life with booyaa

i chatted with the two lone females at neighbouring tables until joel (suki's partner in crime at new horizons) introduced philip to the waiting crowds. now, i've read his website. i've read his posts on we like it raw. i've seen his juicefeasting blogs. he's a twitter buddy. i feel like i know the guy. and yet... and yet there's another level to him that i didn't get until i heard and saw him interacting with the audience instead of just a camera/monitor. you could see how much he was trying to get through to people. not in a clingy, desperate way, but in a determined 'see a chink, push through that gap' kind of way. he's come soooo far and obviously wants to help others take the next step along their chosen path. i really do feel he's doing this for the love of sharing. and that makes it so much better. more believable. and with a bunch of fertile minds in front of him i'm sure he succeeded in sowing some seeds which will bear fruit eventually.

he was easy to listen to, a natural speaker. he doesn't have any annoying habits, he seemed to pace it right, and when he deviated to recount an anecdote he always came right back to where he was going. that's raw food mental clarity for you. he was light-hearted and straightforward and the story he tells is about his journey but touches on so many questions newbies and seasoned rawbies harbour silently or publicly. the evident impact of spirituality in his life comes through as he talks of crucial moments, turning points in his life. he's obviously greatly affected by the concepts which are raging round the raw food world at the moment, of being present, releasing guilt, being who you are, accepting what is and so on. but he's not preachy. he's not preaching. he's just telling his story and hoping to catch the imagination of his audience, to encourage them to join the raw food movement and become all that they can be. nice.

at the end of the first part it was already time for me to head home so i went over to philip who was recovering from his long talk with a glass of water, and, like the groupie i am, demanded a hug ;) he didn't object, so i don't think it was too much to ask! i asked a question, asked him to talk about some stuff in the second half in the hope that i could catch it on the recording later then said hello-goodbye to suki and off i went.

it's finally settling in, clear patches are coming through the muddy waters of my mind and i can now see that there were a few things he said that i could do with revisiting. luckily, it's been preserved for posterity. i'll be watching the videos on give it to me raw. cos that's the kind of girl i am, but for the uninitiated, you can check him out on - where else? - you tube.