Current Events

Thursday, December 24, 2009

X-Mas - a Synthesis and Synopsis

Christmas!

Is there anybody who does not complain about the commercialized and stressful version of Christmas? But rushing around for Christmas presents and in order to get our end of the year things done AND enjoying this peaceful and quiet time of the year at the same time IS possible, even necessary for satisfying Holidays. Why don´t you do it different this year just for yourself...? Read on to find out how ....

First of all, not only Christians seem to celebrate this holiday. Otherwise the stores would not be so packed before Christmas and there would not be so many Christmas movies and Christmas songs. Besides, it is not accurately Jesus´ Birthday - he was a Leo, which is some time in late July until late August. Some of the popular customs have pre-christian or secular themes and origins.

So what is this holiday all about? Happening around the winter solstice - the longest night of the year, it has been a time of significance for as long as mankind can remember. In the longest and darkest night, hope and faith are needed the most. That´s what carries us over to better times.

This year I am spending the Christmas Holidays with family on the country side in Austria. Outside everything is covered with some 10 inches of snow, temperatures are 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-18 Celsius) and more. Human live cannot survive very long outside. These conditions make the meaning of hope and trust much more clear. Hope and trust that nature will awaken again that the days and living conditions will become more friendly. Also, being surrounded by sound muffling snow, everything slows down. The attention turns naturally inward. This is a good time for reflection. Social connections and support are more important than ever. In order to cherish these relationships, gift giving is a natural impulse. Coming from the heart it is a divine action. Spending some quiet time and truly devoting yourself to being of service to the other person and wanting to come up with something that brings true joy to the person who receives the gift, is a powerful experience and a break from daily life, where To Do Lists are clear and calculated.

Christmas is also at the end of the year. We all have many things that we are trying to finish before the new year arrives. This is contradictory to the notion of slowing down and going inward. I believe that both movements complement each other rather than exclude each other. In order to be able to go inward it is necessary to have our affairs in order. At the same time it gets more clear what to finish and get in order once we spend some time to look inside ourselves and remember what it was we set out to do when this current year was still fresh and new. I recommend alternating times of rush to get things done and looking inward to get the focus and priorities clear.

Christmas has so many notions that it encompasses. I wish you, dear reader, the most peaceful and joyful Holidays and a satisfying and clear order in your life. There is a time for everything, you get to arrange those things in your own life. Enjoy!

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Go Beyond Your Limits at Least Once in Life

Sitting together with friends we were talking about - miracles. The friend revealed he was one of view people who have ever been cured (and not just symptom free) from Hepatitis. I was astounded. He was invited to interviews, the medical world was interested what he had been up to in order to make this happen. His humble words were that he had chosen the right things by chance. I heard in between lines that he had committed himself to leaving his comfort zone and following his intuition. Most of all, he believed in miracles.

We agreed that doing something beyond your own limits truly chances your life. I was thinking about my own choice to do something way beyond my wildest dreams: about exactly 10 years ago I decided to go on a pilgrimage all the way through Northern Spain. If people asked me why I would want to walk 500 miles by myself through a country of which I barely spoke the language of. I had no answer. I only felt called and I sensed that something meaningful was waiting for me on the other side. When I followed the calling I was still a psychologist in Vienna. I was holding multiple jobs down and volunteer positions, which made my work weeks some 80 hours long, my heart was still broken from an ended relationship. I was drained from the stories of my oncological patients and from the thousands of callers on the Helpline phone. Things looked grim. Things were not as I had imagined them to be when I started to study psychology in order to help people. For some reason I had enough left in me to follow that hunch and to get myself ready for the hike. It took me 1,5 years to carve out 6 weeks in order to be away from work. I also had to prove to myself that I had a chance at this physically and trained for and ran a half marathon a year before I embarked on my journey to Spain. I remember thinking that this was one of the last REAL adventures that there are. I was scared, but I was going.

I did it! One step at a time. Someone once calculated that it takes one million steps to make that journey. With every step I became more what I wanted to be in this life.

After this trip I have never been the same. Not only did I meet my now husband on the very first day, I moved from Vienna, Austria to San Diego, California (we still live part time in Austria), I became a Life Coach (which is so much more what I had always wanted to do), but there is something about going beyond the known, beyond your own limits. I was in awe to see what I was capable of, I also have a deep sense of a truth to the saying that life rewards the ones who dare. I left so much behind on that journey, many fear, worries, limitations, judgements even, certainly many tears and old wounds.

