In a recent post, I answered part of a message I received from Violet, one of our blog readers. Below is the continuation of my response to Violet (much briefer than my last one!).

Following my response to Violet is a response to Sarah, who has a fantastic raw food blog that I enjoy reading.

Violet's message continued:

"I was wondering if you perhaps had any raw friends, or specific support in

your transformation into raw, and how long the transformation took? Do you

take many supplements and minerals "

Dear Violet,

My response to these questions was getting quite long, so I'll save what I typed for a future blog post. However, I'll give you some very brief answers right now.

I did not want any support while I was transitioning to raw foods this time. I shared what I was doing with some people, but I mostly wanted the journey to be a solo one. It was almost a spiritual journey in many ways, as much as a physical and mental one at the time. So, even though some people may have been supportive in small ways, I was pretty much doing it alone---for myself.

While transitioning, however, I surrounded myself with information on raw food---by reading information online, as well as in books. I strongly feel that surrounding myself with raw food information on an almost daily basis is what kept me inspired to continue with my raw food journey.

I never looked back over my Going Raw Journal to see how long the transition to raw actually took. I had been making gradual changes for quite a long time, but I think I remember setting a goal and a date at one point. Overall, this time when I decided to eat only raw foods (I had tried raw in the past), I think I probably transitioned slowly over the span of about a year.

Once I got closer to being 100% raw, I recall setting myself a three-month transition time to become 100% raw for one full year. Once I met that one year goal, I created another one for myself (to decrease the amount of fat in my diet). I will continually review my diet and see what is and isn't working well for me.

It's important to realize what kind of person you are---do you do better with support from others, or do you do better on your own? If you enjoy support from others, I strongly recommend joining some of the many online raw food support communities.

No, I do not take many supplements or minerals. I like to rely on my body to supply me with everything I need. However, since I have been low in B12 and iron on many of my blood test results, I do occassionally supplement with an iron pill or B12 sublingual tablet.

Lots of love to you,

Wendi

XOXOXO

Sarah's question:

"...where do you get freshly shelled peas from your garden? Can I be really stupid and ask you to show me a photo of waht they look like unshelled and what they re called? ?Cos my hubby and kids love peas but I ve never found any fresh ones."

Dear Sarah,

It's not stupid to ask for pictures to identify peas! It's actually something another friend and I were talking about just the other day---how there are different kinds of peas, and how to identify them. So, here are two quick pictures I took of the peas I had in the fridge. They aren't overly fresh, but you can get an idea of what they look like in the pods.

There are basically three kinds of peas. The first is what most of us think about; it's sometimes called an English Pea. The pod of the English pea is thin and not very tasty, unless picked very young. The peas, however, are very sweet when they are first picked. After some time, however, the sugar turns to a starch and the peas aren't as delicious. English peas are the ones that are frozen and are also found in cans.

The second type of pea is the Snow Pea. Snow peas are served in many Chinese dishes. The pods are picked young, before the peas develop. The pod is not very thick, and is quite flat compared to the other pea varieties. It is sweet and crunchy.

The third type of pea is the Sugar Snap Pea. This is the one that I eat and love. It is a combination of the English pea and the snow pea. The entire pod is edible and quite thick, sweet, and tasty. You can shell the peas and discard the pods, or you can eat them together. I eat them both ways, but I rarely discard the pods if I'm only using the peas for a dish---I just chop up the pods and use them in salads!

Last year our local food co-op was selling all three varieties of peas. I bought a small bag of each. I was disappointed with the English peas. Even though they were quite large, they weren't very sweet. That's when I did some reading about peas and found out that the English varieties lose their sweetness the longer they are off the vine. Now, I never purchase the Enlish ones. It would be fun to grow them someday, however!

Thanks for the question, Sarah!

Lots of love to you,

Wendi

XOXOXO