Bubble, bubble, toil and…voodoo?

[Since the last post my life has been mostly routine, punctuated by:
Official Flax-y detox week (oh, the horror); trip to India (!!!! Someday may sort my photos…but probably not. A few, selected & optimized automagically by Google+, are available here); pneumonia; Pesach; family events.
Meanwhile, “diet” has, thankfully, become a non-issue. Reached a reasonable weight in January and it seems to be my new set point, relatively unaffected by celebrations and trips—and even Pesach.
There, all caught up.]

One of the many astounding experiences during the Mindful India trip was the consultation / treatment / nutritional advice by an Ayurveda practitioner: Dr. Harsh Agarwal. Went for the consultation more or less on a lark – his clinic was next to our hotel & he’d been invited to give our group an intro lecture.

The clinic is not very similar to Kupat Cholim: deity on the door; altar in the waiting room.

   

But H & I were sufficiently impressed to schedule subsequent treatment: a long massage plus herbal supplements to take home.

H’s prescription was for 2 little bottles of pills, bought in a local pharmacy. But Dr. Harsh said my supplements would be provided 2 days later in his clinic.

I expected a little envelope of dried herbs, or maybe a small bottle of elixir. I did not expect this:

The photo doesn’t indicate scale. Those containers are big. As I lugged the sack of supplements back to the hotel, I imagined my oncologist’s expression after I asked him whether I should ingest stuff provided by someone he’d consider a witch doctor. So of course I haven’t asked.

Some of the pills taste like flowers, others like dirt. And one of the powders comes with a whole procedure:

1. Dissolve 1 t in 5 c water.
2. Let sit overnight.
3. Boil until reduced by half.
4. Strain.
5. Cool till lukewarm.
6. Drink 1 c in morning & the other in the evening.

Luckily I have limitless time and energy (ha ha ha) for preparing this cauldron of witch’s brew.

So, you may ask, after taking all this stuff for a couple of weeks do I feel any different? Dunno. At least it hasn’t caused my skin to develop green scales or my toenails to fall off…

And Dr. H’s nutritional advice jibes perfectly with our increasing love of Indian food. We’ve been eating, rice, veggies, and even paneer (homemade cheese). And of course lots and lots and lots of lentils (this is a great dal recipe).

I intend to keep experimenting with new recipes, adapted for locally available ingredients and limited kitchen time, and post them here. Or perhaps I’ll actually upload my photos and describe my India trip. Or I may share my deep philosophical insights on the nature of Life (should I ever develop any…).

Whichever, this blog may not be dead just yet.