While simple detoxes might put a spring in your step for the short term, changing your lifestyle so it’s consistent is really the way to achieve ongoing vibrant health. But if burgers and fries have been your friends for as long as you can remember, it might hard knowing where to start. Besides avoiding the drive thru, there are small steps you can take that will make a lasting impact.

Amanda Rootsey and David Rafter know too well how a fast-paced life of excess can eventually weigh you down. With Amanda saying goodbye to a jet-setting life as an international model after being diagnosed with cancer, and David saying “no more” to burning the candle at both ends, the couple retreated to the mountains where they embarked on living not only the simple life, but also set about changing their diets.

Having lived and learned how to achieve true vibrant health and a more fulfilled life, they’re now sharing their knowledge, so others can experience a similar shift.

“We’ve developed a 21-day Live Vegan program that is specifically tailored to each person, with daily emails, world class writers, videos, e-books and lots more,” says David, who with Amanda publish the popular website Vegan Era.

“We totally understand that living in this world can sometimes drag us down. Sometimes all you need is a helpful ear and person to write to. That is where we come in. Any time you are feeling stressed or down, write to us and we will keep you on track.”

“We like to make the program a little bit of fun, so we have decided to include some cool videos of us introducing the program.We are also in the mix of packaging up our seminar that we present to the world. It is a very informative piece of media and includes a whole array of topics—everything from health, to the environment to your beautiful soul. There is not much we don’t cover.”

Those who take part in the program, which starts January 15, will receive a pack boasting hundreds of hints and tips on how to start making gentle shifts immediately.

“There’s also a great guide to help you set out your daily meals for the 21 days,” Amanda says. “We go through what you should be eating, and where you can buy certain products.”

“You have the Vegan Era 24 hours a day, seven days a week for the 21 days. We totally understand that living in this world can sometimes drag us down. Sometimes all you need is a helpful ear and person to write to. That is where we come in. Any time you are feeling stressed or down, write to us and we will keep you on track.”

To find out more about this transformative program, visit www.veganera.com/Program.htm

“Running a website and starting a Facebook fan page, hoping customers will find you, is unfortunately not going to take any business from a start-up to a super success,” she says. “It takes detailed knowledge and experience to connect with customers through various mediums.”

The media spotlight, Shannon says, is of course where every business wants to get noticed. However, in a world where first impressions count, ensuring your business is a tight-running, well-branded ship is the first port of call before trying to entice a journalist to sing your eco praises. Then, being able to deliver above and beyond what you promise is paramount.

“It’s learning how to stand out from the eco crowd that can mean the difference between green boom or bomb.”

After 16 years in the media and publicity industries, Shannon saw that eco conscious businesses needed professional support and a helping hand to promote their green services and wares.

“Running an eco-conscious business is no longer a lonely journey, but it also means the customer has thousands of options to choose from, whether it be which eco baby bottle to buy or what website to get their trusted information from,” Shannon says. “It’s learning how to stand out from the eco crowd that can mean the difference between green boom or bomb.”

A Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Business Award winner, Shannon launched CLM to support businesses who are contributing to ensure a better world, while bringing content with a conscience to the masses.

“We provide specialized editorial content, targeted publicity campaigns, copy editing, feature writing, proofreading services, graphic design, advertorials, corporate newsletter compilation, small business website and blog design,” she says. “We service a global client base, focusing on the Australasian, as well as the ever-popular US and UK markets.”

To find out more about how to give your eco-conscious businesses specialized exposure, head to www.consciouslifemedia.com or email info@consciouslifemedia.com

~ Article from www.thegreendove.com

Marguerite Alston

Ten years ago , Marguerite Alston was faced with a major health challenge that would change her life forever. A malignant melanoma diagnosis sent her stress levels off the scale. Her future was suddenly uncertain.

“I vowed at that point in time that I would do all that I can to look after my body, mind and spirit,” she says, now fully recovered. “I wanted to learn all that I could about nutrition and gain a deeper understanding of what I can do to make sure I live a long, vibrant and healthy life and I never wanted to deal with cancer ever again.”

Before we bring you the second installment of our interview with the BodyMind Institute founder, Lars Gustafsson (see below), CLM brings you this inspirational Q&A with Marguerite (pictured left), BodyMind student and now practitioner.

Students of the Institute not only learn the fundamentals of nutrition through body, mind and spirit, but also discover how to apply the information to their own lives to make gentle yet major shifts that last a lifetime.

If you missed part one of our interview with Lars, please click here.

CLM: What courses did you study at the BodyMind Institute?

MA: I started with the 90 Day Renewal course and have since taken the Level I, Level II and am currently enrolled in the Raw Certification.

CLM: Can you give an insight into what brought you to the Institute?

MA: In 2000, I went through some significant life changes that resulted in lots of stress throughout the year.   In October of that year, I was diagnosed with malignant melanoma.  Fortunately all was taken care of through surgery and all has been good since, but I vowed at that point in time that I would do all that I can to look after my body, mind and spirit. I wanted to learn all that I could about nutrition and gain a deeper understanding of what I can do to make sure I live a long, vibrant and healthy life and, I never wanted to deal with cancer ever again.

