Good Earth Health

Anja and I went to the farmers market this morning…despite the oppressive heat.  I just love buying fresh local produce from the folks that grew it.  It’s good for our health and good for the earth.  Have you noticed that pattern?  The things we do that are truly good for us and nourish our bodies are also good for the planet.  Think about what goes on with commercially produced foods.  Many foods that are grown for commercial production and consumption are genetically modified.  Genetically modified foods have not been proven  to be safe for human consumption.  They have been proven to be harmful to insects.  Europeans are far ahead of us in avoiding genetically modified crops.  Commercial production of food uses vast amounts of chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides.  They are shipped long distances, often from South America, using fossil fuels.  They are then processed, denatured and combined with all sorts of additives and preservatives before they are shipped to the grocery store shelves.

I bought these tomatoes from the woman who grew them, she picked them this morning.

My mother is probably still surprised that I have spent most of my adult life abstaining from meat.  I love fresh vegetables, though it wasn’t always the case, particularly with green beans.  I vividly remember sitting in my chair at the dinner table steadfastly refusing to eat the canned green beans sitting untouched on my plate.  The truth is, you still couldn’t get me to eat tinned green beans, but fresh is wonderful!  I have no problems getting Anja to eat most freshly prepared vegetables.  We’ll be having these for dinner later.

My mother is probably still surprised that I have spent most of my adult life abstaining from meat.  I love fresh vegetables, though it wasn’t always the case, particularly with green beans.  I vividly remember sitting in my chair at the dinner table steadfastly refusing to eat the canned green beans sitting untouched on my plate.  The truth is, you still couldn’t get me to eat tinned green beans, but fresh is wonderful!

And eating healthy doesn’t mean leaving out dessert.  Blackberries are fabulous summer treat.  They are loaded with antioxidants.