I've seen this in training new nurses in regards to having them learn to open their energy field, creating a more spacious sense of awareness and sensitizing themselves to what is in the moment. They do this and then often become prey to the hostile or negative because although they've practiced grounding and centering before, they've not practiced both at the same time. They lose one or the other in trying to strengthen one or the other. And so it is with us. We are so in the habit of forming belief, attaching to something, anything to identify ourselves, we forget our feet on the floor, the sense of breath moving through our bodies. In particular in the "knowing" professions like medicine, it is supremely uncomfortable to entertain the unknown; we're indoctrinated to know (or pretend we know) lest there be any errors. Most ER, critical care nurses hate this relaxation, sensitizing I do with them. They feel they can't "be on their game" if they're all relaxed. And they are (partially) right, they can't if they don't value the (sometimes appearing opposite) sense of being grounded, which isn't in their automatic reactions (valuable in their own right) but present in the discriminating (more present) self who is practicing letting go of tensions while centering energies in the body. They often, without knowing it while in the ER capacity, have attached to the high they get from the hormones released from the sympathetic nervous system (adrenalin primarily) and the subsequent sense of being almost omnipotent. It can be hard to give that up and hard not to believe the cascade of self-importance felt and one's elevated capacity.
Lack and Unknown are not of the ego's world (unless the ego has been trained to live there). Most of us need to get trained to co-exist with them, as our human upbringing in culture hasn't provided that. Someone in us needs to "believe", to value this other reality. Otherwise, all our beliefs are entrenched in something ego feeds off of, creating attitudes, habits, addictions most of me will gladly tolerate, narrowing my world exponentially. I have to want a different reality
One of the occurrences I have come to trust implicitly over the years, is the event of the arrival of the Unexpected; the event that is so surprising, yet usually so True in the moment (even when unpleasant). This may be why Authentic Movement (AM) is such a compelling practice.
Entering the Authentic Movement "space" in oneself is like walking through a door or gate of a temple/church, a garden, a dream. The ordinary is not exactly left behind, it just becomes secondary, not the loudest voice in the room of oneself. What we enter is a fuller intelligence that is elicited through a stronger connection to our breath, a quieter more sensitized energy field, a listening that isn't with the ears alone, a watching that isn't with the eyes at all. "Seeing", "Listening", "Being" "effort" take on an entirely different dimension. We become more embodied in a larger intelligence.
In this space, we in a way, emulate a Pentecost of sorts. The energy of a reconciling force descends (ascends?) upon our chaotic, fragmented self (inner disciples) and unifies the estranged others whom live (oddly enough as one) in us. As in the Bible's Pentecost story (The Story of Pentecost), all tongues (languages) are understood, welcomed and accepted. The subtle daily alienations, misunderstanding, separations--- they some how are transformed (by this third force, reconciliation). Or not. The former is what might be expected as in the Leviticus XXV story. The unexpected would be a unification of another sort. Where the chaos might ensue (as usual) but walks almost in partnership with what is still, quiet, observational. That experience of equally weighted, very different energies co-existing is unexpected, perhaps even miraculous.
In Authentic Movement, through an intentional open wonder and inquiry, the body becomes more relaxed and the sub-conscious enters from left field, which surprises she who entered the space in the first place. Through a modicum of relaxation, something internally opens allowing an energy with all its material concreteness to enter (sort of like what happens in the REM state when we are sleeping) and play out in images and relationship to body parts, and others. However you lean, however you define the experience, material arrives, often unexpectedly. Not what we were anticipating. Even when we (in our ordinary self) think we aren't in expectation, the surprise often proves otherwise.
 I think what keeps calling me back to this amazing, generous form is the wish to experience this fuller listening intelligence and the opportunity to experience what is my ordinary self at the same time. My daily experiences of myself and the world around me are so fractured; this spacious intelligence in conjunction with the routine householder, unavailable. Entering this church or garden gate and the reinforcement of spending more time there, gives me the taste of living a bigger life, a more intelligent life. One that is not devoid of one quality or another, but inclusive. It's not just a type of listening done with one sense-- a more spacious and energetic capacity unveils itself. The idea of an effort that doesn't exist in "trying" makes itself known. Life becomes apparently bigger than that. Anticipation and expectation become uninteresting and pointless. The unexpected vibrates with another type of knowing; it's fresh, clean, mysterious and enlivening.
