Flexible feats in Southern Spain

I wrote this story for 50 Connect to encourage people over 50 to try something super healthy and a little adventurous in their travels!

I spend the first 20 minutes of the yoga class kicking myself for forgetting to pack my cosy fleece. Not that I am cold in the slight chill of the Spanish morning. It’s just that the mind likes to obsess about something, anything.

The postures become more strenuous. I’ve broken a sweat and I’m ripping off my t-shirt. I calm down and realise with a gasp of awe that the entire wall is a window onto the parched, golden hills of the Alpujarras. The bird song mingles with the yoga teacher’s soothing voice as I drop into a Downward Dog.

How did I get here? Just yesterday I was home in Kent watching the autumn leaves fall and anticipating a ferocious storm. Two and a half hours flight out of Gatwick and I landed at Malaga on the southern coast of Spain and was whisked away by the delightful Julie, an English ex-pat with a sideline in transporting guests into the hills.

We talked passionately about the possibilities of life after 50 along dark, twisting roads to the Kaliyoga Retreat outside the little town of Orgiva where I was shown to my comfortable room and lapsed into a fitful sleep, excited about the mysterious week ahead. I was the latecomer. The other eight guests had arrived in daylight and eased into the new surroundings.

By noon Monday I am baking my white flesh by the silent, dappled pool. Lying contentedly alongside the other bikini-clad ladies on loungers, we observe a no-talking pact, unwinding from the stresses left behind. A gentle breeze softens the sting of the bold overhead sun and a fluffy, ginger cat sidles up to the languid humans for a scratch. Sorry Puss, it’s almost lunchtime and a feast of wholesome, yummy goodies entices us into the colourful dining room.

Some people have all the luck! That’s me! How divine to find myself in this Mediterranean

paradise at the tail end of October in the approach to the bleak English winter. How thrilling that the Kaliyoga Retreat is just a few hours away by plane and car ready to rescue any miserable soul dragged down by the iron fist of grey skies, icy winds and humdrum routine. If that’s you, just imagine, you could be here instead!

Yoga is beneficial for all ages, but especially kind to those of us over 50. I’ve been doing yoga on and off since my teens and when I return to a familiar posture with a comical animal name; the dog, the cat, the cobra, the fish, the lion, the dolphin, the camel, the crow or the eagle or the powerful warrior, the shoulder stand, the bridge or a spinal twist, my body breathes a sigh of welcome recognition: “Oh thank you! I remember that!” But I must be honest every stretch of this 56-year-old body hurts! 

Experienced yoga teacher, Arantza, who is turning 50, says at this mature stage of life you start to listen to every nuance of your body and respect your body as a temple of the soul. Having acquired intuitive wisdom you can have a fuller, holistic experience of yoga.

I come away from each session a little more flexible, a little more unravelled and a little more present to the here and now, able to absorb the natural beauty all around. 

For aches and pains there’s a selection of miraculous massages and treatments by skilful, nurturing therapists. My knotted-up fellow guests rave about the results.

The other guests have come from New York, Dublin, Brussels, Munich and London and by supper we are all ready to chat and socialise over Wes the Wonder Chef’s scrumptious three-course meal of Vegetable Frittata and Pesto, Baked Spicy Aubergines and Tabouleh and Caramelised Apple Crumble with Salted Caramel Sauce! Absolutely delicious!

Vivienne, 58, from Dublin loves this place so much it’s her second visit. The first time she came with a friend and was a little sceptical as a yoga novice but was pleasantly surprised by how much she enjoyed it. She says: “I loved the food, the people, the therapies, the yoga, the relaxing atmosphere, the walks, everything! The staff are so easy-going but extremely professional.

“As a single woman, I felt completely happy to come back on my own. To be amongst a small group of like-minded, friendly people and to be able to take time out for myself is very restorative. I experienced the deaths of close friends recently and this has been a way to do something life-affirming. I plan to come back every year.”

The vegetarian food is sublime. For me, as a committed veggie, the gourmet meals are a true delight and for carnivore guests the variety of delicious plant-based food is a true revelation.

The schedule for a six-day stay is perfectly designed to take in yoga classes, therapies, hiking through the idyllic countryside, horse riding (an optional extra) and sightseeing in historic Granada!

Hiking in the hills surrounding Orgiva is on the schedule for Tuesday so we all set off early with a packed lunch to meet our flamboyant guide, Francisco who tells us how the region is a magnet for rat race escapees from around the world seeking an alternative, idyllic, rural lifestyle. Centuries ago, the Moors built irrigation channels throughout the arid slopes that continue to water flourishing crops of olive groves and lemon orchids, almond and walnut trees.

