Immediately upon viewing this, it was clear this would be one of my favorite TED Talks because it’s one of my favorite ideas: grow your own food!

Mr. Finley is an urban gardener. A renegade gardener with a message we all need to hear. Our food system is a disaster and intricately tied to the medical system. Food can be medicine or poison. Your diet determines whether health or disease awaits you. One of the best way to choose health is to grow your own food.

The right to grow movement requires and deserves our attention and energy. One of my most sincere beliefs is that we will return to being stewards of the land, by choice or necessity. The earlier you choose, the better off you’ll be.

This generation of children growing up today are expected to die five years younger than their parents. Why? Because of inactivity. The benefits of exercise are so many that it seems silly not to. Yet, so many of us still don’t. I haven’t been to the gym since October.

Don’t judge me.

Still, movement is fundamental. An organization called Designed To Move has created “a physical action agenda”. Check it out here. We have to model healthy behavior for the youngsters to pick it up.

While I’ve fallen off my beloved fitness game for a while, I’m committed to getting back on track, not just for myself but because I want to be in the population of people that’s a part of the solution. Growing up, my mother used to say, “if you aren’t a part of the solution, you’re a part of the problem.” It annoyed me when she said it then, but it’s true.

The children are the future. Let’s teach them well.

Everything we need to experience joy is inside us. When we seek it outside of ourselves, we miss the mark. When we defer the responsibility to someone else, eventually we find that they will repeatedly fail at the task — because it isn’t their job; it’s ours.

So many of us are looking for happiness in books, things, relationships, experiences. While they can, indeed, provide a sense of satisfaction and might even be part of our individual recipe for fulfillment, they’ll never fill the gap that remains when we don’t ourselves tend to the work of satisfying our inner lives.

A long-time friend of mine, Nikki Walton of CurlyNikki has finally released her long-awaited treatise on curly and kinky coils with Better Than Good Hair. For the past five years, she’s been sharing her knowledge and building a community for those embracing the path of self-love by accepting their hair as it is and learning how to work with it as opposed to against it. Better Than Good Hair is best suited for those new or relatively new to the world of natural hair care, but also serves as a handy reference guide for those like me, who have been natural for a while but never fully went down the rabbit’s hole and could use a refresher every now and then.

I’m pretty psyched to be connected to the project, as a short essay of mine is featured. (I’m published!) My favorite thing about Nikki and her movement is how genuine and bright she is and how passionate she is about positively impacting people’s mental and emotional health as it relates to hair. She is, after all, a certified therapist.

If you know anyone who could use a more information about naturally curly hair, Better Than Good Hair is a handy reference, and especially helpful to sift through all the online information. Get your copy today.

The heart of my efforts right now center around productivity, so I’m sharing productivity expert David Allen’s TedxTalk with you. Enjoy!

Doing so requires commitment. Tireless commitment. And the passion necessary for dedication.

I’ve wasted too much time, fearful, doubting, wavering, uncertain. And the odds are in favor of me correctly saying “so have you.”

Let’s get clear and let’s forge new and unique paths that uplift and illuminate us and those around us.

This year has been an amazing testimony of what’s possible and I see so clearly now that I’ve got to get out of my own way and you’ve got to get out of your own way so we can be so great, truly. Individually and collectively. It must happen.

Stop allowing yourself to be distracted. Focus, commit, and succeed.

You’re not depressed, you’re distracted. Distracted from the life that fills you, from the life that surrounds you: dolphins, forests, seas, mountains, rivers.

Don’t fall for what your brother fell for, who suffers for one person when there are 5,600 millions people in the world.

Besides, living alone isn’t so bad. I have a good time deciding what I want to do every time and it’s because of solitude that I know myself, a fundamental thing for living.

Don’t fall for what your father fell for, who feels old because he’s 70 years old and forgets that Moses guided the exodus at 80 and Rubistein played Chopin like nobody else, at 90. To mention just two familiar cases.

You’re not depressed, you’re distracted because you think you lost something, which is impossible because everything has been given to you. You didn’t make a single hair in your head, so you don’t own anything.

And life doesn’t take things from you, it liberates you from them. It makes you lighter so you can fly higher, so you can reach fullness. From the cradle to the tomb it’s a school so what you call problems are really just lessons. You didn’t lose anybody, those who died have just gone ahead, because that’s where we’re all going. Besides, the best of them, their love, stays in your heart. Who could say Jesus is dead? There’s no death, there’s moving. And on the other side, wonderful people wait for you: Gandhi, Michelangelo, Whitman, St. Augustine, Mother Theresa, your grandmother and my mother, who thought poverty was closer to love because money distracts us with many things and alienates us because it makes us suspicious.

Do only what you love and you’ll be happy, and he who does what he loves is fated for success, which will arrive when it should, because what must be will be and will come naturally. Don’t do anything under obligation or compromise but for love. Then there will be fullness and everything is possible in it. And effortless because it’s the natural force of life what moves you; what lifted me up when the plane that carried my wife and daughter crashed; what kept me alive when doctors gave me only 3 or 4 months to live. God put you in charge of a human being and it’s you. You must make yourself happy and set yourself free, it is only after this that you’ll be able to share real life with the rest. Remember Jesus: “Love one another as I have loved you”.

