June 2022

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E

HEALTHY

LIVING

HEALTHY

PLANET

MEET ELVI GUZMAN THE MAN BEHIND THE CIT Y

CHALLENGE RACE

REDEFINING MANLINESS

NEW WAYS THAT MEN ARE THRIVING UNPLUGGED ECO-ADVENTURES THE RISE OF SUSTAINABLE WINE & SPIRITS June 2022 | Hudson County Edition | NAHudson.com

June 2022

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letter from publisher

The Health of Our Men

I

recently met up with some of my amazing college friends, and I was immediately reminded how lucky we are to have forged these bonds, sharing ourselves so openly and maintaining these personal relationships over time. There was a newcomer to the group, a friend of a friend, and within minutes it was like we’d all known her for years too. Sometimes it astounds me how easily women connect with each other, finding common ground and forging new friendships.

I can’t help but think these connections make us healthier by strengthening our immune system; I know I feel great when I spend time with women friends, laughing and reminiscing about old memories while building new ones.

These easy, open friendships aren’t as common among men—but that’s changing. For the first time, little boys have the ability to be more authentic; prior generations were raised to repress their emotions, which were seen as weakness. Society has always forced men to be strong and constantly reinforced the idea that their role is to provide safety and security for their family as well as to be the financial provider. This has caused men to experience stress, pressure and an inability to express and connect the way women do. Research published in the American Journal of Men’s Health in 2020 revealed that the suicide rate is almost four times higher for men than women. In “The Healing Power of the Modern Man: Men Redefine their Emotional Power,” author Marlaina Donato notes that emotional issues tend to morph into physical ones, and that repressed emotions and a lack of connectivity have led to increased depression and anxiety in men. Fortunately, there are now more local and virtual resources to help men connect with and learn from each other and find support for what ails them. Hopefully, with growing awareness and increased resources, we can reverse the suicide rate among men.

In honor of men, we have a great book list for any man in your life, covering fiction, nonfiction and health and wellness (see page 18) and an illuminating article on one of our new favorite men, Elvi Guzman, explaining why he created the City Challenge Race and how that event benefits the community (page 15). By the way, the next City Challenge Race is scheduled for July 30 in Hoboken, so if you’re feeling inspired individually or want to compete as a team with coworkers or friends, there’s still time to sign up and get in some preparation.

This month’s issue of Natural Awakenings is packed with great ideas, and it rounds out strong with tips on raising empathetic kids (page 22); a discussion on vasectomy versus neutering for pets (page 26); an article on detoxing with eco-adventures (page 20); and an explainer on sustainable wines and spirits and how to determine if they really are as sustainable as they purport to be (page 24). We hope that you enjoy reading this issue and that you learn something new and exciting that you can incorporate into your life to make it healthier and happier.

Enjoy the start of summer!

Publisher@NAHudson.com

Natural Awakenings is a family of 50+ healthy living magazines celebrating 27 years of providing the communities we serve with the tools and resources we all need to lead healthier lives on a healthy planet.

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Contents 16

10 THE HEALING OF THE MODERN MAN

Men Redefine Their Emotional Power

14 THE GIFT OF AN

IMPERFECT FATHER

15 ELVI GUZMAN

The Man Behind the City Challenge Race

16 HEALING TRAUMA

Emerging Therapies Offer Fresh Hope

22

18 13 BOOKS

Every Man Should Read

20 UNPLUGGED ADVENTURES

Eco-Tripping for a Digital Detox

22 HOW TO RAISE

24

EMPATHETIC KIDS

Simple Ways Parents Can Cultivate Compassion

ADVERTISING & SUBMISSIONS HOW TO ADVERTISE To advertise with Natural Awakenings or request a media kit, please contact Roger at 917-699-6492 or email MrNaturalNYC@gmail.com. Deadline for ads: the 15th of the month.

24 PLANET-FRIENDLY POURS

The Rise of Sustainable Wine and Spirits

26 THE CASE FOR

PET VASECTOMIES

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DEPARTMENTS 6 news briefs 8 health briefs 10 global briefs 14 inspiration 16 healing ways 20 green living

22 healthy kids 24 conscious

eating 26 natural pet 28 resource guide 30 calendar June 2022

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news briefs

Take a Nighttime Bike Ride Along the Hudson

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ight Up the Loop, a three-hour nighttime bike ride along both banks of the Hudson River, will take place June 24 at 8 p.m., beginning at Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal in Jersey City. The rain date is July 1.

Riders should be at the terminal by 7:30 p.m. to board the New York Waterway Ferry to the Brookfield Place / World Financial Center. They’ll ride north on the Greenway to the New York Waterway Ferry Terminal at 39th Street, then take the ferry back to Weehawken and ride the Hudson River Walkway to Jersey City. Alternately, riders can meet up at the NY Waterway Ferry Terminal at 39th Street to do the second half of the loop.

Before the event, riders should download the New York Waterway App to purchase tickets before the light up ride, as ticket windows may be closed when they arrive at the station areas. Ferry tickets cost $7 from Paulus Hook to WTC Brookfield Place and $9 from 39th street to Weehawken. The first 25 early arrivals to Paulus Hook will get free ferry tickets. Light Up the Loop is hosted by Bike JC. For more information, visit EventBrite.com and search for “light up the loop.”

Local High Schoolers Write Children’s Book

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oxy Hreb and Zach Fieldman, two local high school seniors with a passion for environmental science, know the value of environmental studies in children’s education. So they created a character, Eco the Elephant, who will be showcased in a series of books featuring a kidfriendly message and playful artwork by illustrator Zelda Jones.

“As members of the younger generation that will face climate change the most, we know the value of environmental education and want to inspire younger generations to take action,” Hreb says. “Our mission was to educate kids about environmental science and sustainability in a fun way. We created Eco with the hope that this cute little elephant will motivate children of all ages to take action in saving the environment.”

The first book in the series, Eco the Elephant Saves the Jungle, is now available for purchase in print ($9.99) or as an e-book ($3.99).

To buy a book or for more information, call 201-275-8130, email ecotheelephant@gmail.com or visit EcoTheElephant.com.

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Hudson County

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PWP Run and Afterparty Benefit Children’s Charities

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his year’s Party With Purpose (PWP) 5K, kids’ fun run and afterparty, supporting several local children’s charities, is set for July 12 in Hoboken. The fun run will begin at 3:30 p.m., preceding a full evening of events.

One of the biggest races in Hoboken, the waterfront 5K begins at 7 p.m. and typically draws more than 500 runners. The afterparty will feature live music and a beer and wine garden where volunteers and runners can celebrate a successful night. Proceeds from the event will benefit TRUE Mentors, HOPES, MileSquare Theatre and Community Lifestyle, among other nonprofits.

PWP is a volunteer-based 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization founded on the concept of producing events to raise money for children’s charities and bring people together in the process.

Scott Delea founded PWP in 2002 to meet the needs of local charities and a community looking to get involved after 9/11.

“We combine the best local social events with charitable causes to make a positive difference both here in our local community and abroad,” Delea says. “To date, PWP has donated $1 million and counting to help those in need through the generosity of volunteers, those attending events, and local sponsorships and donations.”

For registration and information, visit PartyWithPurpose.org.

City Challenge Race Set for July 30

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egistration is now open for the 2022 Hoboken City Challenge Race, which will take place July 30 in Pier A Park. The race features 25 obstacles set along the three-mile course.

Both teams and individuals are welcome to participate. Start times are scheduled for every 15 minutes from 9 a.m. to noon.

Volunteers are needed to help make the race a success by pitching in behind the scenes: setting up, checking in runners, assisting on course and more. All volunteers will receive a race shirt, coffee, donuts in the morning, and free entry to a future City Challenge Race.

Sponsors are also welcome. Current sponsors include Hudson Pro Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, Foot and Ankle Premier Specialists, Unique Scaffolding Systems, OCR World Championships and Reel Works.

Location: Pier A Park, 100 Sinatra Dr. (across from Crunch Gym), Hoboken, NJ. For more info, visit CityChallengeRace.com.

Bounce Mkt Offers Fresh Take on ‘Pre-Loved’ Kids’ Clothes

B

GüttenGreen Festival Celebrates Creativity, Community, Sustainability

T

he GüttenGreen Festival, a oneday block party in Guttenberg celebrating creativity, community and sustainability, will take place June 26, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Jackson Street between 60th and 70th Streets.

The festival is a fundraiser for Guttenberg Arts, which provides practicing artists with the space and time to develop their work and expand their practice through community engagement and promotion to curators, collectors and print and digital media. The organization’s multidisciplinary 4,500-square-foot artist studio was founded in 2014 and is equipped for printmaking, glassblowing, sculpture and ceramics. Guttenberg Arts hosts artist residencies, exhibitions, free and subsidized art classes, demonstrations and workshops, as well as a community garden program, community events and discounted facility rentals.

Support and sponsorships for the GüttenGreen Festival will go directly toward creating four scholarships for Hudson County youth to the Lindley G. Cook 4-H Camp; creating more mobile garden planters for the Guttenberg Arts Community Gardens; purchasing trash grabbers for NB Earth Talks volunteer trash pickup crew; and promoting arts, sustainability and environmentalism in the town of Guttenberg and its surrounding communities.

All donations are tax deductible.

Location: Jackson Street between 60th and 70th Streets, Guttenberg, NJ. For more information, visit GuttenbergArts.SquareSpace.com.

ounce Mkt, a “pre-loved” kids’ clothing business that opened in Hoboken late last year, was inspired by the personal experience of owner Kelli Brown, who had been looking for ways to shop more sustainably following the birth of her daughter. Brown says she wanted to change how people think about and experience secondhand clothes.

