Month: April 2021

Entangled Life: a Book Review

Date Posted: 2021/04/28

Entangled Life

How Fungi make our worlds, change our minds, and shape our futures

By Merlin Sheldrake | Published by Random House Trade Paperbacks (April 13, 2021)

I have always been fascinated by mushrooms.

I have taken many photographs of mushrooms growing out of dead logs in the forest. They seem to appear as if by magic after the rain.

I learned some time ago, through the work of Paul Stamets, that mushrooms are the fruit of a vast network of underground fungi.

In his book, Entangled Life, Merlin Sheldrake explores the mysterious and neglected world of fungi. It is a highly readable book and, according to the author, life on earth owes much of its thanks to fungi.

The fungi are incredible organisms that sustain nearly all living systems.

Fungi have in many ways shaped human history – giving us, their fruit (mushrooms), bread, alcohol, lifesaving medicines, and more.

Psychedelic mushrooms have been used for millennia by indigenous people. Just recently researchers have found them to be extremely successful in treating depression, addiction, and other psychiatric problems.

Fungi is a life form so strange – according to Sheldrake, fungi can…

be microscopic and yet it can also be the largest living organism ever recorded.
Iive for millennia and weigh tens of thousands of tons.
digest rock
survive in unprotected space and live amidst nuclear radiation.
manipulate animal behavior and solve problems without a brain as we know it. This stretches the definition of intelligence. The experiments that have been done with it are fascinating.
digest plastic, explosives, pesticides and crude oil, and these abilities are being used in breakthrough technologies. They can be used to make leather and can even be trained to form walls.
connect plants in the “wood wide web.” This has been discussed in other books and elaborated in Entangled Life.

Fungi has changed the way we understand ecosystems.

Merlin Sheldrake details how fungi have a symbiotic relationship with plants and, in fact, enabled plants to live on land. They connect trees to other trees and plants allowing them to communicate with each other plus provide each other with nutrients.

Fungi can “see” and are more like animals than plants.

There are between 2.2 and 3.8 million species of fungi in the world, 6-10 the number of plants and over 90% are still undocumented.

The discoveries we are making about the potential of mushrooms seem to offer answers to many of the man-created problems on earth and provide much sought-after “hope.”

I highly recommend reading Entangled Life.

~~ Ellen

Hello Spring!

Date Posted: 2021/04/10

Well, spring has finally arrived. Everywhere I look I see crocuses and daffodils showing their full spring beauty. I planted pansies in one of my planters and then, when I thought the night would be too cold for them, I brought them in. I did not need too. They are very hardy and the ones I planted at my son’s house did not freeze.

I also planted pea seeds. I checked this morning; they are not yet up. Only one more month of waiting for me to plant all my seedlings. Waiting quite impatiently – I might add.

I’ve been listening to a very vocal cardinal that frequents the trees in our condo’s courtyard. With limited traffic, I’ve even watched hawks chasing pigeons – all in the downtown.

The birds in my birdbath have been bathing anytime this winter that the water has not been frozen – they must be following Vim Hof’s advice!

The wonderful sunny days and the sun’s warmth has really enlivened me. Bring on the beauty of spring!

Join me on Thursday, April 22nd as people celebrate Earth Day around the world.

My feeling is that every day should be Earth Day. We need to celebrate and respect the Earth more than we do now. The lockdown has shown me that nature recovers from our excesses very quickly.

I really hope we can sustain the progress these forced lockdowns have made. Nature is valuable and needs sustaining.

Take care of yourself.

~Ellen

P.S. This post was originally published in my monthly newsletter. Sing up below to get it delivered to your in box.

Sacred Cow: a book review

Date Posted: 2021/04/06

Sacred Cow: The Case for (Better) Meat

Why Well-Raised Meat Is Good for You and Good for the Planet

by Diana Rodgers (Author), Robb Wolf (Author) | Self-published (July 14, 2020)

Although I have tried at various times to become a vegetarian, I have never succeeded. So, I can say that I have always eaten meat.

The articles I have read often cause me to feel quite guilty — even ashamed of my choice. I have to admit that I do not really like beef, but chicken, lamb and fish, I do like.

Diana Rodgers and Robb Wolf show there is no conceivable argument — except the purely religious — to think that being a vegetarian is superior to the diet of an omnivore. They scientifically explain that if you want a food that is nutrient dense, environmentally sustainable (through regenerative agriculture), and efficient — meat is the answer. Vegetables, fruit, grains, and nuts add variety, taste, and nutrients. They cannot compete with meat.

Arguments that have been put forward that say meat is…

environmentally unsound,
uses more resources than vegetables,
wastes water,
pollutes the environment,
inhumane, or
morally unjustified

…are simply not true according to Rodgers and Wolf’s research.

The information and graphics are excellent and help you understand the issue in great depth. They provide detailed research, with charts and a large bibliography to back up their claims.

Rodgers and Wolf show that regenerative agriculture is the way to go if we want to feed the population of the world and save the mother earth. We learned about the importance of regeneration in Braiding Sweetgrass.

The authors look at health, the environment, and the ethics of eating meat. It’s unusual for all this to be in one book.

Rodgers and Wolf do, at times, over-state their claims and that does get a bit tedious. However, this does not detract from the argument they are making.

They simply want ranchers (and farmers) to practice regenerative processes in raising cattle for consumer consumption.

Documentary

Sacred Cow is also a documentary film making the case for better meat. They had an Indiegogo site to raise funds for the movie and book. It is now closed. The video explaining their project is interesting. Check it out.

If you are interested in how to feed the world population through regenerative agriculture, this book is for you.

Distance Healing

Date Posted: 2021/04/02

Remote Healing

Healing Transformation’s practice has changed quite a lot since the start of the pandemic. We used to do remote work when people lived too far away to travel to our offices for a treatment.

Now, all the work we do is remote healing – including our clinics. We work the same way during remote healing as we do when clients come into the office. We use our hands to guide energy to an area of dis-ease or to remove excess energy from the area of pain and imbalance. The results are the same as one-on-one in person treatments.

With both methods of treatment, the healing energy brings your body back into balance – improving your immune system and your spirit.

You can join us for our monthly Bioenergy Healing Clinic or schedule a time for your personal treatments. Either way, you’ll be able to start your road to healing while keeping safe.

For more information or to schedule a time for us to meet, contact me at

1 (416) 203-2744 or ellen@healingtransformation.ca

Take care,