Basmati.com is celebrating Pollinator Week 2016! To spread the word about pollinator protection, this article will cover policies that have been implemented across the country to protect the bees.

Right Speech can mean speaking skillfully, or it can mean choosing to remain silent. The space between stimulus and reaction is a perfect place to decide whether to speak out or keep quiet—at least temporarily—especially if emotional feelings and thoughts are arising.

When emotions and egos collude harsh words can be spoken with lightning speed and later regretted. Words, thoughts and actions arise together and support each other; we live each moment either peacefully or violently. The choice is obvious, but access to this wisdom requires more practice than perfection.

For those of us that prefer the natural route towards our health and well-being, there are several items that serve multiple purposes - and are worth keeping at home in the medicine cabinet. The majority of these products have been utilized for decades, centuries, if not thousands of years, and have been proven to provide multi-faceted benefits for the home, as well as for emotional and physical health.

In yoga, it seems that often men have less of a presence. As both a man and an avid yoga-doer, I’d like to talk about the benefits of yoga for men. Yoga is a nice addition to any fitness regimen. In fact, yoga can often make up for what other exercises may lack.

I’ve always loved enchiladas because they’re a quick alternative to other typical weeknight Mexican dishes such as tacos or chili. My mom used to make a version of these enchiladas with chicken, but I’ve since turned the recipe into a vegetarian option with a variety of flavors and textures.

It was in the summer of 2012 that my little family and I decided to unplug from the world as we knew it and return to the wild. We did extensive research over the years before taking the plunge. I gave up my job, house, many belongings and my purpose as I knew it. We found a place in Arkansas where there was an old round house in the middle of the woods. It was an adventure and a learning experience that brought me back to nature; an experience that put me more in touch with the natural world around me.

One of the biggest ironies in life has to be that many of the things created to make us look more beautiful, younger and healthier are actually making us sick. Keeping an eye out for toxins in everyday beauty items can be both exhausting and overwhelming, so we created an easy cheat sheet to make things a little easier. The following are ingredients found in everyday items--even organic and “natural” ones-- you definitely don’t want to put on your body.

1,4-Dioxane:

The credit for this delicious and rather eclectic salad mix is in part due to a friend of mine who introduced me to putting apricots (which are currently in season) into a salad. Personally, I would never have thought to add apricots but let me be perhaps the first to tell you, the combination is brilliant! If apricot is not your thing, you can always replace them with blueberries, which are also a tasty seasonal salad addition. Both create a wonderful blend of tastes with goat cheese and walnuts, which will also be a key element in this dish.

“Coffee makes the world go round,” that’s what I always say.  And as long as you moderate the amounts of coffee you drink daily, there really isn’t a reason why you should stop anytime soon. I usually drink a cup of coffee a day; I wake up every morning just thinking about that perfect cup. Which brings me to my next point: how to make the perfect cup of coffee using a pour over method. There are indeed many pour over methods, but I’m going to talk about one of my favorites, which is using the Melitta pour over method.

4-7-8 breathing is the kegel of mindfulness cultivation. You can do it quickly, any time, anywhere, with great results, and without anyone even noticing (okay, unless you’re in the middle of a conversation and decide to practice deep breathing—you got me there). As an added bonus, its practice isn’t limited to beings of the female variety. In fact, it’s not limited to anyone at all. You don’t have to be female, crunchy, green, hip, square, a yogi, a hippie, or an MD. You just have to breathe.