, you are doing it wrong.

• Attempting to control the message you receive.

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• Blocking out feelings.

• Asking questions about the future, especially about things that have yet to be determined.

If you understand how you most easily connect with intuition and the other side, you can start with these techniques and build on them, rather than being discouraged from trying to connect using abilities you don’t have (yet). When I started, I wasn’t able to use all of the skills I have now. The more I practiced, the more modalities I developed.

Practice is the key Remember that practicing is exactly that. You aren’t supposed to be able to master something as soon as you begin. You will make mistakes, and you will learn from them. You will recognize the difference between intuition and fear, with the first helping you feel more settled rather than anxious. Start with people you feel comfortable with and with oth ers who are learning, perhaps at a mediumship circle through a Spiri tualist church or at a class. I still get nervous before beginning an intui tive report because I care so much about the person I am helping, and I want to provide the most accurate, useful information possible. I never want to take my accuracy or abili ties for Connectinggranted.with intuition, spir it, and even the other side isn’t an unattainable goal, restricted to only a chosen few. We do it every day, often without even realizing it. As long as you are able to keep practicing and developing your relationship with your intuition and are willing to listen to it and make difficult changes in your life, I feel confident you will be able to progress.

Katie Beecher, MS, LPC is a Licensed Professional Counsel or and Medical and Emotional Intuitive with over thirty years of Sheexperience.isfeatured in Goop, Kourtney Kardashian’s website Poosh and Miranda Kerr’s Kora Organics Blog and has taught a week long work shop at the Omega Institute. She has a unique way of working with clients, creating a detailed, individualized, physical, emotional and spiritual report and symbolic painting, before ever seeing them, talking with them or seeing a photograph, using only their name and age.

• Self-doubt and overthinking.

• Believing that you aren’t intuitive.

• Fear of connecting with nega tive or evil forces.

• Believing that you must act on what you learn immediately.

Many of these obstacles are fearbased due to a lack of confidence, not wanting to make a mistake or be wrong, and not enough practice.

On July 30, 2022, at the legendary Bella Vista Polo Ranch, in Santa Barbara, CELEBRAT ING LIFE www.celebratinglife.la had its ex travagant debut with a flamboyant event, which included plenty of International guests and media.

The innovative company creates global events and exclusive experiences, with a focus on a creating a kaleidoscopic way to unite business, entertainment, fashion, finances, music, and Awardsports.winning producer Valentina Castellani, of Quinn Studios Entertainment https://quinnstudiosentertainment. com/ , Lan Trshirky of https://www.lantocapital.com/com pany.html, and Gilles David of Pierre Cardin https://pierre cardin.com/en/ have come together to rethink business and have created a template of how to celebrate life, give back and create a connection between worlds that by tradition have always been separated. Movies and entertainment nowadays are the most impactful platform to convey an idea, change perspective, and address people. Hollywood has acquired a significant place also in finances and business. When you bring together these inventive minds, the stage is set to think out-side-the-box with no limits and execute a grand vision.

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Photos by @TOMMY RED MEDIA Valentina Castellani, Film Producer/COO & Gilles Davis, Creative Director/CMO

The Film, Fashion and Finance come together to Launch CELEBRATING LIFE LA

CELEBRATING LIFE began its pres ence in the U.S. with a sponsorship of the 2022 ESPY Awards at the Micro soft Theater in Los Angeles. The company has already set its sights on next year's event at the Pierre Cardin Villa, the iconic Palais Bulle since acquiring the rights of the estate in Cannes.

CELEBRATING LIFE with LAN Space will bring for the first time at W.E.F. not only busi ness and finances but also Film, Enter tainment, Fashion, and Sport.

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The Polo Match, led by Francesco Mitrano, President of the MonteCarlo Polo Federation, set the pace for the Great Gatsby atmosphere, followed by the Kiki Wang Fashion Show. DJLO did the record spinning, and Skateboard legend and artist Steve Olson presented his new paintings.

The new company will set its base in Los Angeles and Davos, Switzerland, where together with Lan Trshirky will create an innovative program at LAN SPACE in the World Economic Forum in January 2023.

The event in Santa Barbara saw Celeb rities from the Sports World, such as Terrell Owens, Byron Chamberlain, and Angel McCoughtry, together with Executives of Sony and Netflix, pro ducers, and Hollywood actors. During the Press Conference, Valentina Castellani, together with Gilles David, announced a design collaboration with Terrell Owens for a new exciting Sports TheCollection.re-Launching of the Iconic French Designer Pierre Cardin in the U.S. was one of the conference's highlights. The new collection is still in production, but exquisite samples were given in the luxurious gift bags as a teaser.

