Before dedicating my way of life to a more balanced and earth filled process, I didn't give much thought to what kind of food I put in my mouth. If it was going to taste good or give me a familiar feeling or serve any other purpose (other than nutrition), I pretty much ate it. Now things are different when I sit down for a meal. It's special, meaningful, deliberate, and filled with self love and focus. How did my meals become so special to me?
A couple of times per month my husband and I have to make a stop into the pharmacy store to pick up or drop off his mom's prescriptions. If things are going pretty slow at the pharmacy counter we can briefly discuss health related topics with either the pharmacist or one of the techs. One day we talked about working out at the gym and the next time we spoke about diets and fast food. The last time we spoke to one of the techs, he told us how he and his wife were doing a weight loss challenge and how he was in the lead. Yesterday we saw him and things were a bit slow so we had a few moments to catch up on things. He mentioned how he had done a healthy diet for about a week then fell off the wagon and started eating fast food again. He said he loves pizza and Burger King. All I could think of is how much I totally understood what he was saying and how he was feeling. I used to have my weaknesses when it came to fast foods but it has been a terribly long time since I have eaten at one of the burger joints that I honestly can't remember what my favorite item on their menu was. What I do remember, is the feeling I got from eating the fast foods and processed food.
Usually, the burger joints gave me a sense of reward for an accomplishment or something similar. I always associated fast food with happy times and fun stuff. Never nutrition, or vitamins and minerals. Never balanced food groups or balanced sugar levels (lol). Burger joints were there for celebration and nothing more. The processed foods made me feel like time was moving too fast and I needed to hurry before I missed out on something. I would always feel as if taking time to prepare my food was a waste of time and that was something you could never "get back" because once the time has passed.....it was gone and never would return. I remember shopping at my local grocery store and getting all the canned goods I could and all the frozen foods that were on my shopping list. I remember planning the menu's and studying the fried food dishes vs. the baked dishes. It always felt as if I needed to hurry and get done with it all so I would have time to do other things. Things that, at the time, seemed more important and less burdensome. There never seemed to be any time to cut a potato or peel an apple or shred a carrot, etc. I never really felt that eating was something to treasure and get involved with on an emotional level. Once I found the courage to put all that aside and take a chance on a new way of life, I was extremely surprised and overwhelmingly satisfied with what my body gave me in return.
Talking with the pharmacy technician really brought back memories. His situation with attempting to eat healthy while loving the fast food he is so familiar with makes me want to write a book and tell the world about my discoveries and how I understand and relate to their relationships with food. I wish there was an easier way to help people reach a place in their lives that allows them to see, touch, and understand the connection we as human beings have with nutrients in our foods. I wish I could help the pharmacy tech without offending or sounding as if I am an "overly qualified" nutritionist who just graduated and is ready to tame the world (I don't have a degree in nutrition). I really wish there was a way to display the benefits so that everyone would consider making the changes needed to live a wonderfully healthy life.
I'm not sure if anyone would understand or if they would even care about it but if the opportunity presented itself to me I would certainly give it my best shot and bring with me all the passion I have discovered in leading a life as a raw food vegetarian. Does this make me different or separate from others, some might think so. I'm not sure how long this feeling will continue but for now, I am going to embrace it, enjoy the difference, and offer this information as "A special meal" for those curious enough to listen.