Francisco is an expert in edible wild plants with healing properties and he pauses to pick

leaves and fruits for us to taste, explaining the health benefits along the way. Thankfully the autumnal weather is mild, perfect in fact, for a challenging four-hour hike. We stop for a picnic lunch in a shady spot then stumble across a herd of goats being driven through the valley by the herdsman and two feisty dogs. What a bucolic vision!

I’m hobbling on sore feet with aching calf muscles by the time we get back to the retreat to freshen up before the evening yoga class. But Arantza has my hamstrings straightened out in no time!

Another appetising feast of generous proportions from creative chef, Heather has us groaning with satiety as we push back from the table and head for our tranquil rooms.

The lovely Cassie and Leah are charming hostesses and capable John helps out with organising outings and transfers. The Kaliyoga Retreat was started in 2002 by dynamic couple Johnathon and Rosie Miles who had a vision to create a sanctuary of peace and self-discovery.

Come Wednesday, after a vigorous yoga session, six of us are off to explore historic Granada! We are spirited along winding roads by local driver Marco who regales us with stories of Granada’s distinguished past as the city where Christopher Columbus persuaded Queen Isabella to sponsor his crazy voyage to find the Americas in 1491!

We wander around the awe-inspiring Alhambra Palace, said to be the unofficial eighth

wonder of the world! The exquisitely carved marble and tile buildings date back to the 13^th century and must be seen to be believed!

As it turns dark and cold, we find a little café for tapas and later a stylish restaurant to sample the local cuisine and finally rendezvous with Marco for our ride back to the retreat, mesmerised by the twinkling lights of the city.

I am embarrassed to admit that I almost chicken out on the exhilarating hike on Thursday because my legs are so sore from more exercise in a few days than I would usually do in a month! I am tempted to laze by the pool with a book but muster the resolve at the last minute and throw on my backpack and grab my chunky Canon to join our enthusiastic group piling into cars to ferry us to the lofty starting point high above the Sierra with a view across the ocean to the Atlas Mountains of Morocco.

I am so glad I didn’t ‘wimp out’ as now I get to push myself beyond my limits. As we climb and climb the dusty track amongst the beautiful forest my heart and lungs almost explode! I push on and on, with encouragement from Cassie and Francisco and do some deep yogic breathing and focus on the sky, not my weary feet, until finally we reach a natural spring for a brief respite!

Onward and upward we trek taking in the magnificent views across the Alpujarra mountains to collapse at our shady lunch spot under two sturdy oak trees. I’ve got to admit I feel mighty proud of my efforts and know this is a rare, sparkling day to remember.  More

delights lay ahead as suddenly a massive bronze statue of the Buddha Tara appears, perched cheekily on a mountaintop and a herd of goats graze on the yellow grass as we meditate!

The last part of the hike sees us edging along a narrow track perilously high looking down into a dramatic valley and upward across the rugged range.

The drive back is peaceful as we savour the best kind of physical and mental exhaustion!

After a pumpkin-inspired supper in honour of Halloween, with a delectable orange-lime-lemon almond cake for dessert, two talented, flexible performers from the local village treat us to an acrobatic-magic show!

By Friday morning I am doing a strenuous two-hour yoga class without my mind wandering. I’ve gained a degree of inner strength and stamina. Arantza’s charming Spanish-accented instructions are now feeding my soul with encouragement to expect more of myself and stop making excuses because of my “age”.

Connecting with the fit and feisty, agile and active people in their 50s here in energising Orgiva makes me realise age is really just a state of mind.

On my last day I experience a powerful deep-tissue massage with Aussie character Patricia, who strengthened her back and hands on fishing boats off the coast of Darwin before training in the healing secrets of massage and moving to the colourful, international community in Orgiva!

For our last evening session of yoga in the twilight we do partner work, supporting each other in forward bends, back bends and even headstands! It is incredible what you can do as a team!

An exotic vegetarian Indian feast completes the week’s delectable meals as we celebrate our personal triumphs and new friendships and say our fond farewells; going home, rejuvenated and transformed by the earthy tranquillity and gentle caring of Kaliyoga.

HEALTH MATTERS Releasing Toxins, Shedding Weight and Regaining Health in Just Five Days!

Despite my healthy veggie diet and heroic efforts with the jogging group, I was piling on the pounds, spilling out of my pants, feeling lethargic and battling embarrassing skin problems.

I knew intuitively my malaise called for a radical intervention. So one despondent Saturday morning I Google searched “detox retreats” and up popped the Simply Healing Detox Retreat at beautiful Alliblaster House in leafy West Sussex, not far from our home in Kent.

