Footprint February 2008 Out Now

Sivertsdotter Footprint is a monthly letter with a mission to inspire you to act for inner and global peace and to make healthy footprints on earth. To read: click the green link above, to subscribe: go to www.sivertsdotter.com.

Thinking Before Speaking

3 questions to ask ourselves before we open our mouths:

• Is it true?
  
  
• Is it meaningful?
  
  
• Is it necessary?

With Faith All Things Are Possible

I believe that each of us has the potential to create personal miracles, and to spread these miracles throughout the world to help others. When we recognize our own unique personal power, we then can become a source of inspiration for those around us. But we have to be a living example before we can 'give anything away' to others. As a drop of water in the sea spreads outward, that’s precisely how we spread our message by living our lives the way we were meant to live them.

I think we were meant to be radiant, healthy, creative, active, happy and full of love and energy. And I believe that that is the 'natural state', not feeling a bit depressed, tired and lifeless. Everything that is less than our own definition of 'perfect' is the head telling the heart a lie and ourselves believing it. We don't have to struggle in life. We don't have to worry. We don't have to stay at a job that doesn't bring out our full potential.

The 'thing' is to understand that this day is all we have and that this day also is a miracle. As long as we think that we have forever, we avoid figuring out our priorities. As long as we think that 'tomorrow' will be the day, we won't appreciate the day ahead of us fully. When we turn our minds from daily life we see how fleeting it is, what a gift it is to have lungs to breathe with, arms to use and a creative mind to accomplish all dreams with.

We need a leap of faith to be able to enjoy every day. Knowing that it might be the last can help us to live as if it was our first. Knowing that life will carry us along the way as long as we continue to take the steps can help us to actually take those steps needed. With faith all things are possible.

When we believe in the good, we will recieve more of the great. When we see all the happy faces on the streets instead of the suffering, that is what will stay with us through-out the day. When we make an effort to help others, smile at them and see them for who they are, life will smile back threefold at us. And all starts with faith. Faith in life, faith in ourselves, faith in our capacity and the willingness to carry it out to the world.

Book of the Week

Our bodies can not be healthy without a balanced diet, and we can not have a balanced diet without colorful vegetables and fruit - 'living food' - uncooked, non-pasteurized, and minimally processed.

Have you tried wheatgrass, chlorella, spirulina, barley grass and kumut? Have you tried to increase the amount of 'green foods' in your diet for a long period of time? Have your tried to cut out all sugar and refined carbohyrates, all alcohol and all processed food? How did you feel?

Changing our diets will result in changes in our health. When we reduce the chemical burden on our bodies, we'll feel more vibrant, energetic, and light, and this will translate to better attitudes, less conflict, more cooperation and in the long run - peace. We can transform not only our own health but the whole well-being of the world - starting simply with the food we put into our mouth.

If you want to know more about how green foods heal, how an alkaline diet can improve your health and what food is abundant with vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and chlorophyll that our bodies need - be inspired by The Green Foods Bible by David Sandoval (Freedom Press 2007).

When We Give We Heal

I will always have an unshakable faith in all human beings. We all have the capacity to not only care for ourselves but also to contribute to the world as a whole. I believe in a world where people find meaning in their lives by doing their part to make the world a better place. A world where each individual is using their limitless capabilities where it is most needed and where it unleashes most creativity and joy.

I believe in a world without homeless people. My goal is 'ZERO' - a world with not a single person sleeping on the streets. What is your goal? We can all wave a flag. We can be the person starting to talk about an issue that is not talked about. We can show compassionate care. We can help people to transition into a better life.

Peace starts with a smile and with small actions. When we are contributing to the healing of the world we automatically feel good and when we feel good we have no reason to harm anybody. It all starts with us and that is both a blessing, a responsibility and an opportunity. We all have what it takes and all we have to to is start. What does 'getting active' mean to you today?

Question of the Day

How am I going to change this world?

Teaching By Being

"I would like to be known as an intelligent woman, a courageous woman, a loving woman, a woman who teaches by being" Maya Angelou

I couldn't agree more.

Martin Luther King Day - the Day of Hope

"I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word."

Martin Luther King, Jr

The Best Food On the Planet

No single thing effects our lives or the world we live in as mmuch as eating. Our bodies are our temples and once our temples are clean and pure, there is space for divinity, insight and virtue to reside. It is said that cleanliness is next to godliness, and we can all choose clean and fresh food that help our bodies to glow and sparkle.

When we invest in our health, the returns will filter into all aspects of our lives. Health is about looking at the food we eat and determining whether or not it is the best food on the planet. That is what we all should have and that is what is available to us if we choose it and if we are lucky enough to live in a part of the world where we have that luxury to think about health.

