[Nancy]

Hi Aine,

Never in my wildest, did I expect the author to personally respond to my off-the-cuff comment on her book.

Welcome to Cybermacro!

I see that you and Bruce Paine have taken the conversation further. I personally tamper with widening my diet as I move to and fro towards healing. Hopefully, not one step forward and two steps back. At present, I am enjoying a deviation with a cookbook entitled, "Ultimate Chinese". For the first time ever, I found and used Chinese Five Spice Powder. The taste, so unusual, that I dreamed a dream (or was it reality?), that Chinese men, in dark green Mao coats, served an incredible multi-course Chinese dinner to myself and two significant others in my life. One paid the bill, one was self-involved, and I was deeply grateful for the astonishing meal and gracious manner in which it was served.

All to say, the spice deviation from the plain has been very tempting and "added spice to my life". Thus, I thoroughly understand your response. Whatever works, with clients, is the most effective route to take. There are so many varying gradations of what one will or will not accept as food. All are in stages of various transition.

Of more concern than the use of a little spice in creative cooking, are the dark corners of rigid thinking, and imposing the same rigidness on others, that macros -gone too far- *yang* box themselves into. I've seen and been on the receiving end of a lot of rigid behavior, it is lamentable and unattractive.

We could also call spices, "herbs". One former Cybermacro Moderator, Roy Collins, is also a specialist of herbs and their healing properties. My knowledge of the healing properties of herbs barely scratches the surface. Naburo Muramoto used his extensive knowledge of herbs and spices in the many pages of healing teas in the macrobiotic classic, "Healing Ourselves".

Yet, I do come from a school of macrobiotic thought that the yin/yangness of it all is of prime importance. Paul Pritchford's y/y reversal (yin-salty?), is following Chinese y/y rather than Japanese/Macrobiotic y/y. If you Feng Shui at the same time, the flow of reversals all becomes quite natural and easy.

At the time I made my comment, I was feeling the effects of my Chinese spices and felt that Michio is indeed correct about abstention from spices for healing. On the other hand, your point is perfect, that making macrobiotic food effectively palatable to those who are sick, guiding them into another way, and away from fried chicken and ice-cream -- the use of spice can be, life.

I must admit I was using a lot of hot spices, red pepper and the like...Szechuan, Thai, etc.

More celebs who are macrobiotic: Marilu Henner, Christiane Northrup, M.D.

Aine, please keep us posted all on your activities and jet-setting life.

Very nice to have you here,
Nancy