Editorial
Volume 25 Issue 2 — July/August 2019
by Melva Armstrong

Welcome to the summer issue of WHOLifE Journal. It has been another terrific experience putting it together. This includes meeting a lot of new people as well as reconnecting with many I already know. It’s a joyous lovely balance of caring and sharing and working together to bring you the latest health and wellness news. After 24 years of creating each issue, it still brings me much happiness to do this work. I say heaps of thanks to all those wonderful individuals who are part of this July/August 2019 issue.

It’s a fun and busy time of year where people are enjoying being outdoors and planning summer holidays, social events, weddings, BBQs, road trips, celebrating birthdays, enjoying sports, and taking advantage of the warm sunny weather that comes with this season. The summer is such a change from our prairie winters that we gladly get as much outdoor activity in as possible.

I trust those of you who have planted gardens are enjoying watching them grow. I feel it is important for people to be more self-sufficient when it comes to producing the food we eat. I prefer to eat food that I know where it comes from and how it has been handled or raised. That’s why I would encourage you to support your local farmers’ markets and natural food sellers, wherever they may be located. Buying at the farm gate is also an excellent option. Ask around, watch for posters, and do some online research, including social media, to find what is available and a reminder that many farmers have delivery routes throughout the province. Be sure to check out all the possibilities so you can support local food producers and have the best healthy wholesome food you deserve.

Continuing with the topic of healthy local food, we have included an article by Janeen Colvin titled, Cool Springs Ranch—Ranching Holistically and Providing Healthy Traditional Food (p. 12). Janeen is the main inspiration behind her family’s Cool Springs holistic farming practices. This year they are celebrating 10 years of providing Saskatchewan folks with grass-fed and pasture raised meats and eggs. They now have their own grass-fed butchery. Her article describes the essence of holistic farming, which she is passionate about, and how it is set up to honour the earth, the animals, and the people so they all stay healthy.

Our Mindful Eating writer, Stacey Tress, has come up with some tasty delights in her article, Dip Into Summer! (p. 8), which introduces us to guacamole, hummus, and baba ganoush. You will find recipes for each of these dips to give you some yummy ideas of what to serve your family and guests for those regular and special occasions over the summer.

Naturopathic doctor, Michelle Sthamann, has some tips and tricks for optimizing your health in her article, Dietary Health Hacks: The Power of a Green Smoothie (p. 23). She says, “The most efficient way to increase your vegetable intake would be to make green smoothies daily.” She suggests using greens like chard and kale along with various herbs.

I have only recently been introduced to a man named David Hickey and what I’ve discovered so far about him is that he has created an impressive and unique show called Crystal Journey: A Night to Remember (p. 16) that he is currently taking on tour across Canada. His performances, that create soothing, meditative, and healing music, are completely improvised using quartz crystal bowls, gongs, santoors, harmonica, voice, and more. He will be in Saskatchewan during July and you can see all his dates and locations in his article.

For those of you who love and adore animals and would perhaps like to understand them better or connect with pets that have already crossed the rainbow bridge, we have an article by Jadi Kindred called, Expect the Unexpected with Animal Communication (p. 30). Jadi will be in Saskatchewan during the summer and presenting introductory animal communication workshops in Saskatoon and Regina.

Losing weight can be positively life changing. Just read Steve Hurley’s article, 100-Pound Loss in 165 Days (p. 26) to find out exactly how much it has changed him and his life. The trigger that started his new healthy life direction was when he got on the scale and it topped out at just under 400 pounds at age 49. He is open to speaking with anyone who would like to know what he’s done to be successful at staying healthy and happy.
May the long summer days find you lingering outdoors for longer and soaking up the healing energies of Mother Earth.

Namaste
(The spirit in me honours the spirit in you)