I started to do a lot of reading and research on the Internet, but would find myself overwhelmed with all the info. I knew from the things I’d had read and heard that disease cannot survive in an alkaline environment. What does that really mean?  How do I create a more alkaline environment in my body?  How did all this stress affect my health?  Could I have avoided the cancer? How do my thoughts affect my body?  Why do I have cravings at night? I had a million questions and was having a hard time finding simple answers!  I really wanted to make sense of all of this (and more!) and to take charge of my health.  In the nutshell, that is what brought me to BodyMind Nutrition, and I am very thankful I found them.

CLM: What emotional, mental, spiritual and physical changes have you gone through?

MA: Physically, I had immediate results from some of the simple shifts I learned from the 90 Day Renewal program. My energy increased, I wasn’t having the ‘crashes’ throughout the day and the best part was that I was sleeping so much better. What is so fantastic is that now when I have a ‘low energy day’ or I feel a little ‘off’ emotionally or physically, I can now take a step back and explore why that might be. I can look at things like what I ate, how much water I drank (or didn’t drink), what thoughts were occupying my mind, etc. and figure out what I need to do to get back on track. This has really empowered me to take charge of my health. On a spiritual and mental level, I feel a much deeper connection to the ‘real me’ so to speak and I trust my intuition to guide me a lot more than I ever did. Lastly, learning so much about the power of intention and the affect your thoughts have on your body and life has brought my self-awareness to a whole new level.

CLM: How has what you learned and applied changed your life and your experience of life?

MA: I view nutrition and living a health lifestyle so differently now, and the word ‘now’ is the key to it for me – living more in the moment. I make so many more (and better) conscious decisions throughout the day and am very forgiving if I do happen to go off track and have a ‘fun meal’ (I don’t do it very often but once in a while it really hits the spot to have a burger, fries and chocolate fudge sundae!).  Once upon a time I would have stressed over it … I ‘shouldn’t have had it’ and instead I enjoy it in the moment and then get back on track with healthy choices. Living a healthy lifestyle is a choice and I feel in complete control of that.  I have so many answers to the questions I once had and find that the ongoing learning creates new questions … and answers.

CLM: What would you say makes the courses so valuable?

MA: Firstly, I love the fact that I can learn from such great masters and experts.  Lars has connected himself with so many of them and I know that I’m learning from the best. The BodyMind Institute is always updating and upgrading its material.

Secondly and on a professional level, my passion is helping people be the best they can be and have owned and operated a corporate training company for about 10 years.  Our primary focus is on ‘soft skills’ training (interpersonal skills, leadership/coaching, team effectiveness, sales/service, etc). It has been my dream to combine what I have traditionally done and add in a focus on health and well-being to help people achieve all that they want in life. Being a certified BodyMind practitioner has enabled me to make my dream become a reality. In June, I am launching a new program called Your Personal Mastery. This program combines some of my existing programs with material and resources I have as a BodyMind practitioner. I am very grateful for this and very excited about it!

I don’t know of too many traditional learning systems that do both for you – educate and help you be successful in your business.

CLM: What’s one thing that you learned in the courses that contribute to your change – the one lesson above all else that you will carry with you forever?

MA: This is a tough one to answer, as there are so many lessons.  I think what stands out the most from taking the courses through the BodyMind Institute is that I feel so very empowered to take charge of my health and well-being through conscious choices I make in the moment. I have learned that making the desired changes doesn’t have to be complicated, they are just like BodyMind teaches – ‘Simple shifts that last your lifetime’…and before you know it, they become every day habits.

The BodyMind Institute and raw food nutritionist and expert David ‘Avocado’ Wolfe are offering a program in raw food nutrition—a course that shares more than 15 years of David’s sought-after knowledge. So passionate is he about reaching those who share his dream to make a difference, that with David Wolfe, Lars is offering free entry to the BodyMind Institute Level I BodyMind Nutrition Certification for the first 1000 people who sign up for David’s Raw Nutrition Certification. It’s a $1,500 gift, he explains, to reach those who also want to make a difference—to their own health, the health of others and the health of the planet. Find out more here.

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We hope you enjoy part II of our interview with Lars (below), as he shares more nutritional insights as well as three life-changing power statements…

Lars Gustafsson

You just have to browse the web or your nearest book store to see the world is obsessed with dieting. Yet if statistics are accurate, we’re not just tipping the scales, we’re on our way to breaking them. It has taken many of us years of restrictions and meal replacements to figure it out: diets don’t work.

From calorie counting to cutting out carbs, a Pandora’s Box awaits those who still dare to follow the latest diet craze. Yet achieving and maintaining your ideal figure is actually more simple than what we’ve been lead to believe—and it comes with a bonus: vibrant health.

There is one major requirement that’s needed on this path to ultimate wellness and the body we’ve all dreamed of: taking full responsibility. Taking charge and becoming our own nutritionist and not relying on big business to deliver a magic bullet that is nothing more than body-disruptive chemicals dressed in drag.