Bingo! I knew this was “it” even though there were many other excellent retreats to choose from. Simply Healing was voted Best Detox Retreat in the UK by prestigious Vogue magazine and described as “a million miles away from the stresses and strains of everyday life.”

My email was answered immediately and there was a place available within two weeks. Effortlessly, smooth as silk, I was booked in and all set for a five-day internal cleanse and delightful pampering in a serene rural setting.

The centrepiece of the Detox is colonic hydrotherapy, which involves cleaning out the colon (large intestine or bowel). The process is gentle and hygienic and carried out by expert therapists with great respect and professionalism.

The Detox requires consuming only fresh juices, soups and broth and a mixture of apple juice, clay and psyllium with probiotics and herbal supplements.

By stopping eating solid food, you give your overworked digestive system a rest and chance to release toxins through the bowel, urinary system, lymphatic system and skin. Your body is replenished with nutrients from the juices and broth and most importantly, if you are overweight, you rapidly shed the pounds and kick-start your sluggish metabolism into fat-burning mode. As a bonus you receive lashings of nurturing and care from skilled therapists.

I was ready and rearing to go but quietly anxious because I know what happens to me when I stop eating. I’m used to eating every two to three hours to stabilise erratic blood sugar levels and if I skip a meal I suffer headaches and nausea.

But stepping inside the massive charming country manor house, brimming with comfy sofas and soft furnishings, was like being embraced by a reassuring hug and instantly I felt safe and knew I was in a good, kind place.

Owner Vivien, a renowned healer who has studied ancient, natural healing arts around the world and leads tour groups in Peru and other exotic destinations, welcomed me warmly.  Lovely Kate, a former nurse, showed me around the sumptuous lounge rooms, vibrant with colour and artworks. My cosy upstairs room commanded peaceful views across the lush fields. 

There were eight women on my program who had travelled from all over the UK, keen to shed excess weight and rest from stressful jobs and recharge, revitalise and rejuvenate.

That first night we sat together around the formal dining table, apprehensive about what we’d let ourselves in for, clutching our mugs of Carrot and Coriander Soup, chatting and getting to know each other then retired to our rooms early with our own thoughts and hopes.

Predictably swapping my usual big carb-loaded evening meal for soup sent my system into shock and the headaches and nausea set in. At 5 am I was throwing up and on the brink of a migraine.

I pushed through to face the first round of juice and clay drink and felt sick all morning and

worried about how long it would take to feel normal. All the others seemed to be sailing through their first day without solid food.

I had read that 24 to 48 hours into a fast your digestive system stops expecting food and switches to drawing energy from the fat stored in the cells. Now that’s what I wanted to happen! So I persevered and by mid-afternoon I stopped craving food, the nausea eased and my whole system settled into a contented state.

I was able to ride through that initial rough patch with understanding chats with the other guests, an invigorating salt scrub with the lovely young April, and a colon massage (on the stomach!) with Aor, a gentle Thai lady with powerful, healing hands. I was off and away and from Day Two, the Cleanse was blissful.

In the immaculate candle-lit therapy room, I stripped down to a paper thong and April took my measurements and then slathered on a detoxing mixture of algae and clay and wrapped me tightly in bandages like a mummy. I eased myself into a thermal bag and lay there sweating while she gave me a soothing head and face massage. When April measured me again I’d instantly lost almost 14 inches! I could feel my waist again!

Florence, an elegant French naturopath gave me an exquisite reflexology treatment hitting all the key points before my first colonic hydrotherapy session with Helen, who has been dedicated to this health-giving work for several years.

Like everyone else on the course, I marvelled at the amount of old rubbish that came out of my body and was thrilled to be rid of it! Waste accumulates over the years and toxins can leach through walls of the colon made porous from Candida, which some health practitioners say is the root cause of a host of unexplained illnesses.

Vivien says the Detox is ideal for women and men over 50 to lose flab, correct nagging health problems and rejuvenate. “People aged from 50 to 80 come here and clean their colons of a lifetime of rubbish.”

I had a second colonic treatment with Carolyn who also set me straight on the mistakes I was making with my diet. She advised against the ready-made vegetarian meals, made from soya protein, with the wisdom that anything processed is not as pure as meals you make yourself. So I will now take the time to whip up my own scrumptious lentil burgers, bean chilli and chickpea curry.

Carolyn also suggested I break a lifelong habit of eating huge evening meals. She offered the homespun motto; “Eat for what you are going to do, not for what you’ve done!” It is far better to eat a hearty breakfast and lunch when you need the energy during the day and have only a light, carb-free evening meal. I know this will be a magic key to continuing weight loss.

