Yesterday, I hit the trails…brand new trails as a matter of fact! Our local park opened up a new section on Sawnee Mountain. We live on the other side of this mountain and often hike to the top for the most incredible view. This new trail heads straight up to a different ridge line and it was tough! Straight up it went from the parking lot! It just kept going and going! It was so fun knowing that hardly anyone had hiked this yet and this land had sat untouched for years. Gorgeous sites were seen including this dead tree. Look closely at the picture and you will see the roots literally are full of rocks and moss. As I passed this tree, it made me stop in my tracks. A picture was taken as my first inclination was just to snap a shot and go. As the hike continued though, it hit me that this could have been me.

That tree messed with my head the rest of the hike.

When God speaks, I listen. Learned that a few years ago…yes,I was a late bloomer!

A few years ago, my health was terrible. Doctors really had no cure for any of the diseases and the meds that were provided had horrible side effects. Hiking never would have happened. Stairs were extremely painful. Sliding out of bed onto numb feet was horrible enough. Even a shower caused pain as one on my “syndromes” caused severe pain to strike due to changes in temperature of air and water. Weird eh? I agree. Every day, in tears,  I would think “Is this really my life now? This can not be what God has planned for me!”. Then, I would suck it up and get through my day. Being negative and complaining to everyone was just NOT happening.  I knew in my heart this was not my future, but did not know the answer to how to make it all go away. Eventually, over time with a clean diet, getting chemicals out of our home and switching to all natural supplements and essential oils for healthcare, my immune system went back to work on its own. My body literally healed itself once it had the proper support and all the “junk” was cleaned out it. I realized that the scales had been tipped with all the chemicals.

My solution was to live as clean as possible plus get moving again.

Back to that tree, those rocks in my mind represent all the “junk” that was blocking my system up and making my body malfunction. That moss is pretty, but it is really not helpful to that tree and reminds me that bad habits like not exercising, skipping meals and more all contribute to poor health. Those things sneak up on you and can be a result of not managing time well. People don’t notice those as you do them, but your body will. Look what happened to that tree after years of planting its roots into rocky soil? It rotted from the ground up and then fell. We have to remove rocks and plant our own roots in fertile soil. If the soil we are in is not quality, we can just change it. Rocks can be removed just like bad habits can be changed. They can be hard to dislodge, but it is possible. Unlike this tree, we have choices. ANY day we can choose to eat clean. ANY day we can throw out the toxic cleaners under our counter and choose something natural to clean with like vinegar and lemon oil. ANY day we can put exercise onto the calendar and just go do it. If hiking alone sounds too scary or hard, we can go walk a neighborhood with a friend or join a gym. ANY day we can bypass the drive thru’s and make eating out a rarity instead of the norm. ANY day we can buy organic and forego the boxed junk. Shop the outside of the store, check out that health food section. Does it cost more? Yes, sometimes, but not always. It does not cost as much as poor health does though. What is interesting is that when you eat clean, you quit craving all the packaged products and will eat less of those. You will eat more meats and veggies. You will eat out less as you realize it’s a “splurge” as there are very few restaurants serving organic foods. THAT saves you money big time! So, I find that it all evens out.  Plus, you have more energy and want to spend time being active vs sitting on the couch with potato chips.

As for that tree, it is still beautiful and I will smile each time it is passed in the future.Looking forward to that reminder as a matter of fact!

That trail will see me many times.

I am so blessed to even be able to hike it. As the path continued, a steep descent had to be conquered and then a pond emerged much to my surprise. My knees were sore by this point, but there was no choice except to keep going. There were a few paths created from stones to help hikers walk through the mud. That was a beautiful, creative way to solve that issue! Rocks of all things! Rocks, as you recall, were what I had to remove from my roots and now they were helping to cross a muddy path. Rocks were being used for good on this trail just like my own “rocks” are now being used to help inspire others to live a healthier life! Does it make some avoid me? Sure! Being healthier is intimidating. For some, it is just hard as it is the “path less traveled”. I just try to gently encourage people down this path with me. They can’t hike the trail until they are ready. Just like with me, it had to be in my own time and also when God was ready for me to move forward. He used a valley in my life to push me down this new career path where I can help others. I literally had to hit rock bottom in order to fully appreciate my healing once it occurred. What a blessing!

This gentle slope pictured below was towards the end and it was a cloudy day for the whole hike. When I hit this part, that was when the blessing of my healing really hit me in a big wave and the sun suddenly shone through. It know what that was…I smiled through my tears of joy and took another picture to share! If anyone watched me on this hike, they might have though I was crazy. Who takes a picture of dirt?  That was a picture of “my” sunshine. That ray was just for me…

Be blessed friends! Thank you for reading this. I almost did not share as the intention is not to brag, it is to inspire others to keep going, keep trying and fight the good fight for your own health. Contact me if you want any advice on cleaner eating, need to know where to get started or would like details on what was used to support my immune system. Having me share with you is free. No strings attached. It is my calling and a pleasure to do so!