Community...



my front porch; photo credit: Angela Zimmerman

I have often lamented the fact that community seems to be falling by the wayside in many areas of our lives. I have heard people asking where the front-porch-in-evening-waving-friendly-hellos-to-passing-neighbors mentality has gone.

And with it, seems to have gone the communal passing of an extra basket of green beans over the back fence to the neighbor lady who doesn't garden...or exchanging dill for a few tomatoes...or some other such neighborly act.

When I started changing my lifestyle and eating plant strong, I did my own juicing. For a time. But it would come and go and I would think "I wish I had more inspiration to get my juicer out and then wash it up at the end of that job." But inevitably, either the phone would call me away or I would discover I didn't have an ingredient for the juice recipe I was going to use. Sigh.

Juicing is a way to get nutrition into the body fast and at a cellular level. It is a good addition to a plant-strong diet because

1. many of our soils are not as high in good stuff as they should be and maybe we aren't getting as much nutrition from the food we eat as we think we are and

2. we don't eat as perfectly as we want to eat every single day. (at least most people that I talk to)

So here's where community comes into action. About a year ago, I first learned of Juice Plus, a company devoted to bringing to us nutrition through fruit and vegetable juices that are dehydrated into powder and sold in capsules. I was intrigued but cautious as I purposed to learn more before I dismissed it or accepted it.

As I've heard friends share, and seen the results they have been blessed to know, it dawned on me that this is community.

Many people do not garden. So there are farmer's markets and neighbors to pass along produce.
Many people do not wish to invest in a juicer and the time it takes to juice on their own.
So there is Juice Plus.
I think it is a neat idea and also enjoy the fact that

1. there is more variety in Juice Plus than anyone can put into their homemade juicing (altho there is certainly a benefit from home done juice) and
2. it is more economical than the consistent use of home done juice.

So I decided I would go ahead and use Juice Plus as the juiced nutrition part of my family's diet.
I am happy to know that every day I am getting a hefty dose of fruits and veggies at a cellular level besides the fiber-rich plant eating I do.

With Juice Plus, there are no overdosing possibilities as warned of when taking vitamin supplements.
It's just whole-food based nutrition.

I'm happy to have found this product and I bless the company for filling a communal need.

If you have any questions or interest about Juice Plus, feel free to contact me. I would love to hear from you and share the blessing as my way of entering into the spirit of community.