Refined sugar is a drug, and there is no way to get around that. It causes artificial highs, depression, mood swings and energy crashes. It was used as a recreational drug back in the sixteenth century in the royal courts of Europe. We are what we eat. We can choose fresh and colorful food and to be light, vibrant, fresh and alive, or we can choose highly processed food and be dull, gray, heavy and lifeless.

Raw foods are organic, uncooked and unprocessed vegetables, fruits, herbs, spices, sprouts, sea vagetables, nuts and seeds that haven't been exposed to high temperatures, thus maintaining their enzymatic and nutritional properties. Cooking causes major chemical changes to the food and then the food contains new and unrecognisable chemicals. Most raw foodists are vegetarian or vegan, but some eat raw fish and meat.

For more information about Raw Food, try one of these books:

• Natalia Rose, Raw Food, life force energy (Collins 2008)
  
  
• Wendy Rudell, The Raw transformation (North Atlantic Books 2006)
  
  
• Mathew Kenney & Sarma Melngailis, Raw Food, Real World (Harper Collins 2005)
  
  
• Kate Wood, Eat Smart, Eat Raw (Square One 2006)
  
  
• Rose Lee Calabro, Living in the Raw (Book Publishing Company 1998)
  
  
• Matt Amsden, Rawvolution (Harper Collins 2006)
  
  
• Stephen Arlin, Nature's first law, the raw food (Maul Brothers 1997)
  
  
• Suzanne Alex Ferrara, The Raw food primer (Council Oak Books 2003)
  
  
• Victoria Boutenko, 12 Steps to Raw foods (North Atlantic Books 2007)
  
  
• Charlie Trotter & Roxanne Klein, Raw (Ten Speed Press 2007)

One Person Can Bring Peace to the World

Peace is up to us. We can't wait for someone more powerful to deliver peace. We are the powerful ones who choose peace in every thought and action. Global peace is a personal choice, day by day. Are we going to add to the fighting in the world or offer up something greater?

Others may want to waste their precious time focusing on the ugliness in the world. Be the one who focuses on the positive, watch magic happen. Our thoughts are powerful. What we pay attention to expands. Notice peaceful people and places, tune out violence. And remember that more people are at peace than at war all across the earth. The world is evolving and becoming a brighter place.

Next time conflicts surfaces in our lives, we can keep breathing, stay calm, thoughtfully speak our truth and listen to others. We can realize that our frustration may be about the situation, not the person. We can set the intention to find a resolution, try to find the humor and agree to disagree.

We can get to know the genuine in others. Meet people of other cultures, religions, and backgrounds and find shared experiences, hopes, and beliefs. Connect on that holy ground, and peace will flow out from those moments. Wars break out over our evening meals - or in the world - when we try to control someone else. We can accept that we're only responsible for our own values, beliefs, and choices and do everything to bring peace to the world.

Martin Luther King Day

Each year on the third Monday of January (January 21st 2008), schools, federal offices, post office and banks across America close to celebrate the birth, the life and the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr.

It is a time for the nation to remember the injustices that Martin Luther King fought. A time to remember his fight for the freedom, equality, and dignity of all races and peoples. A time to remember the message of change through nonviolence.

Remember, celebrate, act - a day on, not a day off. Although many people see this day as a day without work or a day to hang out with friends, it is much more than that; it is the celebration of equality, the celebration of freedom, and the celebration of a wonderful man who made a difference in this world by believing in peace and justice.

Gandhi's Prayer for Peace

I offer you peace.
I offer you love.
I offer you friendship.
I see your beauty.
I hear your need.
I feel your feelings.
My wisdom flows from the highest source.
I salute that source in you.
Let us work together.
For unity and peace.

Mahatma Gandhi

Daring to Think for Ourselves

We often hope that someone else is going to care for us more than we care for ourselves. That someone will come and tell us what magic answer that we are lacking. We consciously choose to stay blind and deaf. We become compelled to follow someone else’s instructions and perform actions which do not make much sense to us. We give our power away and submit to other’s authority, and forget we have all the power we need already – within ourselves.

We need to take conscious actions instead of constantly and blindly following the advice of somebody “who knows better” to feel happy, joyous and free. No one else can think for us, we have to find our own ways, have faith in what we believe in and every day take steps towards reaching that dream of ours, no matter how big or small.

The first step is to dare change and challenges. When we do we automatically grow into the people we were meant to be. We need a purpose that is ours and we need a narrow road to walk on in order to dig deep into the things that truly matters. Being selective and purpose driven is the only way in order to reach that point when we feel that we are actually thinking for ourselves. When we act not for pleasing someone else or for showing the world something but out of pure happiness of doing what we love doing.

