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healing

The power of food and sharing cultures.

Has food ever transported you back to your childhood? Perhaps an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie that tastes just like your grandmother's, or soup at a restaurant that takes you back to those moments when you were sick and your mom fed you by the spoonful. (Or, this scene from Ratatouille.) That's exactly what happened when Papua New Guinean chef Wan Maus surprised his friend James with a home-cooked meal. But this wasn't just any meal—it was a Zimbabwean feast, with dishes that hailed from James' home country.

What began as a simple gesture of friendship became something far more profound. This moment—two men embracing through tears, grateful for each other—perfectly captures how food can bridge cultures, remind us of our heritage, and connect us in a uniquely human way.


@wan.maus I surprised my Zimbabwean born friend to some traditional ZAE recipes. What a treat to cook and share! God is good.#pngtiktok🇵🇬 #cookingtiktok #zimbabweantiktok #zimbabwetiktok🇿🇼🇿🇼🇿🇼🇿🇼 #foodietiktok #maize ♬ original sound - wan maus

The video, shared to TikTok, begins with a sentence: “This is why I cook.” James is sitting at the dining room table, chatting away as if it were any other day. He shares a quick anecdote about Australia before a steaming hot bowl of sadza—a maize-based staple at the heart of Zimbabwean cuisine—hits the table. What unfolds is pure magic.

“Oh my god, you are joking,” he exclaims, followed by an admission from the heart: “Do you know when I last ate that? I was twelve years old. That's nuts,” he laughs, never for a second taking his eyes off the sadza.

More dishes appear, and James's emotions grow stronger and stronger. It's clear that, for him, this is more than just sustenance—cooking food from his home country, Zimbabwe, is like telling someone you love them. At times, he's speechless; when the hifiridzi, or beef and spinach stew, arrives, James begins clapping above his head and excitedly taking photos. But it's the okra that breaks him. The final dish to appear, its mere sight triggers an even deeper laugh—one that slowly morphs into what is also a sob.

“Down memory lane,” he says wistfully. Then, “Oh, brother,” as he turns to hug his friend very, very tightly.


The raw, emotional depth this video displays has resonated with 3.5 million viewers. Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay wrote, “This is incredible. Well done !”

Another person commented, “We need more examples of male friendship like this. If men felt consistently comfortable to connect this deeply with each other, the world would be a better place.”

“It’s not just about the food,” another person wrote. “It’s the feeling of being home and having someone care about you like that.”


screenshot, tiktok. chef, gordon ramsaySo good, even Ramsay had to give him props. Credit: TikTok @wan.maus

Dishes that tell a story

Sadza, the heart of Zimbabwe.

Sadza is the cornerstone of Zimbabwe's culinary identity. Made by adding water to finely ground white maize (corn), it creates a smooth, firm porridge that serves as both food and utensil—as it's traditionally eaten with hands. “People eat sadza every day, often twice daily, making it more than food,” explains website, The Goldmidi. “It represents Zimbabwe's culture and heritage.”


Hifiridzi, community on a plate.

Named after Highfield, a neighborhood in the country's capital, Harare, hifiridzi is all about resourcefulness and vibrant community spirit that defines Zimbabwean cooking and way of life. It's a hearty dish of beef short ribs slow-cooked with leafy greens, onions, garlic, and tomatoes. Made with vegetables often picked from the cook's own garden, hifiridzi embodies the essence of “community-based cooking”—where preparing and sharing meals strengthens the bonds between people.


Okra, the binding force.

Locally known as “derere,” okra is a popular vegetable in Zimbabwean cooking, where you'll find it in stews combined with tomatoes, onions, ground nuts, and peanut butter. Thanks to its unique consistency, okra's texture helps thicken stews and bind ingredients together, mirroring the way it brings people together, too.


The beauty of Wan Maus's video lies not in his technique or culinary prowess, but in this simple act of kindness that reminds us how food serves as a universal language of love. Or, as one food writer puts it:

“Food is colorful. It is flavorful. It nourishes and promotes health. But more than all of that, it unites. It heals… Food is as much a form of expression as laughter or music. It is integral to humanity, and something that certainly holds a special place in my heart.”


Science

Scientists develop sensors that could heal bones in weeks, not months

These tiny implants could make a big difference in healing broken bones

www.canva.com

At the University of Oregon, scientists have created a potential medical breakthrough— well, technically a “mend-through.” These researchers have created tiny implants that could help speed up the healing process of mending broken bones.

