Gratitude

Before this day expires I would like to take a few moments to express my gratitude for the many blessing in my life. Where to begin but to say that I am one of the most fortunate people to walk the face of the earth. I live on a tremendous and beautiful planet in an interesting and challenging age. I share the earth with countless and diverse multitudes; I am grateful for them, for our very lives are built upon the things that they provide. I am grateful for my consciousness, and the ability to focus it wisely. I am grateful that there are compassionate and humane alternatives to outmoded and barbaric traditions. I am grateful to have others who share my dietary inclinations, so as to have someone to eat with. I am grateful for always having enough, for the abundance of the universe...a truly tremendous multitude which I am so lucky to partake in. I am grateful for my family-blood relations, human and otherwise-with whom I am so fortunate as to share this moment. I am thankful for kind words, for a light in the darkness and for possibilities. I am thankful especially for my son, the light of my life, and the reason that I dream of, and work for, a better world. I am grateful, for changes both big and small, and that they come at all. I am thankful for the wonderful gifts that have been bestowed upon me in this life, and that I am able to use those gifts to make the lives of others richer as well. I am grateful for the support and sometimes seemingly unfounded, unshakable belief my partner has in me; and for all her hard work and sacrifices. I am grateful for Buddha, and my meditation and the spirit. I am grateful for the sun, the birthplace of life. I am grateful for the water which nourishes that life; the earth from which we are all formed, and the wind that shapes us. I am grateful for the seed, the tree, the sand, the rocks and soil. Were I to live my every last moment in reverence to that which I owe all that I have, I still would not expend all the gratitude I feel. I am thankful for having seen another year. I am grateful for what comes next. My gratitude is without limit; my thanks are boundless: endless, my blessings. Any time I prepare to eat something a say a small prayer of gratitude. Any time I uncook, I am sure to put my gratitude into the food. I thank all the forces and creatures, the many lives in service, that I should be fortunate enough for the apple to come to my table. I say thank you to the vegetables and that which gave them life, and that it should give me life as well. I am thankful for everything, for everything must always be exactly as it is. Everything will always work out; even if its working out is beyond our limited sight. Everything, every moment, is a blessing, for each thing, each second, is an opportunity to live a little bit better than we have lived before, to be a little more conscious than ever, to be a little bit more thankful as we revel in the wonders of this world. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Peace and Love

A CindeRAWlla Story

Salutations-
My name is Chris Jolly (a.k.a. 'The Jolly Rawger') and I am the head raw foods chef for the New Jersey-based organic raw vegan food delivery company Live Jolly Foods and I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to my blog. This blog has been created in order to share with a wider audience the many benefits of the living foods lifestyle which I have experienced since I began incorporating more raw foods into my diet, as well as recipes, resources, photographs, inspiration and whatever else I may deem useful in helping others down the raw road. Wherever you find yourself in your journey to raw-whether you are a raw rookie and this is your first foray, you are transitioning to more and more raw foods, looking for inspiration to stay raw in a world of cooked, processed and denatured food temptation, are a seasoned (I prefer cayenne and chili powder) vet, a fellow living foods chef-or if that journey has yet to begin, you're sure to find something here that piques your interest. It can be a long way from here to raw, but as the proverb says, you must begin with one small step. Whatever your step, there are a few things that you should remember. First, we are all only as far along as we are. We all wish for better things for ourselves and for our lives; it can be natural to want instant, or relatively quick, gratification. If only we could snap our fingers and be (fill in your own blank here). But then what would be left to work towards, what else could be attained? Though there are a number of miraculous SAD (standard American diet, for the uninitiated) to RAW overnight stories out there, chances are high that you are not likely to be among them. In fact, if your like most raw foodists, or raw foodists in training, you're journey to 100% raw--or whatever your goal is--is likely to be a long, winding road with many twists, turns, diversions, pitfalls, setbacks, wrong turns and so on. Those things most having are those things that are worth working for, and certainly the transition to a more healthy, more whole, more well and more conscious being should be high atop the list, if not at the pinnacle. Still, no matter how desirable something is, no matter how much we wish to attain something, we are never further along at any given moment than we are. No matter how hard we try, no matter how far in the past or future we may let our mind wander, we are always just here now. In Psychonavigation by John Perkins there is a paragraph that reads: "Nature knows no failures, it evolves. Birth, life, and death are milestones along a continuum. There are outcomes, but no failures. Failure simply does not exist in nature." With that in mind always set aside a heaping helping of forgiveness for yourself. There is no failure; things just move forward, move in, move in a different direction. You can beat yourself up all day for your faults, some people spend their whole lives doing this. This will not move you any further along, and in many cases is liable to set you back. Second, and this is paramount, whether you are the beginner or the Buddha, each and everyone's journey is made easier with love, compassion, kindness, and support. We are all the Atman, the Atman is us. You are your brother and sister, and he and she are you. As Carl Sagan famously said, "We are starstuff, harvesting starlight." We are bonded together in eternal unity; now we must make our common unity into our community. The revolution may not be televised, it may not be broadcast, but who says that it cannot be blogged? We must all be the change we wish to see in the world-and much of the change that I would like to see must start upon a foundation of beings who are whole, healthy and well. Better nutrition is the key to a better society, since everything we do in life depends upon the energy we are able to summon. That energy itself is a direct result of the processes of life, processes that rely exclusively upon nourishment. As we learn better to nourish our bodies, minds and spirits, we will also learn to become better individuals-and better individuals are the cornerstone for better communities, and better communities the keys to a better world. This blog is one of my many efforts to be the change that I wish to see; it is my profound hope that you will use its contents to help you be the change you wish to see as well.
And remember: Eat Raw; Live Jolly
Chris Jolly