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On an afternoon in late June, the San Luis Reservoir — a 9-mile lake about an hour southeast of San Jose, California — shim mered in 102-degree heat. A dusty, winding trail led down into flatlands newly created by the shrinking waterline. Seven deer, in cluding a pair of fawns, grazed on tall grasses that, in wetter times, would have been at least partially underwater. On a distant ridge, wind turbines turned languidly. That day, the reservoir, California’s sixth-larg est and a source of water for millions of peo ple, was just 40 percent full. Minerals depos ited by the receding waters had turned the reservoir’s lower banks white, like the rings on a bathtub. Discarded clothing, empty bot tles, and a lone shoe sat scattered across the newly exposed, parched ground. An interac tive graphic in the visitor’s center reported that this year’s snowpack — which provides the water that travels from the Sacramento River Delta into the reservoir itself — was zero percent of the yearly average.

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This story is part of the Grist series Parched, an in-depth look at how climate change-fueled drought is reshaping communities, economies, and ecosystems.

HOW CLIMATE CHANGE SPURS MEGADROUGHTS

By Shannon Osaka

The curious connection between the sky’s “thirstiness” and the dry spell devastating the western U.S.

Unclesam?AdobestockBybyPhoto

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In February, scientists confirmed that the current, decades-long “megadrought” is the worst in 1,200 years. They also confirmed that rising temperatures — driven by human consumption of fossil fuels — were partly to blame.

Depending on how you look at it, California — and most of the American West — has either entered its third cat astrophic drought of the past 10 years, or has been in a constant, unyielding “megadrought” since 2000. Reservoirs are emptying; lawns are turning brown; swaths of farmland that have coaxed let tuce, almonds, and alfalfa out of the dry ground for decades are going fallow. The Colorado River, which originates in the snow-capped Rocky Mountains and pro vides water to some 40 million people in the Southwest, has slowed to a trickle. That waterway also feeds the largest reser voir in the United States, Lake Mead, 40 miles east of Las Vegas, which in recent months has seen water levels so low that bodies have emerged from its shrinking, normally crystalline waters. The Bureau of Reclamation, the federal agency re sponsible for many supersized water proj ects, has asked states to cut their use of water from the Colorado River by 2 to 4 million acre-feet, an amount close to all the water that California receives from the Colorado in a single year. Throughout the West, anxiety about drought is as palpable as the dryness of the air; talk of water fills newspapers and conversations alike. “Aridification kills civilizations. Is California next?” read one Los Angeles Times headline in June. In February, scientists confirmed that the current, decades-long “megadrought” is the worst in 1,200 years. They also con firmed that rising temperatures — driven by human consumption of fossil fuels — were partly to blame. In one sense, the climate change link seems obvious. Since 1850, global tem peratures have climbed 1.2 degrees Cel sius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit); in areas of the U.S. hit hardest by drought, the increase is even higher. Temperatures in California have risen about 3 degrees F since 1896; in Arizona, they have gone up by 2.5 degrees. But the connection between climate change and drought is not as straightfor ward as it seems. Some areas are likely to get wetter while others get drier. Still oth ers may accumulate the same total rainfall, but in inconsistent patterns: More rain might fall in fewer, more intense bursts, followed by longer dry spells. “It’s com plicated,” said Benjamin Cook, a climate scientist at NASA and the Lam ont-Doherty Earth Observatory. But scientists can say some things with certainty. As the world gets hotter, soils are getting drier; it takes more and more precipitation to water the same crops and fill the same reservoirs. Rising tempera tures, therefore, are digging the American West and other arid regions into a deep er and deeper hole. The more the world warms, the more rain will be needed to compensate, and that will force people to rethink how — and where — they will live and eat when the water dries up.

One problem with linking drought and climate change is that there is little agree ment on what drought actually is. “No two people — including no two scien tists — really agree on even how to define drought,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of Califor nia, Los Angeles. A drought, in its most general sense, is simply a lack of water relative to some long-term average — but where that dearth of water appears can change how the drought is defined, stud ied, and managed. Climate scientists and meteorologists talk about “meteorologi cal drought” (a lack of rainfall), farmers worry about “agricultural drought” (a lack of soil moisture), and water manag ers try to avoid “hydrological drought” (a lack of groundwater or water in reser Thisvoirs).complexity has resulted in conflicting messages about the role of human-caused global warming in the droughts that have ravaged the American West and the rest of the world. Thanks to the science of extreme event attribution, which con nects weather extremes to global warm ing, it has become commonplace to cite climate change as a factor in devastat ing heat waves or torrential floods. But droughts are trickier. Drought depends on both the rain that falls and how quick ly it is evaporated and used.

