We were sharing on our Community Call this week, the ideas of non-resistance, non-judgement, and non-attachment in the context of both life and our relationship with food. A number of people on the call wanted to hear more, so we thought we'd talk more about it in the blog this week.

Join us to hear more.

Eckhart Tolle, in his book A New Earth, points out that there are 3 principles that are common to most all of the major religions and spiritual paths being followed today. And these 3 principles create a strong foundation for healthy, meaningful relationships with all the different aspects in our lives.

Whether it's our relationship with food, our spouse, our children or an employer, these 3 principles provide the basis for a calm, clear and peaceful way to relate. The 3 principles are non-resistance, non-judgement, and non-attachment.

As I reflected on these principles, I could see that every upset or problem in my life was lacking an element of one of these principles. In other words,I see every problem I have has an element of resistance, judgement or attachment.

We thought we'd take each of these principles and share a bit more about them in our next blogs. This week we talk about Non-Resistance.

It was easy for me to see the resistance when I think back to how I used to get upset if someone cut me off in traffic. To a large part, the upset was because I didn't want that to be happening. And in that resistance, my mind had a field day coming up with reasons to justify the upset. "What a dangerous way to drive!" Or "Geez, (usually a stronger word than that) this could make me late for work!" Or something really simple like, "What an idiot!"

We've pointed out before, how all circumstances are neutral, and our experience in that moment is created by the way we interpret or relate to it. When we relate to a circumstance with resistance, our mind immediately gives us reasons to justify that resistance, resulting in the experience of it being negative.

But what an unfortunate way to live. Through our resistance, we end up going to war with life, attempting to get life to change. When, if we don't resist what is happening, we respond to the situation with clarity and intelligence, saving us the upset, while still dealing with life.

What's interesting in this is that it also applies to our relationship with food. We all have our likes and dislikes around food. But when these preferences become a should or "have to", we set up a resistance to how life shows up at times.

For example, I have a friend who likes their food cooked a certain way. And when we were at a restaurant, she ordered a dish and specified how she wanted it cooked. When the dish arrived, it wasn't how she asked for it to be cooked and she got really upset, returning it to the kitchen to be fixed.

Now, there's nothing wrong with not wanting to eat a meal that wasn't prepared the way we ask for it. But do we need to get upset about it? If we don't resist the way it's showing up, and simply respond to the fact that it isn't what we asked for, the meal gets fixed. The difference is that we don't have to experience the upset in the process.

So, take a moment and see if this might apply to a situation in your own life where you get upset. Is there some resistance to it being that way? And what would happen if you let go of the resistance and simply addressed the situation from the calm, clear state of mind that is always there when we aren't in resistance?

If you would like to chat more about this and how it applies in your own life, let us know in the comments below and we can set up a free consultation.

The recipe this week is a Fiesta Bowl. We created it in response to a Fiesta Bowl that Bill bought at the Vibe Kitchen and Juice + in Dana Point last week when he was in Southern California. It's a wonderful combination of rich Mexican flavours and high nutrient dense whole foods. Give it try and let us know what you think.

To your Amazing Health,

Connie and Bill

Fiesta Bowl (Serves 2)

Fajita Mushrooms

• 2 large portabella mushrooms, ¼” slices
• 2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon mustard
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• 1/8 teaspoon Chipotle seasoning
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Add vinegar and seasonings to a fry pan and stir.

Add mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes, flip and cook another 5 minutes, adding 1 tablespoon of water at a time, if needed.

Black Beans and Corn

• ½ onion, fine dice
• 2 tablespoons filtered water
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 15 ounce can black beans, drained (save 2 tablespoons of the bean juice)
• 1 cup frozen corn
• ¼ teaspoon chipotle seasoning
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon salsa
• ½ cup cilantro

Add onion and water to a pan and cook until soft.

Add everything but cilantro: balsamic, black beans, corn, seasonings and salsa. Mix well and heat through.

Fold in cilantro and cook another 3 minutes.

Pico de Gallo

• 1 medium to large tomato, diced
• 1 red pepper, diced small
• 1½ jalapeño, seeded and diced fine
• ½ small red onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• ½ cup cilantro (or parsley for non-cilantro lovers)
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or Mrs. Dash Extra Spicy
• ½ lime, juiced
• ½ teaspoon no-salt seasoning
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Mix all ingredients well.

Guacamole

• 1 avocado, mashed
• 2 tablespoons diced red onion
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• ½ lime, juiced
• ½ jalapeño, seeded and diced

Mix all ingredients together well.

Cashew Lime Crema

• 1 cup cashews
• 1 cup filtered water
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Add all ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend 1 minute. Use as garnish on top of bowl.

Bowl Assembly

As the base, fill the bottom of the bowl with Romaine Lettuce, torn in pieces, or 1 cup quinoa or 1 cup brown rice.

Top with Beans and Corn, then Pico de Gallo, then layer with Fajita Mushrooms and Cashew Lime Crema. Garnish with Guacamole and Sauerkraut.