It is an interesting time of year.  We call it Spring and yet it is unusual to have rain this late into the year, and it is unprecedented for the Vacaville area to be this cold! So while the lettuce and kale love it, the peppers, melons and cucumbers are calling for warmer days along with the ripening cherry crop!

We still need campfires in the early morning and evenings, and yesterday and today kept it going all day long. Easter Baby chicks are now healthy young birds loving the out of doors. They have already been introduced to sprouts! A real treat for all our farm chickens. They LOVE the wheatgrass and sprout trays, and follow me wherever I go when they hear my little tractor and wagon coming their way. (They know sprouts are inside the wagon!)

Mulberries are on the trees but also need more sunshine to ripen. Our neighbors who have farmed here for over 40 years say they have never seen the weather as it is this year. So as farmer, we adjust, we trust and we let go. 

Sometimes being with the upset of others is easy for me.  When my best friend, or my lover come to me, complaining, afraid and resistant, sometimes a soft smile will grace my face.  Of course, I’m not happy that they are upset, but I am able to stand and watch their stormy emotions, be present for their experience of fear and separation, and smile at the beautifully human experience that they get to have, and that they will watch me have some day.  I choose loving them unconditionally, and so I choose to be present for their upsets too.

With other people – coworkers, acquaintances, and friends’ partners - it can be more challenging to hold the seat of unconditional love. I think part of the challenge here comes from my ego trying to insist that, “I didn’t choose these people!”  Speaking from experience, I can say that it is much harder for me to be present for someone’s upset when I feel like I didn't choose them and want them to go away.

Today, I am practicing choosing people that are a stretch for me to love.  It allows me to accept my coworkers upset when I can see that I choose them to do my life’s work with.  I can be more patient with a friend’s partner when I see that I choose them, as a human being who is trying to live  in integrity and learn about love.  As for those acquaintances that I just want to go away?  Maybe I can choose them, choose being their friend, and in doing so choose the parts of me that are afraid to be left out.

What lead you to want to become a chef?I absolutely love to cook, I love to give all of my heart to the people through the flavors of the food.

What do you love about food in particular and how has it changed your life? I love the flavors of food, the variety of ingredients that are available to use and combine.  Food has really changed my life -- since I have stopped eating meat and have been eating more vegetables, I feel healthier and more vibrant.  I was diagnosed with Diabetes this year, and have been being really successful at healing myself simply through these changes in my diet!

How long have you been in the industry?
I've been working in the food industry for 15 years - 14 years working with meat, and a year and a half working here at Gracias Madre in a vegan environment.  It's a really different environment, and vegetables are so much healthier than meat!  I really like vegan Mexican food -- it's not fattening, it's healthier, you feel stronger, and it's delicious!

Have you been a chef before?
Yes, for 14 anos.

What were you doing before you came to Gracias Madre, and what do you plan to do next?
Before I was in charge of a meat-based taqueria, and I am so happy with my transition to Gracias Madre.  My future plans are to continue on with Gracias Madre, and bring it even greater and greater success!

What is surprising and unique about you that most people would not know about you?
People might not know that I'm very peaceful, that I'm extremely dedicated to my responsibilites, and that the most important thing to me are my food and my customers...without my customers, I wouldn't be who I am.

What's your favorite vegetable and fruit?
My favorite vegetable has recently become lettuce, and my favorite fruit is the plantain.

It's not every day that I turn on the radio.  I make up that most songs on the radio are about indulging messages grounded in separation, longing, and fear.  I've listened to this kind of music before, and in the past I have empathized with messages like: "I'm better than you, I'm the top of the top," "I just can't live without you," and "Everything is messed up, so put your hands in the air."

Nowadays, I'm living life from a more internal approach.  Taking responsibility, practicing love and forgiveness, and choosing beliefs that serve me.  One of my long standing beliefs that does not serve me is that mainstream music isn't worth listening to.

When is the last time you heard a song on the radio that was about finding your voice, living from your heart, or healing the planet?  Well, I heard some songs like these just the other day, and so I'm going to take this opportunity to dispel my (and maybe your) misgivings about what popular music has to offer.

Ingredients:

• 3 1/4 cups of fresh shelled fava beans
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 medium sized garlic clove
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon (raw) tahini

To make:

• Put all items together in the food processor.  Blend until smooth.
• Serve in a flat bowl, with olive oil drizzled on top, with a side of vegetables and crackers for dipping.

Note:

• There is a rare disease called favisim which is caused by raw and cooked fava beans.  If you have food sensitivities, start your research here before eating this dish regularly.
• Fresh fava is best for this dish.  Simply take the fava bean out of the long shell.  No need to shell or peel the fava further than this.

To find out more about Heather Haxo, her recipes, classes, and more, visit: www.RawBayArea.com

We are loving the SUNSHINE, and so are the tomatoes, cucumber and zucchini plants! Bees are buzzing around, happy to have dry weather and some fresh flowers to drink from. Strawberries are abundant and picked daily. Chickens are loving that the only water they get are in their waterers, or from irrigation sprinklers!

The tomatoes in the greenhouse are beautiful and ripening as well.  Grandchildren are also enjoying the warmer weather, have no have need to be gathering around the campfire, and are getting to swim in the afternoons. Leadership Training happened this past weekend and I am so  inspired by who is showing up for training in taking on a greater expression of being a leader in the awakening of unconditional love. How about you? No need to participate in the training to start expanding your personal expression of unconditional love in the world!

