Good Life Cuisine

This is a story about my moderation journey. Every person and every story is different, but by listening to many different stories, doing a lot of reflection and practice, you can piece your own puzzle.

I read about writing a personal mission statement and how it can be a great source of energy for personal growth. So I started writing my own. It describes a set of beliefs, values, principles and behaviors with respect to: my self, people in my life, my work, and my marriage. I will share the "self" part. 

I spent the last year learning about issues related to our feelings of self-worth, our self-esteem. After reading and thinking about it, I finally figured out what for me seemed to be a key: "I can make myself feel better".

Sorry for the (for most of you I guess) incomprehensible title. This was a saying of my grand granddad. I never had a chance to meet him, but my dad talks about him with great respect and fondness. He was a man from another time. He fought the First World War. In fact, he went away from his home to join the Balkan wars in the 1912 and came home 7 years later. He was riding with calvary - and at the time they used to carry their rifles around their shoulder, so it was bouncing off his back as he was riding his horse. He had a blue trail from it as long as he was alive. He had to retreat to Corfu, where the Greeks welcomed the army to recover. He barely survived typhus (he was already written off), and fought his way back to his village, some 1000km up north.

Today I would like to share with you what others have shared with me during my first 30¹ two years ago. I started absing, and then there was it: the first social trigger. Social triggers were my major triggers for many reasons:

Some time ago, we were talking about the risks of consecutive drinking days. Most agreed that doing more than 2 or 3 in a row is simply flirting with the creeps. This I found to be especially true in the practice stage, when we are still fighting the old habit. In a later stage, (maintenance?), you might be able to afford some exceptional periods (e.g. vacations) with some more drinking days - but the Creep will always be smiling around the corner.

We often say that change comes in baby steps. You first realize that you want to change something about your behavior before you actually do anything about changing it. Well, actually, this is already a huge step. Probably you've first doubted. Or for once, really listened to someone's comment about your behavior, or read - instead of ignoring - that article describing the negative effects of... It may have taken you years to even realize, admit to your self that the way you behave is not in line with what you would really like for your self.

Only now I think I start to get it 
Addicted to love - what could it mean
When she gets all sweet and loving 
Like with no one else 
To the feeling of happiness
I can take it with my hands 
place it near my heart
to keep me warm 
The feeling that heals 
Totally addicted 
do a lot for it
Teaches me patience like nothing else 
Opens me up to compassion 
as I love the different 
and that takes constant growth 

I've read somewhere a wonderful thought. I think it was in a very good book on overcoming perfectionism (The Now Habit). The "failed people" are not those who failed; successful people fail much more than average in fact; failed people are those who give up after their first failure.

Someone discussed once our ability to learn as we grow up. Some people believe that children's brain is simply more capable of learning. The contrary seems to be the case - at least on the level of our brain's capacity. However, one thing that children do better than most of us adults is: (a) not being afraid of mistakes, and (b) not being afraid to ask. 

#IntuitiveEating teaches us to respect our bodies, by accepting our genetic blueprint, our body as it is, so that we can feel better about who we are. But as I practice the other principles, my body responds with gratitude, and I realize, they are all - in one way or another - about respecting our body (and our soul):