The many benefits of meditation

While meditation is traditionally viewed as a spiritual practice, its physical and psychological benefits are enormous.

Reduce the stress in your life

There’s no doubt that the biggest threat to our physical, psychological and emotional well being in the modern age is stress. It’s a proven fact that meditation helps to reduce stress; leading to deeper levels of relaxation.

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Penjing: Philosophy, Meaning, and Style

Penjing, the ancient Chinese art of creating landscaped scenes with miniature gnarled trees and mindfully arranged rocks can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty of the seventh century.  Miniature stands of tall, narrow trees were displayed in colorfully decorated pots or trays (pen) presenting scenes (jing) of natural wilderness. The earliest drawing of penjing on record (706 A.D.) illustrates a maid carrying a tray of fruit trees and stones.

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Taking a look at the many varieties of Witch Hazel

Witch hazel is a type of deciduous shrub that grows in both North America and parts of Asia. Typically, they grow between 10-24 feet tall, but some of the tree varieties grow to heights of 39 feet. While the most common varieties of witch hazel blossom with a lively yellow color, there are several others that have different colors. Keep reading and we’ll take a closer look at some of the many varieties of witch hazel.

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Wagashi, a simple Japanese gift

wagashi

Wagashi are Japanese confections served with tea that evolved through many centuries ago from the Chinese tea-house snacks called ‘dim sum’.  The word wagashi, derived from the words Japanese (Wa) and sweets (gashi), originated during the Meiji era (1868-1912) to distinguish the confections from European sweets.

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Growing Japanese vegetables

sashimi-with-shiso-leaves

Being able to grow Japanese vegetables in our western climates is a great and healthy challenge.  With Japanese food vegetables you must keep in mind that, like most vegetables, they are seasonal. Meaning they will not always be around or the best all year round. Here is a list of vegetables that are available to the United States and their benefits.

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