Green For Life

In the book Green for Life, Victoria Boutenko compares the standard American diet with the diet of wild chimpanzees. These animals possess an extremely strong natural immunity to AIDS, Hepatitis C, cancer and other human illnesses.

Chimpanzees share an estimated 99, 4 % of genes with humans, but their diet is dramatically different from ours. The most glaring difference is that chimpanzees consume significantly more green leaves than humans.

We can all learn to love dark leafy greens and support our homeostatic balance in the most optional way. We all have the ability to heal our bodies by remembering that food is medicine and by eating food that heal rather than destroy our bodies, we don’t need any other medicine at all.

Dedicate Your Day

When you wake up, make a decision to dedicate the day ahead of you to someone or something. Let it be peace, your family, nature or a special someone. Whatever you do during the day, act in a way that honours that person or belief and when the day comes to an end, evaluate how it affected your actions, thoughts and behaviours.

Surprise People

• Surprise your partner by inviting a homeless person for a cup of tea and some rest
  
  
• Surprise your body by giving it only organic, vegan, green and raw food
  
  
• Surprise your neighbours by saying more than good morning
  
  
• Surprise your friends by ‘being your highest’
  
  
• Surprise your enemies by responding with love and forgiveness
  
  
• Surprise your society by always picking up the litter
  
  
• Surprise the planet by being responsible for every action you take
  
  
• Surprise yourself by learning something new every single day

Books on Green Ways to Save the Planet

If everyone in the United States refused their ATM receipts, it would save a roll of paper more than 2 billion feet long, or enough to circle the equator 15 times.

• David Wann, Simple prosperity (St Martins 2007)
  
  
• Greg Horn, Living green (Freedom Press 2007)
  
  
• Crissy Trask, It’s easy being green (Gibbs Smith 2007)
  
  
• Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas M Kostigen, The green book, the guide to saving the planet (Three Rivers Press 2007)
  
  
• Julie Fisher-Mc Garry, Be the change you want to see in the world (Conari Press 2007)

Random Acts of Kindness

Each day, look for every opportunity to do something good for people around you, especially those you don’t like. Ask yourself what one action you can take today to raise your level of consciousness.

Select one person in your set of relationships and – for one week think positive about that person daily and perform small acts of kindness for him or her every day. After the week, take time to reflect on what you learned from the experience.

Also – identify one or two areas in which you must make some changes to continue growing into the person you want to be.

Every Language has a Word for Water

Nearly three-quarters of Earth's surface may be covered with water, but only 3 percent of the Earth's water is fresh.

U.S. residents use more water than people in other countries do—about 151 gallons per day on average for domestic and municipal purposes. In the U.K., people live a more water-efficient lifestyle, consuming just 31 gallons per day. In Ethiopia, people have to make do with just 3 gallons per person per day.

It takes three liters of water to produce a one-liter bottle of water. An estimated 40 percent of bottled water sold in the U.S. is just filtered tap water. Bottled water costs as much as $10 per gallon compared to less than a penny per gallon for tap water.

To learn more about water—where it comes from, how it shapes the planet and the lives of people, plants, and animals everywhere—visit the special exhibition Water: H2O = Life at the American Museum of Natural History if you are in New York or visit their website www.amnh.org/exhibitions/water where all the facts come from.

Also, go to www.h2oconserve.org for brilliant water-saving tips. If we don't start today, then when?

Peace in Your Heart

“You must first have peace in your own soul before you can make peace between other people. Peaceable people accomplish more good than learned people do.

If you observe good example, follow it; and if you see bad example, take care not to do the same; if you already fallen into this fault, work to correct it quickly. As your eyes observe others, be sure that you also are observed by them.

You will be happier for having kept silence than for all the long talks and the gossip; good deeds will be of greater value than clever words.”

Thomas Kempis

Bring Truth-tellers Into Your Life

Feedback is a gift. If somebody gives you a gift, say thank you and ask them to tell you more about what you can improve and what they see that you don’t. The more you feel like it is not a gift at all, the more thankful you should be to the person giving it to you.

We all need truth-tellers who can help us keep on course and who doesn’t fear the rejection and the risk it is to tell the truth about something. To be a truth-teller you have to be brave and to have them in your life you have to be brave. The truth doesn’t always please you, but it always makes you grow.

Be open to feedback from other people and be willing to disclose your vulnerabilities to other people. Life becomes real only when we dare to risk appearing foolish, when we reveal the truth and when we live a life that is transparent and honest.

Building Blocks For Deep Friendships

Deep, constant and godly friendships don’t just happen, they are built. The cardinal principle to have lovely friends is to be such a friend. We build beautiful relationships by focusing on giving more than we hope to receive. What do you want to give?

