A few weeks ago a college friend invited me to an info meeting about something called Protandim. I never heard of it and didn’t go because I was busy. But I still placed an order with her mostly to help a friend with her new business venture.

Protandim costs $40 a bottle and is branded as an “anti-aging supplement”. You tell me what women wouldn’t go for that? It’s all natural ingredients that reduce the oxidative stress levels in your body. According to their website:

“A single daily caplet of Protandim creates a cascade of your body’s natural catalytic antioxidants that are able to destroy millions of free radicals per second, on a continuous basis – 24/7. “

I took my first pill two weeks ago on August 5th. Here are a list of the noticeable differences:

• Ear problem almost gone - late July I started having a constant pulsing wave sound in my ear. The doctor said it was fluid in my ear. I tried ear candles, drops, hot pads, hair dryer. Still, it was there and loud, waking me in the middle of the night and not letting me get to sleep. It’s now about 95% gone!
• More energy – this was the first thing I noticed, which is like pure gold to a new mom. Months of sleepless nights left me incredibly tired, super crabby, horribly forgetful, and uninspired. The energy I felt wasn’t that hyper-I-had-too-much-coffee buzz. My creativity was back. My designs were great. I remembered what I did that morning.
• Clearer complexion – Because of all those sleepless nights, my skin was taking a beating. Mother nature was having a laugh giving me wrinkles and pimples at the same time. I actually looked for an anti-wrinkle-zit cream at Target. The wrinkles are still there but the bags under my eyes are smaller and the pimples gone. I even have a glow.
• Deeper sleep – This one is tricky because of the ear problem which plagued me for a couple weeks. Perhaps the sleep was deeper because by time I fell asleep I was insanely tired. For the past two nights with my ears much better I managed 8 solid hours of undisturbed sleep. Pure bliss.

Needless to say, I ordered another month’s supply. My husband has also been taking it and claims he hasn’t noticed any difference. Pushed a little harder, he has felt similar changes but credits a change in lifestyle. The first things friends say is “Perhaps it’s in your head?” Even if it is, I don’t care!

IMPORTANT: I don’t sell Protandim and am not trying increase my friend’s sales. I’m sure she’ll do fine without my help. I’m sharing this because all the information I found on the web was written by someone who sells the product which makes it hard to credit. I don’t sell it. I’m not getting any kick-backs or freebies.

I plan to do another update after a few more weeks to see if I noticed any other effects. Or if the ones I’m currently feeling are still there. So please check back.

Also, if you tried Protandim and aren’t selling it, I’d love to hear about your experience. Did it work for you?

I visualize how I want certain events in my life to unfold. I say a blessing for my family and friends. And I think of the ways life has challenged me and wonder what I learned from it. This is how I pray. This is my church.

Every now and again, a cyclist will come by shouting “On your left!” It usually startles me so much, I instantly want to jump in their way, completely defeating the purpose of the interruption to my prayer. I¬†scowl¬†and wonder if that person would do the same thing as they enter a pew in a church. “On your left! Don’t move Grandma!” I doubt it. But I’m pretty sure they don’t realize I’m praying so I forget it and whisper a big “thank you” to the cyclists who don’t shout at me.

On my run yesterday I was startled like never before. I got back into my¬†picturesque¬†suburban neighborhood with golf courses and sprinklers foutaining over big lawns. A man was walking his dog unleashed. It was a giant lab that dashed over to me and jumped on me. I shook my finger at it and shouted “Down!” To which the owner said, “He’s ok. You don’t have to act crazy!”

I replied gently saying that I’ve had dogs bite me before, so I don’t like to take the chance. And he replied “Just keep running you crazy woman!”

I was completely taken back. I said he should have his dog on a leash if it jumps on people. He said “Go away and God Bless!”

“So you want to bring God into this? Why?” I asked.

“I went to church today,” he said. “You should try it.”

This hit me like a bricks. I didn’t know what to say. Part of me wanted to reply “Not if it teaches me to behave like you!” Part of me wanted to explain that I was in church. Instead I said some stupid thing like “Yah, well, you should go back!”

