I decided to feature the 7 that feel most impactful for me on my 47th birthday.

I’d tell him that this next chapter seems more daunting at the moment than when he saw me with the babies.

In 5 days, we will reconnect with our senses, our nourishment, our movement, our thoughts and intuition.

And just like that, I let go of whatever story I had in my head about these super active people who seemed tormented.

I learned how to play mahjong for the first time a few months ago with some old friends in California.

The wonderful thing about all of it is that… this relationship is designed, decided, and controlled by me and only me! The baked goods have no say, nor should they. Sweet or sour, I get to be in charge. 

I pretty much grabbed whatever vegetables I had, thawed the salmon, mixed some curry paste (leftover) with coconut milk… and voila, a dish that’s actually worth sharing with your friends!

Even though we were all born intuitive eaters, we were not all raised intuitive eaters. The body may know and remember, but our mind has to practice being intuitive again.

Chia pudding is relatively new in my repertoire, and I was not always a fan. But I am all about easy, simple things I can make myself with what I have on hand. 

One of my favorite teachers I learn from is Byron Katie. Her words ring true, and need to be remembered on a regular basis: When we fight with reality, we always lose.

Even though my first cuisine is Thai, and it sure holds a special place in my heart, Japanese food brings comfort, and all the umami flavors one could ask for. 

When I was accidentally dieting (because I seriously didn’t know it – most people don’t), I would think about what foods will help me lose weight, how much I should eat to lose weight, when to eat so I lose weight, etc. 

I felt liberated with this permission, and glad to be eating everything with my family again. I doubt they noticed the change, but they did stop asking if I would join them – because they knew I would.

This is a really simple way to make a dish that explodes with Thai flavors without requiring exotic ingredients.

If you want to return to our natural way of being which will help you to return to your natural body weight as it was meant to be, then we have to do some unraveling, and re-learning. 

When the clouds parted and I decided to leave the traffic circle of dieting, I returned to what made me and my body feel good.