Scrumptious fruits. Available almost all year long in many colors, shapes and sizes. As the saying goes: “one apple a day, keeps the doctors away”
So what does apple have for us?
Apples are rich source of fibers especially pectin, a soluble fibre with cholesterol lowering action. It also regulates intestinal motility helping in both constipation and diarrhoea.
Apples are rich source of flavonoids phytochemical, the most abundant in them is quercetin, a powerful anticancer and anti- inflammatory.
 Apples also supply lots of the B vitamins, vitamin C, iron, Beta carotenes and potassium.
 Apples help in detoxifying the body, protecting against cardiovascular diseases, lowering cholesterol and Blood pressure, stabilizing blood sugar levels and maintaining gastrointestinal and lung health.
They are useful for people with high blood pressure, high serum cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, asthma and disturbed bowel movement.
 Apples are delicious and most nutritious when eaten raw with their skin. They form great addition to both fruits and green salads, they can be sliced with other crudités and served with cheese and healthy dips, or cut into cubes with added, raisins, nuts and cinnamon, an amazing antioxidant in its own right.

Still, apples preserve a great deal of their potassium an fiber content when cooked. They make great apples pies and tarts. Their jams do not need jelling agent due to their high content of pectin. They can also be stir fried with onions, carrots and potatoes or added to steaks at the last stage of cooking as a savory side item. Dried apples are healthy kids snacks, but choose the preservative- and- sulfur-free brands. 

Last summer, my children and I, we were invited to spend the weekend at my cousins' farm in the countryside. At first, the children strongly objected: "a whole weekend with no TV, no internet, you must be kidding, right? no way!" But, being a very 'democratic' mother, I insisted. 
Our first encounter with the farm was encouraging, though.

We stopped at the local market. The fresh fruits and vegetables, hand-made crafts and farm animals walking on the loose around us  made the children more open to the experience. 
Still, it wasn't that easy. we learnt how to use natural lemon juice and vinegar to avoid mosquito bites, we learnt how to hunt lizards, and operate the water hand pump in the morning to wash our faces. 

After putting the mosquito and  lizards under control, our first night was so serene and peaceful. The sky held more stars than I ever imagined existed. Our morning walks were even more amazing. The local farmers were first surprised and curious. For them, we looked like aliens. Yet, it didn't take long before they showed amazing hospitality and offered to teach us their way of life. Soon enough, Youssof  learnt how to milk the cow to get us fresh milk for breakfast and how to collect the eggs without disturbing the free-wandering chicken.

Janna, on her side, was baking bread for lunch in, literally, hand-made, oven.
The milk, eggs, home-made cheese and naturally backed bread tasted exceptional.

In just a weekend, The children discovered much more fun ways of transportation and a much healthier way of life. At the end of our journey, they didn't want to leave. Surprisingly, they did not miss their computer, internet or TV at all. They found real bliss in a much simpler life. 
We all long for another weekend at the farm. How I wish life was all that simple!!!


If you have never tried it, please do. Just for one weekend or even for one afternoon. Visit the countryside, the desert, the forest... any place in nature where technology hadn't take its toll on yet. Turn off your mobile and internet connections. No TV, no computer. Enjoy the sunshine, the greenery, listen to the birds, watch the stars. Enjoy simplicity and better yet, hug a tree!!!

Pumpkins and squash with their rich orange and bright yellowish colors are great source of carotenes especially beta-carotenes, the precursor of vitamin A in the body, a powerful anti-oxidant and anti-cancer phytonutrient. Their Carotenes content offers great protection against many diseases including cancers, heart diseases, cataract, and type 2 diabetes. 
Pumpkins are also rich in vitamin C, many B vitamins, potassium and fibres.Pumpkins are believed to strengthen the immune system and protect against common colds and flu. They are great additions to stews and casseroles and they make hearty winter soups. They may also serve as healthy desserts like the famous pumpkin pie or puddings with milk and honey.

Pumpkin seeds are rich source of essential fatty acids especially the omega-3 type which reduces the risks of heart disease, reduce cholesterol, and help alleviate inflammatory conditions like psoriasis and arthritis. They are rich in protein and minerals especially zinc, selenium and iron. To preserve their nutritional value, though, they should be eaten raw and unsalted. You can sprinkle them on your salad or breakfast muesli. They also make great addition to stir fried vegetables, just added at the end of cooking to avoid over heating them.Give them a try!Bon Appetite!

Did you ever feel that life is taking you in a new direction, a totally unknown direction? You do not know where you're heading or how you’re heading there… Still, deep inside, you feel that’s the right way for you.