By now his dog was in the middle of someone’s golf game and he had to run after it. And I went home, for the first time ever, fearful of my neighbors.

I have lived in some very rough neighborhoods in Washington DC and in London and not once did I have a person on the street harass me. I saw a lot of things on those streets, but never a stranger calling me names or casting judgement. I was suddenly glancing out my windows, locking down everything, keeping the phone close.

My views on religion and spirituality are topics I avoid on my blog. They are a personal choice and a privilege. My ancestors sacrificed and had to live underground to celebrate their religion how they see fit. Because of them and so many others, we get the sweet freedom of choice.

However you pray, be proud of it. Please don’t judge others if they found a different path. As long as we’re all heading in the same direction, does it matter? At the end of the day, it’s what is inside of us that counts. Not who sees us in church.

So I trucked down there on Saturday completely make-up free, looking a bedraggled from my long weeks of designing and developing. I plunked down in the chair telling the shop owner she has her work cut out for her (it was another 4:30am morning and it showed).

She carefully selected some colors, cleaned her brushes and went to work. I dearly wish I snapped before and after pictures. Well, I probably wouldn’t dare show the “before”, but the “after” looked HAWT. Natural, radiant and warm. And it barely felt as if I had any make-up on at all. An absolute miracle.

Of course, I purchased the lot. But they make it real simple to do with their Getting Started Kits that include everything you need including brushes and a DVD. The key are the brushes – which I never realized were such magical wands (the one feeble brush in my make-up bag is proof of that). And don’t be fooled by the powder. Yes, it’s powder but it goes on so smooth and creamy and light. It’s amazing that so little does such great coverage.

Ok, now I’m starting to sound like their infomercial. Yes, I’m hooked on the stuff. It’s part of my annual goal of looking younger than the year before. And with my new app launching this week, I’ll get to say goodbye to the 5am mornings for awhile too!

Life slowly became more overwhelming. Decisions were harder to make. I felt pressure. I woke in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep. Life simply didn’t have the pizazz as before. Of course, I knew I had to start meditating again but I always came up with an excuse.

Then last Monday night I popped in to a free meditation session our local yoga studio. Starving for that euphoric clear headed bliss, I was eager to jump right in. Our outstanding instructor talked us through it, helping us clear our heads. And when she finished and the room was pure silence, I was astonished how instantly my head went clear. My heart filled with love. I was enveloped in peace. That night I slept like never before.

I have meditated every day since and I’m already feeling the positive effects. I sleep better. My mood is a gazillion times better. I feel peaceful, optimistic and in sync with the universe. That instant deep meditation I had at the yoga studio hasn’t happened again. I’m guessing that’s because I felt the power in numbers. It makes a difference to meditate in groups. I do manage to dip below the noise into a peaceful calm for a few minutes each day. And during those minutes of silence I can feel the space in between where life connects.

I promised myself that I would meditate daily for at least three weeks. It takes that long for it to transform into a habit. And this is one habit I never want to kick again.

At first I was enjoying a change of routine, the early evenings in, running in extreme temps. But now I just want to go for a walk without my back hunched and toes frozen. I want to hear bird song and feel sunshine on my skin.

This is our third Dakota winter and with each year we get a little better at the survival game. We make sure we take our vitamins — plenty of fish oil and vitamin C. We invest in super warm running clothes and ice grippers for our shoes so we can continue to get exercise. We figured out the importance of scooping snow BEFORE you drive on it. Saturday matinees, baking scones, taking warm baths, investing in a hot water bottle, and of course, building an insanely cool home theater helps.

February is just around to the corner, ending this longest, coldest month of the year. With it comes the Olympics, our anniversary, and a short break to Austin. I can do this. I can make it through a -30 below, two feet of snow, everything frozen and closed down winter. Because as they say, “There are two seasonal diversions that can ease the bite of any winter. One is the January thaw. The other is the seed catalogues.”

I more or less had sleep problems since then. Sometimes they would go away, but for the most part I would wake up at 2:00am on the dot. I tried all sorts of things. We got a new bed, no luck. I quit caffeine which seemed to help some. I began to wear eye blinds and ear plugs. I kept a Gratitude Journal. That helped.

