"The Law of Attraction" by Samantha S

Have you ever wondered how to attract a better life? From meditation to gratitude journals I’ve been through it all. Lately I’ve been looking into the Law of Attraction. It states that the energy you put out into the universe is the energy that you will get back. Although this sounds a lot like karma, this principle focuses on how people can attract anything they want into their lives using that energy. As the saying goes, “like attracts like.” It is based on the idea that what you believe is what you will receive. This means that what we think about will essentially happen, whether they want it to or not. If you have an optimistic outlook, doors will open and bring a chain of positive experiences into your life. In contrast, if you have a pessimistic outlook, a series of unfortunate events will unfold and block your path. An individual can attract anything they desire into their life utilizing the Law of Attraction whether it is a successful job, an ideal lifestyle, a soulmate, or a winning lottery ticket. In life, this universal law can work in your favor and bless you with the fulfillment of all of your desires. Just remember to be positive and truly believe it will occur; whatever “it” is. According to believers, you must visualize what you want and imagine how happy and grateful you would feel to have it. One technique used to increase the power of your visualization for attraction is the 17 Second Rule developed by Abraham Hicks. To practice this rule one must close their eyes for sixty-eight seconds and picture what the fulfillment of their wishes would look and feel like. With each series of seventeen seconds, similar thoughts should occur and create a strong vibrational frequency of energy to increasingly attract what is imagined. You must also have an unshakeable faith that your vision will come into existence. In order to manifest your desires, you must already accept it as yours. For example, my grandmother trusts that she will have a “princess parking spot” wherever she goes. Whether it is the Law of Attraction in action or coincidence, she always finds an open parking place in the front row. In case you were wondering, no she does not have a handicap parking placard.

Remember to take the proposal of this theory with a grain of salt. Many people accept this idea as a real law of nature and many others believe it to be mumbo jumbo. In my opinion, the success of the Law of Attraction can be explained more by psychological principles rather than by the will of the universe. Rewiring the brain to think positively can attract flowers and sunshine because our mind creates the experience of our reality. According to research from the field of Positive psychology, by visualizing our desires we align our thoughts and feelings with our goals. This pushes the reticular activating system (RAS) and the overall consciousness in our brains to focus on our desires. When people have faith in the idea that “like attracts like” and continually visualize attaining their goals, they are training their minds to unconsciously conjure up an action plan.

Whatever the truth is behind the Law of Attraction phenomenon, people are convinced it will create a better life. Try it out for yourself to see if you can bring your wildest ambitions and fantasies to reality.

"One Day" By Vanessa F

It can take one day just one day for your life to change completely. Someone you care
about so much can just be taken away from you in a blink of an eye. We all knew you were sick but you always had this bright smile that can blind anyone from the pain you felt. Seeing you in and out of the hospital was hard but we all knew you were strong. The doctors told us that we still had awhile with you but I guess God wanted you with him already. Ever since I was nine years old I always dreaded seeing my mom getting a call that brought her to these tears that only one could know. Christmas morning is always the happiest morning of them all or at least that's what we all thought. My siblings and I woke up to set up all our presents so we can open them once our parents came back home from church. We sit and wait from them on the couch when all of sudden my parents burst through the door, my mom in tears and my dad in a panic to get ready and leave. In a blink of an eye im suddenly in the hospital with my whole family in tears around me. All we can do is just sit, wait and hold on to each other praying for a miracle. We all just sat for hours some going in and out of your hospital room getting a chance to be in your presence for one of the last times. Then as the clock hit two-thirty my cousin walks into the waiting room and it goes silently as we all hold our breaths, my cousin says the most frightening words ‘We all have to go say our final goodbyes together.’ Suddenly my giant family is all stuffed in a hospital room, some are talking about stories but all I can hear is the sniffles that

came from me. I just stand there wondering why is this happening again to us, questioning everything. And then I remember my cousin telling us ‘ Don't put a question mark, where God put a period.’ I realize that everything happens for a reason and my family has never been closer and more appreciating of each other. Tell the people you care about that you love them everyday cause one day it can all change.