And two more tips from Carolyn: Eat natural foods every colour of the rainbow and chew each mouthful 20 to 30 times to help your poor digestive system and eat less!

Natalie gave me the best and deepest massage I’ve ever had. It was painful (in a good way) as she released the tension I’ve been carrying in my neck, shoulders and back from endless hours hunched over the computer.

On my last day Aor gave me another deep tissue neck massage and I had an intriguing Hopi Candle treatment with Carolyn to clear the ears and nasal passages. It really worked! I now feel much clearer in the head!  

 

The all-female team of expert therapists are not only skillful and knowledgeable but

profoundly nurturing, which is salve for the soul as well as the body.

Kate and Vivien made the delicious juices, which seemed to be just perfect for our needs each day. My favourite combinations included Strawberry, Plum and Apple and Lime, Apple and Sweet Potato and I loved the savoury broth brewed from a variety of fresh veggies.

The course was ideally paced between treatments and free time to laze on the sun lounges or rest in your room. Kate led us on brisk early morning country walks and we relaxed around the open fire at night with guided meditations.

The whole experience is so easy for the guests yet obviously much hard work is going on behind the scenes to make the colourful, energising juices appear on the table every few hours and ensure that everything runs like clockwork.

Vivien and her family established Alliblaster House in 2000 so they have fine-tuned and perfected the Detox program over more than a decade with countless exuberant guests (who have scrawled their glowing reviews replete with superlatives and exclamation marks in the Visitors’ Book). 

I went home feeling like a new woman, 10 pounds lighter, with a fierce commitment to continuing healthy self-care. The Detox has kick-started the fat burning process in my body and I’m determined to continue losing weight with juices, soups and salads and a fresh new outlook. I would love to return every year for a tune-up!

Who would think it possible to achieve so much healing and transformation in just five days! I am grateful for to the wise, healing, nurturing women of magical Alliblaster House for the gift of regaining my health and energy! 

HEALTH MATTERS - Boycott The Sickness Industry

Today for International Women’s Day, I am contributing the following article to women, children and men everywhere so we can resist the indoctrination of the Sickness Industry and take charge of our own health.

We were holed up in a run-down hotel in the poor neighbourhood of San Clementine in Southern California, killing time before a training course.

Desperate for some nutritious fruit and veggies I wandered along to the nearby shopping centre but was dismayed to discover no fresh produce in sight, only a strange 99 Cent Store that stocked a weird assortment of canned and processed ‘food’ to feed the low-income Mexican local residents.

Reluctantly I bought some plastic tubs of ‘dip’, corn chips, packets of dried soup and a pile of plastic thimbles of coffee creamers of irresistible flavours I’d become addicted to during our travels in the States.

Within a few days I started experiencing heartburn, a sensation I’d never had before, and was pleased to discover that American drug stores stock a fascinating variety of pleasant antacid chalky tablets for this common complaint!

We were amused by the bizarrely comical TV ads for a vast array of over-the-counter medications. After an elaborate mini-drama commercial extolling the miraculous effects of the drug, a smooth American voice-over, clearly a legal requirement, would outline an exhaustive and frightening litany of possible side-effects such as nausea, dizzy spells, heartburn, diarrhoea, constipation, high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, cancer, depression, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s Disease, blindness, suicide and on and on. We had to laugh! Is this a joke? Could they be serious? Why would anyone use this stuff if it’s so dangerous!

I realised that the next problem after my heartburn could be diarrhoea, but not to worry, there was a medication for that! But hang on, how about questioning what was causing these symptoms? Of course! It was the chemical-loaded muck that passed for dip and the seemingly innocent coffee creamers.

I immediately stopped eating this toxic junk and the heartburn disappeared but not so for millions of Americans caught on the dizzy little carousel ride of consuming harmful foods that cause health problems, then taking medications for the symptoms that escalate over time and require stronger medications!

Another anecdote; through lack of choice in this poor end of town we found ourselves dining at the fast food restaurant, Denny’s, devouring the bargain breakfast! And even though we would share one enormous serve between us, loaded high with scrambled eggs, sausages, bacon, deep fried hash browns, thick pancakes and syrup and much more, I started gaining weight at a rapid rate.

It is no wonder that Americans who live on massive portions of fast food are facing an obesity epidemic and leading the rest of the developed world down the same tragic path.

The World Health Organisation predicts there will be 2.3 billion overweight adults in the world by 2015 and more than 700 million of them will be obese.

Obesity is linked to a numerous other health problems including diabetes, also reaching epidemic numbers.

