Reposted from The Eating for Peace Journey Blog
Yesterday, I went to my usual Friday cooking class and at the end of it I felt rather wonderful. We ate barley stew, lemon tart, and as I was leaving a little early to make it to the gym on time, my teacher insisted that I take a cup of Umeboshi tea. Not knowing what it would taste like nor having ever heard of an Umeboshi I had no idea what to expect. I just assumed it would be sweet like tea usually is. Her daughter approached me stirring something inside a steaming blue Solo cup warning me that it would "taste a little salty."
Salty tea?? I've never had a tea that tasted salty before.
I thanked her for making it "to go", said my goodbyes and decided to take the first sip outside where my reaction could be released in private.
I took the first sip and it was awful. It tasted nothing like tea. I trusted what my teacher said however and decided to drink half of it, which was not much considering the cup was half full. If macrobiotic eating was about creating balance then surely this would pay off.
By the time I took the 3rd sip, I started feeling a little funny. Weird is the best way I can explain it. I wasn't even out of the neighborhood before I started drinking some more. Something in me needed this drink, even if it tasted awful. The bitter saltiness turned into oceanic bliss. The taste didn't matter anymore. I only followed my instinct and kept drinking it.
By the time I was halfway home, I felt more alert and responsive than I had ever felt before. I don't know if it was mild irritation due to the fact that I was running late or if it was just the overwhelming experience of trying something new. All I know is that my mind was opened to its full capacity. I felt like a mental superhero. So many thoughts zoomed through my mind. Thoughts about how most of the things I know are wrong. Thoughts about how this drink and food would be essential for me and my recovery. Thoughts about how usually when I'm running late, I have this awful voice inside my head, "Late again, big suprise, I'm always late, I wonder what excuse I'm going to say this time."
Now, instead of the nagging voice I felt empowered to focus on the road. To drive a little faster with precision and mindfulness.
One of the most important things I thought during that drive was that most of the food I've eaten in my life has slowed me down and inhibited me from reaching my full potential. At that point, I could finally see how free I really am. I could visualize how everything we do is a choice, and that those choices empower us immensely. There are few times when I have felt as good as I did during that drive.
So, I went to the gym feeling pretty awesome.
It all was fantastic for a couple of hours. After the gym I needed a little protein, so I decided to go against my better judgement and I ate a little kids sized pork sandwich. When I finished that the soft serve in the corner was very tempting so I had some of that too. It was only about 30 minutes later when I started feeling awful again. Every step seemed like a struggle. Every thought seemed like just too much. Any effort whatsoever felt overwhelming. And to top it all off, I was sick for the rest of the night. Despite much internal nagging I went home, laid down and took a nap.
Well that nap kept me from falling asleep last night. I finally caved in around 2 am and boiled some water to put in some leftover miso stew. I chopped up some fresh shitake mushrooms and put them in with the new water along with some fresh parsley. By 2:30 I was sleeping like a baby.
I woke up this morning rather groggy and running a little late again. But I grabbed some breakfast crackers, my water bottle, and some peanut butter crackers and ran out the door. Luckily there were pork tamales at work :D so I ate one of those too.
The day went on okay despite getting a little sleepy halfway through my shift. When I got off at 1pm, I went to Whole Foods, searched for the ingredients for the tea and went home.
In summary, the past 36 hours have been a roller coaster ride.
Tonight I made some stirfry with leftover rice, chopped carrots, tofu, onion, parsnip, garlic, grated ginger, lemon juice, leftover greens (chopped kale, bok choy, and parsley), soy and shoyu sauce, toasted sesame seed and safflour oils.
It was truly a delicious meal with such a variety of flavors. I am proud to say that I enjoyed every part of it; the preparation, cooking, and consumption.
Tonight's meal was a success! :)
Yesterday, I went to my usual Friday cooking class and at the end of it I felt rather wonderful. We ate barley stew, lemon tart, and as I was leaving a little early to make it to the gym on time, my teacher insisted that I take a cup of Umeboshi tea. Not knowing what it would taste like nor having ever heard of an Umeboshi I had no idea what to expect. I just assumed it would be sweet like tea usually is. Her daughter approached me stirring something inside a steaming blue Solo cup warning me that it would "taste a little salty."
Salty tea?? I've never had a tea that tasted salty before.
I thanked her for making it "to go", said my goodbyes and decided to take the first sip outside where my reaction could be released in private.
I took the first sip and it was awful. It tasted nothing like tea. I trusted what my teacher said however and decided to drink half of it, which was not much considering the cup was half full. If macrobiotic eating was about creating balance then surely this would pay off.
By the time I took the 3rd sip, I started feeling a little funny. Weird is the best way I can explain it. I wasn't even out of the neighborhood before I started drinking some more. Something in me needed this drink, even if it tasted awful. The bitter saltiness turned into oceanic bliss. The taste didn't matter anymore. I only followed my instinct and kept drinking it.
By the time I was halfway home, I felt more alert and responsive than I had ever felt before. I don't know if it was mild irritation due to the fact that I was running late or if it was just the overwhelming experience of trying something new. All I know is that my mind was opened to its full capacity. I felt like a mental superhero. So many thoughts zoomed through my mind. Thoughts about how most of the things I know are wrong. Thoughts about how this drink and food would be essential for me and my recovery. Thoughts about how usually when I'm running late, I have this awful voice inside my head, "Late again, big suprise, I'm always late, I wonder what excuse I'm going to say this time."
Now, instead of the nagging voice I felt empowered to focus on the road. To drive a little faster with precision and mindfulness.
One of the most important things I thought during that drive was that most of the food I've eaten in my life has slowed me down and inhibited me from reaching my full potential. At that point, I could finally see how free I really am. I could visualize how everything we do is a choice, and that those choices empower us immensely. There are few times when I have felt as good as I did during that drive.
So, I went to the gym feeling pretty awesome.
It all was fantastic for a couple of hours. After the gym I needed a little protein, so I decided to go against my better judgement and I ate a little kids sized pork sandwich. When I finished that the soft serve in the corner was very tempting so I had some of that too. It was only about 30 minutes later when I started feeling awful again. Every step seemed like a struggle. Every thought seemed like just too much. Any effort whatsoever felt overwhelming. And to top it all off, I was sick for the rest of the night. Despite much internal nagging I went home, laid down and took a nap.
Well that nap kept me from falling asleep last night. I finally caved in around 2 am and boiled some water to put in some leftover miso stew. I chopped up some fresh shitake mushrooms and put them in with the new water along with some fresh parsley. By 2:30 I was sleeping like a baby.
I woke up this morning rather groggy and running a little late again. But I grabbed some breakfast crackers, my water bottle, and some peanut butter crackers and ran out the door. Luckily there were pork tamales at work :D so I ate one of those too.
The day went on okay despite getting a little sleepy halfway through my shift. When I got off at 1pm, I went to Whole Foods, searched for the ingredients for the tea and went home.
In summary, the past 36 hours have been a roller coaster ride.
Tonight I made some stirfry with leftover rice, chopped carrots, tofu, onion, parsnip, garlic, grated ginger, lemon juice, leftover greens (chopped kale, bok choy, and parsley), soy and shoyu sauce, toasted sesame seed and safflour oils.
It was truly a delicious meal with such a variety of flavors. I am proud to say that I enjoyed every part of it; the preparation, cooking, and consumption.
Tonight's meal was a success! :)
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