As I write this, I am enjoying the view from my home office window of about 8 inches of beautiful, sparkling snow. All of our familial creatures—that is, me, the hubby, our three boys, four cats, one dog and one goldfish—are enjoying a snow day off from work and school, and generally being cozy.

On cold or snowy days like these, I often wonder how all of the homeless animals on the streets and in the countryside are faring. With these thoughts comes gratitude for the shelters, animal rescues and volunteers that dedicate their time and energy toward ending animal suffering and finding these sweet companions forever-homes. We explore the topic of “animal welfare” in this month’s issue, and have assembled articles and resources focused on helping companion, farm and wild animals alike.

Maybe you’re also concerned about the health and welfare of farm animals used to make the food you eat. Did you know that labels like “natural”, “free range” and “antibiotic-free” have nothing to do with animal welfare or environmental sustainability? Check out our news brief about Animal Welfare approved, a great resource for label information and local sources of humanely-raised foods. (Hint: in our area these include Leaping Waters farm in Shawsville and Happy Rooster farm in Pilot, as well as Local Roots and Lucky Restaurants in Roanoke.)

This month, we also take a look at new distribution trends in the health and local foods industries. Healthy, locally-sourced foods are becoming more readily available at “mainstream” restaurants—for example, Montano’s Restaurant in Roanoke sources their produce and meats from local farms. Please stop by there for a meal, and tell them Natural Awakenings sent you!

Speaking of local farms, the proposed Mountain View natural gas pipeline is slated to travel right through Four Corners Farm in Franklin County. This month’s community spotlight talks to local leaders about the pipeline’s impact and a forum slated for March 9^th that will address the issue in more depth.

Have you heard that Kale is King (and likes to be massaged)? Read “Love your Greens” to find out why, then check out the “All Hail Kale” recipes from local gourmets at Roanoke Natural Foods CoOp, Health Nut and Seven Springs Farm.

Don’t forget to mark April 25^th on your calendar for Earth Day Roanoke at Wasena Park, and check out our April issue for this and other Earth Day activities in the region!

Sincerely,

Tracy

In this season of love, here is an assortment of inspiration for you, on many different kinds of love. May you feel and show love this month!

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Where there is love there is life.”

Mahatma Gandhi

“Let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love.”

Mother Teresa

“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves; it is not my nature.”

Jane Austen

“Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.”

Robert A. Heinlein

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”

Lao Tzu

“Immature love says: ‘I love you because I need you.’ Mature love says: ‘I need you because I love you.’”

Erich Fromm

 “A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.”

Elbert Hubbard

“A true friend is someone who lets you have total freedom to be yourself. . . . That’s what real love amounts to: letting a person be what he really is.”

Jim Morrison

 “When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.”

Paulo Coelho

 “Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

Albert Einstein

“A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbor – such is my idea of happiness.”

Leo Tolstoy

“Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.”

Albert Schweitzer

Sincerely,

Tracy Garland, Publisher

Happy New Year! This is the time for making resolutions to develop new healthy routines and to break unproductive habits or patterns of thinking. This month’s Natural Awakenings has some great information to help you start the new year on the right foot!

Our Community Spotlight this month features indoor activities in the area to give you ideas for healthy family fun this winter.

Our feature article details how important our metabolism is to our whole system health.

Our Healing Ways article on energy boosters is one of my favorites. It describes simple ways to increase energy. Surprisingly, time and relationship management play a key role. Diet and exercise can as well. Area physician Dr. Eduardo Castro weighs in with his outlook and advice on which foods to avoid and which ones to seek out to promote optimal energy production.

Perfectionism has been a struggle for me and many others that I know, and having a perfectionist attitude can be counterproductive. Not only that, but mastering your perfectionist tendencies can help improve relationships, health and happiness. Our Inspiration article tells you why.

I love simple articles with pros and cons of different types of products, and our piece on eco-friendly floors offers descriptions of the greenest options for underfoot. Even if you’re not looking at flooring now, you may be in the future, or you may simply want to know more about the flooring where you and your family members work and live.

If you’re like me and constantly concerned about how much time your kids spend with their electronic devices (“Put down your tablet and go outside!” Sound familiar?), then you’ll appreciate our Healthy Kids feature. “An App a Day” reviews alternative, fun, visual learning computer apps for kids that also teach them the ways and means of a healthy lifestyle.

January is a slow month for activities and events, and is the perfect time to reflect on the past and look forward to the future. But don’t forget to live in the present. As John Lennon once said, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”

I hope your new year brings you peace and prosperity! This year, please be sure to visit our advertisers and let them know you found them in Natural Awakenings. Happy New Year!