Reconcile with yourself, stand in front of a mirror and think that the creature you’re looking at is a work of God and decide right now to be happy because happiness is an acquisition.

And happiness is not a right but a duty because if you’re not happy, you’re bringing down the whole neighborhood. A single, talentless, coward man had six millions Jewish brothers killed. There are so many things to celebrate and our time on earth is so short that suffering is a waste of time. We have to celebrate the snow of the winter and the flowers of the spring, chocolate from Perusa, French baguettes, Mexican tacos, Chilean wines, the seas and rivers, Brazilian soccer, One Thousand and One Nights, The Divine Comedy, Don Quixote, Pedro Páramo, Manzanero’s boleros and Whitman’s poetry, Mäiller, Mozart, Chopin, Beethoven, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Velásquez, Picasso and Tamayo, among other wonders.

And if you have cancer or AIDS, only two things can happen and they’re both good: If it beats you, it sets you free from that annoying body: I’m hungry, I’m cold, I’m tired, I want to, I’m right, I have doubts… and if you beat it, you’ll be humbler, more grateful and therefore easily happy. Free from the enormous weight of guilt, responsibility and and vanity, willing to live each moment as profoundly as it must be lived.

You’re not depressed, you’re just not busy. Help the boy who needs you, that boy will be your son’s business partner. Help the elderly and the young ones will help you when you’re older. Besides, service is sure happiness, like enjoying nature and caring for it for those who’ll come. Give beyond measure and you’ll receive beyond measure.

Love until you become what is loved and even until you become love itself. And don’t let a few suicides and homicides confuse you, goodness is the majority but you can’t tell because it’s quiet. A bomb is louder than a stroke but for each bomb that destroys there are millions of strokes that feed life.

Very few things as beautiful as these words have been given to me, that they seem to come out not just from a kind soul but from a very human one. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do and I hope we all put them in practice. Now, let’s live and complain less, don’t you think?

- Facundo Cabral

* original title: No Estas Deprimido, Estas Distraido

i have to thank the amazing penelope for introducing me to him. this year has been pretty extraordinary thanks to travel. it hasn’t always been fun, easy, or happy, but it has been amazing. i’ve crossed paths with some really wonderful people who have enriched me and my growth process and i’m just feeling really grateful for that. music is a great connector. she mentioned being “kind of obsessed” with his music and it’s so different for me right now, i gather the same might happen to me too. that’s cool.

Life is calling you. All the time. Do this. Do that. Don’t do anything at all. There’s always a fork in the road. Sometimes you don’t even know it’s there, but it is. Sometimes you hear it, see it, feel it…this urge…this moment that comes to visit briefly. It may whisper, it may shout, but it’s always saying something. Are you listening?

The perpetual, invisible fork is the following question: how are you going to respond? To what? To everything.

We allow the outer world to control our inner world because we don’t understand that the more we control our inner world, the more we control the outer world.  It often acts the other way around, but we’re so much more effective in our lives when we understand this.  The past few weeks have proven this to be true.

Out of nowhere, my job suddenly became a place I slightly dreaded. I wasn’t even fully aware of it, but I noticed it when I realized time was my obsession. “What time is it?” and “how much longer will I be here?” Sure signs of danger. Everyone and everything was a problem and I played the victim to all the haphazard incidents and wrongdoings.

When somebody/everybody else is always the problem, maybe the problem is really you.

I toyed with this thought. Maybe it was me. Maybe people have been responding to my energy. Maybe I’ve been sweating all the small stuff. Maybe.

On my way to work one morning, I decided I’d be happy for no reason. No matter what. There was an immediate difference. My co-workers responded to me differently. My customers responded to me differently. The interactions were pleasant. Work was enjoyable again. I walked with a smile and the energy radiated.

I took the same approach the next day. Before leaving work, one of my co-workers asked, “Okay, what happened before you came into work yesterday?”

I smiled and said, “I changed my mind.”

I no longer dread my job. On the contrary, I rather enjoy interacting with such a variety of personalities.  Even when someone else isn’t pleasant towards me, I’m granted an opportunity to respond—not react—to them. I don’t have to allow them to ruin my good mood. Now when I start feeling frazzled by what’s going on, I remind myself to chill out and choose my response. It’s amazing how easy it is to be reactionary to everything and everyone, so much so that we forget we can choose how we will thoughtfully respond instead of taking the reflex reaction route.

We have the opportunity to choose our response all the time. We can decide what path will lead to further pain or greater pleasure. Be vigilant about finding these opportunities. Listen to the call, that urge for change. Check your frequency and watch the change.

You have power in your life.

We’re all looking for pure bliss and resounding ecstasy. We want to drop our worries and feel alive, feel connected to the magic of this world. All too often, though, this desire results in the abuse of alcohol, drugs and other legal or illegal substances. In using or abusing these substances, the user often does more harm than good.

