Rex and I have started to drink this vitalizing drink made by soaking sliced apples in filtered water, and we love it so much! The flavor is delicate, with a hint of sweetness, and a mild fragrance. It’s very hydrating first thing in the morning after the night’s natural fast, much more so than drinking plain water. We’re so drawn to the living waters! Even though our filtered water is pure and clean, it tastes good, yet feels neutral. The apple slices bring our water to life, and our bodies are saying, yes, more!

We make sure the apples are organic and well scrubbed so that we can use the peels which are loaded with nutrients. Apart from the fiber and natural sugars in an apple, the peel may contain the most nutrition. This recipe was inspired by Fully Raw Kristina, who makes living waters.

Ingredients: Makes one quart
(double or triple the recipe if you drink a lot of water)
4 cups filtered water
1/4-1/2 organic apple (depending on size), thinly sliced
Use your favorite apples, such as Fuji, Cameo, Pink Lady, Granny Smith, etc. Each variety has different degrees of sweetness and tang. Fuji’s are sweet, and Granny Smith’s are tangy with a low glycemic count.

Directions
Before going to bed, put filtered water into a one quart mason jar, or any glass container.
Prepare apple by scrubbing well, cutting in half, and slicing amount needed. Put any remaining apple in fridge for the next batch.
Add slices to water.
Let sit for 8-12 hours. It gets more powerful the longer it soaks. At this point you can pour the water off and discard the apple. However, I often leave the apple slices in the water for up to 24 hours. By this time the slices are totally spent. If I haven’t finished drinking the water after 24 hours, I discard everything and start a fresh batch.
I’ve made quicker soaks of 2-4 hours, and didn’t notice as strong of a body response. We use the living waters in smoothies, or anything that calls for water.

I have vivid memories of the day Rex and I drank the purest water imaginable while on the slopes of Mt. Shasta. We had climbed up Panther Meadows with our friends, Lon and Liz, who had taken us there to share the beauty of the countless meandering brooklets that cascaded over rocks of every size, many of which were covered with moss and wildflowers. The setting was a wild sloping series of meadows, emerald and shimmering. The natural harmony was exceptional—even the most experienced gardener could not have matched the perfection of that living and breathing place.

At the top of the meadow, Lon and Liz were so excited to show us the spring, a shallow pool not more than 6-8 feet across. We could see fresh water as it coursed in, causing tiny pebbles and bits of sand to shimmy in the flow. Lon showed us how to lean our heads over the edge to sip from the crystalline waters that emerged directly from subterranean chambers. The water tasted cold and sweet, and its freshness was beyond belief. We’d never experienced water like that before, and my response to it literally made me cry. The body knows.

Our living water isn’t quite in the same category as Mt. Shasta’s spring, yet it’s water that Rex and I feel is nourishing us deeply. I can drink quite a bit more water when it’s made this way without the effect that it’s "running through my body". It feels like it’s being taken in to my cells because I get delicate sensations of coolness, or a gently vibrating energy in my arms, legs, or in my head. Sometimes I even get goose bumps, and this is a sure sign that the trillions of cells are being nourished with water that they can actually utilize!

Two days in to our experiment, my face broke out with tiny little red spots, which signalled to me that the water was doing its job. The cells had enough juiciness to detoxify! This kind of deep hydration also happens when we make juice. Dr. Norman Walker wrote in Raw Vegetable Juices: What’s Missing in Your Body, that juice is actually the finest water possible. Making living water costs almost nothing and is incredibly easy and fast to prepare.

Because of the infusion of the fruits’ vital properties, much like making flower essences, the water is imprinted with a living signature. My body immediately recognizes it as something good. This effect is also like making sun teas with herbs, spices, or fruits, yet Apple Water can be made without any sun—perfect for our northern climate in late winter!

I’ve been experimenting with other fruits such as a few slices of orange, or lemon. The peel makes the water much stronger, so next time I’ll want to take off the rinds, but leave the pithy white part on which is where the bioflavonoids are. I want to try some strawberries, or maybe go "green" by using a small handful of wheatgrass. The important thing from my perspective is to get water charged with life force to such a degree that it makes it totally irresistible, and I will drink, and drink, and drink!