Interesting and intense day in the life of this fruitarian bodybuilder. Lots of changes, challenges and accomplishments, including 5 stars for today’s Fruitarian Bodybuilding Athlete Challenge.
Moving to Gaia Yoga Gardens
I woke up around 7 a.m., after sleeping more than 8 hours, and headed over to the Kanekiki Farm community room for a final walk around as I gathered my things to leave. Then I placed all my bags on the truck heading to the market and got dropped off at Noni Farms Rd.
I was very upset with all the luggage I was carrying. I certainly brought over 60 lbs of things I don’t need. Most of them I haven’t even used once since I arrived to Hawaii. I am most certainly moving towards minimalism, this trip taught me a huge lesson.
It look me half an hour to make it to Gaia Yoga Gardens. When I got here I met with Melekai who showed me the “landing kitchen” and the room I will be sleeping in. I must admit I didn’t have a great first impression. Melekai was great, but the place was messy and dirty, it didn’t feel like home and there were some strong smells that really threw me off. I spent the first four hours here anxiously looking for other options to go to.
The truth is that I wasn’t stocked to come to Gaia Yoga Gardens, but I was in huge need to leave the Kanekiki Farm. Looking back, I think it would have been better for me to take a week off the Kanekiki Farm and look for another place with more time and space. This decision was rushed and the whole time I have felt like I am between a rock and a hard place.
Living with Raw Non Vegans
The main aspect of Gaia Yoga Gardens that is out of alignment with my path is that they consume a large quantity of animal products. The fact that they consume them raw is not a big deal, except that the smell from it seems to be stronger and un-disguised.
When I first learned about this place and the type of diet that most people follow here, I thought it would be a good experiment for me to test it out. I wanted to find out if I could get myself to eat raw meat. Many of you may say that is the least vegan thing I could say, but before being a vegan, I am free. Free to make my own choices and change my mind, free to search for truth anywhere and everywhere. I am free to believe in whatever I need and can believe in and I know that for me to know MY ultimate truth, I need to challenge the truth I already know, otherwise I risk falling into naïve perspectives.
I figured that by coming to Gaia Yoga Gardens, and experiencing the rawest approach to animal product consumption, I would have a good chance to find out what is best for me. I also wanted to practice being accepting of other’s regardless of what they eat.
The result? I want to go somewhere else, I haven’t been here for more than 24 hours and I am already anxious about leaving. But let me be clear, there is nothing wrong with Gaia Yoga Gardens or the people here. Everyone I have met so far was kind, friendly, welcoming and helpful to the best of their abilities. I just don’t feel comfortable, that is all.
Are Vegan Communities My Only Option?
At this point I wonder if I can only live with vegans. Before moving to Hawaii, I was staying with my parents and they eat animal products every day, however, their food doesn’t smell like raw meat does. Perhaps there is something else here that I am sensing, something else that is pushing me away.
The issue at hand is that there aren’t that many vegan communities, and even that wouldn’t satisfy. The Kanekiki Farm was supposed to be a raw vegan community, and every time someone talked about eating cooked food I would get slightly upset. To be honest, towards the end of my stay I began to resent people who were eating spices and vegetables, especially after reading Mango Wodzak’s new book, The Eden Fruitarian Guidebook.
I guess at this point, right now, I am a fruitarian, without a doubt. It makes sense to me that I should live with other fruitarians, but there aren’t that many! My other options is to live alone, but that is more expensive and something that right now I just can’t afford.
I also don’t want to give up on my dream of living in community, there is so much beauty to it. Today, for example, after going on a two hour long walk, I came back to Gaia Yoga Gardens and joined the community on a workshops about intimacy. I got to cuddle with a man I didn’t know and had a chance to be raw and vulnerable in ways I had never done before. That is the type of growth I am looking for! I just don’t want animals or plants to die in the process. Is that too much to ask? Yes, apparently it is.
Where Do I Go After Gaia Yoga Gardens?
Now I need to make a choice. Actually, the choice has already been made, I am leaving this place. The question is, when, how, and where will I go? It is too early to go back to Boulder Colorado, there is still plenty of snow falling down and fruit is scarce, expensive, non-local and non-fresh. Other options would include Australia, Ecuador and Thailand, but I don’t feel prepared to go to any of those. I would need a different sleeping bag, a hammock and most importantly, I would need to throw away 60 pounds of stuff I simply can’t let go. Or can I…?
There are a few other places in this area that I have in mind. A couple of farms with communities that I have heard of. I haven’t visited them, but they sound very nice, none of them are vegan, which keeps me in a similar conundrum, but perhaps there I will feel a different vibe.
In addition to luggage, money is also holding me back. I still have $2,000 saved, but no more than that. I know it could be a lot, but to me it doesn’t feel like enough, at least not enough to give away all my things, buy a new sleeping bag and a hammock, purchase a plane ticket to Thailand and hop off.
Staying at Gaia Yoga Gardens
It seems that right now my best move is to take a lot of deep breaths and make the most out of this experience. It isn’t horrible here, not even close. Gaia Yoga Gardens has a bunch of awesome things, some of which I consider to be better than they were at the Kanekiki Farm. Here I have phone signal wherever I go, there are less rules and restrictions and there is a ton of room for me to grow.
If the smell of raw meat is unbearable I can stay away from it when people eat. If I am uncomfortable at the farm I can go out and explore all the places nearby. The mainland will still be there in a few weeks and I always have the chance to give away my possessions and buy a ticket to any place in the world (as long as I can afford it).
Gaia Yoga Gardens is a challenging place, but threw this challenge I will grow and become more resilient. Through this challenge I will learn if I a am a true vegan, a true fruitarian and how much empathy I can hold. This is a rare opportunity and I know my Self chose this path for me knowing I could handle it. I am not going to stay here longer than I need, but I also will not run away without first giving it a fair chance, going through the growing pains, and making sure that I come threw the other side, victorious.
Today’s Fruitarian Bodybuilding Challenge Summary
To my 8 hours of sleep and 2 hour long walk I added a day of strict fruitarianism, this blog and the lovely photo that I took for my fruitarian before and after pictures. I even read a ton of pages from Mango Wodzak’s Eden Fruitarian Guidebook, I feel like that should count for bonus points.
It feels great to get all five stars. In a way, I think it will be easier for me to continue to succeed with this Fruitarian Bodybuilding Athlete Challenge now that I am staying at Gaia Yoga Gardens. There are less food temptations for me here and less social distractions to keep me away from the fruitarian diet and my 2 hour long bodybuilding routine, which may not be much but gets me through the day. I pledge to keep an open mind and keep doing my best, after all, it is the only thing I can do.