I can only encourage each and every one of you to find something, anything that is a true challenge to you and give yourself the gift to tackle it. You are of so much more capable than you would think you are. And it feels SOOOO good to do it. Enjoy the journey, I am there, cheering you on!

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Taking a Break

Have you ever had days where things seem to go wrong, things break, communications don´t turn out clear and good, maybe even friends fall terminally ill? It all seems so overwhelming. Going about regular business can start to seem surrealistic. What does it matter to have a cookie dough spatulas in 7 different colors available at the store? The contrast between the superficial and the important things gets too much, the sense in everything is not visible. I sometimes find myself in that situation speeding up, trying to get things done, more things done, get them done better and faster...... STOP!! If I don´t stop myself at this point, life will do it for me. The longer I keep going, the bigger the signs get that I can simply take a break. It is okay to just give in and not be productive for a moment, to seize the moment and just stare into the air and let whatever races around inside in terms of thoughts and feeling just race around in circles until it starts to settle by itself.

Time simply stands still sometimes, all we can do is wait along with time itself and let happen whatever wants to happen. Tears? Fine. Walk on the beach? Great. Write in a journal? Do it. Whatever wants to come forth, is perfect in this moment. It will most likely be something out of the ordinary routine. Just let it be. The soul heals itself. Just give it room and time to do it.

All there is to do is wait. Wait for things get back into perspective, back in order. Wait for the meaning of it all to reappear. It is part of being human. Not an easy or particularly desired, but very endearing. Almost always there is a deeper connection with it all that comes forth, a strengthened sense of purpose, of calling that reveals itself.

It is worth inviting the silence in in order to take a break from everyday life and just let time stand still....


Wednesday, December 2, 2009

The Season of Giving

Thanksgiving is the start of a special time of the year. It is also the Grande Finale of the calendar year. The cycle of nature also comes to a close. It all peaks in Christmas, Hannukah or Return of the Light festivals at the End of December. What a great vibe in the air. Did you know that giving brings the biggest rewards for yourself?

I love this time very much. For a little over a 12th out of the year, media finally seems to bring the right message: share, give, be generous, enjoy, rejoice, be grateful, give thanks. Sure, it is done in a media way, which is commercials, coaxing us to buy and splurge and spend.... Yet, the bottom line is joyous. For once we get a break in focusing in on sensationalized media reporting. We get to see sparkles, lights, colors, cheers. The general tone everywhere is festive and upbeat. People think about others, about sharing and bringing a smile on somebody else´s face. It might even be a stranger that gets unexpected help and generous donations.

A miraculous thing happens to me: I watch others and wonder what their heart´s desire might be, I give and.... I am magically rewarded. My own worries cease to exist, I sense a deep connection with people in general, there is companionship and mutual help, it makes any loneliness go away. When I share my resources with someone in need, I feel more blessed and abundant than before.

I find sharing and giving a great exercise in order to get out of a scarcity mindset. That mindset can plague any person not just literally poor people. Many millionaires a haunted by it. I say haunted, for it is a true burden, very life negating. The cure is not to save up more - that feeds the scarcity mindset even more. The cure is to let go, to give, to share and to receive the healing experience that it is okay that there is enough. Immediately there is a big sigh of relief: Save. No more worries, no more feeling confined and financially threatened.

That is one of the reasons why I love this season of sharing: I find giving to be a necessary self-care exercise that rewards myself the most.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

I Create My Own Reality


A new take on the glass half full, half empty dispute. The good news is, if you are able to read this, the glass is really 98 % full. This is certainly no "Think Positive" and rose colored glasses approach, it is a matter of focus.
Okay, there it is. Being a Life Coach, I finally write about some wonderful tools that address the reality. Or is there such a thing as ONE reality? Any police man who has ever interviewed 2 or more witnesses of a simple accident will say the same - every person saw something different. How about this bold statement from the constructivists amongst the psychologists (Watzlawick et al.): There exist as many realities as there are people. I LOVE this statement, because it validates everybody´s most personal experience and reminds me of the fact that we all are "wearing glasses" of different colors, through which we filter and see OUR world. To mention an often used example - the glass half full and half empty scenario. So much in life is truly left to our own interpretation. So, how about this: If you read this, you are most likely in a fairly good position in life: somehow you have access to the internet (not to mention clean water, enough food, probably a place to lay your head at night and maybe some friends and family) and have at least enough free space in your head in order to read this blog. CONGRATULATIONS! I would say, you are amongst the elite of this world. And yet, it might just as well be that something is bugging you and your day - or maybe your month, or this year, or even more, have not been the greatest. What if you even wonder what this is all for and don´t see much of any good anywhere? Well, I would say, given the numbers of people who are depressed, stressed, unhealthy, lonely,....... in the industrialized country (the creme de la creme from a life standard perspective) it is quite likely that you are not having the best time of your life.