Perhaps it’s an assumption to say most of us were taught the same stuff in school, none of which covered off real nutrition and how to actually apply it. Yet, the lesson of nutrition is one of the most important life lessons we can ever learn. We also weren’t taught that nourishing ourselves is actually fun and can lead us to a full, love-fueled life. A nourished, healthy body results in clear thinking, more energy and, for many, a channel to the divine. No pill could ever compete with that.

Enter Lars Gustafsson: author, speaker, life and nutrition guide. Born in India to Canadian parents, he grew up living an authentic mix of tribal and western life. “This upbringing,” he says “created a balance between the scientific passion of the west and the ancient wisdom of the Far East.”

For 23 years, Lars has explored nutrition, fitness and healthy lifestyles. As founder of the BodyMind Institute—a global enlightened school of learning—he teaches that nutrition is so much more than just the food we eat. It’s the total way we nourish our mind and body.

“Over these years I found that I needed to personally experience something in order to accept it as fact.  In the end I have found that it is only through personal experience in the application of any information can you make your own informed decisions. Your own level of personal truth will grow according to your willingness to experience more.”

In 2003, Lars introduced The BodyMind Nutrition Certification online programs to meet an emerging demand for true to life systems, formulas and programs, creating the opportunity for people everywhere to discover and pass on a nutrition and lifestyle process that creates a personal discovery of balance in body, mind and spirit.

“I believe in the scientific method, that there are natural laws that govern our physical universe … yet in these 23 years I have often found the ‘unexplainable’ happening all around me,” Lars says. “These have created questions which led me to find hard scientific data that hasn’t found it’s way into the mass media or awareness of the masses.”

“Over these years I found that I needed to personally experience something in order to accept it as fact.  In the end I have found that it is only through personal experience in the application of any information can you make your own informed decisions. Your own level of personal truth will grow according to your willingness to experience more.”

Most recently, Lars has teamed up with raw food nutritionist and expert David ‘Avocado’ Wolfe to deliver a program in raw food nutrition—a course that shares more than 15 years of David’s sought-after knowledge. With this course and other programs including 90 Day BodyMind Renewal and Sports Nutrition, the BodyMind Institute is changing the way we look at real nutrition, forever.

As a student of the BodyMind Raw Nutrition, the 90 Day BodyMind Renewal and the Nutrition I certifications, I wanted to reach out to Lars, to hear first hand how these online courses are bringing real nutrition to people at their own pace, in their own time. What I discovered is a man with a passion that goes beyond simply developing courses. Lars Gustafsson is making a difference, one person at a time through life-enhancing education that literally changes lives.

So passionate is he about reaching those who share his dream to make a difference, that with David Wolfe, Lars is offering free entry to the BodyMind Institute Level I BodyMind Nutrition Certification for those who sign up for David’s Raw Nutrition Certification. It’s a $1,500 gift, he explains, to reach those who also want to make a difference—to their own health, the health of others and the health of the planet.

“Let’s bring about a stunning shift to our planet together,” Lars says.

We hope you enjoy part I of our interview with Lars (below), as he takes you behind the scenes of his passion that is giving back in a big way. Next Monday (May 17) we will share part II of this special interview.

To find out more about Lars and the BodyMind Institute, please click here.

The Body Mind Connection by Shannon Dunn

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Koch, who is a renowned style expert and journalist, showed off her new book poolside at the swanky hotel as guests received exclusive styling tips on how to be a fashion forward, conscious  “pregnantista” without breaking the bank. With silhouette-based line drawings by several of today’s top fashion designers such as Nicole Miller, Isaac Mizrahi, Diane Von Furstenberg and Milly, along with advice culled from editors at Vogue, Lucky, and W; Bump It Up is being touted as the modern pregnancy style bible.

CLM’s Stuart Brazell headed to the WET poolside to chat to Amy about her new book. She also heard first hand tips from Anna on how to be green and glam. They also chatted about Pregnancy Awareness Month, an empowerment campaign to help women feel comfortable as they move into motherhood.

Cynthia Morgan

Hypnotherapist Cynthia Morgan will be sharing powerful healing techniques at an upcoming workshop: Healing Through Hypnosis, to be held at the Mondrian Hotel, Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles on Saturday, May 22.

Conscious Life Media (CLM) caught up with Cynthia to get the inside goss on what life-affirming tips people can expect to gain from the workshop experience and how the technique can change lives.

CLM: What can participants expect to learn at the workshop?

CM: The premise of the workshop is based on the idea that we really are our own worst enemy. No one holds us back, trips us up, or stops us from achieving a happier, healthier and more successful life than ourselves. And more specifically, it’s our thinking that limits us.

Most people attempt to use the power of will or positive thinking to overcome their limitations and improve their lives, and although those are worthy tools, they are limited because they are generated from the conscious mind. Whatever your problem is, it’s not in your conscious mind. If it were, you would have resolved it by now. The problem—relationship issues, finances, addiction, insomnia, illness—is tied to a deeper part of your mind, your subconscious.

The subconscious mind is like a hard drive. You can’t have a different picture on the computer screen of your life without changing the hard drive. And this particular hard drive is programmed by thoughts. Our subconscious thoughts are running us.