But alcohol and drugs are completely unnecessary and actually quite costly to both your body and your wallet. There’s another way.

It’s natural. It’s safe. It’s free. It’s legal and always available to you.

I’m talking about natural highs.

I started to have them at the end of November and began testing different variables to induce and sustain them. Some days, my singular goal was to have a natural high. And you know what? I succeeded. Here’s what you need to know so you can, too.

It’s a state of consciousness.
That said, know that there’s some internal work you have to do–mentally and emotionally. You have to be prepared to do the work and you have to know that the end result–euphoric and glowing bliss, expanded creativity, increased energy–is possible.

Lowered mental or emotional states blow highs.
When I succeeded in attaining a natural high, if my mental or emotional state changed to a lower frequency energy, the intensity of the high would decrease or I’d lose it altogether. Emotional mastery is a lifelong quest, but the more you practice it, the better you get. You have to learn to determine your mood and protect it from external offenders (circumstances, other people) as well as internal offenders (reactionary thoughts or feelings).

Release negativity, embrace positivity.
Indulging in negative thoughts and feelings is counterproductive. Extend empathy and practice both forgiveness and gratitude.

Forgiveness Practice
My forgiveness practice is simple. Get comfortable, close your eyes, and envision someone you’re holding resentment towards. Imagine that person being all alone and dealing with the weight of their stuff.  Everyone’s got something: some pain, some insecurity, some regret. Envision that person when they’re by themselves, with no mask on, facing their issues.  Think about your own pain, insecurity and regret and identify with them. Allow the spirit in you to see the spirit in them.

Then, imagine a white light surrounding you and a pink light glowing from your heart. Remind yourself of your infinite capacity to love and forgive, then recall those feelings of empathy for the person you resent. Imagine that pink light extending from your heart to theirs while continuing to remind yourself of your infinite capacity to love and forgive. I usually see myself embracing this person in a really tender moment, filled with empathy and love. I understand that they’re not perfect, that they’re not always who they want to be, and that they’re dealing with their own issues regardless of the persona they put forth. Hold this image in your head for as long as it takes for those feelings of empathy, forgiveness, and love to truly emerge.

Will you walk away having completely forgiven the person? Maybe. Maybe not. It’s highly contingent upon the circumstances of the situation, how deep your pain is, how empathic you are, etc. But will this exercise soften your heart a bit? You bet.

Gratitude Practice
I use the gratitude practice I learned from Michele Wahlder’s Alphatudes, which utilizes the ABCs to create a gratitude list. The list can be as elementary or complex as you’d like; it’s your practice. If you’re grateful for apples, or botanical gardens or your charisma, it’s your world. Really. I often challenge myself by choosing a theme. I list what I’m grateful for about myself, or others, or about my job. Even if I use the same theme, I’ll usually make myself choose different things to appreciate. By the time you get to ‘z’, you’re sure to be buzzing with excitement and appreciation.

Relax.
Keep your cool. I can be prone to anxiety and quit to react, but if I want to get or keep a natural high, I have to chill out, be more accepting, forgiving, and patient. If someone does something annoying, I let it go. Whatever man, it’s cool. Because, really, does it matter?

Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Find –and deliver– the good.
Look for and embrace the positive and the beauty in yourself, in others, and in the world. What you focus on truly does expand, so set your sights on something more expansive: the good! Anticipate it being returned to you. Be the bearer of it to others. Though they may engage in negativity, show them the upside, or at least make sure you’re aware of it so you don’t succumb to their emotional state. However, sharing your good mood really is a blessing from you to others, regardless of how (or if) they take it.

Finding the good is a process of creating meaning. Find the lessons in the bigger picture. Sure, you’ve made mistakes. Sure, things aren’t “perfect”. But what positives can you take away from those situations? There’s always something. If you have to reach, reach, but create meaning that you can honestly connect to. It truly is your world. Do what makes you feel good.

Be present.
Be here now. Live in the moment. Be excited and thankful for the moment and all it has to offer you. Believe it’s for your highest good, no matter how challenging or painful things may be.

Have faith.
The magic truly is in the making. I never wanted to sound like some new age hippie talking about mystical, intangible concepts like energy and karma.  But I suppose I am. I believe in the magnetism of all energy and that like does attract like. I believe that the energy you emit is the energy you receive so I try to remain conscious of the energy I’m emitting.  Things happen by matter of faith for everyone, but are you giving your faith to your greatest hopes or your greatest fears? Go for the hopes. And be excited.

Natural highs are possible, but they do require some work. However, I never regretted any of the emotional or mental adjustments I had to make regardless of whether they resulted in attaining or maintaining a feeling of euphoria or not. So positive, free, and progressive. Sounds like a combination worth embracing.

Good luck! Please share your experiences.

UPDATE: Someone recently introduced me to a book called Get High Now (without drugs) by James Nestor. For more information, go to www.gethighnow.com.