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And as temperatures warm, the sit uation will get even worse. “For ev ery raindrop, we’re going to get less of that going into our streams and rivers,” Albano said. That thirsty atmosphere has been behind most of the studies that have found a clear link between global warming and persistent droughts.

Christine Albano, an ecohydrologist at the Desert Research Institute in Reno, Nevada, studies evaporative demand and how it might change under global warming. “A warmer atmosphere can hold more water,” she explained. And, she added, the changes are nonlinear — a small change in temperature could lead to a much larger change in how thirsty the sky is. In a paper published ear lier this year, Albano and her co-au thors found that evaporative demand has increased over the past 40 years, most dramatically in the U.S. South west around the Rio Grande River.

In 2017, Lake Oroville served as a sobering illustration of this whiplash when — in the span of less than four months — the reservoir north of Sacramento went from less than half full to nearly overflowing, causing the main spillway to collapse. Some 188,000 local residents were evacuat ed. Swain and his colleagues estimate a 25- to 100-percent increase in such “extreme dry-to-wet precipitation events” in California over the next Butcentury.even with this volatility, total precipitation in the West is expect ed to stay roughly the same. Swain said scientists expect the Pacific Northwest to get somewhat wetter; Arizona and New Mexico some what drier. The clearest link between drought and climate change right now, therefore, is not a lack of rain fall — it’s rising temperatures. The atmosphere is like a sponge: It sucks up water from soils, plants, rivers, oceans, and lakes. Any time rain falls, some of it will evaporate, returning back into the sky before it can be piped into homes, fields, or aqueducts. Scientists have a measure for how “thirsty” the atmosphere is, or how much water the sky absorbs: evaporative demand. As temperatures go up, evaporative demand increases. The sky gets thirstier.

noombkk/AdobeStocksBybyPhotos

On the rainfall side of things, climate change’s influence in California, Nevada, Arizona, and other West ern states remains murky. In recent years, rain and snowfall in California have become more variable; the dry years are drier, the wet years wetter.

In that region, evaporative demand increased by 8 to 15 percent — mean ing that the area would require 8 to 15 percent more rainfall to maintain the same water levels.

The last catastrophic drought in California, which stretched from 2011 to 2017, drained reservoirs and forced farmers to pump ground water from the state’s disappearing underground aquifers. Some scien tists looked for a direct link between climate change and the lack of rain fall, but did not find convincing evidence. Those who looked at the effect of temperature on soil moisture and general aridity, however, found something more interesting: that human-caused climate change had turned what would have been a more moderate drought into a devastating one. In a paper published in 2015, Williams, Cook, and others found that skyrocketing temperatures, brought on by human-caused global warming, had made the drought 15 to 20 percent more intense.

“A very basic rule is that if you’re going to have a warmer atmosphere then you need more precipitation to compensate,” said Park Williams, a hydroclimatologist at the University of California, Los Angeles. “If you turn the heater up in your house and you don’t give your plants extra water, you see the same thing.”

Temperature has also been implicat ed in the study of the decades-long “megadrought” in the American West, a loosely defined term that has been used to indicate droughts that last two decades or more. Scientists have spent decades drilling holes in trees to collect tree ring records, a science known as dendrochronol ogy, which can be used to estimate soil moisture levels going back for millennia. (Some records have even been collected from ancient wooden ladders in the cliff dwellings of Chaco Canyon.) According to those records, 19 of the last 23 years were drier than the average over the past millennium.

Williams, the UCLA scientist, says that this megadrought is being made even worse by climate change. “Forty percent of the severity of the drought conditions in this megadrought is at tributable to human-caused climate trends” largely from rising tempera tures, Williams said.

Complexity has resulted in conflicting messages about the role of human-caused global warming in the droughts that have ravaged the American West and the rest of the world. Thanks to the science of extreme event attribution, which connects weather extremes to global warming, it has become commonplace to cite climate change as a factor in devastating heat waves or torrential floods.

“It’s only going to get warmer,” Williams said. “It’s going to take more and more good luck to bail us out of drought — and less and less bad luck to fall back in.”

