Liquid Feasting - Days 13-18 and 20

I know that this is back to front! As I said yesterday, I had a nibble on wild garlic (Day 19) and I also nibbled on Friday (Day 17). I think the other days were pretty much straightforward, although Day 13 was noteworthy according to my journal...

Day 13 proved anything but unlucky. If anything, it felt like my real ‘breakthrough‘ day. I was in Cambridge (again), so I was flasked up for only the second time of the feast with orange juice rather than my faithful hemp/nettle/celery/apple combination. I neither saw nor smelt anything to trigger cravings but they arose all the same. I don’t live near ‘fast food’ or any other kind of ‘foodie outlet’ come to think of it, so perhaps the knowledge that I was in a city with edibles galore was playing subconsciously in my head. Whatever the reason, all I could think of was fries: hot, crispy, salty fries. I just sat in the park, cranked open a book crammed full of raw experiences (Life in the 21st Century, compiled by Viktoras Kulvinskas) and the craving passed. Generally, I’m awful with cravings so to find myself on the other side, having not succumbed, was pretty joyful, ecstatic really!

I’ve barely mentioned the addendums since starting the juice feast. For me, they don’t exist to ramp the cleanse up to another level, they exist instead to support the main cleanse. From my no-sugar exercise before Easter I found that by concentrating on the addendums, the focus of the main exercise (the no-sugar routine) was lessened and became very straightforward, almost effortless. However, every experiment is different and so far I have barely thought of, let alone implemented, my chosen addendums:

1) I am so-so with the skin brushing, probably 50/50. On the days when I do remember, invariably I’ve just turned on the shower and have literally placed one leg in when I remember, so I have to turn the shower off and get to it. It’s not in my head yet, but hopefully my % will improve.

2) The getting to bed earlier by following the TCM guidance on daily, bodily rhythms is best not mentioned yet as I’ve been hopeless at this. That said, I always find that the things where I flail are the processes that potentially have the most to offer...

3) The detox via the eyes started today (better late than never). As I said on Day 1, my choice of addendum activities was pretty much random and instinctive, not much thought went into it, but of course, even supposedly random choices hold deeper meanings. I haven’t suffered much in the way of the dreaded ‘detox’ but one thing I did notice, on perhaps Day 6 or 7 was a tiny cyst on the inside of one of my eyes. It was nothing major and had disappeared by the evening of the day when it appeared, but I have to admit I did let out a little whoop at how our bodily instincts have much to tell us if we let them, knowing that I’d chosen a cleansing ‘eye’ addendum!

Whilst I found the wheatgrass (or to be specific, kamut) seeds early on, I only got around to soaking and sowing them more recently, but how I wished I’d started this earlier. What a revelation! Finally, a way of experiencing the ‘energy shot’ wheatgrass provides without drinking the stuff (my tastebuds do NOT like wheatgrass) but my eyes LOVED the stuff!

In last century’s ‘raw movement’ there was lots of talk about the Bates method and the improvement of eyesight. I will talk about that another day, but on a more basic level, as I’m sure you all know, the eyes are a barometer of the body’s health. Cloudy patches, dark spots and lines all reveal areas of ill health within the body which can be specifically pinpointed by iridologists (or self-study). In contrast, ‘The perfect iris is flawless – no distortion of fibres, no spots, no cloudiness. Its natural colour is blue, green or brown ... With healing, the natural colour will return. The whole iris may become lighter in colour’. (Survival into the 21st century by Viktoras Kulvinskas).

Converts in early raw testimonials noted that through examination of the irises they could follow the progress of their body healing:

‘... my companions became transformed into the most beautiful people I’ve ever seen: beautiful brown bodies ... shiny hair and diamond piercing eyes’.

‘My irises were dark brown with black holes all over. Now my irises are turning blue and light yellowish brown’.

‘... eyes are changing colour from brown to blue. They are green with more blue coming through’.

‘My nine year old son’s irises are green and turning blue (from olive brown). Pretty good huh? My irises are bluer every day!’

(All testimonials from Life in the 21st Century compiled by Viktoras Kulvinskas).

