A little something from Rumi …

 

Sometimes we don’t necessarily feel or receive that we have the support that we want or need when we start to make big changes in our lives, whatever they may be.  But, if you can grasp tight onto the fact that you really can do this and there are people you can turn to for inspiration, whether it is artwork, poetry, a good book, other people who have successfully used Cura Romana … it’s all there if you want to access it.  Don’t be scared and don’t think you’re setting yourself up to be on another yo-yo; that’s not what Cura Romana is all about.  Good luck to all of you following the protocol or thinking about embarking on it.

Spring is here …. Hooray! Ready for Phase 2 at long last.

I’ve had a very long/protacted interruption with my original Cura Romana plans, but never mind.  These set backs are sent to try and test us aren’t they.  For those of you who have visited my blog previously, you will know that I very successfully shed nearly 3 stones (3 x 14 1bs) and felt really fantastic.  I did, annoyingly have some medical treatment, for something quite un-related, but that put those plans on hold.

 

Well, now plans are back in place and I am planning to start the hcg and protocol on Sunday, 3rd April, 2011; so that will be 2 feast days using the hcg and then onto the strict plan on day 3 onwards.

 

Please feel free to comment here and ask questions if you wish to.  It’s great when something like this becomes interractive and we can be supportive of one another.  So, I will be walking through that door marked Spring / Cura Romana on 3rd April.

Best wishes to all,

Karen

Still Taking Hot Toddies!

Well …. I am STILL on the Hot Toddies …. this virus is showing no signs of shifting anywhere fast, which is very, very annoying!

This isn’t going to be a long post, but just something to let you know that I will be starting the protocol as soon as I have managed to rid myself of this.  In the meantime, hope your shopping is going okay if you are just starting out on Cura Romana.  I do apologise for the layout on that post … I haven’t worked out how to sort it out so that it is displayed correctly.

Be back again soon

Poem by Kahlil Gibran ~ The Prophet ~ on Marriage

Kahlil Gibran - The Prophet ~ Marriage

This excerpt from the beautiful book, “The Prophet” by Kahlil Gibran, is I think a very accurate and wise observation of marriage.  I have become aware since following the Cura Romana protocol that the changes in me are also affecting aspects of my relationship/marriage.  It is, to be honest, quite a challenge because the realisation I have of being more ‘in tune’ with myself, is perhaps not very easy to understand for my husband and family.

In some respects, some of what is happening to me could be perceived as selfish?  I don’t know … all I know is that I feel that I do have to devote time to myself, having spent years putting everyone else first.

That does require some ‘space’ to breathe, as it were.  Don’t know how many of my fellow Cura Romana followers will agree with this?  It’ll be interesting to hear your comments.

On Marriage

Kahlil Gibran

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.
Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.

Love one another, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other’s cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.

Give your hearts, but not into each other’s keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other’s shadow.

Shopping List Reminder ….

I thought it may be helpful to provide the shopping list I posted in May, but updated a little.  Hope this helps everyone.

Lamberts Vitamin C-Time 1500 mg

1 x Lamberts (Professional Range) Vitamin C Time Release 1500mg w/Bioflavonoids

I used this brand of Vitamin C the first time I went on the Cura Romana protocol – it was recommended by Leslie Kenton.

It’s an excellent product.  You can purchase it online at the NutriCentre.

Bio Health Pure Senna

2 x Bio Health Senna Leaf  400 mg Powdered Senna Leaf Vegan Capsules

I found this Senna to be excellent and it is completely pure too, nothing else added.  Leslie Kenton will guide you with regard to dose … it’s very individual.  I took 2 capsules mostly.

Again, you can purchase this Senna online by visiting the linked page at The NutriCentre.

Solgar Psyllium Husks Fibre Capsules 500 mg

1 x Solgar Psyllium Husks Fibre x 500 mg (2 or 3 capsules per day)

Solgar is  really good, high quality brand and you will be able to adjust the intake you have, according to Leslie Kenton’s recommendations.

You can purchase these from the Nutricentre.

Kingfisher Natural Toothpaste

1 x Tube Kingfisher Soda Toothpaste

I found that this toothpaste was excellent.  Most of the ‘whitening’ toothpastes use baking soda as the ingredient for whitening, so all I can tell you is that this was great!

Again, you’ll find this online at the NutriCentre.

Faith in Nature Hemp and Meadowfoam Shampoo

Faith in Nature Hemp and MeadowFoam Shampoo

This shampoo was really beautiful to use.  I have dry hair that is colour treated, and this really was wonderful.

Again … NutriCentre has it.

