I was shocked and deeply saddened to hear of Michio Kushi's passing on December 28, 2014 in his 88th year. Next to my own parents, Michio Kushi has been the biggest influence in my life. I would like to express my heartfelt condolences to his sons and their families and Midori. And thank you Midori for taking such good care of Michio!

I feel very blessed to have studied with Michio over the years. He was a great man, inspiring, full of enthusiasm and endless energy I don't know anyone who could keep up with him. I never heard him utter an unkind word. He never tired of teaching even though it must have been exasperating to repeat the same things over and over. After the Fukushima disaster, he said that many friends (old timers by now) were asking him how to protect against radiation. He did say that they should know by now: miso soup, brown rice, sea vegetables, cooked greens, umeboshi etc. I thought I sensed a bit of despair in his voice that we were still asking these kind of questions!

I would like to express my gratitude to Michio for dedicating his life to nourish my dream. I didn't even know I had a dream until I came across first Georges Ohsawa and then Michio's teaching. I can never repay my gratitude but I will do my best to keep his teachings alive through our efforts at my little macro centre here in Toronto.

I last saw Michio in March of last year. I travelled from the Kushi Institute to Framingham with other Level 3 students for a private session with Michio. I had not seen Michio since the 2012 summer conference. This time, when Michio entered the room, I was overcome with emotion and the overwheming feeling that this was the last time I would be in his physical presence. It was difficult for me to maintain my composure throughout the hour long talk. So I focused on writing down every word he said. Here is part of his message from that day: