Asparagus and…a Random Cat Story

Happy Friday!!!! I can’t believe it’s already Memorial Day weekend! What happened to May!?! I have such a busy weekend ahead, but am so excited to spend some time with friends and family!

Ok…on to asparagus…a staple in our household. Justin loves them, so we buy them fairly often! We like to steam them, grill them, roast them and include them in various pasta dishes. Sometimes finding good asparagus at the store can be difficult. Luckily, this year my dad grew some in the garden. They’re super tender and not stringy in the least. Look how nice they are…

So since we eat so many asparagus, I decided to look them up and see what, if any, health benefits they had. Well…I was surprised to learn that they had some pretty important benefits. Take a look…

• They have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant benefits.
• They provide digestive support. They are rich in fiber (about 3 grams per cup) and also contains a 4-5 grams of protein per cup.
• They support heart health and blood sugar regulation.
• They are an excellent source of folic acid and vitamin B1 and a very good source of vitamins B2, B3 and B6.
• They have anti-cancer benefits.

I guess it’s a good thing we eat a lot of them!

So this is kinda random, but since my cat Pounce (I still call him my cat even though he still lives at my parents’ house) is in the asparagus pic, I figured I would tell you his story. It’s kinda interesting actually!

About 8 years ago (maybe more), my brother and his friend were biking in the local area. They were crossing over a bridge that went over railroad tracks and heard this faint meow, so they went to investigate. Low and behold, they found a sickly little gray cat (maybe about 6 months old) on the side of the railroad tracks. So my brother (a cat lover like me) wrapped him in his coat and brought him home. He was super skinny, weak and full of fleas, and even though we put food/water in front of him, he refused to eat/drink. It was night-time by now, so we made a bed for him and planned to take him to the vet in the a.m. Quite honestly, in the condition that he was in, we all had our doubts that he’d even make it through the night.

Miraculously, when we got up the next a.m., he was still alive and we brought him to the vet right away. The vet checked him out and gave him lots of shots and meds. With lots of TLC from the fam, he amazingly, fully recovered in a few weeks. To this day, we’re still in awe that Pounce has come so far, given the fact that he was likely near death when my brother found him. I think it was meant to be!

On a side note…he got his name because he was so playful and liked to “Pounce” everywhere. Pounce became one of the most loving and friendly cats that we ever had (and we had a lot of cats over the years!). He is soooo affectionate and loves to be pet. He’s like a little dog and follows you everywhere. He’ such a cutie…

So there you have it…the health benefits of asparagus and Pounce! What a weird combo…I know!

Reference: Asparagus by the World’s Healthiest Foods