My family tells me that they consider me their ‘food’ person – that my ideas and attempts inspire them to learn more, or make better decisions, and cook good food. This makes me feel good. Being in Burlington, I meet people every day who inspire me in this regard, most I am intimidated to even get into a conversation with. Sometimes I feel like I am one of those people who have yet to move past the ability to spit out what I read (…what’s the word?)
No matter – there is no need for me to find more things to feel guilty about. Tonight I spent probably 2 hours in City Market, 40 minutes of that conversing with a yoga friend who is also my inspiration to buy a juicer.
What all these people have in common is their attempt to be aware of their actions and decisions – in this case, regarding food, and what they put into their bodies. Ingesting is necessary, it is a requirement for life, and I think good, healthy food is a requirement to fulfill our humanness.
I am reading a great book right now called “Gardens; An Essay on the Human Condition,” by Robert Pogue Harrison. I know, heady. Did you even make it past reading his name? Though scholarly and dense, there are some simple ideals in there I found and love.
He reflects on a photography book by Margaret Morton called “Transitory Gardens, Uprooted Lives” that features gardens created by the homeless or destitute in New York. Rather than creating some kind of shelter, which we would assume they would be in more immediate need of, these people create gardens, a place of repose. “A sanctuary of repose…is a distinctly human need, as opposed to shelter, which is a distinctly animal need, so much so, that where the latter is lacking, as it is for these unlikely gardeners, the former becomes all the more urgent.”
We need good food like we need transitory gardens – our animal need can fulfill itself simply through the ingestion of calories, but our human need must be satisfied through healthy choices. Choices good for our body, community, world and yessss SOUL. We must utilize and satisfy our consciousness.
And don’t worry, I’m not a super food freak…yet. I believe comfort food is just as important for our minds and bodies as any spirulina shake. We’ve just got to find some kind of balance and consistency…I’m on the search.