Eggs with Egg-free Mayonnaise

I was sitting at the breakfast table and as I looked down at my plate, it occurred to me how ludicrous the combination on my plate may seem. I was eating eggs, but had specifically chosen to shop for egg-free mayonnaise. The thought tickled me and I felt the need to share and educate on the paradoxical scenario.

My choice to become vegetarian manifested as a result of the growth in my awareness of animal suffering. Whilst I still have doubts about how healthy it might be to consume animal products like dairy and eggs, I do still consume them, however I now pay alot more attention to the products that I purchase and try to do so as ethically as possible. 

I chose to find a local organic farm that let their chicken's run around free range and I visit the farm regularly to stock up on eggs. As I have a child, it's also a great activity to take her along so she can see the animals and learn about life on a farm. The eggs cost just 25 cents each (€) so are very affordable and my family can rest with a clear conscious knowing that the money we pay for those eggs is being used to pay for the organic vegetables that are fed to the chickens who are running around in a natural environment and living a happy life. 

At some point the hens will stop laying eggs and at some point, they may be slaughtered. It doesn't happen to all egg laying chickens, it is a choice made by the farmer. But the important point is that the chickens are not suffering whilst they are here and they are living the life that a chicken was designed to live. 

Most supermarkets stock eggs that come from caged hens or barn hens. A caged hen will spend its whole life in a cage until it stops laying and then it is slaughtered. A barn hen is free from a cage but will likely never see sunshine and will suffer the same fate. And they are fed the cheapest grain available. These hens that live without light and eat bad food then get eaten and digested in the bodies of humans. Did someone mention cancer?

Organic and free-range eggs in supermarkets are usually too expensive to rationalise as being affordable. My advice is to cut out the supermarket giants and go straight to the farmer. It's a beautiful experience and a little less weight on your conscience goes a long way too.

So why then do I choose to buy egg-free mayonnaise? It's because I don't know anything about the eggs that are used in standard mayonnaise but I could almost guarantee that the eggs come from caged hens because caged hens are the cheapest way of keeping hens. With cages, the farmer can stack the caged hens in shelf by shelf all around his barn. And I choose not to support this lifestyle for the hens.

So, there you have it; Eggs with Egg-free Mayonnaise. It's a bizarre combination but an ethical one. Always be aware of the choices that you are making when buying products. We vote with our money and your vote counts!

Awakening the Heart

I recently attended a 3 day yoga retreat on the beautiful island of Gozo located in the Mediterranean Sea just south of Sicily. After an exhausting two years spent raising my daughter through her dramatic baby years and promising myself that I would find my Zen, it was time for me to take a few days out as a way to refocus my mind and allow myself the still time I had long craved.

I am a keen Yoga goer. I find it helps me hugely in so many ways. I find my yoga practice to be a place of peace. Everyday-life in most parts of the world involves noisy traffic, people rushing, children crying and there is always a job or task that needs doing. In yoga, it all just stops. The only things you need to think about is the workout you are doing, the rhythm of your breathing and tuning-in to the voice of the teacher. 

It also happens to be a great way to exercise. The poses involved work effortlessly to tone your body and for any sufferers of joint pain, the stretching in yoga can bring great relief. Yoga also works well as a stress reliever through the various breathing techniques. 

The focus of the retreat which I attended was to 'Awaken the Cosmic Heart'. I'll admit that when I signed myself up for the retreat I wasn't entirely sure what I was signing myself up for! I knew I loved yoga and knew I was in need of a break and some silence, so the thought of a yoga retreat seemed ideal. But what was this about awakening my cosmic heart? Did my heart need awakening?

Feeling ever so slightly sceptical, I arrived at the venue where I was to spend the next three days. It was a beautiful farmhouse, with outbuildings, stunning gardens, a swimming pool and sea and country views. I was already in heaven. I was introduced to a girl that I would be sharing a room with for the next two nights. Did I say a room? No, I mean a bed! Now for me, that really was the first step to awakening my heart because I hadn't shared a bed with another female since I was a teenager!

We started our first session shortly after my arrival and got in position on our mats. I instantly felt at peace. Yoga manages to magically calm you, motivate you and connect you with those around you all at once. We then took part in an activity where we had to draw, using shapes and symbols, how we saw our lives and how we saw ourselves fitting into those lives. We then shared the outcomes with the group.

I learnt from that activity that I was satisfied with my life and my accomplishments but that I felt that sometimes I didn't feel like I could be all of myself with the people in my life.

We later indulged in a vegan and gluten free feast and chanted the sounds of the 7 chakras 108 times. If you want to know why 108 times, do some homework on hindu religion and beliefs because I wouldn't want to explain it incorrectly here.

By morning I was feeling more alive and ready for my next yoga fix. After yoga we did some crazy dancing known as Ecstatic dance where we let go of our frustrations and anxieties by throwing our bodies into the music with our eyes closed and moving however our intuition told us to. For a full 60 minutes! This was followed by a sound healing session, giving us the opportunity to stand in a drum and get gonged into balance. I didn't really think much of it until someone in the group requested some feedback and based on the little I knew about that person already, the 'sound man' was incredibly accurate with his analysis.

After dinner we settled for an 'Inner Child Workshop'. Now this one got me! Again, I wasn't expecting too much, I was just happy participating in order to get my break and do some yoga. We were asked to visualise ourselves as a child when we were between the ages of 5 and 7 and show this child some love in whichever way we felt necessary. We could talk to the child if we wanted to. It sounded like a game of my imaginary friend to me but I went along with it. 

It disturbed me when the realisation came at how anxious I felt when visualising myself as a child. My inner child had nothing that she wanted to say. She looked up to me at the person I have become but also looked at me with a sad fearful look that communicated she wanted to be cuddled. I felt for that child because I knew the events she still had to live through and from the look on her face, she knew them too. I left the workshop feeling uncomfortable and in need of some inner healing.

The final day consisted of some more yoga, crazy dance and a couple more workshops, both of which struck me as being quite powerful. In one I had to thank my father and my mother individually for their roles in my life. My father has given me very little in life and he left this world when I was in my teens. He wasn't much of a role model and so to thank him felt like a difficult task and something he did not deserve. The task made me feel very emotional, but it also brought me the realisation that he has actually been doing his duty all along. He serves me better as a spirit guide than a human one and he makes my life easier by not being here to cause me problems and letting me live in peace. We were asked to pick an angel card from a pile after this task and my card read 'love is being sent to you from above by an angel that loves you very much and wants you to know you have nothing to worry about'. If I had been sitting on a chair, I would have fallen off of it!

The other workshop was an intense experience of dance, intentions and someone coming round and holding us closely and firmly whilst telling us how special and powerful we are and that we are loved. I felt pretty damn good and inspired after that particular experience.

So, did I come away with a heart that had been awoken? I cannot answer that question with a direct yes or no because so much more came out of the weekend despite my inital scepticism. I learnt a lot about myself. I learnt that I have spent many years of my life trying to make my outside world a success but that my inside world also needs some work. And to work with healing your inner self involves showing yourself love. If we cannot show ourselves love, we are not going to be too successful at giving it to others.

I learnt that my mother and father were and are perfect after all. Because they have and are fulfilling the roles that make me the person that I am and choose to be. They gave me life which is a bigger gift than any other person has ever given me. And for that I am truly grateful.

Finally I learnt that in 3 days, a farmhouse full of strangers can become a family and heartfelt friends. And if it's possible to love strangers in a matter of 3 days, there is so much more love to give to those people in our lives that we cherrish.

And I reaffirmed, that I love yoga.