Nood   Food

I am Canadian and was raised in a very poor family.  In my memories of growing up, if we didn't grow it, we didn't eat it.  I think that is were the basis of my life choices came from.  Some of my fondest memories are of sitting out in the garden on a hot summer day, wearing a bathing suit
and be covered head to toe in dirt.  I was supposed to be weeding the garden, but I wasn't.  I was sitting there tasting everything.  If it was green, it went in my mouth.  I would imagine I ate my fair share of bugs and dirt too.  I was only 3-5 years old.  On the flip side of that though, any goods that we purchased were of a very poor quality, mostly made from sugar and flour.
    

Unfortunately my mother was not the kind of woman that could express emotion, so she did it with food.  Angry, happy or sad she said everything with food. If she wanted to tell you she loved you she gave you cookies. If she wanted you to be quiet, she gave you cookies. I very quickly learned that all of life's problem could be solved with food no matter what. That set my pattern in at a very young age.  So it is understandable that I have had a battle with my weight all my life.

I am 41 now and for the last couple of years I have settled around 20-30 lbs overweight. However most of my life I was 100 or more lbs overweight.  It is funny because I remember life events not by the time they happened but by how much I weighed at the time. Weight and food have always been the center of my life and usually my downfall as well.  I wasn't until the age of 36 and my divorce that I finally started tounderstand what I had always known.  Food is my savior - not my enemy.
    

I took the time to learn about nutrition and bit about how the body works. I then became the ideal weight for my height and was quite happy.  But within about 2 years weight started creeping back on and I could not stop it.  I was also an emotional mess.  I would snap for no reason at all and then turn around and laugh and turn around again and cry.  I was about ready to sign myself into a mental institution when someone told me "Oh you are just in menopause."  They said it so nonchalantly that I  thought, "Are you crazy, you are not living my life!  How dare you say that so casually!"  But with little investigation and a visit to the doctor to confirm hormone levels, she was right.  The doctor wanted to put me on hormones and I did not agree.  That is what really pushed me into investigating raw foods.
    

Life is no coincidence and neither is this story.  At that point everywhere around me it seemed as though there was information on some kind of crazy raw food diet that was "popular in Hollywood".  So I decided I would try it. I did some web surfing and bought some books.  I went home and cleaned out my cupboards and set myself up to go raw.  I went 100% raw just like that.  It was tough at first, but I had really realized how addicted I was to processed foods.  My friends had always referred to me as such a healthy eater, but I found out the truth about 3 days in. I went through the typical detox and when I came out the other side I could not believe the difference in life.  All the menopausal symptoms I had just seemed to magically disappear. I was no longer feeling evil and moody and I could hear and see better.  I had so much energy it was almost annoying because I couldn't sleep.  I had no craving and I was losing weight.  Of course after a couple of weeks things calmed down and fell into a nice pattern.  I lost 12 lbs without trying and was quite comfortable in my skin again.
    

I stayed raw for 1 year and then I decided to start dating again.  I had been single and not dating for 3 years and I was lonely.  I was aware that it would be dangerous to date around here when I was a raw foodist, that was even worse than saying I was a vegetarian.  I went out on a couple of dates and tried to avoid the whole dinner thing.  But I could not avoid it forever and eventually I started eating some cooked again.  I felt horrible! It really impacted me just how we as an organic structure by design, need to feed our bodies with the same stuff we are made up of.  That really is the dust of the earth.
    

I was about ready to give up on the dating thing when I was talked into putting my profile on Lavalife by another woman that had had success with it.  I did say in my profile that I was a vegetarian.  Well within a few day I received a response from an amazing man.  I was very nervous because I knew before I met him that there was something more to this one than all the rest.  We contacted each other and that led to meeting one another.  I never before believed in love at first sight, but I do now.  I knew he would be the man in my life the instant I laid eyes on him.  Sure enough he felt the same way. I so want this to work so my most of my rules went out the window.  I ate very little meat, but I did eat cooked and tried to keep lots of salads in my diet.  It has been several months now and I have again experienced many physical illness problems. I have realized beyond a doubt that raw food is the only way to go. I am still with my man and happy to be so.  He doesn't really understand yet, the importance of raw food in my life, but he is accepting of it. 

And so here I am once again starting this journey into raw, but this time there is not a single doubt in my mind as to the powerful healing effect it has on any life it touches.  I look so very forward to feeling the way I did before.
    

I want to share my journey with the world.  I am just an average person living an average life.  I still cook for my family but I myself am raw.  I want to show everyone, if I can do it, they can do it. 

Simply put, life is better raw.  So I am starting up this business to give hope and inspire all of those that don't think help can be found.  Health is as simple as choosing to eat a pear or an orange.  It is more cost effective and also better for the planet.
    

I learned long ago that you cannot tell anyone anything.  People only learn by seeing that what you are doing in working.  You must teach by doing not by saying. That is my mission.
    

I would love to hear from anyone who has any questions for me. You can email me or call me at 1-705-375-1742.

Together we can create a raw world.