emotional/physical

yesterday i had a work meeting in berkeley. i had heard about a cool and huge grocery store called berkeley bowl and decided to go check it and grab some food for the week after the meeting. holy cow. it was outrageous - piles and piles of fresh produce as far as the eye can see! long aisles stocked with bulk bins of every grain, granola, nut, dried fruit, specialty item imaginable! foods i had never heard of; combinations i had never thought of! - truly a grocery wonderland. i browsed and shopped in awe. i wish it was closer to my house or work so i could experiment with all kinds of berkeley bowl finds.

 

  

as my last few posts have probably made pretty clear, i've had food on the mind lately. i love pretty much everything about food - experiencing new tastes, trying different recipes, appreciating how aesthetically beautiful food can be, feeling grateful that god gave us taste buds and the mechanics of food as fuel.

i am also absolutely an emotional eater. and last week i felt very emotionally charged. i abandoned my healthy habits and tried to quell my emotional hunger and hurt with a lot of candy and ice cream and pizza and whatever other food - with no regard for nutrition - crossed my path. of course that all made me feel awful physically to match how i felt emotionally. because i usually eat quite healthily, my body definitely responded to the junk and to the overload.

it's amazing how our bodies can react and speak to us. i know exactly how well i ate the previous day when i wake up in the morning. several mornings last week my body literally felt bruised - my exterior was tender to the touch and my interior felt insulted.  my cough that started three weeks ago lingered and my energy level was low. on sunday i decided i would no longer allow my emotions to control my body.

i will always, always relish occasionally treating myself to (and even more occasionally gorging on) food that i know isn't the best for me. i just will. but i will also always, always continue to work on eating mindfully, on syncing my mind, body and heart into harmonic synergy. i'm so grateful for my healthy body and for the mortal opportunity to learn how to control the carnal.