While people in rich countries suffer from sickness due to gluttonous over-eating, people in poor countries suffer from sickness and starvation due to lack of food. This is a crazy, unjust scenario where both sides of the world suffer.

At the risk of being accused of advancing a conspiracy theory, it is blatantly obvious that America’s harmful food manufacturers and myriad fast food outlets are in collusion with drug companies, which make billions off the chronic sickness of the masses. What a cosy little partnership!

And we the naïve consumers are indoctrinated on a daily basis by insidious marketing, enticing packaging, irresistible flavours and addictive substances that ‘normalises’ harmful foods.

This normalisation process is not confined to the Sickness Industry. It is used by the War Industry to convince us that war is a normal part of life. Please read my article The Normalising of War

And it is used by the Pornography Industry to convince adults and impressionable teenagers that perverse, immoral and damaging sexual practices are normal. Please read The Pornification of Healthy Sexuality

The point of this article is a warning and a call to action; we must take responsibility to resist the relentless sinister pressures to eat harmful foods.

We must resist being obedient, mindless consumers of toxic processed food that perpetuates the Sickness Industry.

We must educate ourselves about what is healthy food and search for truth while being swamped by an avalanche of ‘expert’ theories, laced with vested interests.

Here is what I have discovered after two years of research.

Eating all forms of meat causes horrendous and unnecessary suffering and killing of innocent animals (57 billion animals a year are slaughtered to feed a world population of seven billion humans) Factory farming and the meat industry perpetrate an indefensible crime against living, feeling creatures.

But individuals can boycott this cruelty by simply refusing to eat animals.

Eating all forms of meat is harmful to health. Please read I No Longer Eat Animals and The Case for Going Veggie. Visit Viva! Vegetarian Voice for Animals. View the life-changing film, Earthlings and read Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer.

Stop eating ALL MEAT (including fish and chicken).

Stop eating DAIRY FOODS. The dairy industry causes untold misery to innocent cows that are kept permanently pregnant after their calves are removed and slaughtered, and forced to produce massive quantities of milk from engorged and infected udders, while standing in agony on infected feet.

Cow’s milk, designed for growing calves, is full of growth hormones (which cause cancer in humans) and contains a fair dose of pus. (Yes, disgusting) Rather than a source of calcium, milk is so acidic it leaches calcium out of your bones.

Stop eating SUGAR. Cane sugar is not a food. It is an insidious toxin, which causes erratic Blood Sugar Levels and the release of insulin and leads to weight gain, diabetes, energy slumps, depression, hormonal imbalance and a host of other health problems. It is tough giving up sugar because it is hidden in most processed foods but feeling mentally and physically stable is worth the effort.

Visit http://www.patrickholford.com/ and read books on Optimum Nutrition by Patrick Holford, a pioneering nutritionist who makes the radical statement: “All illness is caused by what we eat, drink and breathe.”

I am doing an illuminating Zest4Life course with nutritionist Emily Fawell, who trained with the Institute for Optimum Nutrition. Go to http://www.4wellpeople.co.uk/ I really recommend this course.

Stop eating REFINED CARBOHYDRATES. White bread, rice, pasta etc, acts like sugar in the body, spiking your BSLs and causes an insulin rush and a ‘fat storing episode’ and after an initial high, you experience an energy slump and craving for another sugar hit.

Stop drinking COFFEE, TEA and COLA, which contain the drug, caffeine. Caffeine is addictive and causes adrenalin and sugar hits and plays havoc with your BSLs and causes weight gain.

One fundamental goal of good health is to stabilise your Blood Sugar Levels to give you a steady supply of energy to the brain and body throughout the day.

Stop drinking ALCOHOL. Alcohol is dangerous because it messes with your brain, causes dehydration and painful, debilitating hang-overs and messes with your behaviour, which can be harmful to yourself and others. You lose inhibitions and control over what you say and do when drunk, which can lead to high-risk behaviour, accidents and violence.

Alcohol is the root cause of countless social problems but still we are indoctrinated to drink (in moderation), which few people can manage. We are made to believe that drinking wine is sophisticated and cultured and that it’s impossible to socialise without drinking. It’s been hard to give up red wine because I believed this myth but now I sip diluted grape juice and still enjoy myself!

The body, comprising around 75 per cent fluid, requires plenty of O2 and yet clever humans have invented all sorts of ‘drinks’ rather than just give the body what it wants; pure water.

It goes without saying, to be healthy you must stop smoking, stop drug use and avoid medications that cause side effects.