If you have suffered a broken bone, you know that proper healing requires a combination of rest, rehabilitation, and time. Your doctor likely prescribed various physical therapy exercises and increased their intensity to ensure that the bone is properly mended at top strength and mobility.

However, the key to completing recovery is finding a balance. Too little and infrequent resistance exercise won’t help “encourage” the bone enough to build strength as it heals. Too much training and the injury could become worse. Depending on the severity of the break, it could take months for a broken leg or arm to heal completely since it is difficult to determine if the bone is strong enough for more intense rehabilitation or if it still needs less resistance training to prevent harm. Recovery time also varies from person to person, too.

www.canva.com

That’s the issue the researchers at the University of Oregon tackled. They created a series of small implants with sensors that can provide data in real time at the injury site to help better determine if a bone needs more resistance rehab or if it has been overworked. In a technological study, the implants “significantly improved” the healing time for broken femurs in lab rats, cutting down a healing time from four-to-six months down to as little as eight weeks.

“One of the most impactful aspects of this work is that our resistance rehabilitation could regenerate the femur to normal strength within eight weeks without biological stimulants, and we’re really excited about that,” said study leader Dr. Kylie Williams.

While monitoring their bones using the sensors, the researchers found that the rodents that were given proper physical therapy in their exercise wheels with increasing resistance to promote building strength had their femurs heal much faster and more effectively than rodents that were sedentary. This included rodents that needed their training lowered at times depending on the data retrieved from the sensors.

After seeing such positive results, campus-startup Penderia Technologies is working on perfecting the implants to a battery-free, wearable version for human patients to monitor their progress.

Recovery of any sort is a push/pull process. Depending on where you’re at, you might need to further push yourself forward, even when it isn’t comfortable. On the other hand, you might need to pull back a little bit at certain points to make sure you’re not overwhelming yourself.

Finding the balance is tricky but doable. It especially helps when you know that you’re not alone. You can also find support in your family, friends, physicians, and therapists in your life. If not those people, whatever you have experienced has been experienced before, no matter what your “broken bone” is. Whether it’s a bad habit you wish to get rid of, a new goal in your life, or a literal broken bone, it has impacted someone else that you can learn from. There are resources available to help you determine whether you need to push yourself a little harder or when to rest and recover.

Healing something that’s broken takes a combination of effort, rest, and time. That’s not just for femurs, that’s for everything.

Science

32 years separate this before and after of a beautiful Washington forest. Take a look.

Our relationship with our planet can be mutually beneficial if we commit ourselves to sustainability.

A return to green over decades.


Douglas Scott grew up on Washington's Olympic Peninsula in the dying shadow of the timber industry that had supported the region for decades.

"Nearly every home had a bright orange or yellow sign reading 'This home supported by timber dollars,'" Scott wrote on Outdoor Society.


While the region has also been recognized for its succulent seafood, temperate climate, and stunning natural formations, nothing shaped the community — or the physical landscape — quite like logging did.

rebuilding, Olympic Peninsula, logging

Logging repercussions felt on the Olympic Peninsula.

Olympic Peninsula, circa 1972. Photo from the Records of the Environmental Protection Agency.

The tension in the air between the loggers and the environmentalists throughout the 1980s was thicker than the trees being cut down.

"I heard from old timers in the Harbor about how environmentalists were ruining the region, and I was told by environmentalists that loggers were killing everything in sight," Scott recalled.

But to understand the full impact of deforestation on the region, it helps to take the bird's eye view.

Here's a satellite image of the Olympic Peninsula from 1984. The white region in the center are the mountaintops in Olympic National Park; you'll also notice the grey and brown areas along the western and northern coasts of the peninsula.

satellite images, deforestation, tourism

Satellite image of deforestation on the region of the Olympic Peninsula.

Screenshot via GoogleEarth Engine.

"When I moved away from the area in 1997, there wasn't much of a logging or mill economy in dozens of towns around the region," Scott said.

By that time, tourism had begun to take the place of timber as the region's major industry — which was probably helped along by the fact that the trees were slowly but surely starting to recover, enhancing the already stunning vistas that drew visitors.

Here's how the Olympic Peninsula looked by the time that Scott and his family left the area; you'll notice the western and northern coasts are just a little bit greener than they were 13 years prior...

recovery, ecology, healing

Some green coming back.