But here it is: 98 % or more are currently working in your life. What happened is that we got so conditioned and socialized in looking for those 2 % that aren´t working. And once we found what is not working, we zoom in on it and suddenly it looks like it is all there is: EVERYTHING is going wrong, NOTHING is working. And the things that are working (e.g. food, friends, memory intact, body intact,...) are taken for granted. It is considered to be the least that we can expect. I invite to think again: What if we concentrated on ALL the things that ARE WORKING, got filled up with a good feeling and gratitude for it. Our posture straightens, our heart leaps, maybe a smile dances across our face. Wow! My world has just changed. I no longer am hooked on the little percentage that is not working, I am actually filled with a clear head so I can see the next steps in order to bring me forward, wherever it was I was heading towards. Naturally I will take care of things if I felt it served me well and I never even had to SPEAK, THINK, BE the word PROBLEM. I stop for a moment and think about which reality I want to encounter on a daily basis: If I can create my own reality, I´d rather have the best one I can imagine.

Thus I invite you, the curious reader, to get out of your same old - same old environment, without physically having to move an inch and to be ready to get surprised and amazed about your own world that you live in.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

"Never Waste a Good Crisis" (Hillary Clinton)

On how a crisis is truly an intro to finally getting towards your dreams, towards your true YOU. It is a possibility to investigate what to let go of (the fake things) and what the next step towards more self realization is. Are you up for it? It is so rewarding to summon the courage to take a crisis on as GOOD. The rewards are beyond your imagination.
The quote came to me in the right moment in an unlikely way: Sitting in my office in San Diego California, I was editing articles for the Journal of Psychology in Austria. One of the authors used this quote as an opening. It came to me in the right time: It was summer and I had just returned from a wonderful stay with my family in Austria. I felt so close to them and thought that things went well - even with my Mum. My Mum and I have an ambivalent relationship. She had a pretty bad childhood and does her best. I love her - and do my best. Nevertheless, she is the ONE person who can send my day down a deep slope in a 5 minute phone call all the way from rural Austria to urban California: 10 000 kilometers! So it had happened that morning, before I got to editing those articles. I had cooled off enough already in order to notice: That quote was there for me! What a great way to look at it! Especially with family you know that breaking ties is not an option. So there has to be another way than no contact or constant emotional roller coaster rides (very exhausting and depleting). I accepted the challenge and truly listened to my heart for the next step, what would help us both the most in this situation. The question was always only "What is the next step?" Miraculously, the next step always showed up, while I could not see the outcome, the goal yet. Now, many "NEXT STEPS" beyond, my husband and I are about to purchase our dream vacation home in the beautiful basin in Austria, where I grew up. We are thrilled at the prospect of being able to build a relationship with the people there, with the individual family members. We will no longer try to please our hosts (my parents) and fit our whole schedule around them just to find out in retrospect that that still was not the right approach (my mother would NEVER express any desire of her own, leaving her environment to failure-doomed guessing). I am so excited! It feels like I found the right setup so we all have enough distance in order to be pleasant and be able to show our love. I am excited about honoring my roots in that way. It was still somewhat of a roller coaster ride getting there, but I remember the conscious decision to make use of the crisis and do something new, find that jewel in the whole mess, taking advantage of the already shook up situation. In retrospect, times of crisis were always a great opportunity for me to break free from what did not work (anymore) and to find the new something that I could only dream of before a crisis opened up the possibility to actually go there. You may say about Hillary Clinton what you want, but that quote is a treasure to be taken to heart!

Friday, October 23, 2009

The Price of Saying Never or Going Beyond Self Imposed Limits

A coincidence challenges my prejudice against heated yoga. I take on the challenge and only afterwards I realize, how limiting the dislike had been, almost like a weight had been lifted. The thought, we set our limits way before the true limits, comes to mind. I am left with a feeling of relief and am scouting which other confining limits I can eliminate.

