Kendall Gazette

Community News

Larkins promotes way to keep years at bay

September 21-27, 2000
BY MARISEL A. OTHON

When Annette Larkins walks down the street all the men look twice, and the women do too. The men look a the 18-inch waist and the curves she’s been blessed with and say, “wow.” And the women look at the small waist, the go on to look at the clothes, the face, the nose, the legs, etc. and say, : There’s no way.”
But anyone who knows Larkins, knows that the 58-yyear-old mother of two and grandmother of six is exactly what she portrays. She is a confident, intelligent woman who looks—darn good!
Her story is heart-warming and somewhat inspirational for those who have lost the faith.
“Once I had a neighbor tell me, ‘Annette, if I could just carry you around in my little pocket…’ Well, now you can,” Larkins wrote in her booklet call Journey to Health.
The vegetarian eats nothing but raw food. How can you eat raw food people ask? Easy, she replies. Larkins has been doing it for 15 years and says that her life has never been the same since.
“When I decided to stop eating cooked foods, I remember that I had a craving for fried green tomatoes, she said. “So, I analyzed it and decided to figure out a way to have them without cooking them. I sliced my green tomatoes, soaked them in some amino solution with some seasoning and soon I had dried green tomatoes which were divine.
Born in Asheville, NC, Larkins moved between Detroit and Miami in her early years with her mother while her brother remained in Asheville with her grandfather.
“My brother, James is two years older than me,” Larkins said. “We really weren’t close because we weren’t raised together. My grandfather raised him but when reunited later in life we had a deep connection. We had a lot in common and although he lives in New York, we do talk.”
At the age of 15, Larkins met Amos her husband of 42 years, when she joined his band in 1957. The musical group consisted of four guys and the need a singer, but Amos did not want a girl in the group. The guys convinced Amos to just take a look at her. Well, when he saw Larkins, the rest, like they say, is history.
“Amos is nine years older than me,” Larkins said. “The reason I go married so young was because he was truly my first real love. One of the biggest reasons why our marriage has worked so well is because we have communication, passion and most importantly, we compromise. Amos is not like most people; he can be stubborn, but he’s not a brick wall. And after 42 years, he still treats me like a queen.”
When asked what exactly triggered changing her eating habits, Larkins said she doesn’t know. In her book she recalls being 21 years old and slightly overweight. At the time, Amos owned a butcher shop. Larkins tells the story about walking into the cold storage with the animal flesh hanging on the hooks and how distressing it was, but she had put it out of her mind like she was conditioned to do for so many years.
“I just walked by the kitchen sink to check on the pork chops that were defrosting and it clicked. I never wanted to taste animal flesh again.”
The 110-pound, five-foot-six Larkins doesn’t like to use definite terms but said she hasn’t had a cold in the past 10 years or more. When she does receive the occasional sniffles, she usually finds a natural remedy lie wheat grass, and she’s fine in a couple of hours.
“My body hasn’t received medication for years, she said. “I don’t know how it would react if I took an aspirin.”
Taking her blood pressure is routine. Today it was 120/74 which is normal for her.
The booklet, which includes living food recipes such as wild Rice Superb, Tofu Magic and Creamy Cole Slaw, can be found at Florida Adventist Book Center, Norman Brothers Produce, Natural Food Market, and Afro-N Book and Things.
In her spare time, she enjoys fixing computers and sewing her own clothes. Or you can catch her reading in her home library that more than 5,000 books by inspirational authors such as Pearl S. Buck and Maya Angelou.
“I wear a size two, three or four,” Larkins says casually. “It depends on the material and soon. However, whatever I do wear, I wear the same color throughout. I make sure everything matches If I wear red, I wear everything red including purse, shoes, umbrella, etc.…I’m consistent from head to toe.”
Larkins recently was a guest speaker a t the Raw Food Master Culinary Showcase in Negril, Jamaica, and has written three articles for the Discovery Channel’s Web site.
The queen of raw food’s life seems chaotic; however, Larkins is enjoying all the excitement.
“Things are really busy,” she said. “But I want to welcome people to my new world where I am a loyal living subject and where they will feast. What I really want for people is to motivate, inspire or impact them so that they can do better.”
There really isn’t anything that Larkins is afraid to do. Obstacles mean nothing to her.

For more information, call 305-2381169