What does it leave you to eat? Eat unlimited fresh vegetables (for vitamins, minerals and enzymes) and a reasonable amount of fruits, being careful of too much natural fruit sugar or 'fructose'. Tropical fruits are higher in fructose than others. My personal low-sugar favourites are cherries and berries.

Get your protein and complex carbohydrates from wholemeal legumes (soya, lentils, chickpea, red kidney beans etc), whole grains (oats, rice, wheat, rye etc), nuts (almonds, cashew, walnuts, peanuts etc) and seeds (sunflower, sesame, pumpkin, chia etc). You can make endless tasty meals from these simple foods. Hummus and oatcakes will keep you going for hours!

Although most vegans swear off eggs because of abject cruelty to battery hens, I believe free-range eggs are a good form of protein and I aim to have my own happy backyard hens in the future.

Bad fats - saturated animal fats and trans fats - are dangerous to health but good fats from avocadoes, coconuts and olive oil are essential for astute brain function. Eat lots of good fats.

I take supplements to ensure my body gets all the nutrients it needs, not necessarily supplied completely in the right quantities by food.

I am no expert but I have educated myself by studying the genuine experts.

My wish for you is to become aware of being indoctrinated by the Meat Industry, the Dairy Industry, the sugar pushers and the grog and drug pushers in this new aggressive Consumer Age we live in, where we are constantly being ‘sold’ for profits. Remember these foods are not “normal”, not necessary, not healthy and not ethical.

As women in charge of feeding our husbands and families, my wish is that you will educate yourself about nutrition, the starting point of survival, health and wellbeing.

Once your awareness shifts, I hope you choose life-enhancing, nourishing natural foods that bless you, bless others and bless our planet.

The Young Unleash Rage in London Riots

People across the UK and the world watched the horrifying images on television and You Tube in shock and outrage and asked the same question: Why?

The riots started on Saturday, August 6, in the northern suburb of Tottenham, sparked by the police shooting of popular gang member Mark Duggan on Thursday.

By Sunday night rioting spread east to Hackney and south to Brixton, Clapham Junction, Croydon and Peckham with mobs of youths, faces covered by hoods, swarming the High Streets setting cars ablaze and smashing shop fronts and looting with fearless contempt for the outnumbered police, powerless to stop them.

In Tottenham a carpet store and overhead flats were set on fire and gutted, leaving distraught residents and wide-eyed children stranded on the streets, homeless.

In a heart-breaking case, the Reeves Furniture Store, a beloved landmark in Croydon since 1867, was burnt to the ground and 80-year-old Mr Reeves questioned how his store, handed down through five generations, and surviving two world wars and the Depression could be maliciously destroyed by London’s own citizens.

While violent thugs menaced the streets north, south and east, West London, where we live, had been spared. But Monday night the rioting, far from abating, gained force as psyched-up gangs were directed by mass text messages and Twitter to catch trains to untouched suburbs.

Tuesday morning we woke to the news that our peaceful little Ealing Green, just a mile up the road, had been hit. Parked cars were set ablaze and the pretty cafes and shops that line the street opposite the park had been smashed up and looted. The corner Tesco store was stripped and even a baby store was ransacked and destroyed, the owner understandably devastated.

That afternoon, I visited the surreal aftermath and joined other locals wandering around in gloomy disbelief. All the shops, even the cheerful little health food store, were closed and smashed windows boarded up.

Do the young perpetrators have any idea of the loss and pain they have inflicted on business owners, families and whole communities? The damage bill is already £100 million, the wreckage incomprehensible. Hundreds of police officers and innocent people have suffered injuries.

By Wednesday there were 770 arrests. In a belated security crackdown 16,000 police officers were deployed to guard the streets of London and defiant shop owners organised their own numbers to protect their premises last night, restoring control. However gangs hit Manchester and other regional cities. In Birmingham three young men were killed when they were ran over by a car.

To counter despair, teams of upbeat residents in Clapham Junction pitched in to help dazed shop owners clean up the mess, proving that community spirit is strong and resilient.

An uneasy calm has been restored and now for the collective soul-searching and public debate.

During the laid-back summer month of August London slides into holiday-mode. While the grown-ups in charge were away the kids took to the streets to ‘play’. The Prime Minister David Cameron was recalled from his villa in Tuscany and the Mayor of London, Boris Johnston reluctantly cut short his break in the Canadian Rockies to face the mayhem.

Is this debacle an extreme case of school holiday boredom? What are the emotions driving the anarchy? Frustration and anger escalating to hatred and rage.

Led by hardcore gangsters, what have thousands of teenagers (and kids as young as nine) got to be so enraged about?