So, based on that premise, using hypnosis techniques, which bypass the conscious mind and get to the core of the matter, you can discover the deleterious self-thoughts programmed in your mind and undo them. Freud basically said that the only way to heal was to make the unconscious conscious. Once you expose the negative beliefs that are holding you back, you can them heal them. In fact, just looking at them often heals them.

Through the techniques that I will teach them, participants will begin to uncover their “bad programming,” learn how those thoughts have been holding them back until now, and they will learn how to heal them. I expect miracles to happen in this workshop. That’s my goal with each participant—real internal transformation. Of course, we’ll have lots of fun too.

It doesn’t matter whether you know what those thoughts are, or if you’ve been working on healing them for years, or if you don’t have a clue as to what those thoughts are. Wherever you are on your journey of self-discovery, my hope is to take you to that next level of healing.

CLM: What are some of the most common beliefs that hold people back from realizing their true potential?

CM: Having looked into the subsconscious mind of over a thousand people, I can assure you that we are all more alike than different (although that might not be reassuring to some!). A few of the more common beliefs are that we are not good enough, we are bad, we are unworthy, we are alone, we will never get what we want, and we are unlovable.

CLM: Are most of our beliefs cemented in childhood?

CM: This is a fascinating topic that I will discuss in more detail at the workshop, but generally, most of our beliefs are very, very old. I do not believe that we come into this world a tabula rasa. We come in already programmed with fears, ideas, and thoughts from the womb and beyond. And we continue to get programmed with specific ideas once we are here, particularly up until the ages of 9-11 years old. Before that age, we are an open subconscious mind. That’s why you can tell a child about the tooth fairy and he or she will believe you. You can also tell him that he’s a loser and he will believe you. Or that she will always be fat, and she will believe you. Whoever we looked to as an authority figure had the potential to program our mind.

It’s worthy of a more lengthy discussion, but there is no concept of time in the subconscious mind, everything occurs at once. So, though you accepted these ideas at six years old, they’re still affecting you at 35. The body ages, but the mind doesn’t. It constantly projects out what is in it. That’s why changing the hard drive is necessary for a different result

We will be doing some childhood regression work in the workshop—looking at those events in which you accepted false ideas about yourself.

CLM: What advice would you offer to parents who are conscious of helping to shape positive beliefs in their kids?

CM: Well, the first thing I would say is that bad programming by authority figures is part of the deal here. We have all been programmed badly and we will program others badly. We are not healed human beings, and until then, there’s going to be an awful lot of bad ideas passed around and down. As a parent, be gentle with yourself when you fall into that, but also know that one positive thought outweighs a hundred negative thoughts. Speak to children of their potential not their limitation.

Whatever your child’s issue, you can come up with a couple of positive reprogramming statements for him or her to repeat to themselves (conscious mind repetition programs the subconscious). Also, get your child to visualize himself in the situation accomplishing their goal. If he’s afraid of swimming, you could have him say, “I love to swim. Swimming is fun.” And tell him to shut his eyes and see himself swimming in a pool with other children, jumping off the diving board, and having a good time. Make a game out of it.

CLM: Who is your typical client?

CM: I have a very specific client base. I feel like I could be a great friend with any of my clients. They are all referrals so they’re all closely connected though they’d never know it. Generally, it’s pretty evenly divided between men and women. They’re usually in their 30s and 40s—open, learned, interesting, cool people. But I also have a 6-year old client right now and 77-year old too.

CLM: Your upcoming book is titled “You’re Already Hypnotized: A Guide to Waking Up”. Are most of us asleep?

CM: The book title comes from something I say to each new client on a first session. Often they come in excited to do hypnotherapy but perhaps with a bit of trepidation lurking from all the myths surrounding hypnosis. So I tell them that I am a really a de-hypnotherapist. Because it’s true. They’re already hypnotized. Meaning, by the time they walk into my office their minds are already filled with false beliefs. It’s my job to help them identify what those thoughts are and relinquish them. The way I see it, we are all asleep to our true nature, to our potential, to love, to meaning, and to the truth that all minds are joined and there’s really only one of us here. My mission is help people wake-up to reality. Once you glimpse your true nature, you become happier, healthier, more peaceful and more successful in the world.

CLM: What are the typical characteristics of a) someone who is awake and b) someone who is asleep?

CM: Very simply, someone who is awake is not run by fear. He or she no longer buys what the world is selling. Awakened ones have undone their old programming and taken back control of their minds. Ultimately, with every hypnosis session I perform, whether it’s a regression session of a past trauma or a reprogramming session for smoking, my goal is help people wake-up. Sometimes the best place to begin to awaken is by stopping smoking, or losing ten pounds, or forgiving your father. Awakening can begin anywhere, anytime, with any issue. In fact, every issue is just trying to get you to wake-up. I don’t believe in hierarchies of healing.

CLM: The greatest misconceptions about hypnotherapy?

CM: Oh, how much time do we have? There are so many! Keeping it short, I think the greatest misconception is that I have control over a client. I don’t. The client is always in control. I can only guide him or her. Along with that is the idea that I have the power to adversely program someone’s subconscious. The truth is, the subsconscious mind will not accept any thought that the conscious mind would be in disagreement with. So, I can’t program you to rob a bank unless you think that’s a really good idea.

