Web P.A.T.H. Center

• Drink more water – no… soda, coffee, beer, energy drinks and juice do not count!  Herbal tea?  Sure!  But start with at least four 8 ounce glasses of fresh, clean water a day and work up to at least 8 glasses.  If you are exercising, working outside or recovering from some dietary indulgences, drink a little more!  While it is possible to drink too much water, you would have to drink several gallons very quickly to truly harm yourself.
• Eat foods high in Omega-3 fatty acids – fishes such as salmon, tuna, trout, mackerel and herring… walnuts, pecans, and ground flaxseed are also good sources.  While soy is also rich in Omega-3, many people are sensitive to soy and more and more research is showing soy can cause inflammation.
• Eat more antioxidant rich foods – embrace those fresh fruits and veggies!  Go to your local farmers market and indulge in their bounty, making sure to choose a wide and colorful variety.  Legumes, whole grains, and green tea, also fall into that category of being high in antioxidants, but also may contribute to inflammation, so pay attention to your body’s response when you eat these things and adjust accordingly.
• Take supplements – while it is always best to get your nutrition from good, organic whole foods, the fact is that sometimes the body needs a little boost.  As a standard practice, make a habit of speaking to your physician, dietician or nutritionist, and pharmacist before taking ANY new supplement.  There have been far too many people that have taken supplements, only to discover that they had a bad chemical response when taken with their current prescriptions or aggravate symptoms for another condition they are challenged with.
  • Curcumin (found in turmeric) – I like to treat myself to “Golden or TurmericTea” each night to help me relax, get a good night of sleep, and soreness and tenderness.  Recipes for this delightfully spicy cup of comfort can easily be found on the interwebs.
  • Bromelain – found deliciously pre-packaged in pineapple, reduces bruising and swelling.  Too much can upset the stomach and digestive system though, so start with a half a cup and eat more as your body tolerates.
  • Melatonin – produced by the brain to help regulate sleep, which is integral to healing.  Commercial melatonin is produced in laboratories and is sometimes used to help relieve pain for people battling chronic pain symptoms.
  • Probiotics – Good bacteria the keep your digestion working well.  Gut health is so important to overall health, so pay attention to what’s happening at the back end!  Eat fermented foods such a sauerkraut, kimchi and yogurt.  If you go the round of supplements, look for a product that has 15 billion microorganisms or more and has a wider sampling of at least four different types of critters in the formula.
  • L-Glutamine – specifically helps your gut heal and thus, the rest of your body.  I like to use a powder that I dissolve in water to make it easier to take.
  • Vitamin D – With a reputation for supporting bone health, more and more research is showing that this vitamin is an integral part of auto-immune health and emotional stability.  While the body does produce vitamin D naturally, the fact is that those of us in northern climates simply do not get enough sunlight to produce the levels needed for optimal health.
• Exercise – regular and gentle exercise are important to combating inflammation.  Swimming, walking and yoga are all wonderfully gentle exercises.  If you are not ready for that, start where you are… walk around the house… dance in your chair to your favorite music… park one spot further away from the store each day.
• Sleep – Good sleep is highly under-rated until you are deprived of it!  Make changes in your lifestyle to promote better sleep habits:  Unplug from technology a couple hours before bed.  This includes your cell phone!  Drink a full glass of water before bed.  Take a warm bath or shower.  Sleep in a cooler room.  Turn off all the lights.
• Spiritual connection – What?  Did you think we wouldn’t touch on this?  We are the Web, after all!  Meditation, journaling and spiritual connection are all found to contribute to good health and wellness.  If you are feeling a little lost, lonely or disconnected, reach out to your Web family

Louisa Leonard West

By Dorothy Abrams

This is Mother’s Night in the Norse Pagan calendar, the night before Winter Solstice. Celebrate your ancestral mothers. Remember who they are.

You may have heard about my great grandmother Louisa Leonard West a hundred times, or not at all. She was my first spirit guide. She spoke to me from her picture hanging at the foot of my sofa where I was napping. Her face changed. Her dress changed. Her hair changed. I learned over time these changes were the faces of other women in my lineage and hers. She brought them through to me.

Then I learned in a past life I had been her best friend growing up until a year or so before Louisa’s marriage I fell through the ice and drowned. I had been visiting an older women in the woods who taught me tarot, tea leaf reading, respect for the nature spirits, healing and magic. She turned out to be Lydia, my friend and teacher in this life.

So on Mother’s Night 2017 I honor Louisa and the woman who taught her tea leaves my friend Lydia. I honor Louisa’s daughter Lulu Pearl West Russell, my grandmother. I honor Dorothy Pearl Russell Abrams, my mother. These women brought me the magic of living authentically. I brought them retroactive healing from asthma and allergies, though we are still all working on it.

Communication with the Ancestors is a two way radio. We speak and so do they. Listen to their wisdom. Ask them questions. Love them. They love you even though you never met some of them. And on my father’s side of the family, I honor my grandmother Ina Louise Lyon Abrams and Laura Eloise Parkman Lyon. They brought me strength of will and persistence. They are women who would not be tricked or defied. If you dared fool them, as my grandfather did, you paid for it all your life. And if the two of them butted heads, it was time to leave the room. I don’t often credit Ina and Laura with my stubborn streak, but I should. Their life theme was “And she persisted.”

So collect the names of your mothers and grandmothers tonight and light a candle. Call their names and ask the teachings they bring. Listen. None of the ancestors like to be brushed off. They won’t accept your excuses. And they surely won’t put up with procrastination.

There’s more about celebrating Mother’s Night from me on the Moon Books Blog.

Mother’s Night: Listen!

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