We had become accustomed to attending the Kushi Summer Conference in New Jersey each summer, but when these wonderful events, organized by John and Cathy Russo, were discontinued two years ago, we began looking for a similar alternative. Quite by chance, I heard about Larry Cooper's Health Classic on the west coast. Curious about how people on the other coast practice Macrobiotics, we decided to sign up. Larry was generous to offer us a discount for those I convinced to sign up and I was able to bring seven of us along for the ride. What a perfect decision this was!
http://www.healthclassics.com
First of all, I have never been in such a beautiful, tranquil setting in which to learn about Macrobiotics. La Casa De Maria Retreat Center boasts lovely wooded grounds with hundred year old trees and colorful bougainvillea and other fragrant flowers. Trees heavy with orange and lemons abound. An organic garden has neat rows of Russian kale, crawling vines of squash and edible flowers. The buildings are reminiscent of Tuscan type villas and the meditative Peace Garden is decorated with bright paper cranes in memory of a Hiroshima radiation victim named Sadako who created 650 paper cranes before her death. This is where we will honor the memory of Michio Kushi.
The lineup of speakers for the weekend is impressive. Verne Varona, Kaare Bursell, Bob Sachs, Ron Peters, Jessica Porter, Dr. Gordon Saxe, Dr. Larry Kushi and Dr. Michael Klaper are just a few of our educators for the weekend.
The eighty plus participants come from all over California and other states. Larry sets the laid back vibe of warmth and friendliness. Everyone is eager to chat and conversations are easy at all the communal meals. What a wonderful atmosphere in which to share our practice of Macrobiotics!
The informative lectures cause us to think about how we have been conducting our lives. Verne urges all of us to discover our purpose in life and make it a passion. In his body, mind, spirit approach to health, several times a day physical activity to promote circulation is crucial. Avoiding processed foods and sticking to a whole foods plant based diet breeds clarity and flexibility. He reminds us that,"with every mouthful we can make ourselves better or worse." Verne stresses the importance of intuition and describes it as a "radio we have on all day" and that we can choose to listen to or ignore the message. We can hurt our intuitive voice with sugar, caffeine, and salt or help make it sharper with meditation and relaxation. Verne teaches us about the diagnosis of the singing (stomach, spleen, pancreas), sighing (lungs, large intestine), angry (liver, gall bladder) groaning (kidney, bladder), and monotone (heart, small intestine) voice and the connection each tone has with the health of our organs. We learn to nurture passion through creativity. Two of my favorites quotes from Verne that are still resonating with me are to, "Honor your parents by living the life they can no longer live." and, "Don't duplicate your parents' disease, shortcomings or addictions." Wise words from a guy with 46 years experience practicing Macrobiotics.
I was excited to come here to meet Kaare Bursell. He has been practicing Macrobiotics for over 40 years as well. Kaare is a great admirer of the health benefits of the ginger compress and says it will help to alleviate intestinal stagnation. Kaare tells us that chronic intestinal stagnation is the "root cause of every illness," and "The wisdom in your body is deeper than your deepest philosophy." Interesting facts about facial diagnosis are shared and we are clearer about how to see illness as it begins to develop. Looking forward to hearing more from this straight forward teacher about the five elements and about the correct way to prepare a ginger compress and daikon hip bath tomorrow.
Although I do not get to attend these lectures, others said they were very helpful. Bob Sachs lectured on Nine Star Ki and using it to assess health, plan trips, choose compatible mates and understand oneself. Jessica Porter asked, "How Healthy Are You? " and led students through ways to determine health physically, emotionally and spiritually. Dr. Ron Peters explained how the conscious and unconscious mind cause disease and how taking responsibility for our lives will speed up our healing process. There were yoga and Tai Chi classes as well. I only wish there were two of me so I could attend more lectures.
The meals at the Health Classic are prepared by our favorite conference chef, Mark Hanna. They are colorful, healthy and fresh and creative. Grains have included tabouli, brown rice with nori sauce, and oatmeal with cooked fruit purée. There is salad at every meal with lovely tangy or pungent dressings. Miso soup and lentil Dahl have been served up in a big soup pot. One day we had a delicious creamy Humous and an eggplant dip. Strawberry short cake and Kanten with cream have been the desserts so far. The food is simple and tasty and I already feel the toxins and stresses of daily life and wide eating in LA melting away.
Now it's time to get some rest before my 7:30 am. Morning Buddha Meditation with Bob Sachs. I just may not want to go home after my relaxing time at the Health Classic.
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