CLM: How do you see the future of hypnotherapy?

CM: I get excited when I think of the future of hypnotherapy. As more people begin to recognize that the problem, whatever it is, individually in our own lives and collectively on this planet, is ultimately a problem in our mind and that subsequently the solution is there too, hypnotherapy will flourish. I’ve been doing this work almost every day for the last eight years, and I’ve watched hypnotherapy become more mainstream. It’s now frequently in newspapers, magazines and on television. I can hardly keep up with the demand, which is one reason I wanted to do this workshop.

The potential use of hypnosis is limitless. As I’ve mentioned, it’s beneficial for resolving personal issues and healing illnesses and addictions and phobias, but beyond that it can be used as a means to achieve enlightenment and even for exploring the nature of reality. The more you do this work, the more you awaken to the truth that everything begins in the mind.

Traditional talk therapy is antiquated. Interestingly, the use of hypnosis predates not only chemical anesthesia but psychotherapy as well. Hypnosis was hugely popular at the turn of the 20^th century, and even though it has taken a quiet back seat to traditional therapy since then, there have been tremendous advancements and discoveries in the art of hypnotherapy, making it, in my opinion, not only the future of therapy, but the future of healing. What’s old is new again.

To find out more and sign up for Cynthia’s Healing Through Hypnosis workshop click here.

ABOUT CYNTHIA MORGAN

Cynthia Morgan is a board certified hypnotherapist, but her extensive clientele consider her to be much more than that. Her unique approach to the art of hypnotherapy has redefined its practice as a powerful form of spiritual teaching, emotional healing, and behavior modification. Incorporating her highly creative hypnosis techniques Cynthia provides an experience for her clientele that continues to transcend expectations.

Cynthia is an on-going contributing writer to The Green Dove and her articles have been published in a variety of online magazines. She has been interviewed for magazines as well as numerous newspapers.

Cynthia’s spiritual journey began very early when she was initiated into Transcendental Meditation at the age of seven. Her formative years were spent learning from some of the most celebrated spiritual teachers of our time. In 2002, Cynthia graduated from the prestigious Hypnotherapy Academy of America, and earned her professional certification into the American Council of Hypnotist Examiners.

Since that time, Cynthia has practiced hypnotherapy full-time, incorporating her considerable background in hypnosis, meditation, spirituality, healing, mind/body exploration, and 25 years of experience working with A Course in Miracles.

Her philosophy that we don’t need to do anything to heal ourselves, but rather we must undo the thoughts that stand in the way of healing applies to addictions, illness, phobias, pain, depression, and any other issues faced by her clients. Cynthia’s techniques have proven to be highly successful in transforming the lives of thousands, establishing her as one of the most innovative and respected practitioners in her field.

She lives in Los Angeles.

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Extreme Makeover: Home Edition's & Desperate Spaces' Daniel Kucan

By Daniel Kucan of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition & HGTV’s Desperate Spaces

Changing your mind is hard, make no mistake. In particular it’s very nearly impossible when the entire world is telling you how correct you are, that you are on the path, doing the right thing, valid. But even so, the little voice is powerful, the tiny, whispering spirit that pokes at the folds of your grey matter and slowly insinuates itself into your consciousness, telling you that you are completely, utterly, ferociously astray.

It’s gotten easier as I get older, I guess. I don’t say that because it actually feels more effortless, I say that because I seem to change my mind a lot these days. It’s a little disconcerting, actually, the vast array of things on which I’ve swung: I like plaid now, for instance. I used to dig cats, now I’m squarely a dog guy, I like gardening (too boring for me before), I love my scars, and I don’t eat animals.

It’s really just a different way of looking at something that I didn’t completely understand formerly. Sometimes, I find that I need to flip something on its head in order for me to see it right, stare right at it until my retinas burn into clarity and yes becomes no, up becomes down.

The first time I met Maldanado, the guy who’s going to throw down with me tonight, we were maybe 19 years old. He was a little guy, thin, whipchain arms, long braid down his back to his waist. Everything was point style back then, which meant you never went to the ground and if you got in a clinch, the referee would stop it and separate you.  It wasn’t like the continuous brawls that you see now in the UFC. But at the same time, in point style, you could have five, six fights in a day. Nowadays you have a fight, and then recover for three weeks. I’ve already cleared the next several days to ice my bones and sew on anything that gets knocked off.

Maldanado is taping his hands. He’s sitting in a full split, wrapping each finger, gung-fu style. He’s a Chinese stylist from a Taekwondo history, so his kicks are faster than my internet connection.  One time, back at a club tournament fight at NYU, Maldanado threw a round house kick at me that was so blindingly quick that he tapped my nose with his big toe and set his foot back down on the ground before I even raised my hands. I spent the next seven days explaining my two black eyes to classmates and had to take handfulls of pills until my shoulder worked again.  No one ever said these lessons come easy, but they come all the same.

But tonight, I’m way more ambitious. So much so, in fact, that I’m hoping to be able to walk home without a limp.