“After struggling to find a local secondhand option, I sought out to create a business that would make secondhand a compelling alternative to buying new for local parents of young families,” she says.

Located in Hoboken’s Monroe Center for the Arts, Bounce Mkt offers clothes from trusted kids’ brands, all freshly laundered and thoroughly inspected to ensure that they’re in excellent condition. Brown says her goal is to make both buying and selling clothes easy for parents, with local pick-ups/deliveries, online shopping and by buying items outright so sellers don’t have to wait to be paid.

“Throughout the shop, little touches create a welcoming environment for parents and kids alike,” Brown says. “There’s a child-sized chair made from recycled toys, an accessory swap that lets kids trade their accessories at no cost, and recycled crayons.”

Location: 720 Monroe St., Hoboken, NJ. For more information, visit BounceMkt.com.

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health briefs

Cut Back on Booze to Protect the Brain

Dmitry Naumov/AdobeStock.com

It is widely known that heavy drinking harms the brain, but even drinking as little as a few beers or glasses of wine per week will reduce brain volume, according to a new study of 36,000 adults. Researchers led by a University of Pennsylvania team reported in Nature Communications that alcohol consumption even at modest levels may carry risks to the brain, shrinking it in ways similar to the aging process. The study was conducted using the UK Biobank, a dataset from 500,000 British middle-aged and older adults that includes genetic and medical information, including white and gray matter volume in different regions of the brain.

The researchers found that the more alcohol people consumed on average, the greater the brain damage. Going from zero to a daily average of one alcohol unit (half a beer or half a glass of wine) is linked with the equivalent of a half a year of aging in 50-year-olds. Drinking an average of two units a day (a pint of beer or glass of wine) produces changes in the brain equivalent to aging two years. The difference between zero and four units (two beers or glasses of wine) was equal to more than 10 years of aging. “It’s not linear,” says study co-author Remi Daviet. “It gets worse the more you drink. There is some evidence that the effect of drinking on the brain is exponential.

That means that cutting back on that final drink of the night might have a big effect in terms of brain aging.”

Pump Iron to Boost Sleep For the one in three Americans that are sleep-deprived, working out with resistance exercises to strengthen muscles may produce longer and deeper shuteye than aerobics, new research from the American Heart Association shows. In a 12-month study, researchers randomly assigned 386 inactive, overweight adults with high blood pressure to one of several groups that worked out for an hour three times a week. A resistance exercise group did three sets of eight to 16 repetitions on 12 machines; the aerobics group used treadmills, bicycles or elliptical machines; a combo group used both; and a control group did no supervised exercise. Among the 42 percent of participants that were not getting at least seven hours of sleep at the study’s start, sleep duration increased by an average of 40 minutes for the resistance exercise group compared to an increase of about 23 minutes in the aerobic exercise group and about 17 minutes in the combined exercise group.

“If your sleep has gotten noticeably worse over the past two stressful years, consider incorporating two or more resistance exercise training sessions into your regular exercise routine to improve your general muscle and bone health, as well as your sleep,” says study author Angelique Brellenthin, assistant professor of kinesiology at Iowa State University, in Ames.

Try Neem and Walking to Ward Off COVID-19 Symptoms Two new studies suggest that neem (Azadirachta indica), a plant used for centuries in India to treat malaria, intestinal ulcers and skin diseases, may offer protection against COVID-19 and future variants. At the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical campus, researchers found that neem bark extract tested on COVID-infected human lung cells proved as effective as a preventive drug. It targeted a wide range of viral proteins and also decreased virus replication and spread after infection.

In an Indian double-blind study of 190 healthcare workers or relatives of COVID-19 patients, researchers at the All India Institute of Ayurveda, in Delhi, found that those given a neem extract of 50 milligrams twice daily for 28 days had a reduced risk of 55 percent for infection compared to the control group.

For people dealing with the lingering symptoms of long COVID such as fatigue, brain fog and muscle pain, a solution may be daily exercise of at least 30 minutes, because it lowers inflammation and blood glucose levels, suggest Louisiana State University researchers in the journal Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews. “If you can only walk 15 minutes once a day, do that.

The important thing is to try. It doesn’t matter where you begin,” says article author Candida Rebello, Ph.D. 8

Hudson County

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Easy Beezy

global briefs

Weeds Attract Pollinators to Increase Harvests

In a new study, “Climate Change Affects Bird Nesting Phenology: Comparing Contemporary Field and Historical Museum Nesting Records,” published in the Journal of Animal Ecology, scientists were able to determine that about a third of the bird species nesting in Chicago are laying their eggs a month earlier than they did 100 years ago by comparing eggs preserved in museum collections to modern observations.

Researchers think the culprit in this shift is climate change.

John Bates, curator of birds at the Field Museum and the study’s lead author, says, “The majority of the birds we looked at eat insects, and insects’ seasonal behavior is also affected by climate. The birds have to move their egglaying dates to adapt. Egg collections are such a fascinating tool for us to learn about bird ecology over time. I love the fact that this paper combines these older and modern datasets to look at these trends over about 120 years and help answer really critical questions about how climate change is affecting birds.”

Bates advises, “These early egg people were incredible natural historians in order to do what they did. You really have to know the birds in order to go out and find the nests and do the collecting.”

A recent study published in Insects compared mango trees at a local farm in Homestead, Florida, where one plot of trees had weeds growing around them and another plot was maintained to be weed-free. It turns out that the presence of weeds benefits trees and pollinators. “Weeds actually do a lot of good. It might be helpful to think of them of wildflowers,” says Blaire Kleiman, the Florida International University Institute of Environment graduate teaching assistant and alumna who, under the guidance of professors Suzanne Koptur and Krishnaswamy Jayachandran, undertook this research funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Hispanic-Serving Institutions Education Grants program.

Fruit trees can’t live without pollinators. Bees and other insects have been shown to increase the size and quality of yields from 70 percent of the leading, economically important crops in the world, but it’s getting harder to bring bees to the trees. Over the last 30 years, pollinator numbers have declined significantly. Farmers already rely on insectary plants to attract pollinators, and Kleiman notes that her findings apply to 80 percent of all flowering plants of Earth, including vegetables like tomatoes, beans, eggplants and squash. She wants her study to help farmers also reduce the use of chemical pesticides that harm pollinators.

yod67/AdobeStock.com

Climate Change Causing Birds to Lay Eggs Earlier

Kiryakova Anna/AdobeStock.com

Nesty Habits

Natural Awakenings Editor & Realtor Helping Hudson County Residents Relocate to Central Jersey

Tina is a Zillow Premier Agent and shows homes featured on Zillow, Trulia, Realtor and Redfin.

Tina Woods, Real Estate Agent M: 973.255.0981 • O: 973.310.6816 tina.woods@compass.com tina.woods.nj Tina Woods is a real estate salesperson affiliated with Compass. Compass is a licensed real estate broker and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws.

June 2022

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The Healing of the Modern Man Men Redefine Their Emotional Power

by Marlaina Donato

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Merpics/AdobeStock.com

or generations immemorial, men have been builders of culture, solid providers and inspired adventurers, but gender roles and sometimes-conflicting cultural expectations have taken a heavy toll on both the individual and community. The pervasive “tough guy” paradigm has denied half the human race its full emotional expression, resulting in amplified stress levels, compromised physical health, toxic aggression, broken families and a higher risk for addiction. According to research published in the American Journal of Men’s Health in 2020, death by suicide among men is almost four times higher than that of women and is partly attributed to the stigma of seeking treatment for depression. African American men carry the additional burden of racial and economic inequality, and their depressive symptoms are often more persistent and incapacitating.

Contrary to common myth, men are deeply emotional and responsive beings by nature.

Centuries overdue, restrictive cultural definitions are slowly shifting to a broader psychosocial view of authentic manhood.

Thanks to guy-friendly mental health resources, virtual and in-person support communities and diverse options in the alternative health field, more men are taking responsibility for their well-being and learning how to embody emotional freedom.

They are stepping up to the plate as strong, sensitive leaders, something our world needs now more than ever.

Breaking the Chains and Choosing Authenticity

The masculine expectation and requirement have been for most boys to “buck up and tough it out” during childhood and adolescence, and this overt or sometimes very subtle conditioning can promote disproportionate power plays, homophobia and resistance to emotional intimacy well into adulthood. “Every society has ‘feeling rules’ that govern how emotions can be expressed publicly,” says psychologist

Michael Reichert, executive director of the Center for the Study of Boys’ and Girls’ Lives at the University of Pennsylvania and author of How to Raise a Boy: The Power of Connection to Build Good Men. “Research tells us that boys are born as emotionally expressive as girls, but in a short time receive constant messages from their loved ones, schoolmates and TV shows that only certain emotions are okay for boys.” Such emotional restrictiveness has a profoundly negative impact on male development, he says.

For Todd Adams in Elmhurst, Illinois, cofounder of MenLiving. org and a Tony Robbins-certified life coach, recognizing societal trappings is key. “The first step is to have the awareness that we have been lied to for as long as we can remember about what it means to be a man. We have been conditioned to stay in the ‘man box’, which means if we show any type of vulnerability, our value from the outside, as well as from the inside, plummets.”

Reichert concurs. “My belief is that tragic outcomes—addictions, violence, suicide and premature mortality—are a reflection of how men’s human natures are thwarted by cultural norms. Being confined to a man box is hazardous. We humans, including men, are built to express our hearts in close connections to others we love and who love us.”