A friend of mine who has also been battling sleep problems recently posted on Facebook that her journaling has cured her for three days straight. Every night or morning, whichever you prefer, you write down everything that riddles you in the night. And go deep to the route of the cause. Why is it bothering you? Is there something deeper? Get it all out and on paper.

I haven’t tried the journaling yet because miraculously these last few weeks my sleep has been better than ever. By 9pm I can’t keep my eyes open any longer and I’m zonked out with lucid filled dreams until 7am. A solid ten hours. I even ditched the ear plugs. Part of me doesn’t like admitting this because it’s sort of up there with people who brag about eating anything they want and not gaining an ounce.

I have my recent job change to thank. I started working from home a few weeks ago. I have a lovely office with big windows overlooking our street below. I get to see suburbia life at it’s fullest – delivery trucks, lawn services, dog walkers. But most of all I get daylight. Something I didn’t have a lick of for years in cublicle-land. It’s amazing how much my body responds to natural sunlight.

My 2:00am What-if’s may return and if they do, I have a pen and notebook waiting to fight them off! I leave you now with a poem that would rumble through my head during those early waking hours.

Whatif by Shel Silverstein

Last night, while I lay thinking here,
some Whatifs crawled inside my ear
and pranced and partied all night long
and sang their same old Whatif song:
Whatif I’m dumb in school?
Whatif they’ve closed the swimming pool?
Whatif I get beat up?
Whatif there’s poison in my cup?
Whatif I start to cry?
Whatif I get sick and die?
Whatif I flunk that test?
Whatif green hair grows on my chest?
Whatif nobody likes me?
Whatif a bolt of lightning strikes me?
Whatif I don’t grow talle?
Whatif my head starts getting smaller?
Whatif the fish won’t bite?
Whatif the wind tears up my kite?
Whatif they start a war?
Whatif my parents get divorced?
Whatif the bus is late?
Whatif my teeth don’t grow in straight?
Whatif I tear my pants?
Whatif I never learn to dance?
Everything seems well, and then
the nighttime Whatifs strike again!

At just the tender age of 19, Maggie founded Kopila Valley Children’s Home in Nepal. It is home to innocent victims orphaned by years of human rights violations and war. Using her own babysitting money, she purchased the land, organized the contractors, and build the home entirely from the ground up. Through her work, Maggie has given shelter to 24 kids, sent 60 others to school, and assisted in the placement of over 700 orphans in the region.

It all started when Maggie took off to see the world after high school. While trekking through the Himalayas in war-torn Nepal she met hundreds of children orphaned and homeless. Falling in love with their big smiles and bright eyes, she was stricken by what little they survived on. She flew back to the States and babysat kids, plants, animals (you name it!) and saved each cent with a vision of building them a home.

Maggie found the Blinknow Foundation and is the recent recipient of Do Something’s $100,000 grand prize. In her speech, Maggie breathlessly says:

“Sometimes making someone’s dream come true is a “yes” away. Thank you, Do Something, for being my ‘yes’ tonight!”

Maggie’s brave adventure started with a “yes” from her parents years ago which created a chain reaction, eventually evolving into a career of social entrepreneurship at just 22-years-old. Today Maggie is tackling human rights issues in the region, improving the lives of children affected by violence, child labor, sex trafficking, and poverty.

Maggie’s story reflects two of my favorite theories. First is that each of us have everything we need to make a difference (Maggie had ambition and $5000 in savings). Second, if we give back the universe will continue to provide us with abundance (congrats on the $100K, Maggie!). This makes Kopila Valley Children’s Home one of my favorite charities. If you like what you read, be Maggie’s “yes” and consider a donation. There are a lot of ways you can help.

Friends, please welcome the amazing and insightful Maggie Doyne….

What inspired you to build Kopila Valley Children’s Home? How has it affected your life?

It’s a really long story that can be hard to condense in a few words. My life took a 360 degree turn when I was just about to graduate from high school. I had a bit of a seventeen year old crisis. Who am I?… What should I do with my life?… That sort of thing. I had spent my middle school and high school obsessed with trying to be perfect at everything. Getting the perfect grades, trying to be a star athlete, the editor of my yearbook, a good friend, daughter, and sister, social light. I took on more than I could handle and with the intention of getting into a really good college and getting on the fast track. It turned out I wasn’t perfect at any of those things and trying to be perfect at all of them took a toll on every part of who I was. I could see my life going in a direction I didn’t want it too.