Tracy

Happy holidays! It’s the season to spend time with family and friends, to reflect on the events of the past year and start making plans for the year to come. We hope this issue of Natural Awakenings will help you on your annual journey.
Our feature article, “Sacred Activism,” explores paths to becoming an agent for positive change in your community and across the planet. Kids can also start on their own paths to positive change through self-reflection, giving their special talents and joining forces with others. Our Healthy Kids article, written especially for children, can show them how.
Speaking of joining forces, consider joining the newly formed Green Drinks chapter, featured in our news briefs. Green Drinks is a great way to network with environmental professionals in the community in a relaxed environment. The new chapter is being hosted by the Grandin CoLab, which is the subject of this month’s Community Spotlight.
Food is at the core of many of our holiday festivities, and special traditions help ensure that we get the most of our family time. In “Happy Feasting to All,” you’ll find ways to help deepen the meaning of the holidays through food and festivities. We hope you’ll try the handful of healthy holiday recipes as well.
You can enjoy the season of giving even more fully when you know you’re contributing to the local economy. Our Blue Ridge Green Travel feature highlights some spots where you can find arts and crafts made right here in Virginia’s Blue Ridge. If you are a crafter yourself, our Eco Tip provides ideas on beautiful tree trimmings you can make that will in turn provide forage for your neighborhood birds.
After the holiday celebrations are through, do your new year’s resolutions include starting an exercise routine? Our Fit Body article, “Find your Fitness Style,” will help you choose the workout that’s most likely to work for you. And if you’re interested in “greening-up” your beauty routine in 2015, check out our Natural Beauty article, which outlines aspects of organic beauty salons, and features two local salons that have made the commitment to organic and natural products and services.
As always, dear readers, please visit our advertisers, whose support brings you Natural Awakenings magazine every month, and let them know you found them here.
See you next year!
Tracy

Happy Fall, y’all! We’re happy to bring you the November 2014 Personal Empowerment + Beauty issue of Natural Awakenings magazine.

Are you thinking about your New Year’s resolutions yet? Get inspired with our feature article “Powerful You! Six Ways to Create the Life You Want.” It is full of ideas to kick-start your journey to a better you in such areas as physical and emotional health, relationships, work, finances and spirituality.

The art and science of creating natural beauty products is fascinating and fun! In our Green Living feature this month, we explore this topic and offer you simple recipes for wholesome, homemade personal care and beauty products. Not only are these great for personal use, but consider bottling some up for holiday gifts for friends, family and co-workers!

Speaking of the holidays, if you’re like me, it’s so easy to get lost in the hustle and bustle of shopping, wrapping and events, and wind up going in too many directions. In doing so, we often lose the meaning and lose out on the real fun. In our Healthy Kids feature this month, you’ll find simple solutions for simplifying the holidays while giving kids the true gifts of the season: time, love and tradition.

One great way to show kids the true meaning of the holidays is to teach them how to help out in their community. In this month’s Community Spotlight, we highlight some local charities and how you can help them, along with a list of other non-profits and their websites for your exploration.

Last but not least, let’s not forget our pets in the holiday rush. Our Natural Pet feature shows you some simple ways to help your favorite companion (dog, cat, fish or bird) celebrate the season with you.

If you read this in time, please be sure to come out to the 15th annual Green Living and Energy Expo at the Roanoke Civic Center on November 7 and 8. The event, hosted by the Association of Energy Conservation Professionals, is THE place to be to learn about product, services, businesses and non-profits who can help you live a greener, healthier life.

Look for our Holiday Gift Guide in next month’s issue of Natural Awakenings. As always, we welcome your ideas and input!

Happy Thanksgiving,

Tracy

October 2014 Natural Awakenings Magazine

Hi and welcome to the October 2014 issue of Natural Awakenings magazine. This month, we delve into the topics of Sustainable Communities + Chiropractic and Acupuncture.

Increasingly, progressive U.S. cities are rethinking redevelopment based on healthy housing, friendly neighborhoods, upgraded transportation, clean energy, local food and waste reduction. In “Sustainable Cityscapes,” we give you an overview of the top sustainability concerns, plus a brief look at what’s happening in two progressive local communities: the City of Roanoke and the Town of Blacksburg. Both municipalities have hired sustainability coordinators to oversee green and healthy living improvements that will benefit residents and the planet.