The notion of going the distance solo is discouraged by Adams, whose organization helps men from all walks of life find support and connection through online meetings and adventure outings. “Once the awareness is there, I would invite family, partners, et cetera, to invite us to show up in a more authentic and human way,” he says.

Stress and the Physiology of Feelings For many men, emotions—other than “socially acceptable” anger and irritation—rarely see the light of day and instead morph into physical maladies such as digestive trouble, headaches, chest pain and high blood pressure. Unmanaged stress can also zap any zing in the bedroom. “I’m certainly not a doctor, but I’m sure there is a correlation for some about their emotional/mental/financial wellbeing being related to erectile dysfunction. The men that I work with often have a habit of not taking good care of themselves, and that lack of self-care ripples into other parts of their life, including their sexual life,” observes Adams. In spite of the fact that many others are struggling with the same condition, out of shame, it is often kept in the shadows. “My advice is that men find safe spaces to discuss these challenges with others. My hope is that men can discuss sexuality and intimacy as openly as women do.”

Josh Beharry, project coordinator of HeadsUpGuys.org, in Vancouver, Canada, an online resource hub for men battling depression, has spearheaded online stress assessment tests for more than 26,000 men over the age of 18 and found surprising consistency.

“The results suggest that the two most common stressors faced by the men are a lack of meaning and feelings of loneliness, followed by financial strain, relationship difficulties and problems at work,” he says.

According to data gathered by Tulane University, human connection boosts immunity and wards off cardiovascular disease, anxiety, depression and cognitive impairment. For men especially, June 2022

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eodor LazarevAdobeStock.com

social bonds are critical in coping with life stresses. Forging new alliances and maintaining old ones can be challenging with or without a pandemic, but online communities offer additional support, camaraderie and nonjudgmental sharing, which can be especially helpful for those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction and depression.

Beyond Talk Therapy Male depression can be hidden in plain sight, disguised as hitting the bottle to “relax”, or by working compulsively, engaging in highrisk behaviors or easily flying off the handle at loved ones. Beharry knows firsthand how insidious the disease can be and why seeking help sooner than later is vital. After miraculously surviving a horrific suicide attempt, he unexpectedly found hope and the will to live through walking, breathwork and human connection.

Being honest with others, as well as himself, was a turning point in his recovery. “For a lot of men, talking about dealing with depression feels like an admission of weakness or something to feel guilty about,” he says. “Try to think of emotional pain like physical pain. If you get cut, you bleed; that’s part of being human. Then you do something to treat the wound. Or if it’s deeper, you go to a doctor or a hospital. Denying painful emotions is like trying not to 12

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bleed when you get cut or trying to pretend you’re not bleeding.”

For family members or friends concerned about a man’s mental health, he advises, “Vague assertions like, ‘You seem depressed,’ can make a guy feel attacked or put on the spot. Instead, it’s helpful to start by pointing out specific observations you’ve had about changes to his mood or behavior, such as, ‘You seem stressed out,’ or, ‘You haven’t been eating much,’ or, ‘You’ve been isolating yourself from friends or turning down plans more than usual.’”

It is estimated that 4 percent of men suffer from the physical and psychological consequences of trauma, and PTSD is certainly not reserved for combat veterans. While traditional therapies like cognitive behavioral therapy and exposure therapy are excellent for treating depression, other modalities offer light at the end of the tunnel for men plagued by traumatic overwhelm.

Somatic Experiencing, developed by PTSD psychologist Peter Levine during the last 50 years, targets trauma stored in the nervous system and gently helps a person to increase their tolerance for difficult physical sensations and buried emotions. It is also highly useful in addiction recovery. Therapeutic massage, yoga and regular exercise are all allies for men to combat stress, anchor into their bodies and access unconscious feelings.

In the end, little things add up to a whole lot of change for a man. “You are not alone. Take your responsibility in how you experience life. Empower yourself with resources—podcasts, books, therapy, coaching—whatever support might look like for you,” advises Adams.

There is no better time than now for the masculine to rise to a new level of greatness. “There is ample evidence that we are in a paradigm-shifting moment in the history of manhood,” says Reichert. “When I speak with parents, I say that there has never been a better time in all of human history to raise a son.”

Marlaina Donato is an author and multimedia artist. Connect at WildflowerLady.com.

HELPFUL RESOURCES MenLiving, MenLiving.org A national program of virtual and in-person opportunities for men to forge healthy and nourishing connections.

EVRYMAN, Evryman.com An online men’s community group.

Good Men Project, GoodMenProject.com Includes articles on many topics including relationships, dads and families, advice and confessions, and ethics.

HeadsUpGuys, HeadsUpGuys.org A program at The University of British Columbia that provides support for men to prevent and manage depression.

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or many of us, Dad was the first person to throw us a ball, take us fishing or treat us to ice cream after a game. If we were fortunate, he was the one who made a bad day better, was a strong protector who kept the metaphorical wolves from the door and, by example, secured our place in the world. Fathers give us many “firsts”, and for some of us, that also means a broken heart.

Parents, like all human beings, are fallible, learning as they go, never quite getting it right, but doing the best that they can. Sometimes their “best” is tangled in a net of unresolved personal trauma, addiction or mental illness, and we learn to bear the bitter with the sweet. “Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this, too, was a gift,” wrote poet Mary Oliver, and her words can be a beacon as we journey through healing the father wound.

Once we come out the other side of childhood, it might be difficult to love someone that destroyed our trust and even more difficult to love ourselves. This “gift” might take decades for us to unwrap. Children of difficult dads sometimes blossom like lotuses into more compassionate beings from the mud of absence, cruelty or indifference. Perhaps with a shift in perspective, we may realize how their weaknesses might have given us survival tools and resilience. Flipping the coin to examine what they have done right and giving credit where it is deserved can also help us to open that dead-bolted door to forgiveness. Taking inventory, both positive and negative, can encourage us to become a different kind of parent.

In a black-and-white world, the heart’s gray areas can teach us how to lean into our own healing. We inherit a lot from our wounded fathers, including an energetic opportunity to change the familial emotional code, and it can be beautiful.

Marlaina Donato is an author, composer and painter. Connect at WildflowerLady.com.

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Elvi Guzman

The Man Behind the City Challenge Race

by Nicole Teitler

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lvi Guzman is a familiar face in the Hudson County fitness community. In 2013 he created the City Challenge Race, a mud-free obstacle course race that’s held in Hoboken and Jersey City. Urban obstacles range from its signature taxi/cop car hurdle and cinderblock carry to tire flips and jacked-up monkey bars. In its nearly decade-long run, the annual event draws in nearly 2,000 participants from all over, as they test their physical capabilities with the iconic New York City skyline as a backdrop.

We caught up with Guzman to learn more about the City Challenge Race and how to train for it.

How did you come up with the City Challenge Race?

The purpose behind CCR was to fundraise for breast cancer, since my sister had been recently diagnosed at the time. That inaugural year, in October 2013 in Hoboken, we partnered with the American Cancer Society. The following year we had our second event in downtown Jersey City and our third event that same summer in Manhattan. Since then we have produced hundreds of events all over the country.

Is CCR a good race for all types?

Yes, whether you are a beginner or an experienced athlete, our events are designed for everyone. You can compete at an elite level or join with friends and have fun helping each other on the course.

Given all the different types of obstacles, what sort of training program do you recommend people do before the race?

Training varies and is specific for each person. I think that everyone should create a training schedule that meets their goals and helps with their limitations. As long as you are active, you can do our events. If you need help, bring a friend on the course with you for support and motivation.

As you’re the founder of this large event, I’m sure everyone’s curious to know: How do you stay in shape?

I have been active in playing sports in school and later boxing in my 20s. I like to work out five to six times a week. Whether it’s a boxing workout, running, lifting or just going on a hike, being active helps me stay positive from a mental health standpoint and fit so that I’m ready to produce the races.

Join the CCR Community The next City Challenge Races will take place in Hoboken on July 30 and in Manhattan on October 22.

To sign up or learn more, visit CityChallengeRace.com.

There’s a palpable sense of camaraderie at CCR. Almost transformative.

We help transform lives at our events by getting people off the couch and on the course. Our participants train and motivate each other leading up to the races, and when they cross the finish line they are motivated to do our races again. This causes them to care more about their physical and mental health. We often get messages from our participants thanking us for creating a platform that inspires them to live a more active lifestyle.

Beyond the participants, you’ve created an entire community surrounding the race.

The race has been great for restaurants and businesses where we host our events, because we promote local businesses to tourists interested in health and wellness. We partner with our community leaders to ensure our events are generating revenue for the community while producing a safe and fun event everyone can take part in. But we also actively support local charities, like the Hoboken Shelter—to date, we have donated over $21,000.

How has CCR and the community inspired you?

At every run I see our community overcoming obstacles to get to the finish line. Their grit, determination and camaraderie inspire me to overcome obstacles in my life and to never quit no matter what adversity I may be facing.

Nicole Teitler—known by her trademark, Nikki On The Daily—is a brand storyteller based out of Hoboken, NJ, connecting communities through conversation. To reach her, email nteitler@gmail.com or visit NikkiOnTheDaily.com.

June 2022

15

healing ways

Healing Trauma EMERGING THERAPIES OFFER FRESH HOPE

by Ronica O’Hara

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efugee children with tear-stained faces, the frail elderly being wheeled away from floods or fires, the sobbing families of gunshot victims—the faces of trauma are seen in every heartbreaking newscast. And the faces are even closer to us than that, walking down the street: a woman that recoils from touch, a child that has withdrawn into himself, a man with incoherent bursts of anger.

