making friends with food

So, tonight I'll be packing my books, p.j.'s, and personals for a week-long, all-inclusive trip to the Hirakata Hospital in Osaka, Japan. My trip is packed with a few tests which names end with the word: 'scope!' Yes, it's a week of invasive testing with the hopes of finding out what my guts are trying to tell me.
Today is a day of many preparations, but perhaps the most unforgettable preparation of the day is to eat the 3 meals of powdered/mush food given to me by the hospital before the first exam tomorrow. I just had the first meal of rice porridge, powdered egg, and powdered miso soup. Nasty... I am quite picky about certain textures of food....so it's been a roller coaster ride of gag reflex with this meal! The food is very salty, and once boiling water is poured over these 'foods,' a jelly-like texture emerges. Water and tea chasers are saving me from this traumatic food experience!
The three meals and snack are packaged in a delightful box entitled: 'Enimaclin.' There are 4 photos of each meal on one side of the box. Each photo shows a nice presentation of each meal. Lovely dishes filled with 'food'...a different place mat for each meal...even color-coordinated floral arrangements. It nearly distracts or camouflages the fact that the food tastes like a mouth-full of seawater, and already digested food!
Beyond the food though, I feel better about staying in the hospital for 1 week. Given the nature of these tests, I wouldn't feel comfortable traveling back and forth over the course of a week. Besides, it will give me time to read and maybe (if I'm not too stubborn) I will find some space to listen to myself, and to reflect upon this whole thing.