"How to make Salvadoran Cheese Pupusas!" by Breanna C

You have probably never heard what a pupusa is and it is the most amazing thing to eat.
Growing in a salvadoran household is where you find out various of unique items of food that are delicious to eat. Also, making pupusas shouldn’t be a hard task to do whenever you have free time. I am a picky eater and when I first found this out I was tedious about trying it because by the looks of it, it did not look so good. Until I got older, my eating palate has slightly changed and trying it was the best decision I could have made. They are a quick meal you can make with not utilizing a lot of money and ingredients. The most you can spend on making these pupusas is about $15 max and you can feed a lot of people as well not just yourself but mant more. Also, it is a great start into trying new meals from different cultures. For example, the salvadoran culture has many other things you can try like tamales, panes con pavo, and many more. So maybe beginning with cheese pupusas is a easy start to try because it is a simple but good meal to eat. To add, this meal will most definitely fill your stomach for a good time. Usually the people I can always eat my pupusas from is my grandma and my great-grandma because they do make the best ones out there. Pupusas make the Salvadoran culture unique and fun to learn with your loved ones.
So to begin here are the ingredients you are going to need to make this delicious meal.

Carrillo 1

• ★  Maseca corn flour- 3 cups
  
• ★  Mozzarella cheese, Salvadoran cheese or substitute queso fresco - 1 cup
  
• ★  Warm water- 1 1⁄2 cups
  
• ★  Salt- 1⁄2 teaspoon
  
• ★  Patience
  How to make it step by step
  

1. You are going to start off by mixing your Maseca with water and salt in a bowl of
   preference. Also, to make sure your dough is good you will notice that it is nice and soft and that it won't crack around the edges. You can use your hand, a mixer, anything you chose to mix your ingredients!
   
2. The next step is simple.. Just let the dough rest for about 15 minutes in room temperature; Maybe watch The Office or read this next step.
   
3. While you are letting your dough rest, starting on the cheese will be beneficial. So grab the cheese of preference and start grating your cheese, grate all of it so you will have enough to put into your Maseca and make the cheese pupusas.
   
4. Now since the dough is ready keep it inside the bowl you mixed it in, and with clean hands you can start rolling them into little balls. (Hint: you can put vegetable oil or water on your hands to make it easier to grab the dough and will make the process of making the pupusas easier)
   
5. For the stove top you can use a heavy skillet because that will help when making the pupusas with medium heat. ( Tip: since the heavy skillet is a cooking utensil that heats up fast be careful when applying the pupusa)
   

6. Now that your stove is ready, you can make a indentation in the dough ball and add your cheese of preference into it and then start making a circle shape with your hands to make the size of the pupusa. If you are satisfied with how it looks add it onto your skillet! (Hint: by making the circle it's like if you are clapping with your hands)
   
7. Finally once you see that the pupusa is turning brown on both sides like how a tortilla gets it should be ready. By Leaving it on the skillet for about 2 or 3 minutes on each side should do it’s justice on making a great pupusa. For an add on you can eat it with a side of curtido or salsa roja. Curtido is a side dish that is consisted of cabbage, carrots, etc. and the salsa roja is a tomato sauce seasoned with other goodness.
   

TIPS: When eating these they are usually eaten with just out bare hands!
- Also be careful when you immediately eat these because the cheese does get VERY hot.
Hopefully reading this you got a craving of eating some nice homemade cheese pupusas! They really are a delighted food item to try out. Have fun making these with your family, friends, anyone!

Carrillo 3

Fresh Selections are Here!

 Lots of "How-to" articles this month!  It's going to be a creative year!  :)

Remember to read all of the selections for this month --   comments are for this latest group only (no earlier months/submissions, or last year's submissions)

http://yaletownnaturopathic.com/fresh-start/

Remember:
All Students:  Be sure to read the entries for this group  (January writers).  Everyone is required to comment on at least three different pieces of writing.  You must post the comment here on the blog (below the post is the "comments" link to click) AND cut and paste your comments, complete with dates and times, on to a Word document and turn it in to me by February 12.  You must do both to get credit for comments this month.

Remember, comments must be positive, supportive, constructive, and SPECIFIC.  No "Good Job!" comments, unless you follow that with specific things you thought were done well in the piece.  Show them you actually took the time to read and enjoy their work!

"Easy Valentine’s Crafts for Your Loved Ones!" by Alyssa S

3

Hello! I’ll be showing you how to create three simple Valentine’s Day crafts that can be used for a friend, family member, or significant other. Here’s a quick glimpse of the three different types of crafts you can choose from:

#1: Jigsaw Popsicle Stick Photo

#2: Rose Lollipops

#3: Heart-string Plate Decoration

Remember: Simple gifts can go a long way and make an ordinary day special. Don’t forget to have fun while making your unique craft!