The trauma of death, cruelty and destruction has always been part of the human experience. In the U.S., surveys show that as many as 60 to 70 percent of people report being traumatized by sexual assault, accidents, violence, war combat or other causes, and as many as one in 11 may be diagnosed in their lifetime with the more severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The encouraging news is that in the last few decades, a revolution has occurred in the recognition of how widespread trauma is and how deeply embedded it can be, not only in our behaviors but in our bodies. That, in turn, has led to effective and ever-evolving approaches to heal what’s been broken.

“Although trauma and PTSD are visible in the culture everywhere now, from films to popular literature and from legal to mental health fields, until 1980 the topic was virtually non-existent,” says San Francisco psychologist, PTSD researcher and author Harvey Schwartz, Ph.D., who has treated trauma clients in clinical practice for 35 years. “After it became a legitimate diagnosis in 1980, long-overdue research and development of clinical protocols occurred, and today, almost every tradition and subculture within the mental health field has its own model of how to treat trauma.”

Shaping the ongoing dialogue has been the research of Boston psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk, whose 2014 book, The Body Keeps the Score, has occupied the top rung of The New York Times bestseller list for three years. In magnetic imaging studies, he found that when a person is thrust into a terrorizing incident, the cognitive functions in the brain’s temporal lobe shut down and activity shifts to the self-defense mode of the amygdala. When the person responds by fighting, fleeing or freezing, physiological reactions kick in, which armor the body and trap emotions and thinking in that fraught moment, distorting future perceptions and experiences. He argues that any true healing of trauma must include “bottom-up” modalities focusing on the body rather than only mental “top-down” insights. He also insists that no single treatment alone is likely

enough and no combination of treatments will be the same for every person.

Christine Songco, a Los Angeles dental hygienist and wellness coach, used cognitive therapy, journaling and meditation to relieve the trauma of a grueling bout with cancer, but hearing loud and angry voices still made her panic. What ultimately proved healing was an hour-long session of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), in which she followed a therapist’s prompt to move her eyes back and forth while memories surfaced. “It got to the root of my fear and anxiety and the source of my trauma without hours of therapy talking sessions, but I do think the other work I did set the stage for EMDR to be effective for me,” she says.

Schwartz says that two major approaches to treating PTSD have emerged: cognitive and experiential. Cognitive, or “talk therapies”, supported by academic research and insurance companies, emphasize mentally processing painful memories to manage such symptoms as nightmares, flashbacks and explosive anger, often using anti-anxiety and antidepressant medications.

They can include such strategies as narrative recall, slowly increasing exposure to the traumatic material, mindfulness training and deep breathing exercises.

“Cognitive approaches help survivors learn how to become an expert of themselves so that they can respond to their trauma in a healthier way,” says psychologist Sabina Mauro, of Yardley, Pennsylvania, author of The Mindfulness Workbook for PTSD. This type of therapy can take months to years and effectively treats about half of PTSD sufferers.

Experiential approaches, which have been researched less, but have engendered substantial therapist enthusiasm, do a “deep dive” to work through traumatic patterning embedded

in a person’s mind, body and psyche. “They help people restore not only their nervous systems, but their capacity for self-trust and self-forgiveness and their capacity for connection to their bodies and others,” says Schwartz.

These modalities mostly focus, at least at first, on physical sensations rather than intellectual comprehension. For example, Somatic Experiencing defuses deeply held, fear-based contractions in the body by integrating those sensations with peaceful alternatives. EMDR, once an outlier but now practiced globally and endorsed by the World Health Organization, uses eye movements to lower the emotional charge of a traumatic memory. Internal Family Systems repairs a wounded psyche by relating a person’s deeply felt, damaged “child parts” to their essential goodness.

To re-inhabit parts of the body frozen in the past by trauma, patients may be encouraged to use somatic meditations, traumainformed yoga, acupuncture, massage and martial arts, as well as art, music, dance and other forms of expression. Psychedelics, which if used carefully can open a trauma sufferer to a larger sense of purpose, may become a legal option in a few years. In a recent U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved Phase 3 clinical trial on MDMA (previously called ecstasy), 67 percent of participants no longer met the criteria for PTSD after three therapist-guided sessions.

Says Schwartz, “It can feel like a supermarket of options out there, so people need to read, become informed consumers and combine treatments at times. We have to think of the mind, the body and the spiritual as all needing attention and integration.”

Health writer Ronica O’Hara can be contacted at OHaraRonica@ gmail.com.

June 2022

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13 BOOKS Every Man Should Read

by Nicole Teitler

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here are certain books every man should read at some point in their lifetime—in some cases maybe even twice.

Some required reading from high school is worth revisiting as an adult, for a new perspective. Here are 13 books we suggest all men add to their reading lists.

Fiction The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger

If you somehow escaped reading this in high school—or even if you didn’t—it’s time to pick up a copy. Holden Caulfield is an iconic character of the 20th century that you’ll love to hate. You’ll relate to him as a teenager and recall memories of your youth through his character.

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari

What makes us unique? How did we get here? Learn about the entirety of human history in this book that covers our biology, paleontology, economics and anthropology.

Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin Two former Navy SEALS share life lessons about ownership and leadership.

Health and Wellness 10% Happier, Dan Harris

The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini

Harris describes how we went from being a stressed-out, strung-out Nightline anchor and self-help skeptic to achieving profound happiness through a daily meditation practice.

1984, George Orwell

The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself, Michael A. Singer

Set in war-torn Afghanistan, the novel explores the themes of patriarchy, power, friendship, sacrifice, betrayal and of course redemption.

Part dystopian fiction and part cautionary tale, this novel examines political manipulation and touches upon what it means to be a rebel.

Nonfiction The Daily Stoic, Ryan Holiday

You’ve likely heard of the names Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus and Seneca. These stoic philosophers are considered some of the wisest leaders of all time. Gather insight, wisdom and historical context in this easy-to-read, hard-to-put-down book.

Walden, Henry David Thoreau

Praised by William Zinsser as an example of clutter-free, concise writing, Thoreau’s account of his time outdoors provides an opportunity for both reflection and growth.

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike, Phil Knight

This memoir isn’t a story of success. Rather, it’s a candid account of failure. Phil Knight is both your mentor and best friend in his retelling of how an iconic sports brand came to be.

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Be prepared to have a spiritual awakening with a book that explores a path to self-awareness that is both relatable and applicable.

Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones, James Clear Learn how to form new habits, or break old ones, from one of the world’s foremost experts. Clear explains how to deconstruct existing systems to set up new ones that will not only work but also provide a better future.

The 5 AM Club, Robin S. Sharma

Even if you haven’t heard of this book, you’ve heard of the concept.

Using real-life examples and a step-by-step breakdown, this book explores how adopting a new morning habit can help you optimize your productivity, health and mental state.

Nicole Teitler—known by her trademark, Nikki On The Daily—is a brand storyteller based out of Hoboken, NJ, connecting communities through conversation. Contact her at nteitler@gmail.com or NikkiOnTheDaily.com.

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green living

UNPLUGGED ADVENTURES ECO-TRIPPING FOR A DIGITAL DETOX

ondreicka/AdobeStock.com

by Sheila Julson

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martphones come in handy for emergencies or checking directions while traveling, but a brief glance at a website or social media can quickly turn into a lengthy scroll session, distracting us from why we go on vacation in the first place. For those that want to truly unplug, unique off-grid, eco-options beckon.

Remote and Quirky Camping The National Park Service has many affordable campgrounds at parks, forests and lakeshores with little to no cell connectivity, allowing visitors to immerse themselves in nature. Listings of wilderness/backcountry camping sites, as well as front-country sites easily accessible by vehicles, can be found at nps.gov/subjects/camping/campground.htm.

State parks offer closer-to-home refuge from the digital world. California’s Hendy Woods State Park, in Philo, is brimming with old-growth redwoods. “A lot of people head way up north to Sequoia National Forest to see old-growth redwoods, but there are also redwood forests closer to Sonoma and Mendocino counties, and similarly along the coast,” says Milwaukeebased travel writer Kristine Hansen, contributor to Fodors.com, NationalGeographic.com and other travel outlets. “Standing beneath these towering trees, you can’t help but feel like a small part of this large and wild world.” Hendy Woods’ proximity to wine country allows explorers to drop by a winery or creamery and put together a quick picnic, she notes.

Locally owned campgrounds can offer an escape to a pre-cellphone era. Camp Wandawega, in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, has a storied past of hosting both sinners and saints, opening in 1928 20

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as a speakeasy and later becoming a Catholic youth camp. The historic charm remains intact. “Spending a night here is like dialing it back to the 1950s. Think The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s upstate New York summer camp,” Hansen says. “You can climb into a treehouse or a glamping tent to completely unplug.”

Immersive Getaways River rafting tours provide an escape from the virtual world, says John O’Brien, a scientist and environmental advocate who, with his wife, Kellie, owns Fairbanks Trails and Rivers Tour Company, in Fairbanks, Alaska. “The moment that we shove off from the shore, we’re immediately on what we call ‘river time.’ It’s best at that point to put your phone and camera in airplane mode. We’re often in areas where there is no cell coverage,” he says. “There’s something to be said about just

unplugging and being in the moment.”

