February can
sometimes be one of those months when a little extra help is needed to maintain
a positive outlook. I have discovered a drink that helps me with this. It is my
cup of tea but may not be yours! I was looking for a way to inject some
brightness into my morning when I stumbled across the recipe for Turmeric Tea and
as I had all the ingredients I needed thought I’d give it a go. The process of
making it is mindful in itself, all that pounding in a pestle and mortar can be
therapeutic; it’s oddly soothing watching ginger, turmeric, cinnamon and
coconut oil come together to form a deep orange paste. And as you mash it all
up it releases such a warming comforting smell which then fills the whole
kitchen as you heat the mix with coconut milk. The bright paste begins to meld
with the milk as the heat increases until you witness a bubbly golden froth breaking
the surface. I like to leave mine to simmer away for a good ten minutes to really
increase the intensity. The colour mesmerises me, it is golden and joyous. I
find it restores a childish fascination with mixtures, I want to find that
exact hue and sink into it. I want to become golden and glowing and yellow. To breathe
in the precise shade. To swim in milky turmeric tinged lakes. This liquid
sunshine restores my faith that spring is on the way. The taste is sweet and
earnest. As I drink I imagine the wholesome yellowness healing every cell in my
body. A bit over the top I know but it has that effect on me! A big glass of
this can change my attitude for the day. It is more than a sum of its parts;
yes the healthy ingredients are good for me but it has the ability to be more
than nutrition, it feels as if it soothes my emotions. Perhaps you can imagine
that sense of the sun coming out after a dismal few days and you turn your face
up to the rays and smile the biggest smile, it’s all going to be OK. That’s what
this does for me. Perhaps the yellowness resonates with the Solar Plexus Chakra
providing me with a hefty dose of self-esteem, energy, confidence and inner
power. Perhaps even strengthen my sense of
autonomy. Whatever it is I am going to set myself a very simple goal of
drinking liquid sunshine daily for the next 5 days.
Goals don’t need
to be complex or far reaching; attaining this little daily objective will make
me feel on track. It’s purely for me, it won’t change the world. But it will
increase my happiness and I find it fun, which seems like a perfectly
legitimate intent. I have been thinking about simple aspirations and how we
often denigrate the importance of setting a desire that isn't necessarily worthy
or life changing but merely frivolous and pleasurable. At the end of a Yoga
class last week I was chatting to a fellow attendee and she happened to say
that she’d love to do the splits but had never achieved the flexibility required.
I offered to spend some time with her
after class each week to work on her goal. She laughed and thought she was probably
‘too old, it was indulgent to spend time on something that wasn't important and
what would she do with the skill if she did manage to achieve it?” But I feel that being able to do the splits is a perfectly admirable thing to aim for. Why shouldn't we strive for fun, learning to extend flexibility may well be the
start of a whole new way to relate to one’s body. At the very least my friend
gets to spend extra time at the gym and away from the biscuit tin.
I have ancient
goals that I have long forgotten about. I never mastered cartwheels as a child,
would have loved to have learnt to play the piano and at one time aspired to
perfect climbing trees. What makes me think they are not worthy of my time or
dedication now? I imagine my delight as I clamber down from the highest branch,
launching in to a perfect cartwheel and rushing in to play chop- sticks. I would
certainly feel very pleased with myself…. perhaps if I keep up with the Turmeric
Tea my youthful exuberance will return to reignite those childhood goals !
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