I’m a vegan, haven’t eaten any meat since ‘89. It’s funny ‘cause I get all this guff for it, right? The grand master of our school was a Chinese National Living Treasure named Chan. He was, I don’t know, four, maybe five hundred years old and mean as a snake. The only words in English I ever heard him say were, “wrong ” and my favorite, “idiot ”. He used to teach class with a glass of whiskey in one hand and you could smell the cigarette smoke on him. Chan used to call me Lo Han Jai, which sorta means “vegetarian,” but also means “guy who eats like Buddha” but in that ineffable way that Chinese phrases always have several levels of meaning, is more like calling me “Spicy Tofu with Veggies.” That used to make me crazy, ‘cause he was basically calling me a wimp. The Chinese language can do that, call you four different things with one name.  No one ever caught the irony in all that; up was still up for them, I guess.

So keep your blase’ hipster bacon references and your outdoor meat-fest cookouts, ladies. You all just look like cowards to me, silk-skinned scaredy-cats too fragile and wavering to resist your own appetites.

Maldanado climbs into the ring and rolls his head. It’s three rounds tonight, three minutes each, and let’s be honest, nobody expects me to win. If I could take him to the ground, I’d be preaching the painful gospel all up in here, but tonight is all stand-up.  Now I have way more knockout power than Maldanado does, but in order for that to matter, I gotta hit him, and trust me when I tell you that I’m not optimistic on landing anything.

We step up into the ring and the ref gives us a quick once-over before shooting me a look through cowboy eyes that kinda says, “Wow, do I feel bad for what’s about to happen to you” and someone rings the bell. Now I’d like to tell you that I shoot in all full of fire and razor wire but sometimes you know you’re gonna take a beating and anyone who says otherwise is delusional. But I aint making it up when I tell you that oftentimes the delusional cats are the best fighters; they think they can take ANYBODY. Maldanado was like that, would step in the ring with guys three times his size and walk away without a mark on him, and right now, I’m envying his myopic badassery.

When I was about 11, having stumbled onto the momentous discovery that the dance studio was packed with unbelievably hot girls, I began an epic ballet career that lead to two things: the first was that I determined that chicks really liked guys who could dance, the second was that I was called a faggot pretty much every day of my life up to, and including, today. But it got me jacked and ultimately lead me to gung fu and then Jujitsu and finally MMA. But those ballet dancers I learned from in the beginning, no lie now, they were some of the biggest toughguys I’ve ever known. They could jump higher, kick faster and had better balance than any of the guys I’ve fought with since. I’m not saying they could take a punch, and, yeah, pretty much all of them were gay, but I never equated those things.  I always saw them the same as the fighters I knew.

Somewhere along the lines, we made the same mistake about vegetarians; we decided as a nation that they are soft, effeminate. That never made sense to me either. Not just because I am one and I never thought of myself as particularly soft, but more so because I’ve seen the alternative.

The only difference is that one group likes to make stuff, and one group likes to destroy stuff.  Go watch a Jujitsu class and see if you can tell the difference between a bunch of half naked, sweaty Brazilian guys rolling around together on a mat and your average West Hollywood rave scene.  Not kidding, same thing.

Somewhere along the lines, we made the same mistake about vegetarians; we decided as a nation that they are soft, effeminate. That never made sense to me either. Not just because I am one and I never thought of myself as particularly soft, but more so because I’ve seen the alternative. Burger fiends, pork hounds, you trying to tell me that those guys come down on the butch side of the spectrum? You gonna try to sell me on the hunky masculinity of the huge pot belly, the mullet, the wheezy lungs, heart disease? Go try it right now, go spend some time at the KFC and try to pick out one guy, one effing guy, who embodies virility. Hunters in particular strike me as especially anemic and cowardly, packing gigantic weapons to take down the world’s less dangerous species. In my rubric, kid, killing weaker critters comes down squarely in the box marked “pussified.”

Maldanado goes to work with some stiff jabs and plants a roundhouse kick under my arm that shatters my breathing into shards of jagged rasps. I tuck in one elbow to hold my ribs in place and switch sides. I can fight right or left handed, so I still have a shot at landing a big hammer to his beak, but right now I’m more worried with catching my breath.  He knows I’m rocked and he starts using a long, flicking kick to my kisser to keep me off balance; every time I move in, he sticks me in the teeth with it.

Now don’t get me wrong; I don’t mind the taste of blood and meat, even my own.

My mouth fills up with the iron flavor, and every time he nails me again, I get that slick, metallic syrup shoved down my throat a little more.  And don’t think for a second that he doesn’t know.  He can smell the disquiet comin’ off me like cold sweat and he’s predator enough to know when to press his advantage. His legs are so long and fast that I can’t get inside, I simply have no answer to his speed; and two minutes into the first round, I already know how this thing is going to end, so settle in, bitches, ‘cause I won’t hesitate to splinter your preconceptions.

Hunters, predators, bullies, they’re all the same, man. They all believe that power grants absolution or at least, immunity, but it doesn’t. Power grants culpability, the ethical onus of restraint.  Restraint, kid, see that’s a valorous concept, that’s masculinity. We have dominion over this world, that power is ours and at some point, the world will demand to be paid back. Immunity is a myth, man, trust me on this.