For more information on Authentic Movement or Contemplative Dance,
facilitators or an open group near you:
Welcome | Authentic Movement Community and
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| salt pyramids |
Salt is salt is salt: it's all sodium chloride, some say. But in my experience (from an energetic point of view), this is not so. Culinary wise, there is also a big difference between gray sea salt, Himalayan (pink) salt and regular processed table (rock) salt and how they each impact the foods we use them in. Seasoning wise, brand-named table salt and all other white salts require a heavier use then either the gray or pink. What is the scientific explanation regarding the differences in salts and the biologic evidence in our organism's need for salt?
Salt is a trace mineral required for our body's optimal health.The
ions in trace minerals function by maintaining the body system at a
cellular level. They promote balanced electrolytes, maintain your body in
homeostasis, maintain fluids, and replenish your supply of electrolytes when
you perspire excessively. These trace minerals perform a number of
other important functions: they help regulate body water content, absorption of food
particles through the intestinal tract, assisting in the generation of
hydroelectric energy in the cells of your body, promoting vascular health,
regulating your sleep, and promoting a healthy pH balance in your cells, mainly
your brain cells. Along with water, salt is essential for the regulation of your blood pressure.
Table Salt (rock or white)
Salt has gotten a bad rap for several reasons, probably because the salts we mostly consume are chemically treated and processed, have little nutrtional value and burden our body systems (causing edema and cardiac muscle and vessel strain). For example, typical table salt
crystals are totally isolated from each other. In order for your body to try to
metabolize table salt crystals, it must sacrifice tremendous amounts of energy. Inorganic sodium
chloride can keep the body from establishing an ideal fluid balance and can overburden your
elimination systems. When your body tries
to isolate the excess salt, water molecules
must surround the sodium chloride to break them up into sodium and chloride
ions in order to help your body neutralize them. To accomplish this, water is
taken from your cells in order to neutralize the unnatural sodium chloride. This results in a
less-than-ideal fluid balance in the cells. In addition, today's chemically treated/processed table and
cooking salt is void of vital trace minerals.
Mined salt, or rock
salt, is a poor substitute for the more natural salts available. While natural rock
salt comes close to being intact and is more valuable than industrial table
salt, from a biophysical as well as bio-chemical perspective, it holds little
value. The elements contained in
rock salt lack sufficient compression to be included in the crystal web, but
are only attached to the surface and in the gaps of the crystalline structure.
It is the considerable pressure that brings the elements to a colloidal state -
where your cells can readily absorb them. The
valuable elements found in rock salt are useless because your body cannot
absorb and metabolize them.
Gray (Sea) Salt
Most gray sea salt comes
from the Brittany region on the Atlantic coast of France. It is gray because it
absorbs minerals from clay that lines the salt ponds. Neither gray sea salt nor
Himalayan pink salt goes through the extensive refining process that ordinary
table salt does before being sold in U.S. markets. As a result, both types of
salt are coarser, more natural and more flavorful than traditional U.S. table
salt. Both salts are harvested by hand using traditional methods, rather than
by industrial machinery. Grey sea salt is
obtained from the evaporation of seawater and used for culinary purposes only.
Many people believe
sea salt is a healthy alternative to table salt, but this is no longer the
case. The oceans are being used as dumping grounds for harmful toxic poisons
like mercury, PCBs and dioxin. Reports of oil spills polluting the sea are
becoming more frequent. With some 89% of all the
sea salt producers now refining their salt. Between the over processing and pollutants, today's sea salt simply isn't as
healthy as it used to be.
Sea salt's molecular structure isn't conducive for elemental collaboration. If you were to look
into a microscope at sea salt, you would see it has irregular
and isolated crystalline structures disconnected from the natural elements
surrounding them. Thus, however many vital minerals it may contain, they cannot
be absorbed by your body unless the body expends tremendous energy to vitalize
them. Your body's net gain is small compared to
the great loss of energy.