Eco-activities such as river rafting might conjure up images of young, physically fit adventurers in rafts slapped by wild waves, but O’Brien notes river rafting is suitable for all ages and abilities. In tours with frame-style rafts, the guide does all the rowing. “If you are able to stand, walk and climb into and out of a raft, even with some assistance, you can go river rafting,” he says.

Trekking is another proven eco-trip strategy. Sometimes confused with hiking, it involves a long journey across a large swath of land that often requires participants to pare down to the absolute basics, which means ditching the cell phone and charger. There’s often little to no service in these remote stretches.

North American treks include Canada’s the Long Range Traverse, a 22-mile, unmarked, backcountry trail in Newfoundland with moose, bears and caribou. The Appalachian National Scenic Trail is a 2,100-mile stretch that takes explorers through 14 states. Stretching from Springer Mountain, Georgia, to the northern terminus at Katahdin, Maine, the trail passes through the diverse terrain of the Appalachian Mountain Range. Hikers of all levels can take advantage of day hikes or longer treks.

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Getting Our Hands Dirty For an immersive nature experience that also does good, the American Hiking Society offers the Volunteer Vacations program, in which people join in public land stewardship projects. Working in small crews of six to 15 people, volunteers handle a variety of land conservation and trail maintenance needs. Project access ranges from backpacking to day-hiking, and accommodations vary from primitive campsites to bunkhouses or cabins.

“Some of our Volunteer Vacations are remote backcountry trips that are only accessible via foot, and some are offered at local, state and national parks as well,” says program manager Ellie Place. “There is a Volunteer Vacation for everyone, whether you want to sleep in a cozy cabin with amenities or sleep under the stars miles away from it all.”

The American Hiking Society has more than 35 Volunteer Vacations planned this year; more information can be found at AmericanHiking.org.

Sheila Julson is a Milwaukee-based freelance writer and contributor to Natural Awakenings magazines throughout the country.

June 2022

21

healthy kids

How to Raise Empathetic Kids SIMPLE WAYS PARENTS CAN CULTIVATE COMPASSION

by Carrie Jackson

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mpathy is the foundation of a caring society. While we are all born with a certain amount, cultivating it is a skill that can be strengthened with practice, and it is critical that the learning process start early, say childhood educators. An empathetic child can better manage their own emotional responses and understand how someone else might be feeling. Studies show that children that practice empathy are less likely to bully and better suited to collabora-

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tive environments, setting them up for academic and professional success.

According to educator Traci Baxley, of Boca Raton, Florida, empathy in children is developed over time and with repetition.

“The earlier we begin to model empathy with our children, the more they will mimic the characteristics associated with the awareness and care of others. Teaching and modeling empathy early supports children’s emotion regulation development and contributes to creating safe spaces in our homes for children to feel nurtured, valued and cared for,” she says.

As a speaker, coach and author of Social Justice Parenting: How to Raise Compassionate, Anti-Racist, Justice-Minded Kids in an Unjust World, Baxley uses empathy as a tool for fostering civic-minded awareness. “Empathy is foundational to achieving social justice and creating a world where everyone has a fair chance to live a full, productive life. Social justice requires us to see each other’s perspectives, circumstances and lived experiences through the lens of empathy and compassion. It’s the only way to live in the space of active hope that we can create a world free from inequities and injustices,” she says.

One innovative program, Toronto-based Roots of Empathy, began in 1996 after a mother brought her baby into a kindergarten classroom for children to relate to. With the aid of an instructor, they were encouraged to understand the baby’s needs and feelings, and to take the baby’s perspective. So successfully did the interaction reduce bullying behavior that the program has since spread globally, reaching 1 million children in K-8 classes. “In school, students are taught to read, but if we don’t teach them to relate, then we can expect failed societies,” says founder Mary Gordon. “By interpreting the feelings of the tiny baby and sharing when they had the same feelings, the students develop emotional literacy and awareness. This enables them to build connections and healthy relationships, which leads to inclusion and integration.”

By parents modeling empathy and vulnerability around their children, the foundation is laid for open conversations, she says.

Empathy often starts with listening.

“At the dinner table, say, ‘Today I felt embarrassed when I was called on at work and felt unprepared.’ Identifying and normalizing feelings is the best way to show them it’s something you value and encourage their natural instincts. Kids learn best through observation rather than instruction.”

At The Children’s Museum, in Oak Lawn, an Illinois nonprofit, play is an essential part of childhood development.

Executive Director Adam Woodworth says the institution focuses on kindness and gratitude to build a foundation of empathy. “Helping children find their empathy for others develops strong friendships built on trust and understanding. Parents can incorporate empathy into explanations for everyday interactions such as sharing toys. Instead of focusing on the negative of giving up their toy for someone else, talk about how happy the other child would feel,” he suggests.

Empathy often starts with listening.

“Teaching children how to listen for context is a skill that is developed over time.

Parents can help by asking open-ended questions while reading, such as, ‘Why do you think Frog didn’t want to invite Snake to the party?’ This helps cultivate both understanding and empathy, acknowledges their feelings as real and validates them in a way that they know we care,” he says.

Baxley stresses that it is imperative for parents to model the behaviors they want to cultivate in front of their children. “The way we show up for our children is how they will show up for others,” she says.

“We have to pour these habits of empathy and compassion into our children in the privacy of our homes if we expect them to know how to show up for others in that way out in the world.”

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A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing and the lawn mower is broken. ~James Dent

Carrie Jackson is a Chicago-based freelance writer and frequent contributor to Natural Awakenings magazine. Connect at CarrieJacksonWrites.com.

June 2022

23

conscious eating

Planet-Friendly Pours THE RISE OF SUSTAINABLE WINE AND SPIRITS

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by Sheila Julson

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conic food and beverage magazines such as Bon Appetit and Food & Wine affirm that sustainable and socially responsible wines and spirits are becoming a major force in the market, yet consumers wanting to pour an Earth-conscious tipple need a sobering amount of research to sort through what’s truly eco-friendly.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not require wine makers to list ingredients on labels or regulate the use of terms such as “natural” and “sustainably grown”.

“There are more than 70 additives that are allowed in wine that don’t have to be disclosed on the label,” explains Brad Kruse, who with his wife, Allie, owns Nonfiction Natural Wines, a Milwaukeebased specialty wine retailer. “The only real requirement relating to additives is the declaration of sulfites, which makes it trickier, because even wines with no added sulfites have to have the warn24

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ing on the label because some naturally occur in the wine.”

Some wine labels tout that they’re made with organic grapes or grapes that are farmed sustainably. “But those may still have a host of other additives or lots of added sulfites,” says Kruse.

Certifications can act as a shortcut to locate eco-friendly wines.

Demeter USA, for example, certifies vineyards that follow strict biodynamic rules for how the wine is farmed and processed, including limiting sulfites. But many small producers that operate naturally don’t bother obtaining certification.

Independent wine shops with knowledgeable employees can help consumers choose wisely. Kruse recommends looking for the name of the importer on the back label, saying, “If you learn a handful of importers that focus on naturally made wines, such as Louis/Dressner, Zev Rovine or Jenny & Francois, it can be a quick way to find a good option.”

Sustainability in the Vineyards

CLASSIC MANHATTAN

Rudy Marchesi, the former chairman of Demeter USA, practices biodynamic farming at his vineyard, Montinore Estate, in Forest Grove, Oregon. “We view our farm as one whole organism, below and above the ground,” he says.

Biodynamic farming, founded by philosopher Rudolf Steiner a century ago, requires using nutritionally rich compost teeming with microbiology of fungi and bacteria, as well as synchronizing specific farming practices with the seasons. These practices help the vineyards buffer droughts and weather swings, resulting in a consistent product that reflects the region. “Wine connoisseurs and collectors look for wines that have a sense of place and tell the story of where they’re from,” Marchesi says.

¼ oz cherry liqueur 2½ oz sustainably produced rye 1 oz sweet vermouth 2 dashes angostura bitters 1 dash cherry bitters 1 maraschino cherry

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Distillers Move Toward Sustainable Practices Alcohol is an agricultural product, so producing a sustainable spirit starts with the grain itself, says Herman C. Mihalich, founder and distiller of Mountain Laurel Spirits, in New Hope, Pennsylvania. “Rye is a much less resource-intensive grain to grow compared to crops like corn,” he says. The recipe for the company’s signature Dad’s Hat Rye Whiskey calls for malted barley and rye, but no corn. “Rye doesn’t need much fertilizer and few, if any, pesticides. It’s easy to grow and it preserves soil because it’s a fall planting crop that helps prevent erosion,” he says.

Their grains are sourced from a nearby farmer, and they save water by capturing cooling water from the still’s condenser and storing it in a tank, then using it to clean tanks and make spent mash that can be used for livestock feed. The bottles are made locally by Stoelzle Glass, in Monaca, Pennsylvania.

When seeking sustainably produced spirits, customers have to do their due diligence, Mihalich says. “It requires a little digging and asking the right questions: What grains are you using and from where? How are you using water?”

When Extreme Chef host Marsh Mokhtari and his wife, Jan, founded Gray Whale Gin, they rotated proprietorship with two existing distilleries instead of using land and resources to build a new one. A vacation in Big Sur inspired the couple to “capture California in a glass” and make a product with ingredients found along the gray whale migratory route between the Baja Peninsula and Oregon.

They hired a professional forager to collect juniper berries along the coast. “Juniper for most gin is sourced from Italy or Macedonia,” says Mokhtari. “We predominantly use juniper berries from California, which are light purple and larger, with a cedar component.” They also source mint and limes from sustainable farms in California.

