Consider how much time we spend sitting. We sit while eating breakfast, driving to work, answering emails, reading, watching television, and relaxing in the evening. Even when we consider ourselves reasonably active, there may be long periods when most of our muscles are doing very little. A person might enjoy a vigorous morning walk and then spend the greater part of the day seated, believing that their exercise requirements have been taken care of until tomorrow.

Have you ever stopped to think about what keeps you from becoming someone else’s lunch? I don’t mean the bear in the woods. I mean the microscopic troublemakers that would find parts of you a very comfortable place to settle down and raise a family.

When we become ill, our desire to eat may diminish, yet our bodies haven't stopped needing nourishment. Depending on the illness and its severity, certain metabolic demands can actually increase. Understanding this relationship opens up a much more useful conversation about nutrition than the familiar advice to eat more oranges and drink chicken soup.

Our bodies encounter microorganisms throughout the year, and our immune systems respond to those encounters continuously. Some exposures result in infection, others are successfully contained, and many pass without our ever becoming aware of them. Previous immunity, the particular microorganism, and the amount of exposure all influence what happens. But our overall health and the conditions in which our bodies are functioning are also worth considering.

Being “in a mood” isn’t necessarily a character flaw. Our moods are influenced by what is happening around us, what we are carrying emotionally, and what is happening inside our bodies. Sleep, food, daylight, and our health all have a part to play.

There is something about Prince Edward Island that invites you to loosen your grip on the day. Red cliffs, rolling farmland, fishing boats, and stretches of beach make a persuasive argument for taking the scenic route. Even the landscape seems to suggest that whatever you were rushing to do might wait until after lunch.

We often think about changing our moods through positive thinking, changing our circumstances, or finding something enjoyable to do. Yet there is another avenue available to us, one that works through our senses and doesn't require us to reason our way into a different emotional state.

Have you ever finished a day feeling completely exhausted, even though you've spent most of it sitting? You've answered messages, solved problems, made decisions, worked through unexpected difficulties, and spent a considerable amount of time worrying about things you cannot immediately change.

Have you ever had one of those days when everything seems to be going wrong and, before you know it, you're standing in the kitchen eating potato chips straight from the bag? You weren't necessarily hungry when you walked into the room, but the moment you saw them, they seemed like exactly what you needed. Maybe your preference is chocolate, a piece of cake, or something warm and buttery. Whatever your choice, the desire can be remarkably strong, particularly when you're feel

Have you ever been absolutely convinced that someone was upset with you, only to discover later that they had something entirely different on their mind?

Let’s Talk about Life... Finding Answers, One Question at a Time A Weekly Conversation about Your Everyday Concerns As of October 4, we go to Bedford Place Mall Food Court on Sundays from 12-2pm for all of those people who want to pick up their orders and have a chat with Allana & Bette This Week’s Conversation: We're Exploring Energy This week, we're exploring energy, something that influences nearly every aspect of our lives, whether we recognize it or not. From the en

This week, our journey across Canada takes us to a province with more variety than its prairie reputation suggests. Southern fields give way to lakes, ancient rock, and boreal forest, then farther north to tundra and the shores of Hudson Bay. Somewhere between the wheat fields and the beluga whales, any simple picture of Manitoba begins to grow considerably more interesting.

Have you ever walked into a room and immediately recognized a fragrance before identifying where it was coming from? The unmistakable smell of freshly brewed coffee may bring a sense of anticipation, while the scent of a forest after rainfall can change our experience of the surroundings almost immediately.

if food provides our body with energy, why doesn't eating more always leave us feeling more energetic? The answer begins with understanding that the energy contained in food and the energy our bodies can actually use are not quite the same thing. Food supplies the raw materials, but our bodies must digest, absorb, transport, and transform those materials before they become useful to our cells. Every part of that process depends on a remarkable collection of nutrients, enz

Before we can become more discerning about what we experience in the presence of another person, it is valuable to become familiar with how we feel when we are comfortably centred within ourselves.

We began by noticing how a person or a place can affect the way we feel. Perhaps the next question is what others experience in our presence.

There is always more to a conversation than just words. Understanding energy exchanges, personal boundaries, and the part we play in how we feel. Most of us have experienced it. We spend an hour with someone, sometimes considerably less, and afterward feel as though we have worked an entire day. Our body feels heavy, our thoughts are scattered, and the enthusiasm we had before the encounter seems to have disappeared. Nothing particularly physical has taken place. We may have

Let’s Talk about Life... Finding Answers, One Question at a Time A Weekly Conversation about Your Everyday Concerns Our Pick Up Location has changed. Bedford Place Mall Food Court on Sundays from 12-2pm for all of those people who want to pick up their orders and have a chat with Allana & Bette This Week’s Conversation: Living in a World Made Easier This week we are looking at how easily convenience can begin to replace experience. From the way we move, eat, and use ou

Each of us views the world from a unique vantage point. Our perspective is an amalgam of our genes, experience, current emotional state, and, perhaps, that little spark of something that is as unique as our fingerprint – that internal, unchanging character that is ours alone.

This week we travel north in Canada to visit the Yukon. I think of mountains, gold rush stories, northern lights, and wilderness stretching farther than I can quite imagine.