I could see myself going straight to college and falling deeper into this dark hole of doing what I was supposed to do, what everyone expected but not what was really in my heart. I’d lost my passion to learn. Thanks to the support of my parents I was lucky see this and recognize it in myself at a young age. I suddenly postponed my plans for college and signed up for a gap year program to backpack all around different of the world. After taking an internship in an orphanage in India, I began to meet young Nepali refugee children and became curious as to where they were coming from and why. I ended up going on a backpacking trip with a young Nepli refugee girl in search of her relatives in the remote Himalyan mountains of Nepal where I met hundreds of children in need of a home. I decided right then and there to build one for them.

You write quite endearing letters to the children in your home on your blog. What have you learned the most from them?

They’ve taught me the value of human life and the importance of childhood. I’ve learned alot about the healing process. They are the true definition of resilience. They make me laugh and they’ve brought so much joy and meaning to my life. We’ve really become a family over the past few years.

What was your biggest challenge when building the Kopila Valley Children’s Home?

During the early phases of construction and settling in with the community, I hadn’t learned a lot of the language. Losing your ability to communicate leaves you feeling pretty vulnerable. Sometimes I’d have an English speaking friend come and translate and other times I was completely on my own, with masons, laborers, and villagers that I couldn’t fully communicate with. The first few months were hard but I got through it. Looking back being in that vulnerable position of not knowing/understanding (what people around me were saying), and desperately wanting to know/understand, empowered me to learn more quickly and in a more meaningful and deep manner. I took Spanish for 7 years in middle school and high school and still can’t string a sentence together but Nepali came pretty easily to me. You can’t get by here without being able to speak the language and I was almost forced to learn to speak. I realize now that if I was never challenged, if I had never felt frustrated about not being able to communicate, I would have never learned.

Your website states that your mission is “To create a self-sustainable living community for destitute children that provides their most basic needs and also contributes to post-war recovery and peace in the nation of Nepal.” This seems like an overwhelming challenge. How do you stay focused with such a large task?

One of my favorite quotes of all time is this.

If there is to be peace in the world,
There must be peace in the nations.
If there is to be peace in the nations,
There must be peace in the cities.
If there is to be peace in the cities,
There must be peace between neighbors.
If there is to be peace between neighbors,
There must be peace in the home.
If there is to be peace in the home,
There must be peace in the heart.

chinese philospher – lao-tse – 6th century bce

I focus every day the sanctity of our home and making sure that my children feel safe and loved. I’ve noticed that the peace in our home and the joy of our children often radiates to our neighbors and our village, the city we live in and people who come to visit from other countries in the world.

Children are the future. When our world’s children are educated, when they’re given childhoods, and love and a home, and enough food to eat, they grow up to share that with others and create peaceful homes of their own. The model for our home works because it is just that; a home with family living in it who love each other very very much. When I feel overwhelmed with the big picture of the world or the political situation in Nepal, or the extreme poverty I see around me I stop and try to focus on the smaller things that I know are in my control. Bathing my children, trimming their fingernails, cooking a meal together, and reading a bed time story. Then my heart feels peaceful again and then I can keep going.

Kopila Valley Children’s Home currently has 28 children and is continually growing. Who else has the home helped besides the children?

We had over 250 members from the local community employed to build the home. Six or so women stayed on with us as our permanent staff. We’ve been able to enroll almost 100 children into school.

You recently won $100,000 from The Do Something Awards. How do you intend to use this well deserved prize?

We are purchasing a larger plot of land and building our very own school. I’m striving to make it one of the best most innovative schools in Nepal providing quality education to poor children who normally wouldn’t have a chance to go to school and receive an education. Part of the school will also be a community center with a medical clinic, vocational training, art and music open to the children in and around our village.

You seem to be blessed with an entrepreneurial mind – how did you find yourself on this path?