Pink Salt (Himalayan or Crystal)
This salt, harvested in the salt mines in Tibet and what is now Pakistan, is rich in
minerals such as calcium, potassium and iron. The high iron content is
what gives this salt its pink color. Himalayan
Pink Salt is "an exceptionally mineral-rich whole food that is 100 percent
natural, unprocessed, unrefined and unpolluted. Because
nothing is added - no anti-caking agents, no chemical cleaners or other
ingredients. Whereas Gray sea salt is for seasoning only, Pink salt can be used to great effect in baths. The harmonious nature of Himalayan sea salt helps support the immune system and is considered heart healthy.
Under an electron microscope, pink salt has a perfect crystalline structure and is immune to electromagnetic fields (hence the popularity of putting "pink salt lamps besides computer stations- they ionize the immediate field you are working in, decreasing the electromagnetic impact you are exposed to). Crystal Salt contains no
environmental pollutants. This salt's unique cell structure is energetically vibrational and its minerals and trace elements are so small your cells can easily
absorb them. Pink salt's assortment of elements form a compound in which each molecule is
inter-connected. This allows the vibration component of the 84 trace elements
in the salt to be in sync with each other and can be
easily metabolized by your body. When you use this salt it has a vital
energetic effect. Your body gets an ample net
gain with little energy loss.
Pink salt has spent over 250 million years
maturing under extreme tectonic pressure, far away from exposure to impurities. The salt's unique
structure also stores vibrational energy. All of the crystal salt's inherent
minerals and trace elements are available in colloidal form -- meaning they are
so small your cells can readily absorb them.This salt does not burden your body as other salts do for this reason. It is very difficult
for your body to absorb too much since there are efficient and
effective feedback loops that regulate this process in the body.
Both Gray and Himalayan salts are more costly than rock/white salt. Possibly, this fact is relative considering their superior health benefits and less amount needed when seasoning. For cardiac patients who have been told to eliminate their salt intake, the fact that pink salt is a heart healthy version that not only supports the immune system but cardiac health, is a welcomed fact.
So, salt isn't just sodium chloride. It's not a negligible food item, but is supposed to contain vital trace minerals and energetic properties (related to its cellular structure), that depending on how it's processed, makes a difference to seasoning and your health. When considering the type of salt needed, read labels like you read labels for food. There are other sea salts from Spain and other countries, which are not always readily available in US markets; check how they are processed if you are considering a purchase. There are some resources below for buying pink Himalayan sea salt in bulk; great for the bath (as well as seasoning) because of it's uniquely balanced cellular structure.
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| "You want me to use WHAT to make your dinner?" |
My dad would have been a stellar microwave salesman. In the early 1970's he enthusiastically hoisted an enormous metal box (one of the first non-commercial microwaves) into our home's kitchen, relieving the counter of three-quarter's of its space. He believed it would revolutionize food preparation (the "best thing since sliced bread" as he would say) for my mother, the burned-out family cook. I was the only one in the large household not to partake of this new-fangled appliance; I had an instinctive and suspicious repulsion to it. Of course, I was a tender-teenager, wont to explore my own ideas, but also the only thing I knew about it was that it exponentially decreased cooking time and you couldn't put metal in the thing while operating or it would explode (this science evidence realized 30 years later when somebody put tinfoil in my hospital unit's break room microwave and we were subsequently inundated with full-gear firemen wielding hefty axes). For the first 5 years in my twenties, reliably there would be a new model microwave under the Christmas tree waiting for me. Too big to re-gift, I would ask dad to return it (he declined and found it another "home"). By my twenty fifth year, Christmas began to be a dreaded event knowing I would have to meet his tenacity? obtuseness? obnoxiousness? head on (probably all three, dear ole dad) around his insistent admonitions I should "enter the future". Dad had his ideas and I had mine.
