Plant-Powered Kindness

I LOVE animals so much I do not wish to eat them. The recent death of my 11-year old lizard Jubjub (and our 17-year old cat Isis earlier in April) triggered a paradigm shift in me.

Why is one animal a pet, while another, is food?

me asking myself

I choose to consciously consume vegetables, fruit, grain, seeds, nuts. These are all planted on the earth, raised in the soil, and harvested by (hopefully) human hands. I am inspired to eat these foods out of my love for animals, rejoicing in the knowledge that I did no harm by eating a pig, cow, chicken, or fish.

Conscious Choice

For me to eat any animal / flesh, someone had to die for it. Regardless of whether or not these beings were “compassionately” raised / slaughtered, makes no difference for I remain resolute! I wish for animals to be alive/unharmed so I will not participate in eating them!

People working directly in the industry that “processes” these beings are sometimes abused / mistreated themselves so I refuse to support a work environment that profits from such inhumane conditions towards human and non-humans.

On Ahimsa

I have learned that there is a word for what I’m doing: it is AHIMSA. In the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jainist traditions, the Oxford English Dictionary says it is “respect for all living things and avoidance of violence toward others.”

According to the principles of the American Vegan Society, Ahimsa is also:

• A- bstinence from animal products
• H -armlessness with reverence for life
• I – ntegrity of thought, word, and deed
• M – astery over oneself
• S – ervice to humanity, nature, and creation
• A – dvancement of understanding and truth

Note to friends, family, and future partner

1. I am not asking you to join me in not eating animals; I am merely asking you to consider my reason WHY. You can do what you like: You can cook and/or eat meat if we are together. I can cook meat for you; Just please do not ask me to eat it if it’s not a nut, fruit, veg, seed
2. No, I’m not a vegan. Yes, I’m plant-based. These may seem the same to you but I assure you they are not. Know that I’m doing this because this is what now feels right for me to do. Thank you for understanding
3. I respect your right to choose what you eat. If I am a guest in your home, I will not refuse vegetables cooked with meat because I am not following a plant-based diet for religious reasons. I gladly will share your culinary delights provided/shared with me! I can easily pick the meat out of the dish and eat the vegetable and grain or fruit and nut provided. I will not ask you to cook anything different for me, nor make you eat anything you do not find joyful to consume (if I am the cook). If, however, you would like to make something agreeing to my new dietary preferences, you have my sincerest appreciation

Thank you for your time and attention. I appreciate you sharing vegetarian and vegan tips and recipes with me as I embark on this nutritional journey. Safe paths! xoxo

Vegetarian Memorial Video

My 11-year old domesticated bearded dragon (hand-raised lizard) passed away this Halloween (Oct. 31). His death and that of my 17-year old cat in April 2019 affected me so much that I have now been living the vegetarian (mostly vegan) lifestyle.

In this short clip, I pay tribute to how they inspired me to be plant-based now. Have you had life-changing experiences that triggered a paradigm shift in your life? If so, comment or PM me and share. Thank you for visiting!

PS
I have previously blogged about vegetarianism in Plant-Powered Kindness so if this topic interests you, have a look!

Dear Frank: Thank You!

FA (left) posted this November 2014

Heroes represent the best of ourselves, respecting that we are human beings. A hero can be anyone from Gandhi to your classroom teacher, anyone who can show courage when faced with a problem. A hero is someone who is willing to help others in his or her best capacity.

Ricky Martin

In the postcard he sent me in 2012 [below], I was moving after being newly married so to be sure I got my friend’s correspondence, I requested he send it to my parents’ house. 5 moves later [4 with my ex and finally/recently 1 more time after separation], I find this card now! I regret that I have still not written him a postcard back. There is no excuse, I know. I am sorry. I just kept losing this postcard so I’m just really glad to find it now. Unfortunately, I don’t know where he is in order to write back to a physical address. This really saddens me.

Earlier today, because I was organizing my office, I went through a special box of keepsakes. This attached postcard from F.A. popped out. Honestly, I haven’t heard from him since his birthday [June 2019]. I checked his Facebook just now and he hasn’t been online in a year! Mutual friends on Facebook are asking if I’ve heard from him [just before Canadian Thanksgiving] and to keep them posted if I do hear back. Also just now, I even did an Google search to see if it’s been posted he’s deceased, and luckily, nothing turned up about that online! I am really hoping he’s on leave/vacation, or is back to civilian life hopefully working as a Paramedic in NY somewhere as he enjoys that work when he’s not on active duty!