Well I give a lot of the props to my amazing parents who, since I was a little girl have always, always encouraged my heart, and told me
that I could do anything I put my mind to and believed in me.

I had no idea what I was getting myself into when all of this startedto be very honest. I was 19 years old and had this “nothing can stop me” mindset. If I saw it in my mind, I knew I could make it happen. I had a dream of building this home for homeless and orphaned children. I could see it, in my mind before I even had a dollar in the bank account and the funds to build it, before I even knew what a non-profit was. I could see the children playing on the swings and being tucked into bed at night, and eating meals and singing songs together. I visualized what I wanted my life and the lives of my children too look like. I took things a step at a time, a day at a time. When I didn’t know the answers I found someone who did and asked them. I learned to share my dream, vision, and what was in my heart with others. Before I knew it, I was supported and embraced by people from my close-knit community in Mendham, NJ where I’m from and then people from all over the world who cared as well.

Who and what inspires you?

The children I live with, the men and women I have the pleasure of working with here in Nepal, my neighbors and friends, my parents, my two sisters Kate and Libby, Mary Oliver, Maya Angelou, my friend Megan Shull, The Dalai Lama, art, music, writing, and being outside.

What would be your advice for someone who wants to make their dream a reality?

The hardest step to take is to begin. You just have to take the dive. For young people who want to start a project for social good in the world. Two words. Do. Something. Go to dosomething.org. They’ve written up a whole guide there on how to get started with a project and they just awarded me $100,000 to fund my next project and continue onwards with my dream.

What’s your motto?

One of my favorite new saying that I’ve heard being used a lot lately is GLOBAL COMMUNITY! The world is changing. We’re not isolated from each other any more like we used to be, mainly because of advancements in technology and transportation. We are one. We’re all the same sharing this great big earth together and we all have a responsibility to it as global citizens of this earth and to borrow from His Holiness the Dalai Lama, “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”

If you could meet anyone in the world dead or alive who would it be and what would say to them?

I’d be thrilled to spend some time with Greg Mortenson, author of Three Cups of Tea, the pulitzer prize winning journalist Nicholas Kristof, and his wife (and pulitzer prize winner too), Sheryl WuDunn. I am sooo excited to get my hands on their new book Half the Sky, and am inspired by the work all three of them do but geesh there are so many amazing people in the world, I think we can learn something from anyone, from simple Nepali farmers, to pulitzer prize winning journalists, everyone has something to share.

What next do you have planned?

If I have learned one thing as of late it’s to not get too ahead of things, so yes, on the short term I have a list a mile long which includes four very active and playful four year olds, and a houseful of 26 hearts who need tending. That said, I have some big dreams sketched out that include a school for my kids and our community here in Surkhet, as well as continuing to be a sustainable and positive member of this community. I believe in the power of all of us working together to change the world for the better. One of my dreams is to create safe homes and communities for children all over the world in need of refuge. My heart is full and the future is exciting. There is so much, still, to do.

See, it took Apple a month to approve Vision Board. First a rejection, then a resubmission, and a lot of waiting and wondering in between.

In the mean time, I was flooded with lovely messages from folks itching to get their hands on this little gem, wondering when it will be available. And rightly so. I’ve had the luxury of using it daily for over a month and let me tell you, it’s powerful stuff.

I created vision boards before. Basically you go through magazines and cut out pictures that scream “I want that to be my life!” and paste them to a big tag board. You hang it someplace where you will see it daily so you attract those things in your life. That last bit is the clincher. Not quite matching with my decor, my vision boards usually ended up in the closet losing their effect.

That’s where the Vision Board app is so amazing. I have it with me all the time. If I’m bored in a meeting, waiting at the airport, or for my laptop to boot up, I flip through my Vision Board app. But most importantly I make sure I look at it every night before I go to sleep.

Too often we go to bed with our minds filled with negative thoughts from the day’s drama or tomorrow’s worries. Not only does it damage our sleep, but we’re still emanating negative energies the entire time we’re fast asleep. According to quantum physics and the law of attraction, these energies grow and attract more of the same in our lives. Instead, I recap the goodness from the day in my Gratitude Journal followed by dreaming about the future with my Vision Board. I go to sleep feeling positive and good and continue to give off those vibes all night long.