Many social commentators are blaming youth disillusionment due to chronic unemployment and lack of future prospects. With savage government funding cuts and massive job losses in countless industries, this is a generation with shrinking opportunities and crushed aspirations.

Ironically when I returned from the bleak smashed-up streets of Ealing, I tuned into Escape To The Country to watch a dull, middle-aged couple searching for an idyllic property in rural Sussex with a budget of £800,000.

Granted this couple have probably worked conscientiously in boring jobs for 30 years to acquire their nest egg but how can this young generation ever imagine such an affluent future?

Our Baby Boomer generation has forced up the cost of houses to exorbitant levels. So along with shrinking job prospects, any dreams of home ownership are almost impossible.

And yet this is a generation raised on the fantasies of a Celebrity Culture that lauds instant wealth and fame. Along with junk food, kids are fed a steady diet of junk values. They are indoctrinated with images of mega-rich movie stars and sporting heroes. These warped values don’t match the grim reality of life on council estates. The gap between rich and poor in 2011 is a fatal chasm.

Which brings us to another driving force in those young looters: gleeful greed. Some of the laughing youngsters caught on camera display real enjoyment in running off with ‘free stuff’. Today’s kids want quick pleasure fixes.

Armed with a sense of entitlement, they stole brand-name trainers, laptops, mobile phones and flat screen TVs in a rampage of opportunistic consumerism. And these kids believed they could steal with impunity.

Where do they learn such consequence-free greed? Could it be from grown-ups who take obscene salaries and get away with it? Do they see a class society where gross inequality is accepted and wealth and property is vested with a privileged upper class and revered monarchy while the poor face a lifetime of deprivation?

By the way, where is the Queen? She has made no comment. I assume that problems with riff raff on the street don’t concern her.

Yes this is not a ‘working class’ rebellion because there is no work. Joblessness is now generational and endemic. Most of the young looters are spawned by an impoverished ‘under class’. And yet poverty does not automatically lead to crime because crime, as we know, occurs at all levels of society.

There is another factor at work in the sub-culture of our youth. Violent video games and movies get boys and girls hyped-up on explosive warfare. Immature minds cannot distinguish between screen violence, which is deemed ‘entertainment’, and real-life. The thrills they get from destroying and shooting up imaginary enemies are easily transferred to real life. It is a thin line and once a few cross it, the mob will follow.

Violence. Youth are surrounded by it as the nightly news shows them adults waging war in countries all around them. Violent games action and real-life battles in Afghanistan, Iraq and Middle Eastern countries look like a great adventure.

Young people are impressionable and easily led. They take their cues from adult society and our society is steeped in war mongering.

Many outraged onlookers have pointed to a flagrant lack of morals in the rioters. What is lacking in their emotional repertoire? Concern, respect and empathy and compassion for others. These qualities can only be cultivated through role modelling.

If kids do not possess these moral restraints, what about their parents and other adults? The rest of us are asking where was parental control? In fatherless families there is often no guidance and discipline.

As well as asking why, here is another good question. Who? Just who are the sinister adult ring leaders? Juveniles are devoid of complex political ideologies. They might be pissed off but they cannot articulate anarchy, socialism or the fine points of social protest. As the weeks unfold, police must identify the faceless co-ordinators who mobilised the gangs using social media.

This crisis has prompted analysis of underlying issues. Grown-ups in the government, media, business, education, youth organisations, churches and all communities must scrutinise parenting, the break-down of the family unit, the lack of meaning and purpose, youth sub-culture and the future of this generation.

It is clearly a symptom of deep dysfunction when people attack their own communities, neighbours, family and friends. Such offenders must feel extremely disconnected, disenfranchised and marginalised.

As respected Channel 4 journalist Jon Snow wrote: “The ‘local’ is in trouble. You don’t destroy the ‘local’ you love and cherish. You defend it with all your might.”

If this terrifying tragedy was a crazed cry for attention, then young people have certainly got our attention.

Personal Growth Matters - Compassion is the Key to Saving The World

All the cruelties and atrocities in the world happen because of lack of empathy and compassion.

President Bush and his cohorts could only murder and maim countless men, women and children in Iraq by objectifying human beings as ‘collateral damage’. In other words, by being devoid of empathy and compassion.

The cruelties that people in factory farms and abattoirs inflict on billions of defenceless animals can only happen by shutting down all empathy and compassion for their pain and suffering and objectifying them as ‘food products’.

The violation of children by paedophiles, the mutilation of innocent people by laughing soldiers, the act of planting a bomb on a train that blows human beings to bits, exploiting workers in slave labour, incarcerating people in prisons, torture, rape, violence and every variety of abuse and all the atrocities you can document are only possible through a lack of empathy and compassion for other living beings.

