Blood Orange Chocomaca Shake
“The beautiful is that which we cannot wish to change”
~Simone Weil, spoken to me by the late Dr. Allan Anderson.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Today many of us gathered in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, luckily another reason to get together in person and share food, love, stories, and just plain be in each other’s presence. I didn’t realize how welcomed that was until I saw some of my favorite shining faces, and received some very good hugs, that I needed some face time!
It’s been a very full and alive month! The incredible 90 year professor I cared and cooked for passed away 6 days ago. I feel so immensely blessed to have been ready to be a part of this most intimate transition. Being with him during the last 5 months of his life was truly a gift that I feel has just begun giving. Being by his side during those final weeks/days helped me transcend my self and show up with the fire of love and devotion.
Dr. Allan Anderson, retired professor of philosophy and religious studies, Chinese scholar, poet, author, incredible being, and lover of ‘quietude.’ This man very well may be the greatest man I have ever met in my life. We created a very deep and special bond that crossed rivers of spirituality, philosophy, writing, poetry, animals, nature, and all things sweet and thoughtful. I learned so much from him, yet all the while, he never gave advice. He loved coyotes and said the Mexicans had a saying that “next to God, coyotes are the most intelligent.” He drank Irish breakfast tea and loved orange marmalade jam, listened to beautiful Spanish flamenco, and said the haunting sounds of the loons flipped his heart upside down and took him home.
He said some of the happiest days of his life were when he visited Sweden as a boy and had a toy boat to play with all by himself every day, all day long. He said the forests there were astounding because there was no underbrush and each forest was like a resounding cathedral of trees. He never forgot the smell of a lady when at 8 years old, playing on the sidewalk in London, a woman walked by smelling of Lavender. “Oh, a l-a-a-a-a-d-y”, he said to himself as she swished by in her bountiful skirt.
His cat, Sweet Love, was his ‘mini-tiger’ and was the ultimate caregiver. He believed in fairies. He steered clear of sacramental language. He dreamt of white ponies and desert sunsets. He called me ‘treasure’ and every time he said I love you, it felt like it was the first time he was saying it. He gave no energy away yet offered it all, shining from his loving eyes. He never complained. He taught me how to ‘stand sure’, unafraid to rock the boat.
You can purchase his books here and here is his biography and education/background to give you a taste of the indelible mark this man has left on our world.
“All the world is a prayer whether I pray or no, and the prayer I might have prayed.
God knew and heard as though.”
~A.W.A.
Allan William Anderson was born in Hastings, New Zealand. Anderson is Professor Emeritus from San Diego State University where he taught philosophy and religious studies for nearly twenty-five years. He received the Excellence in Teaching award from the state of California in 1970.
Professor Anderson is a scholar in the areas of philosophy and comparative religion. His specific expertise lies with his insight into the nature of spirit and self-transformation. His research on the I Ching, the first of the ancient Chinese classics produced two books: Self-Transformation and the Oracular and Reflections on the I Ching. His studies of Daoism led to his original translation of the Tao-Te-Ching. Anderson’s dialogues with J. Krishnamurti and his subsequent meditations on Krishnamurti’s teachings resulted in his most recent work, On Krishnamurti’s Teachings.
Accomplished academically his soul is that of a poet, his pen and mind happiest in verse. From this fertile ground we have Songs from the Mifflinger Sea and a little cove of Nonsense. These poems are written in the spirit of Edward Lear and beautifully illustrated by Leslie Rhea Lewis.
Background and Education
Anderson’s formative years were spent in England. He came to the United States with his parents in 1936. His father was Roy Anderson the highly influential president of ministry for the Seventh Day Adventists. The senior Anderson was a gifted speaker and traveled widely in his evangelical duties. Allan would especially welcome the opportunity to see his father preach before African-American congregations. He was deeply moved by the un-self conscious immediacy of these events. In his early twenties Allan broke with the Seventh Day Adventists and the promising career his father and the other church elders had envisioned for him.
Anderson completed his undergraduate work in 1944 at Columbia Union College. He received a B.A. in History and a B.S. in Science. That same year Anderson entered Potomac Seminary in Washington D.C. in an effort to become an Episcopalian pastor. He completed his seminary work with a Masters of Theology in 1947. Later that year Allan was sent by his Bishop to interview before the Standing Committee of the Episcopalian Diocese of New York as the final step in his admittance to the clergy. In an unprecedented move the Standing Committee rejected the Bishop’s recommendation and denied Allan’s petition. He was told that he would not fit in with the church since “he was too independent.” Shocked, the Bishop asked Allan to interview before the Standing Committee in Connecticut but Allan received the committee’s rejection as a relief. He now felt free to study and practice religion outside the constraints of any institutional denomination.
Anderson enrolled at Trinity College the next year to study Literature. He received an M.A. in English in 1951, with a Master’s Thesis on the “Indian Elements in the Works of Shelley.” In 1954 Allan entered Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary simultaneously in order to study Sanskrit and pursue his interests in philosophy and comparative religions. In 1960 he was awarded his Doctorate with a dissertation titled, “A Comparative Study of the Concept of Sacrifice in St. Gregory or Nyssa and Sri Aurobindo.” In the years immediately after receiving his Doctorate, Allan made a formal study of the Chinese language.
I hope something listed here in his honor was of inspiration to you. As I rest and rejuvenate, I give my immunity a boost and energy a lift with this BLOOD ORANGE CHOCOMACA SHAKE.
The oranges offer tons of vitamin C, while the cacao offers antioxidants, trace minerals galore, and lots of boosters for serotonin and dopamine in the brain, making it a mood enhancer. Maca is wonderful for hormones, suitable for both men and women. For women, it is especially helpful in regulating periods and easing abdominal cramps. It boosts energy, nourishing adrenals, and has a delicious butterscotch malty flavor. Enjoy and let me know what you think.
Recipe:
2 blood oranges, peeled. (regular oranges are fine too, or any fruit for that matter!)
1 T cacao power
1/2 T maca powder (Can purchase at Whole Foods or herb section at People’s Co Op)
1 tsp cinnamon
2 ice cubes (optional, not necessary if almond milk is cold)
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 heaping T almond butter
2-3 dates or sweetener to taste such as raw honey, maple syrup or coconut palm sugar
dash of sea salt
*** Optional additions: dash of vanilla, few shakes of cardamom, few shakes of turmeric, small knuckle of fresh ginger.
Blend until smooth and enjoy!
Madly singing in the mountains, whereabouts unknown,
Whitney