Screenshot via GoogleEarth Engine.

Those great green arbors continued their gradual recovery into the 2000s...

trees, parks, Google Earth

More forest returns to the peninsula.

Screenshot via GoogleEarth Engine.

And they're still going today.

ecosystem, timber, wood

And still more green comes back.

Screenshot via GoogleEarth Engine.

But those isolated moments don't tell the whole story of the region's recovery. It's even more remarkable when you can see it in action...

habitat, climate change, going green

Olympic Peninsula demonstrating the power of nature.

GIF via GoogleEarth Engine.

We don't always notice the world changing right before our eyes, but the decades-long view of the Olympic Peninsula shows the true power of nature.

It's not just the trees, either; according to Scott, the replenished forests have also had a positive impact on the local salmon population and other treasured natural resources.

erosion, growth, wildlife, earth

Mother Nature doing her thing.

Left photo from Records of the Environmental Protection Agency; Right, by Miguel Vieira/Flickr.

That doesn't mean we shouldn't use the natural world, of course. We still need wood, for example, but now we know there are sustainable ways to use it without recklessly damaging to the planet.

The Earth was built to take care of itself. We just need to let Mother Nature do her thing.


This article originally appeared on 12.22.16

Representative image from Canva

A birth clinic with facials? Now that's luxury.

When I say “picture a birthing clinic,” you’re likely to imagine all white rooms and hospital beds…not luxury suites and spa vibes.

But the latter was what Nicole Patrice, who had moved to Japan from Kentucky and underwent a c-section at the Nagoya Birth Clinic, where her husband purchased a 5-day stay in the “precious suite” as a Christmas gift.

Her tour of the facility and all its next level amenities—not to mention its price—left viewers in shock.


Though Patrice was separated from her baby for 24 hours as she received phototherapy treatment for jaundice, the clinic provided in-person snuggle time when able, even bringing him up to her suite for morning visits.

The rest of the time, Patrice was free to focus on her own healing, and it was as though every aspect of the clinic was specifically designed to facilitate that. From the restaurant worthy meals (all of which are apparently “made to promote healing, excite the palate and encourage lactation” to the cozy reading nooks, to the on-site aesthetic clinic for rejuvenating facials. Yes, really.

But wait, there’s more: Nagoya also provided adorable props for family photos, an in-room hot water heater for tea and coffee, plus in-room breakfast and afternoon tea.

“They really care about mothers here, and they just want us to rest and relax and really enjoy our time,” Patrice said in the video.

For a five day stay with all these bells and whistles, Patrice paid less than $3000 USD. By comparison, you’d be lucky to pay that for a single stay in something similar here in the United States.

@nicole_does_japan Day two after having a C-section in Japan. Pain management has been surprisingly easy. I came off of my IVs the day after my surgery- and I fully believe that not relying on pain medication has allowed my body to heal and create a threshold of tolerability, that I did not experience with my first C-section. In Japan, they don’t give a lot of unnecessary medication in regards to narcotics. I think the strongest thing that I had was Tylenol. the food, and the peaceful atmosphere all attribute to my healing. It’s been a dream giving birth at the Nagoya birth clinic. ##birthinjapan##japanpregnant##nagoyabirthclinic##nagoya##japanesefood##hospitalfoodreview##LifeInJapan##Csection##dayinmylife ♬ Lofi/Fashionable/Rose Piano/10 minutes(1455693) - nightbird_bgm

Needless to say, people were impressed.

“I wouldn't want to leave. Good food, baby nursery, facials to which Patrcis replied “Smae .It felt like ‘mommy camp.’”

“5 star maternity hotel is what it is.”

“I just love how progressive, considerate and healing the Japanese view and approach the birthing and recovery period.”

The underlying reason why Japanese and American approaches to childbirth differ so greatly could be due to fundamental cultural views. An article in PubMed states that while “autonomy is cherished in America,” Japan still adheres to more traditional gender roles, and maintains a “women-centered” approach to birth practices. Male partners often do not even help in labor. Additionally, Japan prioritizes natural births, believing it strengthens the bond between child and mother.

This system is, of course, not without its flaws due to those social norms, but in an ideal scenario, we would be able to blend both Western and Eastern modalities to create a birthing experience that truly caters to the needs of new mothers and prioritizes their healing journey.