If lack of empathy and compassion is the core problem then logically, developing empathy and compassion is the solution. Compassion is the key to solving all levels of abuse in every relationship on the planet. The great spiritual teachers knew this and taught this simple truth.

Jesus of Nazareth’s true gift was His heightened empathy and compassion for his fellow human beings, expressed freely without prejudice or discrimination.

With penetrating insight, Jesus could see through harmful behaviour to the inner pain of the sinner and, feeling compassion for their heartache, could then extend forgiveness, pardon without punishment, in the warm embrace of grace and mercy.

Jesus’ abilities to heal and perform miracles were in fact not as amazing, and not really the point of his ministry, as much as teaching compassion. Jesus’ supernatural powers were merely a concentrated and accelerated version of God’s everyday abilities. Our bodies, driven by divine intelligence, have the ability to heal, and the creative force of God is continually performing ‘miracles’ in Nature.

What exactly is compassion? Compassion is a type of love; spiritual love the Greeks call Agape. It is a feeling of deep tenderness and kindness that springs from the experience of empathy and understanding for someone’s vulnerability and physical or emotional pain. A compassionate person sees through facades and defences to the inner anguish.

Empathy is the ability to feel someone else’s suffering; to imagine yourself in their situation and allow yourself to momentarily experience their emotions. Empathy connects people and empathy is a leveller that unites people as equals. Sympathy, in contrast, is detached, and sometimes dispensed from a superior distance.

The spiritual qualities of empathy and compassion are inextricably woven together and reside in the heart, like an exquisite flower. From these sweet qualities flow caring actions such as soothing words of comfort and practical acts to help the suffering person feel better.

There are other types of love. Eros is sexual love designed for two people in a committed relationship not to be expressed to everyone and anyone. And Phileo is brotherly love; a platonic, sibling-style love between family members and friends. Bonds of warm affection are formed through this kind of love. Maternal and paternal love are powerful forms of nurturing and protective love for children.

However God’s own love, compassion is the ultimate form of love. Compassion is the essential ingredient that leads to the deepest sense of connection and bonding, intimacy and belonging, with other human beings and all living creatures.

Christ can teach us the art of compassion. This is the starting point; personal coaching sessions with the Divine. And then when your heart is filled, let compassion transform your marriage.

When a couple overcomes self-centredness and develops compassion for each other they reach a depth of love that enriches their hearts like the warmth of a blazing open fire in winter. And sexual expression of love takes on a new dimension of soul connection beyond physical pleasure.

If a husband and wife develop compassion for each other, this generous kind of love will spill out to all other relationships in their life, to their children, family and friends and to the wider community and ultimately the world in a profound ripple effect.

If enough couples cultivated compassion in marriage it could be the starting point for transformation of the planet. The microcosm of compassionate relationships will transform the macrocosm of society.

How do you learn compassion? Compassion is inextricably linked to pain. Jesus knew that compassion is cultivated in the harsh soil of suffering.

A person has to experience and express repressed emotional pain and grief, through tears. Connecting with the buried pain of a lifetime often comes through the breakdown of defences triggered by a major life crisis, trauma or loss. Everyone who has ever lost a child, a parent, a lover, a friend, your health or your dreams knows how grief can smash your heart to pieces. Being heart broken is a catalyst.

The experience of your own inner pain and grief will naturally lead to empathy for other people’s pain. I suspect that George W, all the tyrants and warmongers of the world and all those who inflict suffering on others are dissociated from their own inner pain.

If you are the cause of someone else’s pain, you will then experience remorse, a deep and genuine sorrow, for that person, which is completely different from self-centred guilt. Remorse is a form of contrition steeped in humility. All denial, justification, rationalisations, excuses and blame drop away in the honest scrutiny of the Dark Night of The Soul.

Remorse leads to recognition of sin and a cry for forgiveness, desire for a Saviour and surrender to God. As you fall on your knees in humility, the act of surrender leads to divine connection.

Connection or reconciling with God leads to repentance or re-thinking your future life. A change in thinking, emotions and actions results in Redemption; the transformation to goodness and the beginning of cultivating compassion.

What is the measure of your worth as a human being? The value of a human being is not measured by earning capacity, ownership, beauty, achievements, talents and experiences or even your contribution to society.

Your value as a human being is measured by your ability to feel and express compassion, up close and personal, to other flesh and blood individuals on a daily basis. It is only compassion that makes a human being valuable and worthy of love.

At the end of your life and my life, the extent to which we connected with other human beings and felt and expressed God’s healing balm of empathy and compassion will be the measure of our worth.