Australian chef Stephanie Willton's latest Nourishing newsletter.

Written for a winter audience down under Stephanie's newsletter has some great recipies and tips for those of us up north.

by Barbara Brennan

A plague of self-hatred seems to have descended upon our culture. The growing number of young people who self-harm, the stick-thin models on one hand and the morbidly obese on the other – these are the visible faces of the great pain that many members of our society are visiting upon themselves.

by Bobsy

My excitement had started to build up the moment I stepped onto the plane, for I was flying to the beautiful & magical Island of the gods to attend the third annual Bali Spirit Festival in Ubud Town.

Friends

If you want to check out the real cost of air pollution in Hong Kong check out the Hedley Index with the impacts on premature deaths, Asthma hospitalisation, Dr visits, real $ costs and hospital bed days.

http://hedleyindex.sph.hku.hk/home.php

by Michelle Ayn Tessensohn

‘The Tao that can be explained is no longer the Tao’ (Lao Tzu)

How do you explain something that cannot be explained?

by L Anne Hilty, PhD

Does psychology as an import from Western culture adequately explain Eastern behavior?  Are all human brains and thus, development, cognition, and behavioral patterns essentially alike?  Are its methods of therapy appropriate or displaced?  Are the goals for outcome similar regardless of geography, or must they be modified to reflect the values of the dominant culture?  And perhaps most of all: is the overlay of a Western model of the mind effecting change on the cultural psyche of the East?

It is often difficult for people to accept that physical illnesses are invariably connected to their emotional issues; that changing how we see life will also change what is happening in the body.

Why is it that a great deal of the things many of us long for rarely come to fruition? Why is it that relationships that promise so much in the beginning just don’t seem to work out? Or projects that are begun with great enthusiasm often don’t get completed?

by Stephanie Willaton

Today I found myself staring at an about-to-hit-the-bin avocado. Ignored and neglected for over a week, it was sulking in the dark corner of my fruit bowl.  I gave it a gentle squeeze to check for vital signs, and found the insides quite mushy. Not a good sign. The skin was also lacking the glow of a newly-picked fruit, but I was convinced there was still life in it. So with a sharp blade I penetrated the dark capsule, revealing a creamy, perfect green flesh. Amazing! It just goes to show how unpredictable life can be.