don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

A fund-raising project by the Children's Homes of West Virginia will feature a cookbook containing signed recipes by famous characters nationwide, selected for their extreme good looks, virtuous ways and prospects for high political office. I am among those who were invited to "send in a favorite recipe." Actually, I have no idea what criteria were used to select recipe authors—I made up that business above about the selection criteria, although the qualities noted MIGHT have been what the sponsors had in mind. Who knows?

The funds raised will benefit a non-profit children's home in Burlington, WV that provides foster care, adoption, residential, substance abuse and mental health services. I thought you might like to see my entry. If it sounds tasty, I can send you an autographed copy of the recipe, too.

My recipe is not at all like a normal recipe. This is an educational recipe for a salmon dinner that nourishes the body and sends diner thoughts and feelings into a state of REAL (reasoned exuberance and liberty) wellness.

The following ingredients are required to prepare the meal AND to experience REAL wellness thoughts and feelings that go with the meal. The latter last much longer than the experience of consuming, processing and eliminating the meal.

These ingredients are as follows:

• 6 salmon fish portions at least 3 oz each, preferably not farm-raised. 
• 2 tablespoons Spice World chopped garlic.
• 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinaigrette. 
• 2 tablespoons of Earth Balance natural butter. 
• Holland House white cooking wine.
• 3 tablespoons olive oil.
• 1/2 tablespoon of roasted sesame seeds (natural).
• Half of a fresh lemon (juice).
• 1 copy of Aging Beyond Belief: 69 Tips For REAL Wellness. 
• 5 to 10 printed editions of the weekly electronic Ardell Wellness Report.
• 3 to 5 printed pages from Don's website SeekWellness.com.

The following four phases are essential elements of the entire dining experience for the REAL wellness salmon dinner:

1. The moments before the preparation of the meal.
   
   
2. The actual cooking process. 
   
   
3. The ceremony when the meal is served; and 
   
   
4. The reflections thereafter. 

These steps are recommended to assure that the experience of REAL wellness accompanies the feast itself. However, everyone is encouraged to indulge in creative interpretations of these basic REAL wellness-oriented instructions.

1. The moments prior to the meal preparation:
   
   Each person is invited to offer a brief comment about the meaning of life, the importance of reason and critical thought, the nature of happiness, our responsibilities for environmental stewardship OR an element or two of good ethics to apply as a part of common decencies toward each other.  A sentence or two from each diner on any one of these or other REAL wellness topics will be quite sufficient; this pre-meal process should take no more than six minutes total.
   
   
2. The actual cooking process:

• Place salmon in a skillet after preparing the pan with a thin coating of olive oil. 
  
  
• In a small bowl, whisk the chopped garlic, vinaigrette, butter, sesame seeds and a dash of the olive oil until combined into a sauce.
  
  
• Pour the marinade over the salmon 30 seconds after the fish has been exposed to a low flame.  Gingerly, with tenderness, reverence and gratitude for the sacrifice of this noble fish for your sustenance, turn the salmon pieces until well-coated on each side with the sauce. 
  
  
• Splash with white cooking wine.
  
  
• Cover.
  
  
• Cook on medium flame for 1 minute and 45 seconds, or until done to taste. 
  
  
• Turn off flame or other heat source, cover to retain heat. 

Serve with:

• Rice, asparagus and two avocadoes. 

3.   The ceremony when the meal is served:

The host or hostess thanks each person by name for being present at this time in his/her life for the purpose of sharing a good and nourishing meal, and valued insights about quality of life. He or she reads an except of the host/hostess' choosing from Aging Beyond Belief, a weekly edition of the AWR or from an essay that appeared at SeekWellness.com. 

4.  The post-meal reflections.  

Guests are invited, one at a time, to share his/her perspective for about a minute or two on the nature of good living, the importance of exercise and physical fitness, a key element in good relationships, support that we can give to each other for healthy living or any other reflection that seems in the spirit of or expanding upon an idea raised in the reading selections by the host or hostess. 

The entire meal process ends with the above brief reflections, and the guests move to a new location, if possible, in order to shift into a wild and crazy party mood or whatever kind of post-meal activities they feel inclined to enjoy. 

Enjoy, be well and always look on the bright side of life.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the PHYSICAL DOMAIN under the skill area of nutrition. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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