As a result, my life has shifted so quickly this past month. Something small like a note saying “Meet creative and inspirational women” manifests well over 150 of them one week later! An image of my ideal career leads to a phone call with someone who can open doors. Of course, it’s not the image that got me there, but looking at it, believing it, closing my eyes and feeling what it’s like to have it, and then acting on it.

Creating another iPhone app was a lot smoother the second time around. I used the same formula outlined in my book “Inside Secrets to an iPhone App” and the costs were pretty much on par with Gratitude Journal. Although I gave my superstar developer David Loewental a small bonus just because it is such a charm to work with him.

I had the amazing Scott Jackson create the genie icon which he whipped together on just one go. Impressive, no? All the other design work I did myself.

I have the mix of an amazing team that are not only unbelievably talented, but super cool too. Decisions are made in a second. Honest opinions shared respectfully. And everyone strives to have their very best to come through. It’s been so rewarding to work with such deep talent.

Best of all, all three of us have the same intention — to create something that improves the world, puts out good vibes and creates peace in others’ lives.

If you don’t have an iPhone or iPod Touch, I highly recommend Jennifer Lee’s Unfolding Your Life Vision Kit. It’s gorgeous and portable as well!

Visualization works. Athletes use it, performers, politicians …you name it. It’s a little secret weapon of very successful people. The key to attracting the life you want is to see it, really feel what it’s like to have it, then believe with all your heart that it will come. It might not be in the form your mind thought it would be, but you will attract what you put out in the world. So start collecting those pictures and put then on a tag board, in your iPhone app, or Jennifer’s Vision Kit. Give thanks, vision your future, live life to the fullest.

ps: I promised David I would share him with the world. This is really hard to do given I did this with my last developers and they got so popular I couldn’t afford them in the end. But David promises he’ll always be my friend even when he’s super successful.

David Loewenthal
phone: +1 206 612 6741
email: davidloew@hotmail.com

This is the first time I ever heard a doctor say this. She even tossed in the power of visualization. I instantly warmed to her as she verified what I’ve been practicing for almost a year now.

I told her I get the gratitude and visualization thing, but what’s this about forgiveness? I know to let things go, water off a duck’s back, move on, don’t look back. But are there actual steps to forgiving?

She handed me this simple print:

Steps to Forgiveness

1. Forgive the other person for causing you the feeling.
2. Give the other person permission to forgive you for having the feeling.
3. Forgive yourself for any harm that has come from that feeling.
4. Wish the person well.

I instantly made forgiveness part of my daily routine. Anytime someone pushes my buttons, I turn around and forgive. At the end of the day when I’m recapping the greatness in my life, I forgive the not so great things. And sometimes I go way back to people who riled me years ago and I forgive.

Each time I forgive it’s as if a big bag of bricks is taken off my back. I feel lighter, relieved, and well, healthier.

What I love about the forgiveness steps is that I’m not just forgiving others for their actions, I’m also forgiving myself for mine. Something I failed to do before.

Imagine a world where everyone is filled with gratitude and forgiveness. To simple things that cost us nothing but a few moments time and some sincere thoughts. Yet powerful enough to change everything.

I recently discovered a Newsweek article saying that my friend’s belief has actually been proven. Harvard psychologist Ellen Langer did a study with some elderly men. She had them stay in a hotel retrofitted with complete 80′s decor. She told them not to reminisce about the past, but to actually act as if they had traveled back in time.

After just one week, the men in the experimental group (compared with controls of the same age) had more joint flexibility, increased dexterity and less arthritis in their hands.

Langer have been running similarly experiments for decades, and her theory is that we are all victims of our own stereotypes about aging and health. We simply accept our society’s negative beliefs about disease and old age effecting our behavior.

If we can disregard the negative clichés about health and believe we are youthful, we can mindfully open ourselves to more productive lives.

Start telling yourself that you have the mind and body of a 20 year old and you will feel the difference. And while you’re at it, pull out those old Farah Fawcett or Rick Springsteen posters to really throw you back in time.