For as long as I’ve known him, he has always been happy, fit, fine (yep, he knows it), and inspirational. It is with utmost sincerity that I wish for your physical safety and good health, Mr. F.A., Jr.! I’m writing this letter to you, openly below, and may the Akash, æther, and energy of all that is, bring you my message. Semper Fi.

Dear Frank: I would REALLY like to know where in the world you are now. It is with hope that I wish you would somehow find this or that someone in the USMC does and realizes it's about you and tell you about it, LOL.  Please know that you are thought of, warmly. I hope I am not too late to say, "thank you for being my friend." I wish you a Happy {American} Thanksgiving on November 28, 2019. 

With Love from Vancouver, BC, Canada
~ your tardy postcard friend and forever friend ~ 
Crissy

What Now?

I think for any relationship to be successful, there needs to be loving communication, appreciation, and understanding.

Miranda Kerr

At a party recently, a friend asked me how my “love life” was. I replied I was happily single. They then asked if this was “voluntary”to which I said, “haha, yes” — Duh! After this conversation, 2 other thoughts arose which led me to reflect:

1. Love life doesn’t necessarily mean “romantic” even though we think it is… Is this because of societal pressure?
2. I have a lot of things (my books, my clothes) and beings I love (i.e. my cats, my lizards) so I’m quite blessed, IMHO
3. In the 3 years after I’ve written this breakup post, I’ve had 2 other breakups I haven’t publicly reflected/blogged about. TBH, there is nothing really worth sharing — these were fun, “glad it’s over,” short but intense relationships which led me to choosing consciously to be currently single

I feel empowered by the choices I made … I believe I am the person I am today because of what I learned along the way. All the pain brought growth; all the pleasures brought good memories. The best way for me to explain my rationale is by showing you this video from Stephan Labossiere a.k.a. Stephan Speaks on YouTube.

Single or otherwise, I wish you a joyous, loving journey. Thank you for sharing your time with me. If you enjoyed this blog post, I appreciate your likes, shares, comments, and follows! Take care, and see you next time! 🙂

Thanksgiving 2019

In celebration of Thanksgiving 2019, I asked friends, fans, and followers to share 3 things they were grateful for on my Styx Communications Facebook page. I posted 3 videos mentioning I was thankful for:

1. the ability to do my own nails (manicures)
2. infinity scarves (so versatile)
3. natural sunlight (attached below)

Of course, there are many more things, people, events I’m thankful for. I just wanted to share my top 3! For example, I am grateful every day I wake up where I live because I really love being here in Canada. I love the climate, the lifestyle here on the West Coast, the massive availability of free public courts for tennis, the friends I have, my family being here, and how wonderful my life has been here.

I am here to share, inspire, connect and converse so I sincerely appreciate your presence here. Thank you for your comments, emails, PMs! I am grateful for those who liked, shared, subscribed to my blog. Thank you for sharing your time and attention with me.

Golden Beauty

Through Love all that is bitter will be sweet,

Through Love all that is copper will be gold,

Through Love all dregs will become wine,

Through Love all pain will turn to medicine.

Rumi

xinageco

Took 2 of 3 pictures from my уша́нка #Ushanka selfies, overlaying them. I then added digital effects, and, here we are: beautifully gold #artistic pictures of me. I love it!

Playing with Light and Shadow

“The soul can speak through the eyes,

and kiss with a look.”

Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer

Woke up coughing and sneezing. Have been drinking warm herbal tea and using my nasal steamer all day! I have taken cough syrup, throat lozenges, and rested before night school. Have also been bundled up so I can fight off this cold. I am glad to have things to keep me warm like this white ushanka (rabbit fur hat from Russia) and this thick fleecy poncho shawl I wrapped myself with. Can you believe I’m actually wearing a long-sleeve t-shirt, a sweater, and a lined vest underneath?

I laid down on my couch and watched some stand-up comedy to pass the time. It’s true that laughter is the best medicine. I forgot my body aches and pain while I squealed happily at the best comedy clips from Dry Bar. I also managed to capture these selfies with a web cam during mid-afternoon. I thought the natural (sun) light and shadows on my face would make for interesting shots. These 3 pics of me are unedited and absolutely wonderful.