Similar results have been found all over the globe. A few years ago, scientists analyzed the European drought of 2016 to 2017 — which helped spark deadly wildfires in Portugal — and found that it had been made worse by high evapo rative demand. To the south, the Horn of Africa has been ravaged by a series of droughts over the last de cade, causing successive crop failures and threatening millions with severe hunger and starvation. In 2015, scientists searching for ties to climate change found no connection to the region’s low rainfall. They did, however, find a link between rising greenhouse gas emissions and the high temperatures that have helped to desiccate the landscape of Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia.

Climate change is also undermin ing one of the American West’s most treasured tools for managing drought: snowpack. In the Sierra Nevadas of California and in the Colorado Rock ies, snow falls during the winter and then acts as a natural reservoir, slow ly releasing water as it thaws during the hot, dry summer season. But as temperatures rise, more precipitation is falling as rain instead of snow, and any remaining snow is melting more quickly and earlier in the season. By 2050, scientists estimate that the mountains of the Western U.S. will lose around 25 percent of their snow pack. In 60 years, they warn, there may be no snowpack at all. And, as the planet heats up, mega droughts such as the one raging in California, Arizona, and New Mexico are expected to return again. And again. According to one study by Cook, the NASA scientist, and oth ers, the risk of a 35-year-long drought hitting the American Southwest was less than 12 percent between 1950 and 2000. But if countries fail to take aggressive action to combat climate change, and the world continues to warm, the risk of such a drought will climb to more than 80 percent.

The American West is built on a strange, hodgepodge system of water that, for the last century, has some how sustained millions of residents in the most arid parts of the country. Reservoirs, dams, and aqueducts carry water from where it is plentiful — the peaks of the Sierra Nevadas, the banks of the Colorado River — and deliver it to where it is scarce: fast-growing metropolises like Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and Los Angeles.

Sixty percent of the megadrought, Williams cautioned, could simply be seen as simply bad luck; even without humans burning fossil fuels, mega droughts have endured for decades in the past, starving the landscape and local species of water. But what was previously just bad luck is now getting a boost from climate change.

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To be sure, the current drought and even the overlapping, decades-long “megadrought” will eventually end. “I don’t expect it to be as dry as it has been the past few years forever,” Williams said. But the slow-moving disaster has demon strated just how shaky the West’s foundation is. And it is a warning that the water system of the present may not hold for the future. What will happen next? Nearly 40 million people live in California alone; another 12 million reside in New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada. And, in the wake of the pandemic, southwestern states are growing fast, as people look for more affordable housing, strong job markets, and warmer weather. But that warmer weather has a darker side. Not far from Phoenix, Arizona — one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. — one community is already running out of water. As the Colorado River and the snowcaps of the Sierra Nevadas continue to dry up, the water flowing to the West’s sprawling suburbs and mil lions of acres of farmland will slow to a crawl. When that happens, communities will need to adapt. Agricultural water use will have to decline — even if that means destroying livelihoods that have continued uninterrupted for decades. Lawns will dry up; lush golf courses will disappear. The very character of the West — and of many arid parts of the globe — will be transformed. “In some ways it’s really simple,” Fleck said, of the climate-changed drought future. “The West will be less green.” This story originally appeared in "GRIST," It is republished here as part of The Eden Magazine partnership with Covering Climate Now, a global journalistic collaboration to strengthen coverage of the climate story.

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In California, 75 percent of the state’s rain and snow falls north of Sacramento, but 80 percent of its water demand comes from the southern two-thirds of the state. This imbalance is correct ed artificially: A long cement aqueduct carries water from the north of the state to the south, shuttling through the dry, crackling Central Val ley. More comes from the Colorado River, which brings water from the east to Los Angeles and Southern California. This system has faced numerous droughts be fore. In dry times, policymakers call for cutbacks and march down the list of water rights-holders and inform each how their supply will be curtailed. The last big drought in California, which reached its peak in 2014 and 2015, saw residents “drought-shaming” one another for maintaining lush lawns (Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti called such shaming a civic duty) and an enor mous backlash against almond growers, after news broke that it takes a gallon of water to pro duce a single almond.

But the sheer longevity of the current dry period has even the most experienced water managers worried. That complex system of dams, aque ducts, and reservoirs that funnels water to West ern states for lawns, golf courses, and farms is cracking under the strain. “We built these amaz ing places based on the promise of water,” said John Fleck, a professor of water policy and gov ernance at the University of New Mexico. “And they’re good things — I don’t want to demonize what we did. But they were based on the promise of water that wouldn’t be there.”