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The Amana microrange microwave, circa 1967
Good times!........... |
Since the 1980's, American kitchens in new homes have been routinely outfitted with microwave inlets to fill (most often hazardly placed at one's head/brain level). In university dorms, they often are the only working appliance in the group kitchen and restaurants everywhere have used them to cut out a time consuming step or two in filling the stomachs of the masses they feed. In researching this essay, it was evident to me the prejudice I have toward microwaves in relation to food preparation. I admit to leaning toward information to support my bias (the inherent difficulty in research). I often found reputable sources, like a Harvard publication making statements like (in relation to what to microwave your food in): "Only those containers labeled 'microwave safe' have been tested and found safe for that purpose. A container that’s not labeled safe for microwave use isn’t necessarily unsafe; the FDA simply hasn’t determined whether it is or not." This cued me to the fact I'm not the only one with a bias and that microwaves are a big (probably political) business. My un-unique food fascism will likely be front and center here, but I will counter it (as I can) with the other side's bias, which is commonplace source.
How do microwave "radar ranges" or ovens work?
Microwaves are a form
of electromagnetic radiation—waves of electrical and magnetic energy moving
together through space. EM radiation ranges from very high energy (gamma rays
and x-rays) on one end of the spectrum to very low energy (radio waves) on the
other end of the spectrum. Microwaves cause
dielectric heating. They bounce around the inside of your oven and are absorbed
by the food you put in it. Since water molecules are bipolar, having a positive
end and negative end, they rotate rapidly in the alternating electric field.
The water molecules in the food vibrate violently at extremely high
frequencies—millions of times per second—creating molecular friction,
which heats up the food. If the food or object
placed in the microwave had no water it would not be able to have this resonance
heating type effect and would remain cool. Or, as investigative journalist
William Thomas calls it, "electrically whiplashed."
In this heating process, structures of the
water molecules are torn apart and forcefully deformed. This is different than
conventional heating of food, whereby heat is transferred convectionally from
the outside, inward. Microwave cooking begins within the molecules where water
is present.Contrary to popular
belief, microwaved foods don't cook "from the inside out." When
thicker foods are cooked, microwaves heat the outer layers, and the inner
layers are cooked mostly by the conduction of heat from the hot outer layers,
inward. Heating food in this way causes the present water molecules to resonate at very high frequencies and eventually turn to steam which heats your food. Since not all areas
contain the same amount of water, the heating is uneven. Additionally,
microwaving creates new compounds that are not found in humans or in nature,
called radiolytic compounds. We don't yet know what these compounds are doing
to your body (even after over 40 years of frequent mass use?).
In addition to the
violent frictional heat effects, called thermic effects, there are also athermic
effects, which are poorly understood because they are not as easily
measured. It is these athermic effects that are suspected to be responsible for
much of the deformation and degradation of cells and molecules. As an example, microwaves
are used in the field of gene altering technology to weaken cell membranes.
Scientists use microwaves to actually break cells apart. Impaired cells then
become easy prey for viruses, fungi and other microorganisms. Rapidly heating your food in this manner, changes your food's chemical structure (hence, nutritive properties). Without a doubt, microwaving distorts and deforms the molecules of whatever food or other substance you subject to it.
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| Well, they look perky.... |
In my mind, this information alone is enough for me to forgo the convenience of using a microwave oven. For you die-hard users, there is the other controversial issue of the use of containers holding food while microwaving. Some sources claim carcinogenic toxins can migrate out of your plastic and
paper containers/covers, and into your food. Counter sources claim the FDA does extensive testing on containers and food in relation to microwave heating, measuring the chemicals that leach into the food. Chemicals such as polyethylene terpthalate (PET), benzene, toluene, and xylene, and they also admit microwaving fatty foods (meat) in plastic containers leads to the release of dioxins (known carcinogens) and other toxins into your food. But (they say) this is minimal if you use the right container and cover. (food fascist raises her righteous head: but REALLY, why would you want to do this?) And if you should glean comfort by the idea there are "right" containers to microwave in, sources say, "One of the worst contaminants is BPA, or bisphenol A, an estrogen-like compound used widely in plastic products. In fact, dishes made specifically for the microwave often contain BPA, but many other plastic products contain it as well."
Some studies:
-- A study found that broccoli "zapped" in the microwave
with a little water lost up to 97 percent of its beneficial antioxidants. By
comparison, steamed broccoli lost 11 percent or fewer of its antioxidants.
There were also reductions in phenolic compounds and glucosinolates, but
mineral levels remained intact.