This is an ever so small event that it is easy to oversee and miss to appreciate and learn from it. I signed up for a trial week with Corepower Yoga. Knowing that they offer a lot of heated Yoga, I was careful to stay clear of the classes called "heated", "hot" and the like. It takes always a certain amount of willpower to walk into a new place and do a new class. Yogamat in hand I walked up to the receptionist and learned that the class I came for (Yoga Sculpt) was a heated yoga class and that handweights were part of the routine (Uff). Immediately I repeated a mantra I would keep telling people when the topic came to Yoga and my regular practice: "never heated yoga!!" I don´t do well with heat and tend to get the dizzies, sudden weakness, cold shudders, etc. Since I was already there I decided to give it a try and that I could still leave if I needed to do so (but Yoga etiquette would not be pleased about that). I entered the room and put my mat down on one of the last empty spots, next to one of the few men in class. We started chatting and he told me that this was their hardest class at Corepower Yoga. Oh Dear, now I really thought that I was in trouble! I had not been in a guided yoga class in a long time and had just been doing my own thing at home, usually not pushing myself as hard as Yoga instructors do. On top of that the scene around me proved what that man had just said: people had put towels on their mats in order to catch their sweat AND sprayed the towels so they would keep them as cool as possible. They all looked so fit! Now I felt a slight panic inside myself. I decided to keep my own cool and be open for the new experience. I felt the warmth of the room on my skin and noticed how nice and cozy it felt. I got my water bottle and filled it up. This I knew was going to give me energy when I needed it during the class. Was I going to be able to make it with the weights and all? This was so different from the Yoga I had been taught over years in Europe. I have never had water during class (in the Indian tradition you must not have water an hour before or after Yoga practice, not even think about bringing a bottle into class!) and certainly no weights (too body centered, Yoga is not about looks, didn´t you know?!). Of course the heat was knew as well for me - and much feared to be honest.

The class began, I did fine. I remember wondering, when the merciless drill would begin, but it did not come. It was intense, yes, but I had had much harder from my teacher-guru Shandor, who was known to single handedly throw people out of the class if they were not trying seriously enough. The man next to me was going through the hell he had predicted. He just was not all that fit, maybe in his mid 40ies. I looked around. Amongst the some 25 women was only one other woman than myself who was not in her early twenties. Maybe this men came for the view and was willing to be in pain for it :-). I was so glad I had taken the challenge and had stayed open to the experience. I had been so prejudiced against heated Yoga that I would never have tried it "voluntarily". Now, I might do it again - or not. But I know that I have one limitation less in my head and THAT was so worth it! So, what other things are there that I keep myself left out from because of prejudices that have no particular reason? It feels so much better to not always wince at the word BIKRAM Yoga or heated Yoga anymore but to feel proud, feel like the world is my playground and not a dangerous place to be. Amazing, what one ever so tiny incidence can change: My life quality.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

The Value of Criticism - Is There Such a Thing as Too Much Appreciation?

There is a Foundation for Inspired Learning. I liked the sound of that. What that truly means can only be conveyed through experience. I had the pleasure to experience that within my Coaching Training from Coach for Life. Until then, I had been exposed to all sorts of criticism in the name of teaching, improvement and meaning only the best for me. I have always felt the impact of criticism: it is stagnation, shame, the feeling of not being enough, not being okay, not yet being valuable.... The school system solely works with the focus on mistakes and what is yet MISSING. Then came, what looked like an improvement, but was just a more tricky and harder to disarm version: POSITIVE criticism; the "Great, BUT...". Wanting more and feeling that these kinds of feedback were counterproductive and not helping, I felt doomed until I came upon INSPIRED LEARNING. I had tears in my eyes and goose bumps on my skin, when I learned how illiterate adults got the experience of reading their first own words after decades of desperate failings without being shamed and called stupid, all through the power of inspired learning. I can feel how the energy stagnates and retreats after criticism, after pointing out what is missing, after the "great, but...". Inspired learning however creates a safe learning environment. It highlights what IS there, what is going well. It kindles interest and natural growth. The energy expands naturally from there.

I myself have become a different person, when I am walking through my days, pointing out at people what they do great as opposed to looking for the things that aren´t going well or are missing. MY life improves through that. And people are always so thankful for not getting criticized, belittled. Also, it does not elevate me through putting others down. That is not what the human spark is made of.

It is true that this concept is best understood on the receiving end, but it can also be simply believed and hence applied. This will bring the convincing and stunning results, 100 % guaranteed!!

