The Detox

Yesterday was the final day of my 7-day detox. The programme, which I do about once per year, has me imbibing only fruits and fruit and vegetable juices. No cooked foods. No sugar. No meat. No flour (as in pastry or bread). And worst thing of all for me – no coffee! I decided to really commit to the detox this time. Truth be told – drumroll! – I had cheated on previous programmes by capitulating to the cravings of my body and having a small cup of coffee to keep me going. This time I decided to go for it wholeheartedly and with total dedication.

The actual diet wasn’t so bad: after all, it is mango season, and any program that says I can eat as many mangoes as I want has me in a state that can only be heaven. What I did not expect was the stuff that happened in other areas of my life. On Monday, my household help didn’t turn up for work, piqued at something I said to her the Friday before. That evening I hurt my back hefting a 5-gallon bottle of water when I was angry, so my muscles were tense and I was not paying attention lifting properly. Result? Searing back and leg spasms. I was in constant pain during the week, and was not able to attend my much-loved yoga classes. On Tuesday I discovered that the fitness certificate for my car had expired in May. On Wednesday my car had two flat tyres and my laptop crashed! On Thursday, I heard that the laptop was gone for good! My entire life felt like it was detoxing!

I became present to these events and mused: so it is with life. When we shift in one area, then other areas will shift as well. We shift, we displace, other things around us respond and shift as well. This is why things seem to come at us in droves, rather than a trickle, when we are experiencing a change –whether conscious or unconscious. When we are unconscious of what’s happening, then it feels like our life is out of control. We don’t know what’s happening; we can’t understand it; we start to look outward for anything and anyone to blame; we spiral further into a negative abyss of despair and chaos. However, when we become present to the events, then we know that what is happening is normal, OK, indeed expected. Coming into this place, I was able to observe what was going on around me and take it in my stride. So, the helper returned on Tuesday; the flat tyres were repaired, a new fitness certificate was issued, my hard drive was backed up and my detox continued. I focused on what was going on with my body – in particular how much sleep I needed, now that I no longer had the coffee-crutch, and how great I felt when I stirred from 7 hours of sleep!

Yesterday morning I woke up rested and without the coffee cravings. I admit I had a fleeting thought that since this was the last day, maybe I could just go ahead and have a small cup of espresso. But fleeting it was, as I realised that I didn’t even desire it. And I received the biggest surprise at yoga class when the instructor announced that it was a detoxifying class! A perfect way to end my 7-day detox.

This whole experience is a reminder to me of how perfectly the universe works – even as we go through change and the seeming ensuing chaos, we come to a place of equilibrium where all is well and in order.