Table of Contents
To Olivia,
in whose eight-year-old face,
I see the hope and beauty of the world that is to come
Acknowledgments
No man (or woman) is an island and that is never more obvious to me than when Im writing a book. There are so many people to thank for their help, wisdom, and support that it could be a book in itself. Dont panic; Ill be somewhat brief.
Id like to thank Michael Potter, owner and president of Eden Foods, Inc. Michael, your fierce commitment to our shared vision and work toward improving and protecting the food we eat inspires me daily. Without your vision and generosity, much of what is known as Christina Cooks would be merely a dream.
I have the deepest gratitude to John Duff, my publisher and friend, for your confidence and support of my work. With your feet planted firmly in the real world, you keep me from woo-woo land. And to Jeanette Egan, my editor, for all your hard work and commitment to keeping me real and accurate.
Thanks so much to Patrick Riley, my dear friend and shiatsu massage therapist, for your input into this book and for your magic touch. Your loving energy has brought me back into balance from the brink so many times that I have lost count.
Id like to thank my many teachers, for sharing their wisdom with me and for the support and encouragement to find my own voice in my work. Id especially like to thank Murray Snyder, for all that he taught me to see in the simple lines of the hand.
I could never express my gratitude to my students for continually allowing me access to their lives and for the honor of sharing with them what little I know. Through them, I am always drawn back to the beginners mind. Thanks for keeping me humble and for teaching me so much.
Id like to thank my family, but especially my big brother, Tom, the family genius, for the unconditional love and support that he gives me as I stumble through my life as a writer and performer, professions at which he is more adept.
To my precious girlfriends. Without you, I would have caved a long time ago. Thanks for your unwavering love, support, shoulders (for crying), ears (for listening to rants), eyes for proofreading, and tummies for experimental recipes. Your friendships are the greatest blessings in my life. You know who you are.
Finally, thanks to my hero ... my partner, husband, and love of my life. Robert, your visions and dreams for us and for the world inspire me to be the best person I can be. Your integrity and strength of character are without compare and I know that I am safe with you. Thank you for your love and for being my soft place to fall.
Introduction
I was born into a lusty Italian family, burshing with passionate emotion. To themand therefore, to me, every man, woman, and child was beautiful. Whether their cheeks were soft and dewy or lined with the wisdom that comes with age, I was taught to see not only their outer beauty, but also their inner radiance.
We live in a world obsessed with beauty, so much so, that we are bereft at the lack of it. We drink it in, intoxicated by its power. We crave it and bask in its light. However, somewhere along the way, we lost the vision of true beauty, and instead worship in its place, artificial, applied beauty.
My childhood vision of beauty, my eye trained by my grandfather, has never changed. I marvel at all natural beauty, from a sweeping landscape to a simple pot of begonias blooming on a city stoop; from a beautiful baby to a weathered, wise face. And while I am as enchanted as anyone by perfect skin, lustrous hair, clear eyes, and chiseled features, the beauty that inspires me is the beauty that is intangiblethat glow that comes from withinwhen a person is joyously happy, fulfilled in their work, content with themselves, and vital with health.
When I was a child, I didnt know what created the glow that I so admired and continue to admire today. I never understood the concept of beauty from the inside. My own health crisis, which brought me to the study of whole foods cooking and traditional healing arts, provided me with the answers I craved. My study of the energy of food and natural harmony unlocked many of lifes mysteries. I learned that gratitude and contentment with life create more beauty than any hair dryer.
Our current view of beauty often involves perfection of features and is unattainable by most of us. Beauty isnt the perfect shade of lipstick or the finest suit or the perfect size waist or length of leg. Its not about blue eyes or perfect teeth. Those things are just the icing on the cake. And while lovely to see, these features are not the heart of true beauty.
If were truly honest with ourselves, well admit that when we arent feeling well and vital, no amount of makeup or hair gel shores up our confidence. We skulk through the day, praying for the moment when we can crawl into bed and hopefully wake on a higher note. But on those mornings when we feel marvelous, a light swish of the mascara wand or fingers carelessly run through our hair and we bound out of the house, ready to face the day, feeling confident, graceful, beautiful, handsome, and glowing.
Ive learned a lot in my studies and in my work about the effect of food on our bodies and its power over our health. My own experience with transformation has taken me from obesity, oily skin and hair, struggles with blemishes, freckles, and excessive body hair to a life virtually free of those challenges. Hindsight is indeed 20/20 and in my own view of my life, I see where I misstepped, over and over. I now know that it is truly our birthright to look beautiful and feel well and it is in our choices that we forfeit that right, creating the never-ending struggle to regain it, as only we can.
And so I have created this book, delving into the world of traditional healing practices and Chinese medicine. With it, I hope that you will come to understand your strengths and weaknesses and nourish them both to regain your balance, internally and externally. Understanding what we eat is a key factor in creating our health and our health is a key factor in our appearance. Once youve mastered that, the path to glowing, radiant beauty is straight and true. Season to season, age to age, the face and form you present to the world will be strong, vital, and stunningly beautiful.
I wish you health, beauty, and a long and happy life, filled with gratitude, joy, strength, and abundance.
Your Glowing Roots
Radiance, beauty, that glow are the elusive states of being that we all seek to achieve. I would venture to say that many would rather look good than feel good. Unfortunately, you cant have one without the other. Like love and marriage, looking great is usually the result of feeling great, and conversely, if you dont feel well, its hard to put your best face forward.
Every year, People magazine issues its list of the fifty most beautiful people in the world, and while some of them are exquisite, some are hardly what we would call classically beautiful. There is one common denominator among all these faces, however, a factor that makes people attractive and beautiful, whether famous or not, classically or not. If you were to analyze what is truly attractive, I think you would surprise yourself when you discovered that it wasnt really his blue eyes or her long legs, but their glow. People that we deem beautiful are brimming with vitality. And that vitality allows them to walk with a straight, confident stride, head held high. That vitality is what creates their perfect skin and lustrous hair and is what we find so attractive. We are attracted to health. We want to be near it and bask in its radiance.