Faith in Nature Ginkgo Biloba Conditioner

Faith in Nature Ginkgo Biloba Conditioner

If you prefer, there is a Hemp and Meadowfoam condition, I just chose this one for myself.

Available again at the NutriCentre.

Crystal Deodorant Stick

I used the Crystal Deodorant Stick.  It takes a bit of getting used to, but it lasts for absolutely ages!

I purchased this at the NutriCentre local store … you will find NutriCentres in the UK are linked with the larger Tesco stores.  I haven’t found this on their online store, although there are other similar products if you look.

So there you are … the complete list really.  The only other item I had was “Smooth Move Tea” by “Traditional Medicinals”.  This was recommended by Leslie Kenton.

Traditional Medicinals ~ Smooth Move Tea

I’m not 100% certain where I purchased this, but it is available online in the UK.  You can purchase it online here.

If I think of anything else, I’ll put up another post.

Delay …

What’s the expression …. best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men …. ??  Spanner in the works??

I’m not quite ready for the second round …. the reason being, I put my Cura Romana homeopathic hcg in a ‘safe place’ …. yes, you’ve guessed it … I can’t find it!  And now, just to help matters further I have a horrid sore throat and seem to be going down with a virus.

Cold Remedy ~ Hot Toddy

I shall be making up a good brew of Hot Toddies …. honey, lemon, water and perhaps a wee dram of whisky too

Anyway, it’s not the end of the world because I have also done another shopping trip to make sure I have all my vitamins and toiletries in place too. I went shopping at “The Nutricentre” again – I’m quite fortunate because there is one about 30 miles away from where I live and when I venture that way for city shopping, I can pop in and get stocked up.

I’ve put up another post, “Shopping List Reminder”, and hope this proves useful.

I’m going to get this virus out of my system and then get going again.  I’ll let you all know when I do

Quote for the Day … Worth

Audrey Hepburn

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never throw out anyone.

~ Audrey Hepburn

Desiderata ….

Lavender Field, Vence, Provence ~ Paolo Bigazzi

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

~ Max Ehrmann (1927)

About the Poet/Author

From Wikipedia

Max Ehrmann (September 26, 1872 – September 9, 1945) was an attorney and businessman of Terre Haute, Indiana, best known for his 1927 prose poem “Desiderata” (Latin: “things desired”).

Ehrmann received a degree in English from DePauw University (1894) where he was a member of Delta Tau Delta’s Beta Beta chapter.  Later he studied philosophy and law at Harvard.

He returned to his hometown of Terre Haute, Indiana in 1898 to practice law; he was a deputy state’s attorney in Vigo County, Indiana for two years. Eventually this led him to work in his family’s meatpacking business and in the overalls manufacturing industry. At age 40, Ehrmann left the business to write. At age 54, he wrote Desiderata, which achieved fame only after his death.

Ehrmann was of German descent; both his parents emigrated from Bavaria in the 1840s. Young Ehrmann was educated at the Terre Haute Fourth District School and the German Methodist Church. While at De Pauw (Greencastle, Indiana 1890—1894), he was editor of the school newspaper, Depauw Weekly.   At Harvard about 1896, he was editor of Delta Tau Delta’s national magazine Rainbow. DePauw awarded him a Doctor of Letters honorary degree in about 1937.  Delta Tau Delta elected him to Distinguished Service Chapter, its highest alumni award.

Quote for the Day … Love

Sometimes you find something in “the good book” that just sums everything up!  I have dedicated this to a friend who is going through a great deal of hardship, in the hope that it will lift the spirits

Lindisfarne Castle - Holy Island

Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking.
It is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.
~ The Bible – I Corinthians 13:4-8

Second Phase Starts Tomorrow …

Well, I’ve decided now that I will be embarking on the second phase of Cura Romana tomorrow … so this will be the second time I go through the complete process. I’m not certain whether I will be doing the 21 days or the 41 days, haven’t quite decided.

I just want to see how things go. I do have a target weight in mind, but I am also aware that my ideal weight when I was in my late 20′s may not be the ideal weight for me now that I am in my mid-forties. I may actually be better off having more weight. I’m sure that as the weight comes off again, I’ll know when my body feels right.

I have to confess though, that since losing 3 stone, I feel so, so much better … a lot more comfortable within my body, I’m enjoying wearing my clothes, don’t have nearly so many aches and pains and even went boogying for the first time in years with my brother and his girlfriend when I visited them. We had such a lot of fun!

I wanted to add a beautiful picture for this post and thought you may like this one by Dante Gabriel Rosetti called “The Beloved”. The richness of Dante’s work and the colours he use always lift my spirits and I have a particular fondness for this painting …. I just think it’s stunning!

"The Beloved" ~ Dante Gabriel Rosetti