You know what?  I miss meat every day, every damn day. And you want me to think that ceding to that craving is all beefcake?  I don’t get it, since when is doing what’s easy as opposed to doing what’s right the one way ticket to valorous manhood?  I covet all sorts of stuff, that doesn’t mean I go take it. I’ve dreamt the impossible dream, I’ve fought the unbeatable foe (I’ll show you those scars if you ask me kind) but unlike the venerable Lord of La Mancha, I don’t glean any satisfaction merely from the struggle; I glean satisfaction from the fact that I didn’t fucking eat anybody.

Quite honestly, I’m tired of your assumptions, so back off and let me tell it. We end the round with Maldanado sauntering to his corner, fresh as a dang daisy, and I stumble to my stool and miss it by a good six inches. Climbing back up, my corner man is spitting instructions at me but I’m not really sure which one of his faces I should be listening to.  I’ve already got it worked out, so he’s wasting his words anyhow.  Just give me some water and don’t let the ring doctor know I’ve got a cracked pin on the left side.  I know how to deal with predators.

Maldanado flies out of his corner, right at me.  I shrug off his hands, not enough brawn there to end this thing.  But he keeps driving me back with those crazy bolts of lightening that he walks on.  I step back again, trying to sidestep and keep my back off the rope, and manage to avoid the majority of his spleen.  I can feel his frustration as he tries harder and harder to land something substantial, and right when he’s off his nut with ire, I go right at him.  Off his back leg, his power leg, he throws guan men, which means “slam the door” and I tuck my head and block it full on with my face.

Hunters, predators, bullies, they’re all the same, man. They all believe that power grants absolution or at least, immunity, but it doesn’t. Power grants culpability, the ethical onus of restraint.  Restraint, kid, see that’s a valorous concept, that’s masculinity. We have dominion over this world, that power is ours and at some point, the world will demand to be paid back. Immunity is a myth, man, trust me on this. And what Maldanado never learned (predators never do) is that sometimes the boot to the brainpan is its own justification. Not only is the shock of a cracked bean worth the hurt if it lets you get inside, but the throes of that pickle bring a sort of clarity, a transcendent epiphany that heals your wounds and resolves your bleary vision.

So keep your blase’ hipster bacon references and your outdoor meat-fest cookouts, ladies. You all just look like cowards to me, silk-skinned scaredy-cats too fragile and wavering to resist your own appetites.

Maldanado can’t believe it.  He can’t get his head around the fact that I just traipsed right into his kill shot. And even worse, that I’m still standing there, way too close for his comfort. And in the whisper quick moment that he hesitates, I drop an overhand soup bone right out of nowhere and lay it across his gob. As his back hits the mat, the thing I’m most aware of, besides the ache in my elbow, is the baffled look of confusion on Maldanado’s mug as his eyes flicker dim like a bad neon bar sign; and I drag my battered carcass out of the ring.

The humor doesn’t guise it, really. Every time my manager tells me, “Don’t worry, Kucan, this cow was suicidal,” as he tucks into a t-bone with a self-conscious giggle, it’s really like Maldanado’s weak ass jab, a carefully placed barb trying to perpetuate that illusion of moral exculpation. I’ve learned now to step into those shots, block ‘em right on the dial. And every time you call my dinner rabbit food, or ask me if I’m a vegetarian because I love animals or because I hate plants, or tell me that God intended for us to eat animals because he made them out of meat; I can feel my rib go squishy again but I’ll step right into it just the same.

After Maldanado wrestles back his lucidity, he comes over to my corner and smiles and points at me, “I’m gonna need that,” he says. Stupid me, I’m thinking he means my courage, or skill, or something internal that he sees now but had missed before. He clears it up for me when he takes hold of my arm, the one that just put his lights out and pulls from my elbow a long, bloody incisor. “Thanks,” he says, holding up the jagged tooth, and he grins wide enough for me to see the space where it belongs.

Ah well, I’m thinking.  No one ever said these lessons come easy, but they come all the same.

© Conscious Life Media Limited
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M.A.M.A Earth's Kailani Bayot and her boys

Kailani Bayot

How did M.A.M.A. Earth start?

Well M.A.M.A. Earth all started with a bead. I work with crystals and precious stones as a hobby making jewelry and I came across this bead called Malachite-Azurite its such a beautiful stone. It looked so much like the like the earth. Blue and green. I looked it up in my crystal dictionary and it is a stone that promotes healing and aids in transformation. Hence the M.A.M.A. E a r t h wish bracelet. You tie it on make a wish and when it falls off your wish is put into the universe. I thought kids selling these as their school fundraiser would be better than selling chocolate and the best thing is that they get to learn about a different charities and the proceeds are donated to a charity of their choice.

How did you get together with the Q side?

I met Quddus from the Q side at my little brothers first music video shoot. We chatted a bit and realized that were doing a lot of the same kind of work so we partnered up for our Haiti event raising money for Yayasan Bumi Sehat in Haiti. This organization of midwives and teachers started in Indonesia after the Tsunamis and now they are they are in Haiti They just open the doors to their clinic in this past Friday its so cool you should check out their website to see some pictures: bumisehatbali.org.

