TAKING CARE

By Leslie Girmscheid, MD, NCTMB

May 2012

The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit. ~Nelson Henderson

Live each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each. ~Henry David Thoreau (1817 - 1862)

HEALTH NOTES: EATING THERAINBOW

“Eat your vegetables.” It’s what every Mom loves to remind her kids.

There’s more to fruits and veggies than fiber and vitamins. Much has been discovered about the beneficial effects of pigments and other plant compounds called phytochemicals. The colored pigments that aid in plant functions are proving to have beneficial effects in humans. Many act as antioxidants and some have been cited as helping to boost the immune system. By eating a colorful diet, you will assure that you are getting the best mix of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber and other nutrients. Be adventurous—try a new fruit or vegetable every few weeks. As many of you already know, my favorite store for produce (and cheese and flowers) is Russo’s at 560 Pleasant Street in Watertown, Mass. I don’t get there very often anymore so I enjoy checking out the produce at our local farm stands as well as growing it myself.

If you don’t buy organic products, I recommend that you wash your fruits and vegetables that don’t need peeling to remove any pesticide residues. I use cold water for more fragile fruits such as berries, and lukewarm water with veggie wash or a small amount of soap for those veggies with a waxy feel like peppers. I like to cut the bottom off my lettuce and soak the leaves in cold water before breaking them into pieces and running them through the salad spinner.

BLUE/PURPLE/RED from anthocyanins—blueberries, red, blue and purple grapes, blackberries, eggplant, elderberries, black currants, purple cabbage, red onions, plums, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, cranberries, red apples, beets, kidney beans

RED from lycopene—tomatoes, pink grapefruit, watermelon, guava

ORANGE from alpha and beta-carotene—acorn and butternut squash, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, carrots, mango, cantaloupe, apricots, peppers

ORANGE/YELLOW from beta-cryptoxanthins—peaches, nectarines, oranges, tangerines, and papayas

YELLOW/GREEN from luteins and/or zeaxanthins—corn, cucumbers, green beans, peas, yellow and green peppers, honeydew melon, kiwifruits, romaine lettuce, spinach, kale, collards and other dark leafy greens, broccoli

TOP 20 COMMON FRUITS AND VEGETABLES FOR ANTIOXIDANT POWER

Blueberries Blackberries Strawberries Cranberries Raspberries Watercress Plums Asparagus Red grapes Avocado Pink grapefruit Brussels sprouts Cherries Kiwi fruit Broccoli Beets Oranges Kale Spinach Red peppers

OFFICE NOTES:

****VACATION SCHEDULE I will be out of the office May 7th, 8th, 14th, and 28th. I will only be available in the morning of the 11th and sporadically between the 15th and 18th as I have houseguests.

****GIFT CERTIFICATES are available. They are perfect for Mother’s Day, birthdays, anniversaries, and as a thank-you for a job well done.

****If you wake up ill, please call (after 7:30 a.m.) or email me as early as you can. I do not charge the cancellation fee if you are ill, since I cannot work on you.

****Receive $10 off your next massage for every new patient that joins my practice because of a referral from you.Good word-of-mouth marketing is the best a business can hope for. Mentioning my name and contact information if a friend or family member has a musculoskeletal complaint, “tweeting”, and Facebook “liking” of Taking Care Wellness with comments, are all great ways of communicating. Make sure a referral mentions your name when s/he makes the appointment so that I put a credit in your chart.

LAUGH OF THE MONTH

I OWE MY MOTHER

1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning."
2. My mother taught me RELIGION.
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."
3. My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"
4. My mother taught me LOGIC.
" Because I said so, that's why."
5. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.
"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."
6. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper."
7. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.
"Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"
8. My mother taught me about STAMINA.
"You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."
9. My mother taught me about WEATHER.
"This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."
10. And my favorite: My mother taught me about JUSTICE.
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!"

CONTEMPLATION The Daffodil Principle
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, "Mother, you must come see the daffodils before they are over." I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to LakeArrowhead. "I will come next Tuesday,” I promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call. Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove there.
When I finally walked into Carolyn's house and hugged and greeted my grandchildren, I said, “Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see badly enough to drive another inch!"
My daughter smiled calmly and said, "We drive in this all the time, Mother. "Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm heading for home!" I assured her.
"I was hoping you'd take me over to the garage to pick up my car." "How far will we have to drive?" "Just a fewblocks," Carolyn said. "I'll drive. I'm used to this."
After several minutes, I had to ask, "Where are we going? This isn't the way to the garage!"
"We're going to my garage the long way," Carolyn smiled, "by way of the daffodils." "Carolyn," I saidsternly, "please turn around." "It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience."
After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far sideof the church, I saw a hand-lettered sign that read "DaffodilGarden." We got out of the car and each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped.
Before me lay the most glorious sight. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it down over the mountain peak and slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, white, lemon yellow, salmon, pink,
saffron, and butter yellow.
Each different-colored variety was planted as a group so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers.
"But who has done this?" I asked Carolyn.
"It's just one woman," Carolyn answered. "She liveson the property. That's her home." Carolyn pointed to a well kept A-frame house that looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house.
On the patio, we saw a poster. "Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking" was the headline.
The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs,” it read.

The second answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and very little brain."

The third answer was, "Began in 1958."
There it was, The Daffodil Principle. For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun, one bulb at a time to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Still, just planting one bulb at a time, year after year, had changed the world. This unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. She had created something of ineffable (indescribable) magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.
The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration. That is learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time--often just one baby step at a time—and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time.
When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of dailyeffort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We canchange the world.
"It makes me sad in a way," I admitted to Carolyn. "What might I haveaccomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or fortyyears ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through allthose years. Just think what I might have been able to achieve!"
My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way. "Start tomorrow," she said. It's so pointless to think of the lost hoursof yesterdays.
The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause forregret is to only ask, “How can I put this to use today?"
So, stop waiting...

Happy Mother’s Day!

Leslie

Leslie Girmscheid, MD, NCTMB
Licensed Muscular Therapist
3 Apple Tree Lane
Cape Elizabeth, ME 04107
207-272-6027

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