I catch the bus most days to and from work and study. I enjoy catching the bus, but sometimes the experience is less than optimal. Yesterday afternoon, suffice to say that the ride home was not the most pleasant, in terms of odours emanating from nearby passengers. I was very glad to alight and of course, spend some time in the garden breathing in the lovely fresh air.
While watering the garden, I refilled the bird bath. A short while later, a family of small birds were drinking and bathing in the water. It was a lovely sight and fully restored my humour. Such a simple thing and yet so powerful.
At the moment I'm on an elimination diet trying to work out what foods I keep reacting to. Now me and the word diet just do not go together (it's up there with jogging and photos! NOT something I do), so I was a bit apprehensive as to how this would work out.
Well, I have surprised myself. Not only am I not craving chocolate and other sweet treats, I'm really enjoying the food I'm eating. The diet works on a four day rotation plan, with meat (or other protein source), fruit and a carbohydrate source specified each day. To this you can add certain amounts of specified foods such as cabbage, lettuce, celery and plain rice cakes, etc.
Today I get to eat pears. Pears have never tasted so good. Tomorrow it will be pawpaw. The point is, by appreciating what I can have rather than concentrating on what I can't have, this diet is not the horrible beast I thought it would be. I'm really enjoying the plain simple tastes.
It's really all a matter of your attitude, I think, and you can gain pleasure from even the most mundane things. By appreciating what you have, you lose the desire (well, quite a lot of it ;)) for what you don't have. It really is the simple things in life that matter; we just forget sometimes.
love and light
naturewitch
"By appreciating what you have, you lose the desire for what you don't have." I find this to be true in almost all areas of life, not just dieting.
ReplyDeleteHi Naturewitch....great post....and I do hope you find out what foods disagree with you...
ReplyDeleteWhilst I love food I keep my diet simple.....for me it works....and for my age I feel well. I also eat healthily to keep my depression in check and I find, for me, that helps a great deal.....
Glad you are enjoying the simple approach......perhaps it will be a way of life now??
Hi River
ReplyDeleteI'd have to agree with you - it does work in all areas of life. I used to think I was pretty good at this, but from time to time I have to admit feeling like I want "more". What I would do with it, I do not know, as my life is pretty full already . . .
One thing that the fires have taught me is that nothing is permanent; it can be taken away from at a minute's notice. So all those people who thought they had themselves set up are now finding they have to rebuild.
Maybe we all have to get over our attachment to things and simply enjoy what is. Is this one of the lessons we as a society have to learn from the GFC? Possibly.
I do know that practising gratitude and appreciation help. xx
Hi Cheryl
ReplyDeleteMy diet is actually pretty good (compared to lots of people), but unfortunately my gut took a battering from long periods of heavy antibiotics when I was doing the chemo and stem cell transplant. It's never properly recovered and although I've been limiting obvious problem foods like wheat and dairy for quite a while now, it's still not sorted.
It's now day 6 of the elimination diet and I have to say that the bloating is decreasing each day. I'll have about another 10 days to go on this, then start introducing foods again to find out just what is causing all this fuss.
As for simple, that's what I'm aiming for. And I will get there . . . xx
Good luck with the elmination diet NW, I did it years ago after I did the usual blood testing and skin-prick testing to work out my topical allergies. Best thing I ever did! Not only did it get everything out of my system (which was wonderful) it opened my eyes to the myriad of things I am intolerant of (many, many things). Luckily, intolerances are cumulative (as opposed to allergies), so once they are out of my system I can tell when I am reaching my 'threshold' and eliminate them completely for a week or two. You'll feel like a new person!
ReplyDeleteCheers, Julie
Hi Julie
ReplyDeleteThanks for that. I've been aware of wheat and dairy for a little while now, but I suspect there may be other things. Just need to get it sorted once and for all. I'm hoping it will mean a bit more energy and little less weight. xx