{"id":1531,"date":"2015-08-16T09:00:42","date_gmt":"2015-08-16T13:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/?p=1531"},"modified":"2015-08-16T09:00:47","modified_gmt":"2015-08-16T13:00:47","slug":"cleansing-with-change-of-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/?p=1531","title":{"rendered":"Cleansing with Change of Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The sun is in its fullest as are we with the wonderful feeling that comes from a summer of warmth.\u00a0 Here in the Berkshire County of Massachusetts it has been\u00a0\u00a0a beautiful season.\u00a0 We are still in the midst of what feels and looks like summer and\u00a0each of us seem to be\u00a0taking time to\u00a0relax and enjoy ourselves\u00a0before the season’s end.\u00a0 This time of year is\u00a0called late- summer.\u00a0 During this time of year we\u00a0feel the strength of the summer heat while beginning to\u00a0notice a few changes that come as we near Fall.\u00a0 Perhaps your nights have become a bit cooler, a few leaves\u00a0can be observed on the ground or the daylight may look\u00a0a little less intensified as night approaches\u00a0a bit more quickly.<\/p>\n

With these seasonal changes it is\u00a0a good time to begin to look at what we are eating and how we can\u00a0prepare for a new season to begin.\u00a0 We are in transition and so should we accommodate\u00a0our\u00a0\u00a0palates with a combination of what is readily available in the fresh markets while cooking batches of what can put our body at ease.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Here are some tips for cleansing and preparing our body during the change of season.<\/p>\n

1. Farmers Market- Attend your local farmers market and see what is coming out of the ground during this time of year in your local area.\u00a0 Make good use of these fresh vegetables.\u00a0 Around here we find a lot of zucchinis of many varieties.\u00a0 If you find yourself overwhelmed with your own garden batch, invite a friend over and prepare some zucchini to store for the colder season.\u00a0 You could make a zucchini pie with other vegetables, or a zucchini bread, you might decide to cook them up and puree a batch for a nice soup.<\/p>\n

2. Selecting your vegetables\/foods with consciousness- Take time to hold the vegetables and foods you find\u00a0in your hand.\u00a0 During a seasonal change we may find ourselves a bit uncertain about what to eat\u00a0because our bodies are in the midst of change.\u00a0 We due ourselves a great service to help our\u00a0bodies by\u00a0checking in.\u00a0 Ask yourself questions while they are in your hand that will give you a sense of whether this selection is right for you.\u00a0 “Does this make me feel balanced?\u00a0 Can I gain strength from this?”\u00a0 If you get a message that leaves you still unknowing, accept this ambiguity and let it be.\u00a0 Pause and reflect.\u00a0 Choose with a sense of understanding that you and nature are in a dialogue; a continuous process of healing exchange.<\/p>\n

3. Foods for Balance in Seasonal Change-\u00a0There are foods for which will naturally be beneficial for the organs of\u00a0 the body.\u00a0 Late Summer\u00a0 the spleen\/\u00a0pancreas and the stomach are most in need of support.\u00a0 We can help these areas of our body by choosing to incorporate foods that will strengthen these organs.\u00a0 Foods to incorporate into your diet during this time that may be helpful are grains such as millet and vegetables that are compact and round with a natural sweetness to them- turnips, cabbage, onions, rutabaga, pumpkin.\u00a0\u00a0 These are always pretty readily available year round and are always a good way to transition into another seasonal change.\u00a0 Sweets that are derived from other sources like honey and tropical fruits stress these organs during this time, although a few local fruits eaten occasionally\u00a0are encouraged.<\/p>\n

4. Take time to look at your cupboards- Take some time to look at your cupboards.\u00a0 Summer is a season when we do a lot of activity and often eat outside, in restaurants or on the go.\u00a0 We may have stocked up on foods that allow us to be mobile and provide us with easy to prepare meals.\u00a0 We may want to look and see what we can start to bring in and take out of our cupboards and fridge that will lend ourselves to having a bit more time at home preparing a meal or two.\u00a0 Replace these foods with what may allow you to bring your senses into the kitchen more and create this space with the energy of your senses alive from the summer of fresh produce you have enjoyed.<\/p>\n

May you find yourself on a continuous journey of discovery as you enjoy the late-summer.\u00a0 It is all a wonderful opportunity to engage with your body and spirit as you pause, evaluate and prepare to welcome in the next season change.<\/p>\n

In health,<\/p>\n

Safara<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The sun is in its fullest as are we with the wonderful feeling that comes from a summer of warmth.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1531"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1531"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1536,"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1531\/revisions\/1536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/safaraf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}