How often do you think about your food while you’re eating it? In our modern world, with our tendency to outsource food production, we’ve lost our connection to almost every aspect of the food chain. My feeling is that this is bound to have consequences down the line…
In centuries gone by, we would have had a distinct sense of connection to, and (therefore) gratitude for, the food we ate – after all, we would have grown and harvested it, or raised and slaughtered it, ourselves. These days we walk into a supermarket and find either bags or slabs of it on shelves or in fridges (and, in the case of animal fleshes, it’s often not even called by the animal it actually is – cow, pig and sheep being some examples).
The importance of energy: All this helps remove us from our connection with the food chain, so that – when we do eat, we usually don’t give the plant/animal a second’s thought. Bearing in mind that we are far more powerful energetically than physically (we only need to look at quantum physics to get an understanding of how much potential energy has) and considering it’s the energy these foods provide that keep us alive, I can’t help feeling this is a vitally important but missing part of an overall healthy living philosophy.
If we could eat with more gratitude, enjoyment and positive intention I think we could impact far more powerfully on ourselves and others in a beneficial way.
Fuel for our bodies and emotions: In addition, we’ve been so conditioned to feel bad about eating certain foods that we really only enjoy them in the moment and then feel guilty and remorseful afterwards. This is a crazy way to bring energy into our bodies.
While it’s true that our physical bodies require certain types of ‘clean’ fuel (much like a car requires petrol, oil and water), our emotional bodies also require certain types of fuel. For me that might mean a piece of cheesecake every now and then; for the next person a chocolate, or a bag of crisps. It doesn’t matter what it is; what matters is how you eat it – what you feel or think while you’re consuming it. Don’t eat it if you feel bad about it; only eat it if you’re willing to love it, enjoy it and be grateful for it and – when you’ve finished it – leave it in the past.
Avoid labelling foods as ‘good’ or ‘bad’, ‘healthy’ or ‘unhealthy’ and start seeing food as something to enjoy, no matter what form it takes. For the most part, eat for your physical body, but be sure to eat for your emotional self from time to time too – this helps us all stay balanced and happy. Just be aware that decisions to eat for the emotional state shouldn’t be made in a state of craving, since cravings tell you that you’ve fuelled yourself incorrectly at the meal just passed. Rather make your decision in a state of neutrality – that way you know it’s being made to fulfil a need, rather than due to a biochemical imbalance.
