Mono?

Blah, Blah, Blah, I had mono.  The mono test came back negative, but my IgG test said that I have had mono before.  On this particular test, if you score over 21.9 then it shows that mono anti-bodies are present and therefore you have had mono.  My score was 600.  What?  The doctor guess that I must have had if very recently.  Of all the tests that they did, this was the best possible situation.  Yay!  The strange thing is my joint pain and that I'm still filling symptoms and that I still have petechiae from time to time.  Well the Doctor said that sometimes you immune system takes some time to heal.

In the mean time, some things that I'm trying to do for my immune system is get enough sleep.
Ideally from 9:30pm-5:30am with a 30 minute nap in the afternoon.

I'm doing push-ups, mountain climbers, yoga bicycles, and planks in the morning before I get going.  I'm starting slow with these and each month I'll add to it.  I'd like to jump right in to exercising again, but I know I have to take it slow.  I love the exercise and the way it makes me feel.

On Mondays I teach my yoga class.  On the other days of the week, I'm going to start walking.  First starting with a mile and progressively adding to that amount.

In the evenings, if my husband is home, we'll go for a 30 minute walk.  (except on Tuesdays, I'll go to a 60 minute yoga class.)  If he's out of town, I'll do some yoga at home for about 20-30 minutes.  I really love exercising in the evening!

In January, I'll start adding a yoga class on Fridays.

Before bed I do a series of slow deep yoga stretches.  The bedtime routine is, standing forward fold, standing wide angle forward fold C, pigeon/king pigeon, child pose, thread the needle, wide angle forward fold and then to the side to each leg, bridge pose, happy baby, supine garudasana twist, legs on the bed then butterfly while on my back, and then savasana.  After this my mind is quiet and ready to commune with the Divine.  It's beautiful!

Now as far as nutrition.  I'm really into intuitive eating so it is difficult to say exactly what I eat, but the things I really try to fit in are
1.  Warm lemon water first thing in the morning
2.  Fresh carrot/apple/grapefruit juice
3.  Green smoothie with two huge handfuls of spinach

The rest I try to have good meals that taste good.  I enjoy eating lots of vegetables and fruits.  I try to add them whenever I can.  I also try to avoid white flour/rice and red meat.

That's the plan.  I hope it works and I stop ending up in bed with a fever and aches.

Soon, I'm going to tell you our story about a dog and how this is going to be THE BEST CHRISTMAS EVER!

Escape Velocity

There was only one person in my yoga class this morning.  Monica.  This was only her second time coming to yoga.  I could tell she was stiff.  She even admitted that "self-care" was not one of her strong points.  My heart went out to her.  I see people come to class who are living in a world that hurts and they are looking for shelter.   They are hurt.  They don't know where to go.  Monica cried at the end of class.  This is not highly unusual.  Yoga speaks to the soul.  When it does, the person who has ignored their soul, feels it.  Emotion is released.  That's what I love about yoga.  I love that it can be healing.

The day got away with me.  My appetite got away with me.

I think I need to wake up at 5am even if I didn't sleep well like last night.  I can always take a nap.

I'm feeling really busy.  Verging on overwhelmed.

My husband is working on starting a new business.  It's going to be so cool.  The product is amazing.

We went to our church and cleaned tonight with two other families in our congregation.  The kids had fun.  It's important to look outside ourselves and help others.

I'm reading Open by Andre Agassi.  (I wouldn't recommend it since it has more swearing in it than in the halls of a  Junior High School.)  Andre had a pretty sad and unfulfilled life.  It was only when he gave and served others that he finally found a bit of peace and each time he was reminded that that was what living was about.  It's true.  There is no real meaning in life unless you're touching and enriching someone's life.  If you are just concerned with things, then you can be replaced and your mark isn't left on the world.  If you work with people then you change them.  When you change a person, you never die because you are in their heart and if you affect their heart so much that they can help another person, your impact and satisfaction become infinite.

"Our lives are made up of millions of small decisions.  So in the end, it's the small decisions that matter.  Whatever we consistently do, makes us who we are.  Physics states that an object in motion stays in motion.  This is how life is.  If we chose a path and want to be on the path, we need to make small decisions that keep us on the path.  Each decision you make (whatever direction you're going) makes the next one in that same direction easier.  The first of the path is the hardest.  Once you get past the escape velocity, things become easier.  The message is to just keep going.  Take small steps, but make sure they are forward and that you are on the path that you want to be." 

Hobby Lobby

Do you know who Steve Green is?  

I didn't either, but I do know Hobby Lobby. 

Steve is the CEO of the family company (Hobby Lobby) that is one of the largest privately owned.

Enter Obama.

Enter the Affordable Care Act

and the requirement to offer insurance coverage for "emergency birth control methods".

As you probably know, emergency birth control methods means that an egg has been fertilized. 

To many people, this means there is a person forming.

To many people, this means that killing that organism is killing a person.

To many people, including Dr. Seuss, "a person is a person no matter how small".

So to allow your company to pay for what you believe to be abortion,

is a moral dilemma - to say the least.

Ephesians 6:12

• New Testament

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 

One of the definitions of principalities is rulers or government.

Steve Green is in a battle against the principalities of this world - the US government.
They have told him that through his family company, he needs to provide abortion funding for his employees.
Steve is not saying that his employees can't have abortions.
He realizes that that is not his choice to make and he doesn't expect them to believe how he believes,
but he does expect to be protected in his beliefs.
He does not want to be involved in their abortion.
According to his religion, killing a fertilized egg is murder and "contrary to the word of God".
He wants no part of this and asks that his religious views be respected.

I feel for Steve.
He is fighting a huge battle against a huge government.
The spotlight he is in is white-hot.
There is pressure.

The Supreme Court case will come down to one Justice's swing vote.

Just as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would rather face a fiery furnace than bow to an idol at the command of King Nebuchadnezzar so is Steve being asked, in his mind, to forsake his God.
Steve is standing strong for his values and only wants the right to practice his religion, something this country was founded on.
He said, "Even if God does not deliver us, we still cannot do this."

Pray for him.