Years back, I was following a predetermined path, studying and preparing my master, then my PhD in pharmacy working my way up the ladder of academia. But, other plans were meant for me. I had to take a leave after my second child was born. I had just finished my dissertation proposal and was ready to submit it. But, the faculty advisors refused. I had to return back to work for me to get my degree, something I couldn’t do with two young children at hand. My only way out was to submit my resignation to be able to finish my master. I felt so frustrated. I cried and cried for days and weeks. I felt oppressed and forced into a decision that changed my whole life plans… my life dreams… But… Wait a minute… Were they really “MY” dreams? This tragic experience forced me to stop and reconsider my path… my life… my passions and my goals. Now that I am not tied to any academic career any longer, what do I really want to do? I followed my passion for natural life and living and decided to shift gears… I pursued my PhD in natural health, a path that I wouldn’t have considered if I were still among the faculty staff.

This experience taught me the meaning of TRUST… Trust my Creator, trust His Ultimate Plans and Wisdoms, trust life and its unexpected forks on the road, and trust myself and my choices.

What do you need to trust? Are you fighting against the natural flow of your life? Are you holding on to dreams that are not even yours?

Pause for a while and ponder…

Reflect on your life and your passions… on your dreams and purposes…

Are you on the right track? Are you following your own path with awareness and mindfulness? Or, are you blindfolded, following the crowd wherever ‘they’ might take you?

Pause again and reflect…

Listen to your inner voice, to your deep heart whispers… Reconsider your responsibilities and re-evaluate your priorities…

Pray and supplicate for guidance… Align your will to the Divine will… Make choices… And Trust your choices!

Have a great day!

A friend of mine came to me recently furious and angered: “it never work with me, this faking of emotions… something must be wrong with me!!!”
“What are you talking about?” I asked.
“I’ve been reading in all these self-help books and learning in all these workshops and classes about acting out the emotion you want to adopt… If you are angry, just act happy, if you are frustrated or hurt, convince yourself that you are forgiving and easygoing, with time, they claim, you will get used to the new feeling and adopt it. But this never works with me. I am still stressed, angry, frustrated… and it’s actually getting worse!”
“No wonder,” I say “you can never fake an emotion”
“Do you mean this is wrong?”
You must have miss understood. You can act or convince yourself or fake-as you call it- a habit, but not an emotion. You can keep eating broccoli or low salt food cheerfully till your palette get used to the new flavors and actually accepts them. .. You can smile and act happy while going on your daily jogging till it becomes part of your routine… You can pretend to love chemistry for you to understand the ‘logarithms’ of its equations…
But you can never fake an emotion. Emotions are emotions… just that. They are not good or bad in themselves. They are here to tell you something. You need to listen and acknowledge them as they are to be able to release them and transmute them into whatever you choose.
If your actions and attitudes are contradictory to what you feel inside, you are bottling up your emotions. Acting happy despite of your anger and rage or cheerful when you’re oppressed won’t serve you any good. Your third energy center (chakra) malfunction results primarily from burying and denying your emotions. The malfunctions at this level start as early signs of stomach upset or what we call ‘gut feeling’ and can progress all the way to ulcers, diabetes or even cancer. In fact Dr. Paul Martin, in his book the Healing Mind, identified a third personality type (beyond the famous A and B personalities) which he called Type C personalities or Cancer-prone personalities. These are people who tend to deny their feelings and bottle up their emotions. They deny themselves the right to be angry or feel oppressed or frustrated whether due to social, religious or cultural beliefs. These people are sensitive and vulnerable and usually listen and behave according to pre-set norms that they hate but fail to admit even to themselves.

Of course I am not saying that you should spread your emotions out letting everybody know or share your bad mood or sufferings… shouting to your boss, exploding in your spouse or child’s face or cursing the driver next to you aren’t the solution either…  The key to dealing with emotions is not faking or denying, it is rather acknowledging, then giving ourselves the time and space to consider options, reasons, circumstances and consequently the appropriate behaviors and attitudes.

Practice keeping a journal for venting out and exploring your deep heart whispers. Allow yourself sometime alone preferably in nature, take a walk or meditate, practice breathing exercises and relaxation, surround yourself with active supporting community, and, most importantly, find true meaning in your life… your true purpose and goal. When your life has a valuable meaning and this meaning in strongly connected to your creation and to your Creator, you’ll find it easier to understand wisdoms behind life challenges, stresses and troubles.