Gray Whale Gin gives back through a partnership with the environmental nonprofits Oceana and 1% for the Planet. They recently joined with Oceana and former California governor Jerry Brown to support responsible swordfishing practices off the California coast.

Coat a chilled cocktail glass with cherry liqueur.

Add the remaining ingredients over ice in a a shaker. Stir and strain into the cocktail glass.

Garnish with the cherry.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Dad’s Hat Rye Whiskey.

WHALE HELLO THERE 2 oz sustainably produced gin ½ oz fresh lime juice ½ oz fresh lemon juice ½ oz agave syrup Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and pour in the gin, lime juice, lemon juice and agave. Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled martini glass, or over a glass filled with ice. Garnish with a lemon twist and serve immediately.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Gray Whale Gin.

Sheila Julson is a Milwaukee-based freelance writer and contributor to Natural Awakenings magazine.

June 2022

25

natural pet

The Case for Pet Vasectomies

by Jorelle Baker

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ne of the most common questions that new pet parents ask our veterinarians is “When should I get my pet neutered?” Often they want to do the procedure early, believing it’s an easy surgery that will have minimal impact on their pet’s health. Actually, there are many consequences to neutering too early, as well as alternatives to prevent future health complications. Before making the decision to neuter, pet parents should consider the following information in order to give their pet the best chance at a long and healthy life.

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Neutering vs. Vasectomy Neutering is when a veterinarian surgically removes the animal’s testicles. The process can typically be done within a day, and it has the immediate effect of making a male completely unable to reproduce with a female. Typically, since the testicles have been completely removed and its hormones altered, the pet will have less desire to mate.

Vasectomy is a surgery where a veterinarian removes a portion of the vas deferens, the tube that carries sperm to the testicles.

The testicles themselves remain intact. The pet will still have a desire to mate after the surgery but will be incapable of reproducing within a few months.

Benefits of Vasectomy

Choosing vasectomy rather than neutering comes with several health advantages.

Decreased risk of obesity: Pets that keep their testicles have balanced hormones, which lowers their risk of forming unhealthy eating habits or becoming obese.

Decreased risk of cancer: Proper hormonal balance lowers the risk of cancer of the heart, spleen, bones and bladder.

Decreased risk of behavioral changes: A pet with more testosterone is less likely to have anxious behaviors, like fearfulness and reactivity.

Risks of Neutering

Beyond a basic understanding of the concepts and benefits of neutering and vasectomy, pet parents should also be aware of the potential risks of neutering too early.

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Behavioral changes: Without testicles supplying testosterone, the pet could exhibit more signs of fearfulness, clinginess and reactivity.

Increased risk of disease: When the hormones are unbalanced, the pet has an increased risk of forming hormonal diseases like hypothyroidism, diabetes, Cushing’s and certain cancers.

201-551-7154

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Victoria Radzinski

Licensed Massage Therapist and Certified Personal Trainer

Increased risk of injury: Neutered pets have a higher chance of developing hip dysplasia or cruciate ligament ruptures.

Increased risk of obesity: Neutered pets have a higher chance of becoming overweight.

We highly recommend scheduling a pet to be neutered after 1 year of age; this will allow its body to fully mature naturally and will cause minimal disruption to its hormonal system. We encourage every pet parent to do their research and schedule a veterinary exam to discuss the healthiest option for their pet.

Jorelle Baker is the social media manager, content creator and webmaster for Holistic Pet Care, located at 125 Paterson Ave., Little Falls, NJ. For appointments or information, visit HolisticPetCareNJ.com.

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communityresourceguide Connecting you to the leaders in natural health care and green living in our community. To find out how you can be included in the Community Resource Guide, email Publisher@NAHudson.com to request our media kit.

DENTIST LOUIS STEINBERG, DDS, MS

6050 Boulevard E, Ste LE, West New York, NJ 201-662-2020 • DrLMSteinberg.com Biological dentist offering mercury-safe dentistry, Biocompatible Restorative Dentistry and TMJ analysis and treatment. See ad on page 9.

HEALTHY FOODS BUSY BEE ORGANICS

451 Palisade Ave, Jersey City, NJ 201-656-5065 BusyBeeOrganics.com Chef Michelle Berckes and her team make up Busy Bee Organics, which serves nutritious, immuneboosting eats to the local c o m m u n i t y. T h i s h e a l t h supportive, local eatery offers instore specials, a brand-new cafe menu & limited outdoor seating. With choices to accommodate every dietary restriction and allergy, you can expect to find delicious options for everyone organic, plant based, customizable & 100% gluten-free.

BWÈ KAFE

1002 Washington St., Hoboken, NJ 1401 Adams St., Hoboken, NJ 140 River Dr. S, Jersey City, NJ 201-683-0045 • bwekafe.com All three locations serve drink and food menus with several fun and fresh seasonal items.

Offering fresh lemonade, housemade lavender coldbrew lattes, green water detox drinks, salads and toasts, bwé kafe is always thinking of creative and tasty drinks to satisfy your health and pallet.

They also source and roast their own coffee beans.

Order at the door, ahead of time online, or have them deliver right to your home.

CAFE PEANUT

586 Newark Avenue, Jersey City, NJ 201-721-6270 CafePeanut.com Funky cafe dedicated to quality foods using locally grown, natural and organic produce. Menu selections include delicious salads, sandwiches, soups, pastries, and artisan coffees & teas.

KEY FRESH AND NATURAL

GROW YOUR BUSINESS Secure this ad spot!

Contact us at Publisher@NAHudson.com

574 Jersey Avenue, Jersey City, NJ 201-204-4200 Local grocer offering huge selection of healthy products and quality brand names for the entire family. Fresh produce with many organic options, quality meats and poultry, organic baby food, grain-free and natural pet foods, non-toxic cleaning products and much more. Save time shopping in one location and get all your grocery needs met at Key Fresh and Natural. Hablamos Espanol. See ad on back cover.

PLANT BASE JC

370 Pacific Ave, Jersey City, NJ 551-256-3868 • PlantBaseMarket.com An ethical, vegan, zero-waste market and restaurant offering a full-vegan, all-day food menu, bulk groceries, organic produce, homeopathic wellness products, body care products and household products. Plant Base is also a strong community hub, known as “the living room for the hood”, where neighbors come together to share knowledge and ideas.

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HEALTH AND WELLNESS ANCHOR THERAPY

223 Bloomfield St, Ste. 121, Hoboken, NJ 201-565-2275 • AnchorTherapy.org Therapy is the anchor that holds life together through choppy waters. Anchor Therapy specializes in helping teens and adults through these times. Their experience and professional skills help clients feel better sooner. Call for a free consultation.

ACUPUNCTURE ATELIER

1321 Washington St, Hoboken, NJ 201-708-8577 AcupunctureAtelier.com Acupuncture Atelier offers undivided personalized attention during each and every session.

Sara and Samia pride themselves on being unique and adaptable.

Tr e a t m e n t s m a y i n c l u d e acupuncture, reiki, aromatherapy, moxibustion, cupping, auricular therapy, as well as ancient Shamanic healing methods.

HOBOKEN CHIROPRACTIC + WELLNESS

Dr. Laura Brayton/Dr. Olga Alvarez 113 Monroe Street, Hoboken, NJ 201-792-3544 HobokenChiro.com Family wellness practice, specializing in pediatrics and maternity, that strongly believe in the body’s innate intelligence and ability to heal itself when blockages to the healing process are removed.

Utilizing chiropractic, soft tissue techniques, allergy elimination, nutrition/ supplements, and massage, health is restored and maintained for optimal wellness.

JACQUIE BIRD, SPIRITUAL WELLNESS JacquieBirdWellness.com

Jacquie Bird, Spiritual Wellness offers products and services that, support, guide and empower the individual. She is the author of the 7 Daily Thoughts & Mantras 4 Mindfulness eBook series; the Creator/Practitioner of Stress Busters Guided Meditations; she creates guided meditation as well as meditation music called SoundSoulVibin’ and is the Owner/Creator of the handmade wellness brand MODAL VISIONS, which is rooted in the energetically dynamic properties of gemstones, crystals and copper. Jacquie is also the Creator and host of the podcast Roll With Peace, In Mind. Her entire platform and intent is in mindfulness, personal growth, stress relief and stress management – in essence, how we can live more calm, centered, grounded and meaningful lives.

LEAH CRESCENZO

917-525-3477 • HeyLeahC.com Transformative healer who utilizes the powerful tools of Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT) and Hypnotherapy to improve everything from emotional to physical conditions.

MIND BODY HOBOKEN

51 Newark Street, Ste. 402, Hoboken, NJ 201-994-3500 • MindBodyHoboken.com Mind Body Hoboken works with individuals, corporate teams and small business owners to find balance in their personal and professional life. Finding the calm and peace in life is essential to balancing out the “fight or flight” response caused by stress. Founder/practitioner Jennifer Araneo utilizes neurolinguistic programming, hypnosis, meditation and reiki to help clients find the Zen in their lives.

MINDFUL PLAY YOGA

646-552-2982 • MindfulPlayYoga@gmail.com Mindful Play Yoga brings out the kid in all of us by working with children, adults & caregivers through mindfulness, play & yoga to see the best in everyone.

MPY is committed to inspiring children ages 3 -15 & families to be curious life-long learners.

OLEVIA METRY, MD

Family Medicine 108 Washington St, Hoboken, NJ 201-656-5688 • Linktr.ee/Dr_Olevia Dr. Olevia Metry is a Board Certified Family Medicine Physician who grew up in Florida and has made Hoboken home for 3 years. She’s passionate about preventative medicine, lifestyle medicine, women’s health and diabetes.