--A 1999 Scandinavian study of the cooking of asparagus
spears found that microwaving caused a reduction in vitamin C.
--In a study of garlic, as little as 60 seconds of
microwave heating was enough to inactivate its allinase, garlic's principle
active ingredient against cancer.
--A Japanese study
by Watanabe showed that just 6 minutes of microwave heating turned 30-40
percent of the B12 in milk into an inert (dead) form.
This study has been cited by Dr. Andrew Weil as evidence supporting his concerns
about the effects of microwaving. Dr. Weil wrote: "There
may be dangers associated with microwaving food... there is a question as to
whether microwaving alters protein chemistry in ways that might be harmful." (devil's advocate: why would you heat milk for 6 minutes when 2 minutes does the job?)
So, these are the "facts". Should I even get into the aesthetic of the rubbery chicken breast or tasteless vegetable (or weird tasting mug of water), the direct result of this approach to food preparation? It hardly seems necessary when the science of the activity of microwaving indicates food/water molecules have been torn asunder, instead of respectfully attended (of course the food is horrific). As a culture, we might want to look a little closer at how we have gotten ourselves into this mechanical, automatic, morbidly convenient relationship to food. FOOD!, one of the major life-giving and pleasure providing aspects of life on this planet.
[Megamind activates a hologram, while Minion puts on an apron and wig] ...
Megamind: But it can be easily reheated, in the microwave of evil!
Metro Man: Well, I think
[the ship closes and takes off]
Megamind: [voice-over] I hadn't quite heard that last part, but it sounded important. Destined for... What?
-- Megamind (the film, 2010)
most of the information for this post was gleaned from:
--January/February 1990 issue of Nutrition Action Newsletter
--http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/05/18/
--http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/update0706a.shtml
--November 2003 issue of The Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture
--Rust S and Kissinger M. (November 15, 2008) "BPA leaches from 'safe' products" Journal Sentinel Online
--Vallejo F, Tomas-Barberan F A, and Garcia-Viguera C. "Phenolic compound contents in edible parts of broccoli inflorescences after domestic cooking"
--Kidmose U and Kaack K. Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica B 1999:49(2):110-117
--Song K and Milner J A. "The influence of heating on the anticancer properties of garlic," Journal of Nutrition 2001;131(3S):1054S-57S
--Watanabe F, Takenaka S, Abe K, Tamura Y, and Nakano Y. J. Agric. Food Chem. Feb 26 1998;46(4):1433-1436
|
I've seen this in training new nurses in regards to having them learn to open their energy field, creating a more spacious sense of awareness and sensitizing themselves to what is in the moment. They do this and then often become prey to the hostile or negative because although they've practiced grounding and centering before, they've not practiced both at the same time. They lose one or the other in trying to strengthen one or the other. And so it is with us. We are so in the habit of forming belief, attaching to something, anything to identify ourselves, we forget our feet on the floor, the sense of breath moving through our bodies. In particular in the "knowing" professions like medicine, it is supremely uncomfortable to entertain the unknown; we're indoctrinated to know (or pretend we know) lest there be any errors. Most ER, critical care nurses hate this relaxation, sensitizing I do with them. They feel they can't "be on their game" if they're all relaxed. And they are (partially) right, they can't if they don't value the (sometimes appearing opposite) sense of being grounded, which isn't in their automatic reactions (valuable in their own right) but present in the discriminating (more present) self who is practicing letting go of tensions while centering energies in the body. They often, without knowing it while in the ER capacity, have attached to the high they get from the hormones released from the sympathetic nervous system (adrenalin primarily) and the subsequent sense of being almost omnipotent. It can be hard to give that up and hard not to believe the cascade of self-importance felt and one's elevated capacity.
Lack and Unknown are not of the ego's world (unless the ego has been trained to live there). Most of us need to get trained to co-exist with them, as our human upbringing in culture hasn't provided that. Someone in us needs to "believe", to value this other reality. Otherwise, all our beliefs are entrenched in something ego feeds off of, creating attitudes, habits, addictions most of me will gladly tolerate, narrowing my world exponentially. I have to want a different reality
