Sharing the beauty of the world

In 2020-2021 health took on a new level of importance for me. I had an unexpected health crisis that let me know I can’t take anything for granted. It was a long and sometimes excruciating process to build my strength back up, but I learned some really healthy new habits along the way. The best part is, I’ve found that a lot of the things that I love can actually promote health, sometimes with a few tweaks or optimization.

Diet & Food:

A huge part of health is diet. I have loved cooking since I was young, and I learned different recipes and techniques from my parents, grandparents, other family members and friends. I’ve been experimenting with recipes and creating my own for many years now, with influences from all over the world and different dietary systems. I have found some interesting hacks to make favorite foods healthier. Recently I have focused on anti-inflammatory ingredients, which has an overall positive impact on health. I have also created healthy and delicious meals for vegan, diabetic, kosher, halal and other needs. I love a challenge, I love food, and I love caring for people by creating healthy and delicious options that fit their needs! I would love to share some recipes and ideas/ hacks with you, and would also love to hear yours!!

One of the things I have been playing and experimenting with a lot lately is sourdough. I don’t have a proper recipe yet but I have had a lot of fun playing with different flavors. I got a special secret starter from a friend and I have been playing around and trying to figure out the best techniques. I’m getting to the point that my family consistently eats up whatever I bake, so hopefully before too long I will be able to share a recipe!! Some of my favorites so far (and conveniently also the easiest techniques) are using a loaf pan or making sourdough pizza in a cast-iron skillet. YUM!!! Chewy, fluffy, richly flavored goodness…

Exercise & Activities (in Nature):

Most of my preferred activities involve getting outdoors and enjoying the beauty of nature. Hiking, swimming, walking, and marine activities are particular favorites.

For me, time moving around in nature is good for my health, my heart and my head as I enjoy observing my surroundings and applying principles of geoscience, biology, ecology and other areas of science to try to understand what I’m seeing at a deeper level. I try to share these thoughts with my friends and family, especially my children.

Nature Inspired Art:

During the pandemic nature has taken on an especially important role as long-standing social activities were no longer possible. I have spent hours and hours reigniting my long-lost passion for photography and art, and have started dabbling in painting and creating nature-inspired designs. I’ve even done a couple of workshops with alcohol art, hosted by my friend. The technique was at first frustrating but then delightful once I embraced the utter lack of control I felt with nothing but drops of ink and alcohol and my unwieldy hairdryer! There can be a lot of beauty in disorder! My second attempt led to a piece that almost accomplished what I was hoping for. She also taught me another trick: art often looks better once it’s framed! Check out her instagram! If you live in Okinawa and you enjoy art you should try to catch one of her workshops!

When I am home or on the go I have picked up watercolor pencils as my favorite medium. It’s easy to carry along and do a sketch on the go, snap a photo and finish up at home. It’s not messy (extra important since one of my kids is still pretty young). It’s enough like watercolor and colored pencils to feel comfortable, but somehow it’s totally different from either of those more familiar-to-me techniques. In my photography and art I have been focused on my current home of Okinawa, which has endless beauty from seascapes to forested hills as well as a vibrant cultural heritage. It’s been a great place to be “stuck” during the pandemic, as there are abundant beautiful outdoor places to enjoy without crowds.

When my daughter and her friends started a club dedicated to the environment (they call it “Save Our Planet”), I decided to look into making and selling some items to use for fundraising, both for these young girls’ world-saving ambitions and for other organizations in Okinawa dedicated to environmental sustainability and education. I did some research and decided to start experimenting with Contrado, a company with a focus on quality and sustainability. You can see some of my designs at BeInspired.

While playing around with designing products, I have gotten interested in creating designs inspired by traditional Japanese patterns, but with a twist. One of my favorites is a seigaha wave pattern with the colors of Okianwa’s coastal environment.

Tea is My Friend:

As a part of my recent health explorations I have increased my tea consumption. I love teas and there is such an incredible variety with diverse and amazing health benefits! Particularly here in Okinawa I’ve been fortunate to have access to some of the world’s best. A few local teas that I enjoy are butterfly pea tea, hibiscus tea, sanpincha, guava tea and moringa. I’ve also started playing around with using teas to paint with. It’s quite challenging but extremely interesting, and the results are a bit unpredictable. It’s great for experimentation as different combinations, concentrations and even pH impact the results.

Although it is time-consuming and difficult to achieve the desired results, my “tea art” does have an important advantage. It always smells great while painting!!

Sharing Ideas for Sustainably Healthy & Happy Living

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