Speaking of sustainability, mark your calendar for the annual Green Living and Energy Expo, on November 7 and 8 at the Roanoke Civic Center. This year marks the 15th anniversary for this important regional event from the nonprofit Association of Energy Conservation Professionals (AECP). This educational expo is full of great information, hands-on demonstrations, speakers and inspiration for ways to make our community, and our world, a greener and healthier place.

In health news, chiropractic treatment and acupuncture have long been proven effective treatments for pain individually, but anecdotal evidence suggests that a regimen combining the two treatments creates a whole effect that is greater than the sum of its parts. Check out “Dynamic Duo” for a peek at this newest trend in pain management and stay tuned to Natural Awakenings for results of published studies as they become available.

Halloween is just around the corner and parents like me may be looking for heathier and greener ways to delight our little goblins. Our Kid’s Health feature this month provides some great ideas.

Organizations such as the Roanoke Regional Partnership, the Roanoke/Alleghany Regional Commission and the Roanoke Convention and Visitor’s Bureau are working to increase and promote the region’s outdoor amenities not only for the benefit of local residents, but also to attract more and better economic development to the region. Check out our Blue Ridge Green Travel feature this month on the growing outdoor amenities in the Roanoke region. Also, please note our news brief about the upcoming airing of the nationally televised episode of Growing a Greener World, which focuses on green happenings in Roanoke, and then tune in!

Natural Awakenings’ November issue will focus on Personal Empowerment + Beauty. Plus, we’ll be kicking off the holiday season in a green and healthy way! So be sure pick up your copy orview the current issue and archives online at NABlueRidge.com/Magazine.

Sincerely,

Tracy

Welcome to the September issue of Natural Awakenings, our caretaking issue. So many of us either are caring for loved ones, or have loved ones caring for us, that it seems fitting to offer some great thoughts on this important, sacred and sometimes difficult part of life. Caretaking also applies to the world around us. Natural Awakenings readers are known for their compassion toward others, both human and non-human, and our environment. Here is some food for thought on care and compassion.

There are four kinds of people in the world: Those who have been caregivers; Those who currently are caregivers; Those who will be caregivers; And those who will need caregivers. ― Rosalynn Carter

Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive. ― Dalai Lama XIV

To love a person is to learn the song in their heart, and sing it to them when they have forgotten. ― Thomas Chandler

For me, I am driven by two main philosophies: know more today about the world than I knew yesterday and lessen the suffering of others. You’d be surprised how far that gets you. ― Neil deGrasse Tyson

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. ― Leo Buscaglia

I would rather make mistakes in kindness and compassion than work miracles in unkindness and hardness. ― Mother Teresa

Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace. ― Albert Schweitzer Compassion is the basis of morality. ― Arthur Schopenhauer

Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. ― Albert Einstein

When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed. ― Maya Angelou

Wishing all of you a month blessed with good care, for yourselves, for your loved ones and for the world around us.

Tracy

We’re pleased to present the August Transformative Education + Children’s Health edition of Natural Awakenings magazine! In this month’s issue, you’ll find information about innovative learning approaches for adults and for kids, as well as holistic ways to keep kids healthier.

In our Feature article “Learning that Transforms Hearts and Minds,” you can explore several innovative and effective ways of learning that are being practiced by businesses, students and individuals all over the world.
In “Schools that Rock: Innovators Blaze Creative Paths,” we uncover several of the most creative educational institutions and techniques. This is supplemented by a tour of alternative educational opportunities in Roanoke by Growing Up in the Valley magazine’s Amanda Powers. “Super-Immunity for Kids” features simple ways to help keep kids strong, and the “Day Care Goes Green” article takes a peek at some green and healthy child care innovations.

Local kids are learning about healthy eating habits through a popular program called “Healthy Happy Cooks.” This month, our Community Spotlight features this innovative program, which has helped thousands of city schoolchildren—and their families—eat better, and feel better as a result. As founder Heather Quintana says, “I believe that people don’t need fancy diets to be healthy, but just a diet of lean protein, and lots of fruits and vegetables—and encouragement.”

Looking for last minute expedition to fill these waning weeks before school starts? Check out “Summer Mini-Getaways: Green Travelers Recharge at Spas, Parks and Vineyards” for ideas. Or maybe you need a respite from the kids after a long lively summer at home. If so, find a few relaxing retreats in “Natural Spas in Central Virginia.” This month marks a full year of our Blue Ridge Green Travel article series by contributor Anne Piedmont. We hope you’ve enjoyed the past year’s installments and look forward to bringing you more in the coming months.
Check out our news briefs and calendar listings for green and healthy living, learning and fun opportunities happening in the coming months, and mark your calendar so you don’t miss out!
September is Yoga Month, so we’re busily preparing our September Conscious Caretaking + Yoga issue. As always, we welcome your ideas and input.