We have had some sadness in our community as well, the death of the brother of our long time bookkeeper, Greg. We ask that you please send love in the direction of him and his family as they deal with the transformation that is forced at times of emergency. Love is an amazing healer.

Numbers have a way of making me space 
out, they've always astounded me; but 
breast cancer statistics just floor me. 
In reading them, I feel suddenly on 
high-alert.

“About 1 in 8 women in the United States 
(12%) will develop invasive breast cancer 
over the course of her lifetime,”
according to the CDC, and “for women in 
the U.S., breast cancer death rates are 
higher than those for any other cancer, 
besides lung cancer.”

This is where I need to pause and take 
a breath.  There’s a story in these 
statistics, waiting to be told, and I 
want it to find me...  

It’s not the story of cancer survivors, 
powerful as those stories may be, and 
it’s not the story where we all Race for 
the Cure, raising money to conquer this 
insidious disease with science.  It’s not 
even an exposé about the endocrine-disrupting 
chemicals in our bottled water, the 
electromagnetic energies that we are bathed 
in as city-dwellers, or the soy products you 
should-no wait, shouldn’t, OK, maybe should, 
be eating.  

This is a love story, through and through.  

This is the story about how collectively, 
we women have forgotten to love and adore 
the most life-giving and comforting parts of 
our bodies.  Not with a sweet indifference, or 
an appreciative nod, but through the dis-ease 
story that women across the western world are 
telling themselves about how their breasts are 
NOT ENOUGH.  

Of course, this story comes in as many forms as 
there are women: too much, uneven, marked by time, 
too attention grabbing, invisible... Our breasts 
endure these repetitive thought patterns on a daily 
basis and I can't help but assume what affect they 
are having on our health. While we may never go under 
the knife in the quest for some cultural breast ideal, 
even highly conscious and evolved women can get sucked 
into the trap of dishonoring our bodies.  I know that 
I still can.  I have seen how water crystals change 
when exposed to loving and unloving thoughts (and 
if you haven’t, please check out Messages from Water 
by Masaru Emoto) and as a health educator, I understand 
holistic interconnection. Yet, I’m still not immune from 
sending less-than-adoring messages to my own body.  
Battling the constant wave of disempowering affirmations 
embedded in our culture seems to be an unending practice 
as long as I’m still working, living, and playing within it.


The Abounding River teaches us that sometimes the strong 
medicine we need is CONSCIOUS AFFIRMATION that re-aligns 
us with the positive flow of life.  To battle an epidemic 
of negative affirmation, we need powerful CONSCIOUS medicine.  
Can you imagine that we have the power to change these 
statistics just by changing the way we are collectively 
"talking to" our bodies?  Love may not heal all, but it 
certainly illumines the places that need healing.



My commitment is to taking a stand for all of the women 
and girls in my life, even the ones who have done their 
share of Women’s Movement curriculum.  We get to be the 
change.  Through our conscious re-claiming of the life-force 
in our bodies, we can pave the way for women everywhere to 
find healing relationships to womanhood, sexuality, and empowerment. 

It starts with us.

I invite the women reading this post to take on a healing
 affirmation practice with me, based on the 
Hawaiian Ho’oponopono, for the next 30 days. I'm calling 
it the "Breast Friends Practice". 

Once a day, sit, take a few long, deep breaths with your 
eyes closed and repeat these words, for 5 minutes, or until 
you feel complete:  

“Please forgive me.  I love you.  You are healthy, whole, 
complete, filled with love and light. You are beautiful 
just as you are. ”



Thank you for taking on loving yourself.

Thank you for changing the world.

Starting Tuesday we will be exclusively serving local brown rice for our I am Grateful Bowl.  This might not feel like a very large declaration, but in our world and with our impact, we see it being large.  We've told you about the wonders of quinoa, the magic of this incredible little plant that produces something so perfectly balanced for our consumption needs as humans.  We stand behind the power of this grain, AND we've also been following the news of the decline of Bolivian nutrition as Bolivian quinoa has gained popularity in the Western world.  As the price of quinoa goes up to meet the demand of rich international buyers, quinoa can no longer be afforded in the Bolivian homes it comes from.  By means of our buying power, United States purchasing trends are disrupting the political and health sustainability of Bolivian citizens.  See more on this subject here.

We are choosing to shift our focus from quinoa to the awesome local and sustainable crop of brown rice.  We have an excellent connection with an amazing family that's been growing rice through four generations. Massa Organics is a local family owned rice farm that respects the soil and ensures the highest quality of grain.  Because we are shifting to using brown rice, we are cutting our footprint in the costs of shipping from Bolivia and we are supporting local farms for a fresh alternative.  We sold over 65,000 bowls of quinoa through the "I am Grateful" program last year.  We are owning up to our impact on Bolivian families, and are recommitting to local, sustainable options that benefit the whole.  Visit a cafe near you to try our delicious new choice!

 

Revolution is an everyday thing.  How can Café Gratitude, the greatest responsible/delicious/community-based/ethical restaurant in creation as of right now, reduce even more of its foot print in all areas?

The following email conversation is between myself (almighty universal Vinicio) and our vendor representative at a major, waaay major food distributor. You have no idea how much food these people move. We've kept the privacy of the vendor. Read & enjoy: short & sweet.