An apple a day - art and health

w is the wonderful season of the apple harvest. Apples really could keep the doctor away- rich in vitamin C, minerals, and fibre, and their sweetness is a good source of slow-release energy.

Traditionally they were carefully stored over winter, as this poem by John Drinkwater ( 1882-1937) reflects:

At the top of the house the apples are laid in rows,

And the skylight lets the moonlight in, and those

Apples are deep-sea apples of green. There goes

A cloud on the moon in the autumn night.

A mouse in the wainscot scratches, and scratches, and then

There is no sound at the top of the house of men

Or mice; and the cloud is blown, and the moon again

Dapples the apples with deep-sea light.

They are lying in rows there, under the gloomy beams;

On the sagging floor; they gather the silver streams

Out of the moon, those moonlit apples of dreams,

And quiet is the steep stair under.

In the corridors under there is nothing but sleep.

And stiller than ever on orchard boughs they keep

Tryst with the moon, and deep is the silence, deep

On moon-washed apples of wonder.

This is one of the poems included in this Autumn’s “Poems in the Waiting Room” pamphlet, which patients at the surgery can read and are welcome to take home. Poetry can help to reduce the anxiety of a visit to the doctor, and help people to understand and express their feelings about stressful life events such as bereavement and illness. There is a lot of evidence that creative activity of many sorts can promote well-being; we also have the Willow Tree Art Group, which meets at the surgery and is linked to the Community Art Group at Henbury School, which takes place on Mondays 4-6 pm, which is free and open to all.

Cooking is also a creative activity, so here is a recipe which can be adapted to any fruit according to season

Apple Cake

125g butter or margarine

1 cup dark brown sugar-molasses sugar is lovely

1^1/2 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon. baking powder

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon mixed spice

1^1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 egg

2 apples-chopped, or 1 cup other fruit- berries, plums, gooseberries…

grated zest 1 lemon or orange

Melt butter and sugar.

Add fruit, spice, and zest allow to cool slightly.

Add beaten egg

Stir in flour and raising agents.

Bake in 7-8 inch loose bottom tin for about 45 min at 180C/350F/gas mark 4- a bit longer for softer fruit.

Dr Marion Steiner

Willow Tree Surgery