The picture at left says it all: Charley Cropley is the most vibrant hunk of a man I know. As Boulder’s top naturopathic doctor, Charley is himself the best possible advertisement for his services. At age 67 he has the vitality of a young man, physically and mentally, and a quality of openness and curiosity that is impressive at any age.
At this stage of his medical practice Charley prescribes no medicines; he teaches health through self-mastery. And that is the topic of this audio dialog.
I see Charley professionally, but mostly he’s a good old friend. In this conversation my main inquiry of Charley is how do you maintain your healthy lifestyle in the face of all the temptations to sloth and gluttony that trip up so many of us?
His answer is that it is a practice and a joy, but it wasn’t always that way. Having been raised by a disciplinarian Marine father, Charley rebelled against a tightly controlled regime of control and deprivation. Yet he maintains a personal lifestyle program that … well let’s just say he showed me his refrigerator and it contained five containers of freshly chopped vegetables in various combinations of slaws — and the raw liver of a wild elk. To further complicate the matter is the issue of his cigarettes.
So with Charley, healthy living is not about creating a strict program and summoning the discipline to carry it out. On the contrary, his self-mastery teaching is based on the gentle practice of self-love. Not a shallow, narcissistic self-regard, but a spiritually mature capacity of self-observation that reveals one’s own preciousness and out of which right living flows. It’s an inspiring message and a potent path of personal development. Have a listen!
You can find out more about Charley Cropley and his work here.
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