BOOK CLUB: The Power of Now

The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle.

I came across this book as I saw a lot of yogi's and spiritual people that I follow quote Eckhart Tolle on Instagram. After more research on the book I found it was a bestseller and popular among well know people such as the one and only... Oprah Winfrey. If you need any more reason than Oprah to read this book then I've listed my favourite points below:

+ techniques suggested are simple and can be used by anyone

+ I found the techniques were slightly effective almost straight away

+ the book showed a very different way to use your thoughts and to see life

However it wasn't perfect:

- sometimes it may take a few reads of a section to fully understand and allow it to sink in

- as the book has no story, it's hard to read for long periods of time

Although my life situation hasn't changed much since I started reading a few months ago, I have definitely started to see a change in the way I approach life and situations. I feel much more positive and less fearful of what is to come and I can appreciate the smaller, everyday things.

A piece of advice I would give is to read with an open mind and not to take each point as absolute fact. Some things I naturally agreed with but others I was more sceptical on. This book might not be for you at all, especially if you're not spiritual in the slightest or if you're completely content with your outlook on life. BUT I think everyone could take at least one positive from this read.

The power of 'what if?'

'What if' is usually the start of panic and worry, the start of self doubt and how you talk yourself out of everything and anything! 

But what if not?

Whilst we spend our lives worrying about how things will turn out and if we've done the right thing, our lives are still unfolding and more often than not our fears don't come true. However by then we've missed the experience; it passed us in our state of worry. So if we say 'what if this goes wrong?' and it does then I guess we're prepared for it, but if it doesn't then the thoughts and anxiety were a waste of time and energy!


When I first started this blog the usual doubt came with it, what if people don't read it? What if people DO read it? What if my writing is terrible? I kept it a complete secret from everyone I knew and the only person who had read it was a stranger from South America (shout out to whoever you are!) Anyway when my Instagram account accidentally linked to my facebook and people I knew found out... cue absolute meltdown!! Instead of my worst fears though, I had lovely feedback and was thankful for this accidental push I needed. A couple months of secrecy and an hour of sheer panic was so unnecessary and I should have just enjoyed the experience of writing without what ifs. 

Just let things happen and deal with them if they go wrong or change course, it's fine not to have everything figured out. So when you find yourself asking what if, also ask what if not? It takes away the power of 'what if'.

Banana Bread Muffins

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(finished muffins with dusting of powder sugar)

These delicious banana bread muffins are super quick and easy!! You can make around 10 regular sized or 6 of the what I call 'coffee shop' muffins which are oversized with a classic muffin top. They aren't the prettiest of muffins but they sure make up for it in taste. 

The smell of these muffins is incredible, I felt like a 1950's all-American housewife taking them out of the oven!!

I used cup measurements for these muffins and I really do recommend getting some measuring cups because they make the 'weighing' process so much quicker and I feel as though I have more freedom as I don't have to stick to gram for gram measurements.

Preheat the oven to 180° (fan), 200°C or gas mark 6.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups plain flour

1 cup demerara sugar

1 stick salted butter

1/8 cup of cocoa powder (I used Cadburys)

2 bananas (riper the better)

1 tsp. baking powder

Vanilla essence and ground cinnamon optional!

1. Cream together the sugar and around 3/4 of the stick of butter; brown sugar has larger granules than white so the mix wont be as smooth as using white sugar but the finished bake will really benefit with a lovely rustic texture and a very slight crunch.

2. Beat 2 eggs and add to the sugar/butter mix.

3. Now mash the bananas either using a potato masher or just a fork, it will be far easier if the banana is going brown as they are super soft and the taste will be stronger. I added a tsp. of cinnamon and  vanilla essence to the mashed banana but this is entirely optional... experiment with your own combo of spices and flavours! 

4. After adding the bananas to the main mixture it will look very wet so now we add the flour, start with just one cup of flour plus half a cup of cocoa powder and if the mix is thick but will still run off the spoon it sounds perfect; if not keep adding small amounts of flour (don't make the mix doughy!).

5. Your muffin tray is probably non stick but even so, slightly butter the sides and either half fill for a medium muffin or fill almost to the top for your coffee shop muffin.

6. Put in the oven for 25 minutes, pop the kettle on and put your feet up!

*Tip for knowing if your muffins are baked right: stick a knife through the middle of your biggest muffin and if it comes out clean then they are done but if it has some batter stuck on it then keep putting them back in for 5 minute intervals until the knife is clean.*

Happy baking! Amelia x