Craft #1: Jigsaw Popsicle Stick Photo

Supplies:

-       Popsicle sticks

-       Photo of your choice

-       Mod Podge (I used the “Glossy” Mod Podge in this tutorial)

-       Paint brush

-       Xacto knife

-       Marker or Sharpie

Steps:

1.     Print out a photo on normal printer paper. Make sure that the height of your photo does not exceed the height of your popsicle stick.

2.     Place as many popsicle sticks as you need side by side in order to match the length of your photo.

3.     Once the popsicle sticks are lined up neatly, glue on the picture on top by applying Mod Podge with the brush. Afterwards, paint on a top coat with the Mod Podge to seal your picture. Try and use as minimal and quick strokes when applying the Mod Podge to prevent the picture’s ink from smearing.

4.     After the Mod Podge is completely dry, flip the popsicle sticks over and write a message on the back (it’s easier to write while the popsicle sticks are intact and not loose). Be sure to write slowly, as the gaps between the popsicle sticks can be difficult to write over. 

5.     Once you finish writing your message, carefully use the Xacto knife to cut in between each popsicle stick and separate them. Make sure you cut slowly and evenly, as having jagged, uneven cuts can affect the photo on the other side.

6.     Scramble up the popsicle sticks and let the gift receiver solve the puzzle to find the picture. If you’d like, you can give the popsicle sticks tied up with a bow and then you’re finished!

Craft #2: Rose Lollipops

Supplies:

-       Pink & Red felt (if you don’t want to use felt, you can replace this with construction paper)

-       Hot glue/glue gun

-       Scissors

-       Lollipops

Steps:

1.     Cut the pink and red felt into several hearts (sized a little bit larger than the lollipop).

2.     Start gluing the hearts around the base of the lollipop, working your way around. You can alternate the colors or use a single color. Be sure to glue onto the paper part of the lollipop and not the actual sucker so the hot glue won’t affect the candy. 

3.     Once you finish the first layer of hearts, move your way outwards to create as many layers as you’d like. This will create the “rose” or flower-like shape.

Craft #3: Heart-string Plate Decoration

Supplies:

-       One sheet of printer paper

-       Scissors

-       Pencil

-       Paper plate

-       Hole puncher (with only one hole)

-       Pink and/or Red string

-       Tape

-       Mini clothespins (optional)

Steps:

1.     Using a sheet of printer paper, fold the paper in half and sketch half a heart. When you sketch your heart, make sure it is not bigger than the paper plate. Cut your outline of the half-heart to make a perfectly symmetric heart.

2.     Press the heart from Step 1 onto the paper plate and use the shape as a stencil, tracing the outline of the heart onto the plate.

3.     Leaving about a one-inch margin outside the outline, cut out the heart. With the hole puncher, follow the line used to trace the heart and punch holes along the line.

4.     Afterwards, connect each of the holes with string (your choice of color). Then, use a criss-cross pattern and loop the strings from hole to hole across the plate. The more random, the better!

  

5.     Once you are satisfied with your design, tape the excess string onto the back of the plate.

6.     Add a looped-string to the top, center-most hole to hang your heart as a decoration. Finished!

OPTIONAL STEP: Print out photos and attach them with mini clothespins to further embellish your craft. Extra points for memories!

I hope you enjoyed these little crafts, and hopefully the steps + pictures were easy enough to follow along with. Happy Valentine’s!

Alyssa ♡

"Just A Dream" by Jaedon A

I like to think of dreams as another type of life, another world. I feel these dreams are always a form of our lives because, if one can relate, everything seems so real but not out of the ordinary, as if we’ve already experienced it and we’re just coming about a thought of this world. I had a dream once, not the ideal kind where everything seems great and fun. Well, least to say is it was fun to be in, it wasn’t very fun when I started to realize its deeper meaning. In this dream if there were to be dragons I could easily come to the conclusion that I was recently watching Game of Thrones, which is why it did not seem off to me. This next part is all about the dream I had recently