Sincerely,
Tracy

Thanks for picking up the July Food Watch + Natural Medicine Cabinet edition of Natural Awakenings magazine! Inside, you’ll find freshly prepared pieces to help keep you healthy and happy this summer.

This month’s feature article, “Stewards of Earth’s Bounty: Organic Farmers Sow Seeds of Change,” is a roundup of farmers across the nation who are working hard to provide consumers with local, organic, non-GMO, secure and healthy food stock. To complement this national perspective, our Community Spotlight shines a light on local farm heroes right here in Virginia’s Blue Ridge. Additionally, one of our local news briefs features information on a regional food security project currently underway at Virginia Tech. The Appalachian Foodshed Project is  creating a network to improve food access, expand food security and enhance food economies.

For our Natural Medicine Cabinet feature, we explore “Essential Oils for Summer Maladies,” which includes a simple, toxin-free recipe for summer bug repellent. And, if the healing power of essential oils interests you, check out our calendar listings for two local essential oil workshops coming up in July and August. In other local natural medicine cabinet news, we highlight the new Virginia Tech Farmacy Garden project, in which doctors in Montgomery County will be “prescribing” visits to the Farmacy Garden for qualified patients. The goal of the Garden Prescription Program is to emphasize the importance of diet and moderate physical activity as vital components in a patient’s wellness plan. Keep reading our news briefs to learn how you can get your own personal food prescription for healthier living through Holistic Nutrition Source.

Thinking about summer family camping opportunities? Our Healthy Kids feature this month explores how parents can transition kids away from mind-numbing video games and into consciousness-expanding outdoor experiences. Our Blue Ridge Green Travel article highlights three regional family camping venues: Middle Creek Campground, in Buchanan; Camp Karma, in Bedford; and Camp Easter Seals, in New Castle. They offer low-cost, high-return opportunities for kids to plug in to nature.

There are so many fun and diverse events and learning opportunities happening this month, so please check out our calendar listings and find something to get you moving. We’re busily preparing our August Transformative Education + Children’s Health issue, and welcome your ideas and input.  In the meantime, stay cool!

Sincerely,

Tracy

Welcome to the June Inspired Living + Men’s Wellness issue of Natural Awakenings magazine. This month is an enlightened, alpha male-inspired, star-studded issue! First, our Wise Words article features an interview about life lessons with motivational speaker and author Wayne Dyer. This month’s Green Living feature highlights singer-songwriter Jack Johnson’s efforts to green his concerts and connect his fans with local environmental nonprofits. Award-winning local novelist and journalist Dan Smith shares with us his thoughts on the topic of our feature article, “The Healing Power of Story.”  Finally, our Inspiration article offers ideas for helping alpha boys become the kind of mature, compassionate and awe-inspiring men we feature this month.

If you feel inspired to eat local foods, including those grown in your own backyard, then you’ll enjoy the locavore lineup we’ve prepared for you this month. First, our Community Spotlight looks at the recent visit to Roanoke by Joe Lamp’l, host of the PBS show Growing a Greener World, who came to Roanoke with his crew to film a local segment with the help of Blue Ridge Public Television. Roanoke is doing so many things right, he said, and he’s excited to spread the word about our green and growing community. Second, check out “Living Off the Land,” this month’s Conscious Eating feature, which summarizes the variety of ways we can all eat clean, green and local. Finally, if you want to eat fresh on the road this season, check out this month’s Blue Ridge Green Travel feature, which highlights new developments at farmers’ markets throughout Virginia’s Blue Ridge region.

Looking to plan some fun activities this month? Look no further than our news briefs and calendar listings. In local news briefs, we feature two events that put the “fun” in fund-raising. The Smith Mountain Lake Songwriters Festival benefits St. Jude Hospital, and the Horse and Hound Wine Festival, in Bedford, benefits local animal welfare groups. The Friends of the Lynchburg Nature Center group invites you to enjoy a day of hiking, crafts and music at the first Ivy Creek Park celebration, and Barefoot Studios at 16 West Marketplace in downtown Roanoke would love to have you visit its second free Afternoon of Healing event.

We’re busily preparing for our July Food Watch + Natural Medicine Cabinet issue, and invite your ideas and input.  In the meantime, enjoy this inspired issue of Natural Awakenings!

Sincerely,

Tracy