All Arminda

Karen recently reminded me – as we separated spinach leaves for the juicer – that we control 100% of what goes into our bodies. 100%. As it turns out, that’s a really wonderful blessing for me, personally. I spent most of my 20s in and out of doctors’ offices being prescribed numerous medications, and yet never really feeling healthy, strong or vibrant. I finally threw it all away. Literally. I created a very colorful pile of prescription pills I was “supposed” to be taking daily and disposed of the entire chemical cocktail in one fell swoop. That was an empowering beginning to my health.

Truth is, I owe so much of my health to one woman and her amazing knowledge of the human body and its needs. Working with Jill Clarey has transformed the way I approach  the foods I’m eating, which supplements my body needs, and even when my body prefers to exercise. She continues to educate me on the significance and relative nature of nature. In other words, how everything related to our overall condition from outside stressors to unresolved internal emotional trauma directly affect our physical health and well-being and, conveniently, how there is so much we are able to do for ourselves!

Case in point: I recently played the role of Candy Starr in a production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Candy’s rather friendly, shall we say, and as a result, tends to share her friendly face with others a bit freely. This was a rigorous rehearsal schedule leading up to two weeks of performances. An ensemble cast of only 16, plus the director and stage manager, we spent a lot of time in close proximity to one another. Some of us closer than others. Weeks prior to the show’s opening, the Crud appeared. Three cast members were affected. By the time opening night arrived, another wave of actors had been hit. Before the show completed its full run, at least half the cast and/or crew had been afflicted.

Two of the worst hit were the two men with whom I was making out on stage – every single night for approximately three weeks, with a handful of days off in between. Me? Not so much as a sniffle. I came through to the very end tired, yes, but as healthy as I started.

I’ve been so overjoyed at this healthy feat, I couldn’t hold back. Public praise is in order! Thank you, Jill Clarey, for sharing your wisdom and for keeping me healthy on the front end so that my body was able to withstand the first bad round of the Crud.

Prince Humperdinck: Tyrone, you know how much I love watching you work, but I’ve got my country’s 500th anniversary to plan, my wedding to arrange, my wife to murder and Guilder to frame for it; I’m swamped.

Count Rugen: Get some rest. If you haven’t got your health, then you haven’t got anything.