I am planning to have an iridology consultation later this year, but for now I’m following Elaine Bruce’s instructions (Living Foods for Radiant Health: The Authentic Guide to Using Fresh and Raw Foods, p. 151): ‘A daily eye bath with cold water in which there is a small amount of wheatgrass juice will, over a period of weeks, clear and tone up your eyes’ with Bruce noting that the procedure ‘may smart a little, as the tissues in your eyes ... will not be used to exposure to cold water, but as the mucus membranes become toned and clean this will no longer be noticeable’. Bruce adds that, ‘if you choose to use wheatgrass in the water ... it should be passed through a fine strainer first’. As the picture shows I used a pipette rather than an eye bath ... and I will be doing so tomorrow and the day after and the day after ... It really is the most amazing ‘zing’ for the eyes!

Liquid Feasting - Days 7-8

Apart from the orange deviation on day 2, I have been green juicing for over a week now.

I wrote about colour healing back in the autumn and everything that is said about the colour green I am feeling:

‘Green is a vibration of harmony and balance, hence it is of fundamental importance to the nervous system. Soothing and sympathetic, it does not excite, inflame or irritate. Restorer of tired nerves and giver of new energy, it is nature’s master tonic. Green stimulates the master (pituitary) gland for better control of other glands and organs throughout the body, dissolves blood clots, and builds muscles. Green represents the chlorophyll or cleansing principle. Start all schedules of colour healing with one or more green exposures’. Viktoras Kulvinskas, Survival Into the 21st Century (CT, 1975), p. 210.

I made a liquid version of the infamous raw lemon pudding (avocado, fresh dates and lemon) by using a lot more lemon than usual than usual last night. I had major cravings for an hour after slurping this down. I didn’t even trust myself to walk past a jar of goji berries!

However, all was back to normal by this morning and I’m back on the 3 pints a day of green juice (hemp, nettles, apple and celery juice) and no cravings whatsoever. No teas, no coconut butter, no bee pollen, all often described as the ‘comfort food’ of feasters! This is testament (to me, at least) of the 'power of green’ juice. I am picking fresh, wild nettles for each juice and this is clearly providing me with everything my body needs. Ditto the hemp. I have been meaning to write, since the feast began, about the nutritional value of hemp, as much for myself, as for anyone else reading, as my desire for a hemp based feast was literally plucked out of the air, driven by bodily instinct. As luck would have it, I stumbled across this last night. I, obviously, make my own hemp milk (and advocate whole rather than shelled hemp, because of the greater nutritional value and also the use of less ‘processing’) but nonetheless the article clearly outlines hemp’s magisterial qualities and the products are a fab idea for busy people. The other place, and where I was primarily inspired to advance on my merry hemp way was via Funky Raw’s issue number 5, from back in Winter 05/06 (!) and an article called ‘Super Hemp Me’. The writer was inspired by the documentary Super Size Me to Super Hemp Me describing hemp as ‘the best, most nutritionally perfect food’.

It would seem so because ...detox? What detox?! The only real difference I’ve noticed is that I am sleeping a little longer – 9 rather than 8 hours a night – and very deeply.

Oh, and if the illustration from the last post is too radical for certain friends, then a subtle way to emphasise the vitality of living foods is to suggest the said friends watch Super Size Me. I’m not kidding. I was probably the last person in the world to see this film. ‘Why would I want to watch a guy eat out at Maccy D’s?’ was my reasoning. However, the subtle message is that there are only two people who look good in this film (in my eyes): the director’s girlfriend (now wife) and John Robbins, both vegan health promoters. Enough said.

Don't Try This at Home!

Reading the fantastic Viktoras Kulvinskas interview in the latest issue of Get Fresh inspired me to re-read some of his publications. One of the 'Seven Secrets of Success' listed in the interview encouraged the making of fermented food '... it nurtures friendly bacteria, and is loaded with enzymes and B-complex vitamins ... Cultures that are long-lived always include at least one form of fermented food on a daily basis'. His Life in the 21st Century had a suggestion from a contributor re. jelly coconut fermentation (and I'd just picked up a stash from a new source). The instructions were easy: simply chop the jelly coconut up finely, put it into a jar and seal it until bubbles appear (around 24-48 hours). Then mash in a ripe banana. The contributor wrote that 'To me it tastes like scrambled eggs. Fruitarian egg substitute'. To me it smelt like very bad eggs, so much so that I couldn't even bring myself to taste it!!! More on Viktoras soon ...