• Time. We must be willing to spend time with our friends. If we don’t want to we either need to make new priorities or, if we don’t choose to make time we probably don’t desire them.
  
  
• Communication. Conversation is the way we discover more about a person’s heart, mind, soul, thoughts and spirit. We also need to share laughter and tears to build a deep relationship, not only words.
  
  
• Thankfulness. If you haven’t said ‘I love you’ to a dear friend yet, go ahead and do it. Express your appreciation in all the ways you can.
  
  
• Tolerance. Let your friend be who she or he is, put up with a occasional bad mood that is a result of being too tired or stressed out. But also, tell the truth when he or she is acting like a child. Saying no to dysfunctional behaviours is saying yes to deep and spiritual relationships.
  
  
• Touch. Hug your friend, pat him or her on the back or give the biggest kiss on the cheek. Touch is healing and so is the act of kindness.

Reasons to Buy Local Food

• Local food tastes better. Food imported from far away is older, has travelled on trucks or planes, and has sat in warehouses before it finally gets to your plate. You also get the opportunity to stay connected to the seasons.
  
  
• Local food is safer. Local framers aren’t anonymous and they take their responsibility to the consumer seriously. Local food also supports local families and builds community between eater and grower.
  
  
• Local food is an investment in the future – both yours and your communitys. By supporting local farmers today, you are helping ensure that there will be farms in your community tomorrow. The shorter the time between the farm and your table, the less likely it is that nutrients will be lost from fresh food. Fresh is always best.

Ways To Feel More Alive

• Smile at and talk to strangers
  
  
• Start a breathing practice and connect with your spirit
  


• Express gratitude before every meal
  


• Take a media fast, the longer the better
  


• Sit under a tree for an afternoon
  
  
• Tell your friends how much you love them
  


• Serve others to forget your own problems
  


• Care for the animals, the earth, the water, the trees and the mountains

Imagine Peace

"If one billion people in the world think peace, we’ll get peace.You may think: “Well, how are we going to get one billion people in the world to think PEACE?”

Remember, each one of us has the power to change the world. Power works in mysterious ways. You don’t have to do much. Visualise the domino effect and just start thinking PEACE.

Thoughts are infectious. Send it out. The message will circulate faster than you think. It’s time for action. The action is PEACE. Spread the WORD.

Spread PEACE. Remember: A dream we dream together is reality. So stand up, speak out, and come together. Imagine all the people living life in peace."

Yoko Ono

Good Health Is A Natural State

Health is never just about food and exercise. It is about living a lifestyle that promotes wellness and maintains balance. It is about understanding our bodies as well as our attitudes, energy levels, relationships, actions and the society we live in.

5 Magazines on Health

• Natural Health (http://www.naturalhealthmag.com)
  
  
• Yoga Plus (http://www.yogaplus.org)
  
  
• Veg News (http://www.vegnews.com)
  
  
• Ascent (http://www.ascentmagazine.com)
  
  
• Women & Cancer (http://www.womenandcancermag.com)

Books On Self Improvement

• Will Bowen, A complaint free world (Doubleday 2007)
  
  
• Chris Prentiss, The alcoholism and addiction cure (Power Press 2007)
  
  
• Marianne Williamson, The Age of miracles (Hay House Books 2007)
  
  
• Bill Strickland, Making the impossible possible (Doubleday 2007)
  
  
• Bob & Melinda Blanchard, Live what you love (Sterling 2007)

Words Can Heal The World

Words to carry with you through the day:

• Clarity
• Freedom
• Perspective
• Depth
• Mindfulness
• Truth
• Presence
• Energy
• Flow
• Vitality
• Courage
• Fearlessness
• Honesty
• Consistency
• Generosity
• Healing
• Love
• Peace
• Trust
• Serenity
• Faith

Give Peace A Chance

"Let us wake up, come together, and work on cleaning and healing our planet,instead of further destroying it. Let's not waste one more day in creating a machinery of destruction. Give us a chance. On behalf of ourselves and all species on Earth.We can do it. We must."

Yoko Ono

The Age of Miracles

"The mind is its own kind of dance floor. What this generation could do from our rocking chairs could literally rock the world. If in fact the highest, most creative work is the work of consciousness, then in slowing down we're not doing less; we're doing more. Having slowed down physically, we're in a better space to rev up psychically. We are becoming contemplative. We are shifting from the outer to the inner not in order to begin our demise, but to reseed and regreen the consciousness of the planet. And that's what is happening now: We're going slower in order to go deeper, in order to go faster in the direction of urgently needed change."

Marianne Williamson from the book The Age of Miracles