Michelle Conaway

I was thinking today about this cleanse and what it represents for me.  I realized that for the past couple of years, I have done so much healing, releasing of old thought patterns and beliefs and generally cleaning up my life that it only makes sense that my body follow.  This cleanse for me is about having in alignment for myself mind, body and soul.

I realized before starting the cleanse that I would need to have my mind as my ally in order to get through it.  Hey, I like my food as much as the next girl, but I knew that my focus would need to move from eating to healing and releasing more junk from my life, in this case toxins and waste that have hung on for dear life in my physical body.  I realized that I would need to focus on the positive and not focus on the hunger pains.

I decided to give this cleanse as a gift to my body and to see it as such.  Just as the old thought and emotional patterns held on for dear life and DID NOT want to die, so it would be with the toxins in my body.  So, just as I healed emotionally and spiritually, I knew that I would have to allow the “pain” as the toxins died off,  and not resist it or focus on it so intently.  I just had to notice.  I just had to be present with myself and present with my body as it did its thing with the cleanse, knowing that the “pain” I might feel was just a feeling.  It was a release of the old and a renewing within the depths of my cells.  I had to embrace whatever came and make peace with it.  I had to refrain from complaining about it because I know that the complaining just feeds the thoughts, just as a donut would feed the toxins.

So, with this understanding, I have started the cleanse.  I told myself that I would stay on it for two days. . .but now I am thinking I will stay on it one day at a time.   Who knows?  I may make it the entire ten days.   I am feeling alive and energized and I am almost done with the second day.  Sure, thoughts of food dance through my head every once in a while, especially when I am preparing meals for my two boys, but I don’t let my focus linger too long.  I have felt weak a couple of times but when I ALLOW it and don’t resist it, it passes almost immediately.  I am happy to say that at the end of day two, I am feeling VERY good.  Mind, Body and Spirit are quickly aligning and it feels good.  It feels like life in its truest form.

Day One – Master Cleanse

May 16, 2011

Today was fine.  I started out with the salt-water flush and then drank the lemonade and water throughout the day.  I caved at lunchtime, making my son pasta salad and automatically popped a bite in my mouth.  Aside from that I followed the Master Cleanse to the letter.  The key was not to beat myself up after that little habitual popping of my kid’s food into my mouth.  I forgave myself quickly, then guzzled another glass of lemonade.

I think to do a cleanse of this caliber requires more mind management than anything.  After reading several blog posts of people doing the cleanse, I realized that we do not die if we don’t eat for a few days.  Moms are doing it.  Over weight people are doing it.  If they can go 10 days without food, so can I. . . or at least I think I can. . . here on day 1.  Check back at around day 5 or 6 and see what tune I am singing at that point. . .Ha!

But seriously, I believe that it is only our THOUGHTS about what our body is doing during a cleanse that causes major problems and leads us back to our toxic eating and drinking habits.  We “think” we can’t take it.  We “think” it’s too hard.   We believe that the temptations around us are too great. And if we THINK it, it becomes our reality.  We can’t take it and it does become too hard and the temptations are magnified in our experience.  But if we can turn our thoughts around to beneficial thoughts, if we can love ourselves enough to KNOW how good we can feel if we release not only the toxic body fluids and who knows what else from our physical bodies but also the toxic thoughts from our minds, we become whole.

I think I have my mind around this.  I made hamburgers, chips and pasta salad for my kids for dinner and I took my mind elsewhere as I cooked, smelled and served the luscious meal to my boys.  My mind was on healing.  My mind was on the benefits that I AM ALREADY FEELING from this cleanse.  And guess what?  I wasn’t even tempted to smell the food, much less eat it.

I have read about many people who struggle the first few days on the cleanse, but I feel great tonight already.  Great energy.  I feel as though my body is lighter.  I feel the whole, natural benefits of a body that is cleansing itself.  How miraculous that with a little help from the mind, our bodies will heal themselves.  My mind is focusing on the abundant energy that my body wants to produce for me and not on the lack of food.  I’m counting on this attitude to sustain me during this cleanse.  It’s all in my mind in the first place.  My experience will be whatever my mind wants it to be.  Hopefully I will choose healing.

Day Two

Why I’m Doing it

 

Crust

1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon Crisco

1 cup all-purpose white flour plus extra for rolling

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 to 3 tablespoons ice water

Mix flour and salt.  Cut in Crisco.  Add water a tablespoon at a time till crust is soft and pliable.  Roll out into 9 inch circle.  Place in glass pie plate and flute edges with fingertips.  Prick crust with a fork and bake in 325 degree oven till golden brown.

Filling

2 eggs separated

½ tsp. vinegar

¼ tsp. salt

½ cup sugar

1 Cup semisweet chocolate bits

¼ cup water

1 cup whipping cream

¼ cup sugar

dark chocolate candy bar (optional)

Beat egg whites with vinegar and salt till stiff.  Gradually add ½ cup sugar and beat until very stiff.  Spread meringue over bottom and sides of baked pie crust.  Bake at 325 degrees until golden brown.  Cool completely.

Melt semisweet chocolate bits.  Blend in the 2 egg yolks and water.  Spread 3 TBL of this mixture over the cooled meringue.  Chill until thick the remainder of the chocolate mixture.

Beat the whipping cream with the ¼ cup sugar.  Spread exactly ½ of this mixture over the meringue and chocolate topping.  Put in refrigerator to set.  Mix the remaining whipped cream with the remaining cooled chocolate.  Spread this chocolate whipped cream on top of the regular whipped cream on the pie.  Take shavings from the dark chocolate bar and sprinkle on top.  Keep refrigerated.

Read my story about this recipe here:   http://www.michelleconaway.net/2010/10/a-slice-of-heaven/