Now I finally get it why I always felt sorry for critics: Would you like to spend your life always looking for what is missing and what went wrong? Eeeeek! I much more enjoy waltzing through life and being on the receiving end of all that is working wonderfully and that is already there in abundance. And the perspective of taking on the earlier or the latter is a choice that everyone has the freedom to make. Go for it....!

Oh yeah, and the saying that too much appreciation spoils people, well frustrated and self-denying people made that one up. Sad. But getting out of being a frustrated and self-denying person is only one appreciation away...

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Running or How Little Habits Can Help Create a Life in Flow

Do you already zone out when you hear the word RUNNING, because you don´t think you have the stamina or willpower for it or it is boring? Or are you one of these people who have done marathons already and running is a staple in your life? Well, in any case I believe you might enjoy this text:


I had a somewhat blue weekend, where instead of enjoying my time out I was mostly unaware and somewhat restless and watched online TV shows and ate unhealthy “comfort” food. Worst of it, I was getting down on myself about how I could give in to it, truly wanting to life a conscious, happy and healthy life. Finally, on Monday morning, I gave myself a shove out the door and went on an hour long run on the beach! Immediately the blahs were gone and my thoughts started to get in some kind of order; the things I am grateful for and things I like started to stick out again. I knew I was myself again! How wonderful. The moment I started running I was in my own power again, was the creator of my own life, saw all my hopes and dreams and the many blessings in my life, a 180 degree shift in perception.


So I started thinking about how I got started running. I was pretty much a coach potatoe as a child and a little chubby at times. In my teenage years I tried running in order to lose weight, but did not get very far. I was terribly bored and DID NOT HAVE THE STAMINA, or so I thought! Finally, in my college years a friend convinced me to go running with him. I was rulctant but came along. I was stunned! Out of nowhere, we were running 20 minutes straight!! Okay, it was probably more jogging, hence really slow. But it impressed me that I could do it right away. And ever since I LOVE it! It is so empowering!! I am certain, that anyone who is reasonably healthy (not necessarily fit!) can do it, if I could! There can´t be many people out there who are less fit than I was then. At my first attempt that failed I was 1) starting out way too fast and could not keep it up and 2) listening to music, because everyone was doing it. It turned out that I started to appreciate the meditative aspect of running on top of physical exercise, so the music would distract me. The amazing part here is that if you find out what works for you, wonderful things are starting to happen.


Now I have been running pretty much regularily for about 15 years. I had ups and downs, did 2 half marathons and realized that my knees would not want to go for more. I also learned how to strenghten and stretch certain muscles of my legs in order to protect my joints. But most of all, I have discovered a part of myself that I did not know existed before. Today, when I finished my run strong, I thought about how good it feels to be aware of my physical strength. It also gives me mental strength. Running tought me that I can make it, that even if it gets hot and tiring in the middle, it is no reasong to stop, just one step more at a time and it gets easier again. And it feels so great to finish! Running has formed my character, like nothing throughout college.


Today it is not only keeping my weight down and my body strong, it is an important tool for me in dealing with stress. I use running also, whenever I need to ponder a small or large question. Usually an answer comes up that I had not had before. It often surprises me and comes from a very creative place inside myself. It also helps me to focus, because I need to remember the idea until I get home to a pen and paper. And today, I was in that famous state of flow. Complete ease and contentment. The time stands still and yet everything is moving. I could even see all the Endorphins, the Happyness Hormones, running all through my brain, creating the state of being that we are all after: BLISS!


When my life feels stuck, I go for a run and set it (my life) in motion again. It is such an invaluable tool, such a part of my life. What is your life safer in tough times? I hope you have one, we all need it and so deserve it!

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

PMS Pre-Menstrual Syndrome or The Day the Earth Stood Still

For many years I simply thought that I was just not a very nice person. I thought that confirmed, when in the first years of my marriage, sadly, I kept fighting and arguing with my husband. It was always emotionally so strenuous that I never got enough of a bird´s eye view in order to find a very predictable rhythm to it: The days before "my days"... My husband´s gentle and persistent confirmations that I was a good person finally formed the belief in something going on with me and the wish that I would not have to argue anymore, that I needed to DO something about it. Anger management came to mind. However that solution seemed still a little off target (particularly since it came up one of these special days, sobbing, potato chips packet in one hand and the chocolate box in the other, wearing comfy bunny slippers). Then, one day I read an article in the newspaper about a murder trial. A woman got a milder sentencing for MURDERING her husband because she was UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF PMS! Wow, if a judge and with him the juridical system cut a woman some serious slack for that because she was hormonally challenged, I figured I might as well go easy on myself and at the same time have a closer look at this special time that comes again every 4 weeks! If you think about it, only one day of PMS per cycle makes 13 days of insanity a year. That is practically a forthnight; and I am not so lucky as to be done with my nuttiness with on only one day!

