Today is the 1 year anniversary of my grandmas death, Frieda Klein. She lived to be 95. About a month from the end, she asked me to stop doing all of my crazy natural health tricks to keep her alive, she was ready to go. She was way ahead of her time. She exercised, took vitamins, and even walked 2 miles per day when she was in her 80’s.
If you ever run into me ask me to tell you the stories of what chiropractic did to her in her 80’s and 90’s. I could never put those stories on the website because no one would believe me 🙂
I reflect on all she accomplished in her life, and what a positive influence she was on me in terms of natural health and exercise. Her long healthy life was a reward for the way she had lived. I miss her tremendously, but thank her for all she gave me.
I remember back in the 1960’s eating protein powder that she had in her cupboard, long before anyone sane was taking supplements.
There was another health food guru who I found out died recently.
When I was in my twenties I heard he was going to be speaking in West L.A. at a health food restaurant. I got my best friends girlfriend to go with me and off we went to see one of my heroes.
As we walked onto the parking lot, this hippie looking man in his 60’s yelled “Hey Kid!” and threw a bullet speed spiral straight toward my gut. I was never a real football player and took it straight in the gut! ooompph!
He yelled “I bet you’ve never seen a 60 year old man throw a football like that!”
It was true. I had not.
When I was around 17 or so I came across a book called “Bare Feet and Good Things To Eat”. It started me on a path that almost 30 years later I am still on. The message in the book is simple. Eat from nature. Exercise. Do not put anything unnatural in your body.
From the pages of the book came the inspiration that in many ways began the whole natural health renasainse that began in the 40’s and 50’s with people like Gypsy, and then grew with the hippies in the 60’s and 70’s, then was embraced and fostered by people like myself in the 80’s onward, and has now become big business with companies like Whole Foods. I am sure that he was one of the major forces that ended up with me being a chiropractor.
Here are photos of him when he was in his 80’s.
Here is how he was when he was young the page is a little beat up but it is his website :).
I found that he died a few years ago at the age of 90. I can not thank this man enough for the influence he had on my life, and I know the lives directly and indirectly of millions of others.
I highly recommend Bare Feet and Good Things To Eat. It is the simplicity of natural health that I still embrace today. Eat lots of fruit and vegetables. Exercise a lot. Go barefoot. Read up on Gypsy and check out all the photos you can find of him. He was always a hoot. I am sure he still is!
Love you Gypsy!