Food

I love food, some people call me a foodie, but I am not so sure I want to be labeled as such.  My journey with food began at birth as I come from a long line of people who love food!  These days, my journey is finding balance with food.  I want to continue to enjoy a wide variety of foods and lately have been reminded of something my Noni used to say “you don’t need to be on a diet, you should eat everything”   I agree!  I also know that she meant to eat everything in moderation.  I decided that this year would be the beginning of becoming my personal best.  Exactly what that meant, I did not know when the calendar flipped to 2011, but I did know it would be true.  I began to consider my lifestyle.  I was eating healthy and I was walking daily (with my dogs), but it wasn’t enough.  I wanted something better for myself. Change….was going to happen. 

The thing about food is that it is essential. You need food to survive.  Food is fuel for your body.  Some people really do see food as fuel for their body….and that’s it.  At times, I wished I was one of those people.  I thought it would be so simple: food = fuel.  I could just calculate how much fuel my body needed and be done with it.  Well, for me it was not that simple…..I love food.  I love thinking about it, I love preparing it and I love eating it.  So, for me it is more than just fuel. 

I grew up eating real food and by real food, I mean food that was prepared in our home.  We had a garden in our yard that grew the most wonderful vegetables and herbs.  Tomatoes so red and sweet that we would eat them like apples.  Green beans that when snapped would squirt a sweet juice in your eye.  Zucchini, summer squash, peppers, cucumbers, basil…..such an array of color.  We ate from the garden, it nourished us.  Meals were prepared from fresh ingredients and we ate simply. 

These days, I find myself thinking of a lot about how my grandparents ate and am taking a page from their book.  Of course, I am making it my own and that’s what this is all about.  Finding the balance, figuring out what works for me.  I think it will be an interesting journey.