How important is it to have an event like the recent one to raise the organization’s profile?

I have realized that everyone wants to help and give. It feels good to know you can make a difference. I think why not facilitate these fun events where everyone benefits. Good fun, entertainment for a good cause while raising an awareness of the issues going on in our community and the world.

What are your goals for the next 12 months?

We have a mother’s day charity event coming up in Hawaii. That’s where I’m from. We are in the talks of bringing El Debarge there for a mother’s day concert. Proceeds will benefit a local charity for mothers. You know that M.A.M.A. Earth stands for Mothers about Making Amends right? I’m a mama of two boys (above). Oh yah we also have a follow up event at the VS-65 Skid Row to plant a spring vegetable garden. We planted a fall one in October.

What was M.A.M.A. Earth able to achieve in the past 12 months?

Well in June we hosted a event for a organization called “ Shine on Sierra Leone” to help build their school based in South Africa. Then in August we hosted a red carpet charity event in honor of Michael Jackson for the Volunteers of America VS-65 a organization for homeless veterans. In October we planted a fall vegetable garden with the help of a local high school poetry class at VS-65 skid row, that was a special day. Then we had our last event this past Saturday for Yayasan Bumi Sehat and the mamas in Haiti. We are mamas ourselves so we kinda have to pace ourselves.

How do you choose what causes to support?

It sort of just comes to us in different ways.

M.A.M.A. Earth obviously began because someone put an idea into action. What would you say to those who want to help change the world, but do little to nothing because they think one person couldn’t possibly make a difference?

I say every little bit counts.  You can start by smiling at a stranger once you do a little you will see how good it makes you feel and you’ll do more. It’s like working out. You can get addicted to it and its so good for you.

How can people do their bit to contribute to M.A.M.A. Earth’s mission?

Keep coming to our events, donate on the site and buy a wish bracelet for yourself or a friend, check in to our website periodically for updates 4mamaearth.org and stay conscious and aware of the things you can do to help.

Any celebrity goss from the recent event? How important is celeb backing?

Well…El DeBarge blessed us with his first performance in a very long time. It was magical I think for both him and the audience there was a definite exchange of love. We were competing with Oscar parties so there were just a bunch of celebs who came out this past Saturday. I think celebs have a big influence on the world so when they do good things it inspires us to do the same. Having them at our events helps to draw the media which also helps to raise a awareness on the issues we are all facing.

Your top tips for living a more eco-responsible life?

It’s hard being completely eco these days but you can start by…

• Stop buying plastic and Styrofoam

• Recycle EVERYTHING be creative. You can recreate something old and make it new again.

• Buy local produce.

• Stop listening to the commercials and cut down on the consumption.

I could go on and on. But I think that’s a good start.

Quddus is creating a movement with the Q Side

Quddus

What is the Q Side?

The Q Side is a movement for independent, positive, progressive minded people. I serve up the culture and music that’s in tune with that on theQside.com. The title has my initial but it’s more of a reference to how record companies used to put out music with the A and B sides, a status quo which is unlike The Q Side.

What inspired you to put on this event and how did you get together with M.a.m.a. Earth?

Well now that the situation in Haiti isn’t being featured in the news anymore it’s imperative for us to keep helping the relief effort through grassroot events like the one we put on. I met Kailani Bayot on the music video set of B.o.B’s hit “Nothin on You”. I was dropping by on my friend Ethan Lader who was directing it and Bruno Mars who’s also featured on the song. Kailani asked me if I’d like to host it and after hearing what she had in mind I was happy to jump on board.

As someone who is extremely familiar with and part of the celebrity world, why is it so important to have celebrity backing?

At the moment most people are fascinated with celebrities so getting celebrities involved in something definitely increases your chances of people taking interest.

You had some amazingly talented performers involved, how did they come on board?

Jojo, Res and Mateo are friends of mine so it was just a matter of calling them. Bruno Mars happens to be Kailani’s brother so it was pretty easy to get him involved too. El Debarge was brought into the mix by a publicist named Kayo Anderson who helps m.a.m.a. earth and knew El’s team. El confirmed that’d he’d perform just the day before the event and he ended up giving one of the best vocal performances I’ve ever seen live.

You are extremely active and socially conscious, how do you choose what causes to support?

It’s actually been more of a case of causes choosing me. I get approached by different philanthropic organizations and then I do my research about them. If they’re addressing an issue I feel strongly about I’ll go ahead and support them however I can.

How was the event?

The event was amazing. Despite the rain and all the Oscar parties happening that night we managed to raise over $3000 for Haiti. It was a great turnout. My friend Victor Rasuk from HBO’s new show “How To Make It In America” came out and legends like Mario Van Peebles joined us too. Here’s the highlight video.

How can people join in to support the cause?

They can go to www.bumisehatbali.org to check out the organization we donated to with that event and I’ll be doing a lot more fun fundraisers for other causes so a good way to stay in the loop about those is to follow me on at twitter.com/iamQuddus

What’s next for you?

I’m in development with a few projects including a feature film and The Q Side TV. I’m also getting back to my roots as a DJ and spinning again.

© Conscious Life Media Limited
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