RISE COACHING

Kelly Bonell West New York Kelly@YouWillRise.co • YouWillRise.co Serving ambitious professionals who strivie to live their best life, but sometimes get weighed down with stress, anxiety, uncertainty, and that ‘stuck’ feeling. RISE helps clients to close the gap between stagnation and success by expanding what their mind sees as possible, helping them release limiting beliefs, and accelerating their growth. Kelly Bonell is a trained life coach who provides her clients a non-judgmental, inclusive, and trauma informed space to empower them to rise to new heights. Virtual sessions available.

SALVATION WELLNESS

30 Provost St, Jersey City, NJ 551-689-0763 • SalvationWellness.com Salvation Wellness is a multiservice wellness center that offers services such as massage, meditation, yoga classes and sauna sessions. It also sells a variety of personal care products, including CBD bath and body items. Co-founders Celia and Andres Pender have lived in Jersey City for more than a decade. They both have been dedicated to holistic health studies and deductive, science-based, natural healing for more than two decades.

THE GREEN ROOM

109 14th St, Hoboken, NJ 64 Newark Street, Hoboken, NJ 512 Jersey Ave, Jersey City, NJ TheGreenRoomNJ.com Newly added Jersey City location. Hoboken and Montclair’s first CBD shops that provide both in-person and online shopping. Owner Darek Michael offers education and high-quality products. The Green Room is open Sunday through Thursday 11am-8pm and Fri and Sat 11am-10pm in Jersey City and Monclair.

VICTORIA REED MASSAGE THERAPY

Victoria Radzinski, LMT, CPT 80 River St., 3E-2, Hoboken 201-551-7154 • VictoriaReed.Info@gmail.com ReedWellness.com

PETS GALLA WELLNESS

Florentina Galla, Rdh.MS GallaWellness.com Florentina has been using holistic care and reiki healing for decades and now is providing that for pets.

She provides pet healing and holistic pet nutrition. She’s using gentle touching if an area is in pain after trauma and to reduce the healing time; she offers customized nutrition and supplement needs to manage stress and weight gain based on the pets need. She is a regular volunteer at North Star Animal Rescue and is the author of Confessions of a Holistic Hygienist in a New Era of Wellness.

HOLISTIC PET CARE

125 Paterson Avenue, Little Falls, NJ 973-256-3899 • HolisticPetCareNJ.com Holistic Pet Care of Little Falls provides guidance on optimum diet and environment, and how to minimizing negative elements/toxins to keep your pet healthier and living longer. Holistic and complementary modalities include acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments, homeopathy, bach flow remedies, herbal therapies (western, chinese & ayurvedic), nutritional therapy, ozone therapy, cold laser therapy, and reiki for addressing problems and for preventive care.

As a licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Personal Trainer and Yoga instructor, Victoria’s healing and relaxing services reverse the effects of daily stress by repairing damaged muscle tissue to eliminate aches and pains throughout the body. Improve circulation, detoxify your body, and increase mental alertness as you decompress with her carefully designed massages.

Victoria’s drive behind her work stems from her observations on today’s lifestyle/living. See ad, page 27.

OUTDOORS MR NATURAL NYC

Roger Dubin 917-699-6492 • Instagram @MrNaturalNYC MrNaturalNYC@gmail.com My mission is to connect people with the beauty and health benefits of hiking and nature. I share this in my Instagram and practice it by supervising over 60 miles of trails in Harriman State Park and being a hike leader and naturist for the Nature Place Day Camp. I am also the Marketing Director for Natural Awakenings where I help people and businesses further healthy living on a healthy planet. Email me for hiking tips and route suggestions. Find Hikes: NYNJTC.org. Expose your kids to Nature: TheNaturePlace.com.

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coming in the july issue

Food Connection

calendar of events Cinderella (Reimagined) – Today’s young people are leading the charge on climate change and social justice.

This modern production of Cinderella, placed in a postindustrial wasteland and created in collaboration with the students, is an homage to their idealism and ferocity. Our allegorical reimagining of the beloved fairy tale eschews the traditional love story for a narrative of courage and redemption...told with a lot of incredible dancing! Cinderella (reimagined) is presented by the MST Dance Academy. Purchase the cast recordings to get access to the video recordings of Cinderella! Videos will be available for you to watch on your browser or to download and keep! $5. MileSquareTheatre.org/ Shows-Events/The-Playbill-Gallery/.

Healing Meditation, Restorative Yoga and Reiki – The Healing Center is a favorite space to experience healing through connection, meditation, and movement. They offer guided meditations, yin yoga, mat-based experiences, rhythm-based cycling and expansive workshops to support your healing journey.

The Healing Center, 80 River St, Ste 5A, Hoboken.

973-216-2492. TheHealingCenterHoboken.com.

Recovery Meetings – RWJBarnabas Health Institute for Prevention and Recovery’s Hope and Healing Program offers emotional support services, education and community-based resources for individuals and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a variety of virtual services, this program aims to assist those impacted by the pandemic to better adjust to their new reality, mitigate stress, review options, develop coping strategies, and, if needed, find linkages to agencies, programs, and other resources in their community.

All Recovery virtual meetings provide social support for those seeking or maintaining recovery, as well as family members, friends and supporters of those who have been influenced by substance use. See website for a list of meetings and registration info. RWJBH.org/ treatment-care/institute-for-prevention-and-recovery/ programs/hope-and-healing/.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1 Knitting 101 In Studio – 10-11:30am. Join this in-person class for absolute beginners and learn to knit, purl, cast on, and cast off! We’ll also cover basic seaming, weaving in ends, color changes and how to “unknit” to fix errors. You’ll go from newbie to knitter while making your very own sampler cowl in this 3-session class. The in-person class will be held in the store, and is designed for absolute beginners who have never knit before. Masks are required for the full time, and we ask that all participants are fully vaccinated. Call for details and to reserve a seat. Yarnia, 127 Watchung Ave, Montclair. 973-572-YARN. ShopYarnia.com.

Artist & Maker Market – Wed/Fri, 3-9pm; Sat, 12-6pm. The Market is an open-air bazaar featuring locally created fine art and premium hand-crafted goods. AMM connects artists and artisans with the Jersey City & metro NYC community. Their mission is to support handmade goods as an alternative to mass-produced items and to cultivate small business and entrepreneurship by providing a thriving place for them to sell. 201-547-3554. JCDowntown.org.

William D. Mcdowell Observatory – Weds, 8:3010:30pm, weather permitting. Experts will help you see the moon, planets and constellations in all their splendor. The state-of-the-art Observatory features a research-grade, Classical-Cassegrain telescope housed within a six-meter retractable dome with a

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20-inch mirror and is capable of viewing objects millions of light years away. All ages welcome; children must be accompanied by an adult. Twenty-five people may occupy the Observatory at any one time. Entry is on a first-come, first-served basis. Check-in at the Science Center adjacent to the Observatory. To access the Observatory, a visitor must be able to climb 25 steps in spiral formation. The stairs have railings on either side, approximately 2 feet apart. Free. 2 De Korte Park Plaza, Lyndhurst. 201-460-4619.

THURSDAY, JUNE 2 Hoboken Talks! – Jun 2, 9, 16, 23, 30. 7-8pm. The Hoboken Museum offers a live-streamed program - Hoboken Talks! - streamed live on YouTube, as well as Facebook and Twitter. Viewers can submit questions using the chat feature. YouTube.com/ User/HobokenMuseum. See the website for other social media links to bookmark your preferred channel. Hoboken Historical Museum, 1301 Hudson St, Hoboken. 201-656-2240. HobokenMuseum.org.

FRIDAY, JUNE 3 Yoga for Beginners – Fri through Jun. 10:3011:30am. This class is suitable for those who are beginners - with little or no experience, or for those simply looking for a gentle yoga class. The class consists of yoga postures (asanas) breathing exercises (pranayama), and meditation. Instructor Komal Majmundar. $20. Roots Yoga, 2983 John F. Kennedy, Jersey City. RootsYogaStudioJC.com.

Friday Storytime at the Museum – Fridays 10:3011:45am. Hoboken Historical Museum staff and other guest readers share stories, rhymes and singalongs with children ages 2 to 5 years and their caregivers. The program is open to all on a first-come, first-served basis; children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. $5 donation appreciated.

Hoboken Historical Museum, 1301 Hudson St, Hoboken. 201-656-2240. HobokenMuseum.org.

SATURDAY, JUNE 4 Musical Cooking Class – Sat through Jun. 1pm.

Learn some colorful home cooking. Get ready for an entertaining experience with One Great Vegan, aka the singing chef, Gabrielle Reyes in a live-streaming musical cooking class where you’ll learn to make colorful and flavorful treats you can create easily in your own kitchen. Be sure to log in and learn live how to cook quick, vegan recipes full of flavor and fun. Free virtual event. OneGreatVegan.com/Great-Events.

SUNDAY, JUNE 5 Little Ferry Nature Walk, Losen Slote Creek Park – 10am-noon. Visit one of the last low-lying forested areas in the Meadowlands, where you’ll find everything from owls to orioles. The walk is led by the Audubon Society. Meet in the parking lot adjacent to the Little Ferry soccer field. Contact: Don at GreatAuk4@gmail.com or 201-230-4983.

Main Street Pops Artisan Market – Sun through Aug 14. 11-4pm. Shop small and local at this outdoor market with artisanal foods, jewelry. home goods, fashion & accessories, beauty, fine art, photography, kids stuff, pet products and more! A variety of other attractions like live music, arts and crafts projects and special themed holiday activities.

