The correlation between food and my life view appears to be correlated. In positive and negative ways – from an invitation to share a grill cheese or favorite dish, to the inability to eat or process food when I am extremely stressed, food and the act of eating is tightly linked to the moment at hand. With a word or experience, my appetite goes from wide open to no chance. The image that springs to mind is a toddler’s response to his mother’s attempt to get him to eat food he dislikes! While there are times where one foolishly accepts the offer, as soon as you realize what you have consumed, spitting and rejection follows.
For many, the linkage is obvious. Memories when “you couldn’t stand the sight of food, so miserable you thought you’d be better off dead,” (Psalm 107.18) are still fresh. It is hard to forget! At the opposite end of the spectrum are the moments when we order food on an empty stomach that is in the mood of celebrating. I always order more than I can possible consume. My appetite dominates my thinking until my body reminds me that there are limits to what I can consume.
I jealously watch the moderators. Their approach to each moment seems to accept the high and lows found in life’s extremes with a sense of perspective. As I am caught up in the swell of the moment, I realize that I have lost my sight and connection with my priorities. The very ideals and principals that I hold most dear are dangling just beyond my embrace. The result is that I am busy with something that is not what is most important.
As today begins, I eat gingerly. I let go of my doubts and uncertainties to savor the moment that is now. I sip a coffee, noting its flavors and character. I slowly eat, letting my heart and mind experience the food before I note the details. In my moment’s embrace, I rediscover hope as an answer to doubt and my role with uncertainties.
