What Color Chemical Are You Having For Dinner Tonight?

There is a commercial on television in which an actress states that "I have this one life and this one body." While this statement is used to sell a medication, it is a truism in itself.
We live in a world that started out with all the basics - fresh green grass, food that was natural and very organic, and families had to make due and find ways to keep healthy, happy, and fed. While advancements have taken place, they have not all been geared to helping each man, woman, and child to be given the pleasure of knowing that all that they put into their bodies is clean, fresh, and not produced in a laboratory under a microscope. The food supply in the United States has always been abundant, but many mega-corporations needed to find a way to make sure that part of this abundance was in the form of cash into their bank accounts. Chemicals, preservatives, and artificial flavors and colors were produced. Following on this premise, every category of the diet was infiltrated by pseudo products that might have smelled like food, tasted like food, but were a far reach from what food is suppose to be. In addition, if you watch or listen to any commercials in the media, the prescription drug products have exploded and you now are told that you need a pill to take before you eat, after you eat, and just before you settle down to sleep because the food that you ate won't let you rest. When you get up, you are told that you have to take a pill to face the day, take another one just in case you might contract a dreaded disease, and then in the evening, that yellow pill in the box will make sure that you are ready to face your life as parent, wife/husband, or Olympic athlete. We are now finding out that well-known athletestook pills so that they could do their sport, and teen-agers feel that drugs are necessary to face peer pressure and even to understand homework. Adults who should know better, take pills that are a rainbow in themselves and there even has to be a cabinet in the kitchen just for the pill bottles.
If you look back a bit, before the world was "recreated" by chemical companies, food was the source of vitamins, minerals and all that was good for you. Vegetables, fruits, and herbs were the ingredients to health and the good life. But somehow all this got confused in the laboratories across the world. There had to be a better way, or in essence, a more profitable way, to eat. Eating was essential no matter the gender, religion or ethnic background of a person. Food was the one item in the human make-up that was a stable and would be around for as long as humans were around. So in came the laboratory workers and you now have aisles in stores filled with cans, bottles, and boxes with ingredients that you can't pronounce, let alone understand. We stopped eating by the seasons and we wanted fresh fruit and exotic vegetables all twelve months of the year. There was need for instant gratification and meals had to be a trip into the twilight zone, but served in nine courses.
Cancer is more prevalent, illnesses are surpassing the abilities of antibiotics and children are facing a multitude of ailments that were never heard of in the past. People are dying by the numbers, but the numbers that get to see another day face quantity of life because the quality is gone. Food is not food any more. They are chemical formulations and treated products that kill insects and weeds, but are suppose to keep people healthy and thriving.
Do you see anything wrong with this situation? If you are a parent, then the truth of what you are eating or serving to your family must become paramount and important once again. Fast food is becoming a quick trip to heart disease and cancer. Food that looks as fresh as a picture in a magazine is shining because of pesticides and herbicides.
What is the answer to this new problem that has arisen in the grocery aisles across the country? One very potent and true way to make your way through the jungle of preservatives and three letter potent ingredients such as BTH, BTT, etc. is to know your food, where it comes from, who grew it, and even take a hand at growing it yourself. Farmer markets are virtual catalogs of fresh ingredients and chemical-free is guaranteed if you do the gardening yourself. While it may take more time or challenge then you really want to put out, then join with groups, neighbors, and organizations and then share in the work, and in the joy of the harvest. Good food is not dead and gone - it is alive and well and just waiting for people to rediscover its goodness, taste, and health appeal.
If you are tired of being tired, and if the sight of hospitals, nursing facilities, and pictures of children, adults, and the elderly wasting away and science not being able to keep the tide of new diseases and maladies at bay, take matters into your own hands. Put on the gloves and fight back. Gardens can be grown in any area from kitchen windows to twenty acre fields. Cities are volunteering areas to be taken over by community gardens and there are farm stores and co-op stores just brimming with vitamins and minerals all courtesy of the sun and the rain. Even commercial buildings and apartment complexes are heading upward with roof tops gardens. Think about food, plan your menu and then find the solution to ridding your mealtime plans of chemically laden and hazardous to your health products. Read labels and go to libraries for more information. However you tackle this deadly crisis of altered food, it will be to your benefit and to the benefit of those you love. Start today and know that all your efforts will be rewarded and that cabinet in the kitchen with the pill bottles could be put to better use.
Something to think about
©Arleen M. Kaptur March, 2009

Tiny Green Thumbs in the Garden

Gardening is considered one of America's greatest pastimes and it has risen to new heights
with today's economic picture. People enjoy going out and mingling with nature. They like the feel of the earth between their fingers and the excitement of seeing tiny sprouts and plants opening up to drink in the sunshine and the warmth. It just makes you feel good inside.

How about letting your child experience the joys of gardening? No matter where you live, you can introduce gardening and the miracle of plant life to your child. They will thrill to see their seeds sprout and grow. That very first strawberry, pickle, or parsley leaf will bring true delight and amazement to them. You would be instilling in your child a love of nature, an appreciation for life, and the knowledge that with a little work and care, you can grow food, flowers, and other things of beauty.

Begin with small, fast-growing plants. A child's attention span is still limited, so long slow growth may lose its appeal. Strawberry plants are a perfect way to introduce your child to the wonder of how that ruby-red berry in his/her cereal came to be A small patch of ground that will allow the plant to grow and spread its "fingers" will amaze your child with each day's accomplishments. Then when that first flower appears, the prospect of a strawberry grows, and then finally that first berry becomes a reality. Aw, the taste of the first berry you ever grew contains untold feelings of victory. Other great plants are cucumber, parsley, lettuce, green onions,and yes, even a corn stalk or two. If space is limited, try container gardening. Even something as simple as a large coffee can with holes in the bottom for drainage, some good potting soil, and the wonder begins. Allow your child to do the work - water, weed, and care for the plant. If you do everything, then the accomplishment he/she feels will not be the same. A tiny hand can hold a small watering can, and it can pick out pesky weeds. Bright, little eyes will glow with each new growth until harvest time arrives. Lettuce can be picked for suppertime, and that salad will take on a whole new meaning. Older children can be given more space and a wider variety of plants to choose from. Carrots, beets, green peppers, and pumpkins are sure-fire choices.

Whatever the age of your child, they can begin to enjoy the joys of gardening right alongsidetheir mom or dad. Please have a camera ready when they see that first "success".
Something to think about
©Arleen M. Kaptur
March, 2009