Under 14th Street Viaduct, 1401 Adams St, Hoboken.

MONDAY, JUNE 6 Baby & Me Yoga – 10:30am. Carolyn Brush presents Baby & Me Yoga. Join on Zoom for stories, songs, and simple poses for you and your little one. Register online.

Zoom links will be sent out 30 minutes prior to story time. Free; space is limited - register to secure your spot.

For any questions, please email Valerie.Coughlin@ hoboken.bccls.org. BCCLS.LibCal.com/Calendar.

Diabetes Support Group – 12-1pm. Join this virtual support group once a month to discuss issues you are having living with diabetes – with other people living with diabetes. Utilizing peer group problem-solving (asking questions, listening to responses and having a group discussion) we will come up with personalized solutions for you. Seize the opportunity to meet others living with diabetes and talk about your personal challenges as you would talk to a friend. Register online DiabetesFoundationInc.org.

Crossword Club – 5-6pm. Join on Zoom to do a crossword puzzle every Monday! Test your puzzle skills! Geared for children in grades 4 to 12. NBPL. org/Event/Crossword-Club.

Cloud Cuckoo Land, Anthony Doerr: A Book Club Discussion – 6:30-8pm. Among the most celebrated and beloved novels of 2021, Anthony Doerr’s gorgeous third novel is a triumph of imagination and compassion, a soaring story about children on the cusp of adulthood in worlds in peril, who find resilience, hope—and a book. In Cloud Cuckoo Land, Doerr has created a magnificent tapestry of times and places that reflects our vast interconnectedness—with other species, with each other, with those who lived before us, and with those who will be here after we’re gone. Free; register online. Bistro La Source 85 Morris St, Jersey City. Meetup.com/JC-BookClub/.

The Masked Singer – 8pm. Can you guess who’s behind the mask? If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be in the live audience of The Masked Singer, now’s your chance. Experience the singing, dancing and surprises of the hit TV show, right at NJPAC. See your favorite characters, laugh along with the celebrity hosts and bop to brand-new performances.

We’ll even reveal a top-secret mystery star. It’s a can’t-miss spectacular event for audiences of all ages, starring Natasha Bedingfield, Season 6’s Pepper. $44.75-$94.75. New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

Prudential Hall, Betty Wold Johnson Stage, 1 Center St, Newark. 888-696-5722. NJPAC.org.

TUESDAY, JUNE 7 Art Classes for Kids – Through June. 10am-1pm.

Museum Kids Art Classes take place three days a week – Tues, Thurs, Fri – for fun art making in the Museum walkway. Recommended for ages 2-5. All children must be accompanied by an adult. Art materials are provided; adults must wear masks and maintain social distance. Seating available first-come, firstserved. Hoboken Historical Museum, 1301 Hudson St, Hoboken. 201-656-2240. HobokenMuseum.org.

Silver Lining for All Recovery Wellness – Tues.

10am. All Recovery virtual meetings provide social support for those seeking or maintaining recovery, as well as family members, friends and supporters of those who have been influenced by substance use.

RWJBarnabas Health Institute for Prevention and Recovery’s Hope and Healing Program Daily All Recovery Meetings offers emotional support ser-

vices, education and community-based resources for individuals and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a variety of virtual services, this program aims to assist those impacted by the pandemic to better adjust to their new reality, mitigate stress, review options, develop coping strategies, and, if needed, find linkages to agencies, programs, and other resources in their community. RWJBH. org. Zoom Meeting ID: 921 8005 4325 Passcode: healing. 929-205-6099.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8 Yarn Crafts – Weds, 7-9pm. Fun conversation and working together by Zoom on fiber crafts! Bring your knitting, crochet, embroidery, spinning, weaving or whatever craft you’re enjoying at the moment.

Register online for the event and you’ll be sent the meeting invite which includes the Zoom code as well as the weekly Theme of the Week. ShopYarnia.com.

THURSDAY, JUNE 9 Tour of Mana Contemporary – Thu through Aug. 11am-5pm and by appointment. Mana Contemporary’s long-term and special exhibitions are currently on view by appointment, through engaging themed tours. Tours conclude with a visit to the current special exhibition The Twelve Theses on Attention, presented by Monira Foundation in collaboration with Friends of Attention.

Working to devise, defend, recover, effect, and share forms of attention that defy commodification, the Friends seek friends (and allies) to “bring forth the astonishing reality of things and persons.” Mana Contemporary, 888 Newark Ave, Jersey City. ManaContemporary.com.

Historic Farmer’s Market – Mon & Thur. through June. 4-8pm. The Historic Downtown Jersey City farmers’ market features various NJ vendors and local Jersey City vendors. Operating for over a decade, the Historic Downtown Jersey City Farmers Market, conveniently located by the PATH Train station and Grove Street bus stop in the heart of the historic downtown, it’s the place to get your groceries and treats! Come out and support NJ farms and businesses and get your fresh produce, pies, cookies, flowers and more. 201-547-3554. JCDowntown.org.

SATURDAY, JUNE 11 Seasonal Scavenger Hunt – 1-2pm. Families will receive a set of clues to solve nature riddles along the trails. Families need to work as a team as they hike the trails to complete the hunt and receive a prize. For adults and families with children 4 and up; children must be accompanied by an adult; Inclement weather cancels the program. $3, $10/family max, $6/nonmembers, $30/family max, free/children under 2.

Tenafly Nature Center, Visitor Center, 313 Hudson Ave, Tenafly. 201-568-6093. TenaflyNatureCenter.org.

THURSDAY, JUNE 16 Basic Life Support Training Certification (BLS) – Jun 16, 29. 9:30am-1:30pm. BLS for Healthcare Providers uses a scenario-based approach to develop the critical thinking and problem-solving skills that drive better outcomes for adult, child, and infant patients. Topics include: choking, critical thinking and problem solving, communication and teamwork and many more. Hudson County Community College, 161 Newkirk St, Jersey City. To register: 201-360-4246.

Time, details: HCCC.edu/ContinuingEducation.

Secaucus Nature Walk, Mill Creek Marsh – 10am12pm. Keep your eyes peeled for spring migrants and ducks on this walk led by the local Audubon Society at one of the Meadowlands’ best places for birding.

Call for meetup info. Free, registration required.

Meadowlands Environment Center, DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. Don Torino: 201-230-4983. NJSEA.com.

HOHA Run – Thursdays, 7:40pm. The Hoboken Harriers Running Club, a diverse group of runners/ joggers, welcomes runners of all abilities for a 5.2-mile run. 6th Street & Washington, Hoboken.

Libations: Moran’s Pub. Info: HOHA.net.

FRIDAY, JUNE 17 7th Inning Stretch – 8pm. The 18th Annual 7th Inning Stretch! A celebration of Hoboken, baseball, and theatre all in one. Each year, 7 playwrights write 7 10-minute plays about baseball…or at least baseball is involved somehow. The plays run the gambit from heartwarming to hysterical, realistic to absurd. Whatever they are, you’ll enjoy a terrific lineup of short plays about the great American pastime. This year’s roster features new work by celebrated and up-andcoming playwrights. $30-$45. Mile Square Theatre, 1400 Clinton St, Hoboken. MileSquareTheatre.org.

SUNDAY, JUNE 19 DeKorte Park Nature Walk – 10am-noon. Birds from eagles to egrets call this amazing park home. Join the Bergen County Audubon Society as they point out the spectacular avian species to be seen. DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. Call for meetup info. Free, registration required.

Meadowlands Environment Center, DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. Don Torino: 201-230-4983. NJSEA.com.

TUESDAY, JUNE 21 Solstice Nature Walk – 6:30-8:30pm. Celebrate the solstice with the Bergen County Audubon Society at one of the most amazing times to see DeKorte Park.

DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. Call for meetup info. Free, registration required. Meadowlands Environment Center, DeKorte Park, Lyndhurst. Don Torino: 201-230-4983.

NJSEA.com.

Solstice Hike – 7-9pm. Guided hike with Eric Nelsen.

This hike covers about 5 miles round-trip distance in about 2 hours on moderate trails at a relatively quick pace.

Hike will be held “drizzle or shine” but heavy or steady precipitation will cancel. If weather seems questionable on the morning of the hike, hikers can call 201-768-1360 ext 108 to confirm. Kearney House at Alpine Picnic Area, Palisades Alpine Approach Rd, the Alpine park entrance on U.S. Route 9W, Alpine. NJPalisades.org.

FRIDAY, JUNE 24 New Jersey Fan Club: Artists and Writers Celebrate the Garden State – 6pm. New Jersey Fan Club: Artists and Writers Celebrate the Garden State is an eclectic anthology featuring personal essays, interviews, and comics from a broad group of established and emerging writers and artists who have something to say about New Jersey. It offers a multifaceted look at the state’s history and significance, told through narrative nonfiction, photographs, and illustrations. Join us for a reading featuring contributors Brandon Harris, Caren Lissner, Raakhee Mirchandani, Kerri Sullivan, and Bob Varettoni, a Q&A with additional contributors, and signing.

Free; reserve tickets on line. Mile Square Theatre, 1400 Clinton St, Hoboken. MileSquareTheatre.org.

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Bring Healthy Home

We offer a large variety of healthy and organic products as well as traditional grocery items and brands Save Time • Save Money • Shop Healthy • Feel Great 574 Jersey Ave. (@ 3rd St.) • (201) 204-4200 • Jersey City 32

Hudson County

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