Hi all! I write today from my lovely, humid, jungle-green hometown of Bloomington, Indiana. Abby and I drove here by back roads yesterday, through cornfields and deciduous woods and over swollen muddy rivers, windows down (and hair enormous) in the luscious muggy heat. We gawped at the flooded fields athwart the mighty Mississippi: some fields were nearly shoulder-high in corn, or calf-deep in soybeans, but fields on the wrong side of the levee were smeary swamps of pure mud. At Ste. Genevieve, a charming Illinois hamlet boasting the first brick building west of the Mississippi – by about 100 yards – we planned to take the 3-car ferry across, but were halted by the acre of mud still swamping the loading dock. So instead we toodled through tiny towns with names like Freelandville and Eldorado and Carmi, and crossed the river by bridge at Vincennes. We snacked on raw almonds and passed the time experimenting with adjectives beyond “cute” to describe gabled 1910 farm houses.
This morning my mom took us on an intimate tour of some of the prettiest gardens in town, knocking on doors and occasionally simply traipsing into the backyards of people I’ve never heard of but she assured us she is on good terms with. We were only busted twice, both times by male homeowners in their bathrobes, but both waved us in congenially. Lilies and echinacea (coneflowers) are at their spectacular peak this week, so the town’s rampant green is gilded with their gold, pink, peach and bloodred. Gorgeous.
After hiking the woods behind Griffy Lake we came home for a scrumptious summertime lunch featuring produce from this morning’s farmer’s market jaunt. First we filched ripe mulberries from the neighbor’s tree that hangs over the culvert (this was the appetizer). Then we picked tomatoes from Bob’s vegetable garden and sat down to several leftover salads supplemented by squeaky-fresh green beans, sliced tomatoes with fresh herbs, succulent local peaches, and the kind of Indiana sweet corn I dream about, with shiny tiny kernels like baby’s teeth.
Yum.
Now we are lolling about digesting. So I checked my email and saw that the most excellent Liz has posted to the Yahoo group a summary of Val’s recent visit with the nutritionist. I thought you might all be interested, and Liz says it’s okay, so I’m copying some of it here. The question was, What should Val be eating to support her body in its chemo-enhanced fight with the cancer? The answer, in brief, was: a balance of many kinds of foods, especially a rainbow of vegetables, plus some protein, creatively prepared.*
Here’s Liz’s fuller report of the nutritionist’s answer (and thanks to our dedicated team of friend-advisors we were already very much on the right path):
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NUTRITIONAL GUIDELINES AS REPORTED BY LIZABETH:
-healthy balance of all food group representation (of course, not new news). veggies, legumes, animal protein, fruit & carbs. 5-7 helpings of fruit per day essential right now for vital vitamins & fiber. (juice counts as having nutritional value qualities, but does not carry the fiber of an actual apple). It’s berry season in Portland, so the blueberries, razzles, and cherries are within local access.
-a rainbow of colors are key! so, in a nutshell GREENS, purples, whites, oranges, & reds can all play nicely on the plate and sustain Val’s amazing body!
-a cup of coffee or cheers of wine (obviously not a pot of joe or bottle of grape) but in moderation is A-okay!!! that was among one of our favorite allowances. coffee can help keep energy moving, and wine in moderation can help with sleep and pain when the medication feels too strong
-protein spread throughout the day (fish, chicken, eggs, nuts, seeds)
-carbs also spread throughout the day. ***carbs should be used for energy, meat for protein. pretty basic.
-GOOD FATS: nut butters, avocado, plant-based oils (olive, sesame, rice bran, safflower, etc.)
-PROBIOTICS (new food fashion savvy lingo) although excessive dairy is not optimal, cultured cheeses like cottage or other yogurts can help replenish good flora in system
-try to avoid refined grains & refined sugars like hi-fructose corn syrup & the likes. healthy whole oats, quinoa, rice, barley, millet, rye are all fabulous.
-nutritionist did not know much about making home brewed animal stock broths, but many of us have researched the beneficial qualities for Val.
–best advice was to strike a balance. sometimes roast, sometimes steam, sometimes stir fry to mix up cooking techniques & food groups evenly. if the body is fed too much acid kidneys will work to be more alkaline ph, and vice versa. balance & creativity will keep food alluring and tasting delicious, like so many of you have proven instrumental during all of these fantastic dinner deliveries.
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Okay, this is Deborah, again. (And thanks, Liz, for the great notes and reporting!) I just wanted to mention that here in Indiana we also had fantastic chocolate chip cookies for dessert. Mmm.
Hugs to you all.
D
*Actually, the nutritionist’s answer is quite similar to the one advised by this great pamphlet my mother got in the early ’80’s called “Eating for an Ornery Old Age,” which says: “If every meal has the equivalent of leaves and roots and berries and shoots and grain, you’re eating for an ornery old age.” (RAJ/Pointed Publications, 1981. Additional title: Crunch! Nibble! Burp!) Michael Pollan has brought a similar conclusion into the popular discourse lately with his books The Omnivore’s Dilemma and In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. He summarizes the latter this way: “Eat food. [As opposed to food-like products.] Not too much. Mostly leaves.”