So what is it all about this PMS? Another article truly opened my eyes: Finally a study has been done on how women experience the world during the pre-menstrual days. There it was, an extremely tricky contraption: Women don´t only feel cranky, have low patience and feel like the sorrow of the world is on their shoulders. They - WE - are CONVINCED in that very moment (through hormones just getting loose all over the body and creating a new reality) that this is the new world that is HERE TO STAY FOREVER!! WHAT? Not even the supersmarts of womanhood is gonna outsmart this (well at least not as long as we are not aware of it). So we don´t go ahead and say "yes I know it is my period coming up, I just need some quiet time and I will be fine. The world is still okay, I am still okay" No, all that is experienced in that moment, all the loss of patience, the crankyness, all the sad and bad news that suddenly pop up from everywhere (okay, just seeing a lost cat notice on a neighborhood lighting pole can have me sobbing and thinking the world has come to an end) are HERE TO STAY! We experience it and fully believe it that this WILL NEVER CHANGE AGAIN. Doomsday is here to stay. Now, that opened my eyes. The good news is that just knowing what happens chemically in the brain, truly is the first step to overcome it.

Of course there are other things that mess up the hormones more than others. So I try not to do the more and to make sure I do the others. For me, least possible intake of chips and other fatty or sugary food. Caffeine seems to do double duty during this specific time as well, so I go easy on that. Another tricky result from the study said that this need for nesting and being kind of slow paced makes many women stop doing their exercise, which increases PMS symptoms. So I do not ask myself whether or not I want to go for a run, I just go and do it. The study also showed that women are more introverted during the second half of the cycle (towards the period). So I don´t expect myself to be all too chatty during that time. Also, the way I recognize that "my days" are approaching is, when the 5th "idiot" in a row is coming my way in traffic . Then I know it is time to slam the brakes and cut myself (and the others) some slack. The reward is, no arguing anymore with my beloved husband and I almost always learn something about myself. Now I enjoy it when the earth stands still for me for a little while. So far, my husband still recognizes the oncoming special time before I do. I used to vehemently refuse that he was right. Now we get a good laugh out of it. After all, I could get away with murder AND I know I am a good person....

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Organic Yes or No?

I grew up eating organic a) without) knowing it and b) before anyone was talking about it. It happened on the lush and green country side in Austria, with food coming from my mothers garden. When I went to college I moved to the metropolis Vienna and was on my own food-wise. Not to mention that I was not doing the home cooking like my Mum, I also did not buy "organic". Two years into it I developed a skin irritation that was here to stay: Neurodermitities. School medicine only offered Cortisone (but that is a different story). With patience and persistence I got symptom free. A big part of that I claim to my going back to eating organic.

For years I listened to the old debate whether buying organic is worth it. Like the chain smoking Grandfather of 100 years worldwide quoted by smokers it became the cheating organic farmer (you know the choke about what´s the difference between an organic and a conventional farmer? The organic farmer puts the fertilizer on the fields during the night...) mentioned in a newspaper to the non-believers in organic food. I say, I take that risk that once in a while I pay for an organic apple that is not 100 % organic. If I don´t buy organic I will 100 % have NOT organic.

I hardly ever participate in discussions like this, after all, everybody believes in what they choose to believe in. The only thing I recommend is to eat a conventionally grown carrot and an organically grown carrot. If you are at all preferring great taste, you will go organic for that single reason.

Only lately this topic came to a grotesque peak: Chatting over dinner (homecooked and organic at our house), a friend with a PhD in Biochemistry exclaimed on the topic whether organic is worth it: "I would rather put chemicals in my body than encounter a bug in my food!" That left me speechless. If you grow up on the country side, you would never say something like that. Life comes with bugs, THAT is normal. Chemicals - not so normal, because harmful.

At the end it all comes down to you making that simple choice: Bugs vs. Chemicals.

Are you a Bug-Person or a Chemicals-Person?