In the recent dream that I had experienced had consisted of abnormalities, other dimensions, other worlds et cetera. One of these worlds happened to be an alternate reality, a bit hellish or what I would consider hell which would be life but altered and everything seems off. In fact everything seemed so off that it started to drive me crazy. These dimensions were somehow connected, and the aberrations had started to affect how I would feel in the ideal dream world I was already in. I was working with some psychologists about how I felt and they referred me to some physicists who would help me with the whole trans-dimensional problem. The physicists had told me the only way I could get rid of these feelings would be to cross into that world and rid of any contributing factors to what I would consider a problem to me now in this world. This world was so perfect, little to no conflict, I never felt attacked by anybody, no personal conflicts or drama. If I were to describe this world, it would be the entire opposite of melancholy, because there’s nothing to be super happy about, but everyone just is. The weather was ideal too, nothing too hot and during the winters, a nice cold atmosphere with a sunny skies on the good days, and a not so gloomy feeling when it rains. No anxiety, no worry because everybody was helping each other out and not selfish about themselves. This world was so nice to be in I couldn’t stand to feel connected to that other dimension that made me feel all of the opposing ways, I really felt the need to get rid of those problems but I didn’t know exactly how so, while using my “nice” words, I had considered to euthanize my doppelganger, or my other existing self. I thought, “well this would get rid of how I felt in that world right?”. After all, that wasn’t really me, just a mirror image that I thought contributed to the everlasting entropy in this universe that I was already in. I am now at the wormhole which would bring me to that other world where I would “solve my problems”. At first I was scared, but the scientists in the lab had told me I wouldn’t feel pain. It’s kind of ironic because when I entered...well I wouldn’t know because I woke up. But I have never felt a more endured pain.

"How to Make Wedding Cookies" by London A

Each Christmas, wedding cookies are always made on my mom’s side of the family. Wedding cookies are balls of dough covered in homemade glaze and sprinkles. These are extremely popular in my whole family since everyone loves them, and also because they are very meaningful to us. When I lived in Ohio, every year on Christmas Eve my family and I traveled to West Virginia where my aunt and many of my other relatives live. We celebrated the holidays by spending time with our entire Italian family (which is huge) and eating as much food as we could. My Great-Aunt, who we called Aunt DeeDee, would spend the days leading up to Christmas cooking lots of different kinds of food that my whole family loves, ranging from gnocchi to fried zucchini to fritas (which are pieces of fried dough covered in sugar; they’re absolutely delicious). In my family, food is always something that helps bring everyone together.

To make these wedding cookies, there are a few ingredients you will need:

·      ½ cup of butter

·      3 eggs

·      ½ cup of sugar

·      2 tsp of vanilla extract

·      3 cups of flour

·      3 tsp of baking powder

For the glaze:

·      ½ cup of warm milk

·      1 teaspoon of almond extract

·      1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

·      1 box (or 1 pound) of confectioners’ sugar

·      Colored sprinkles

1) First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter, adding eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Mix these ingredients together well.

2) Next, using a separate bowl, stir flour and baking powder together. After this, add flour to the butter mixture.

3) Use your hands to shape the pieces of dough into loose knots. Bake this for 8 to 10 minutes.

4) To make the glaze, combine the milk and both of the extracts in a large bowl. Add sugar to the mix; whisk until all lumps are dissolved and the glaze is smooth.

4) As soon as the cookies are removed from the oven, quickly immerse two or three at a time into the glaze that was previously made. Remove the cookies with a spoon or your fingers.

5) Place the cookies on wire racks to drain. Then, quickly top each with sprinkles.

6) Let them dry for 24 hours before storing them in airtight containers.

Now the cookies are done! This has always been a dessert I’ve loved making, and I hope you try this and like them as well!

Some more background information leading to the decision of writing this recipe:

After my Aunt DeeDee passed away a few years ago, my relatives kept the food tradition alive by continuing to make Christmas dinner, particularly the signature wedding cookies. Wedding cookies are a huge signature dish for our family since it reminds us so much of my aunt. The reason I chose to write about this certain cookie is that I was very close to my aunt and always looked up to her; I also wanted to choose one of my favorite desserts that she used to make.

My aunt was a prominent leader in my life who kept the entire family close. I’m extremely grateful for this because even though I have seen my relatives very few times within the last few years, nothing has changed; when we go to visit, it’s as if no time has passed at all. This meaning behind the cookies is the reason that this recipe is so important to my family and me!