My journey to slow food

I have learned so much since starting my health journey. I’ve really honed in on high-quality food, non-toxic living and movement. But what I am learning now is something that brings this all full-circle. I will always continue to advocate for high-quality food, living a low-toxic lifestyle and movement, but there’s something that’s been lurking behind all of this and I think it’s the missing piece to what we as humans are looking for.

Over the last year, I have made intentions to be more intentional in my life. From what I purchase, to how many hours I spend on screens, making sure I get outside and get sunshine each day, and being present with what is in front of me. I always think, “Is this serving my future self or not?” If the answer is no, why am I repeatedly doing it? The shifts I have made in my life have been monumental for overall well-being, health and happiness. I was recently in a part of town that is filled with chain stores. I do not spend my time at these places anymore, but I had saved up for a pair of shoes that I had been wanting. Let me tell you, I was such a bad experience and I ended up resenting the shoes… I got stuck in a parking lot for 20 minutes, waited in a very long line to exit the parking lot, was inundated with people trying to sell me extra things, and then became angry and frustrated at people who were also angry and frustrated. All of that could have been avoided if I just did not have to have this one pair of shoes. This was NOT how I wanted to spend a Saturday. People do this every. single. weekend. People operate in this manic-nervous system-like place every day. I was that person. Sometimes I think that’s maybe what caused my health issues in the first place. Like it wasn’t just one thing, it was a culmination of what I was feeding my body, how I was not sleeping, how I was over-exercising, how was I staring at blue light late into the night, how I was stressed all the time and the list goes on.

I’ve spent a lot of time observing how people move through life. I don’t know if it’s me trying to find meaning in things or just plain curiosity. I’ve seen (and experienced) first-hand how rushing through life and constantly trying to keep up can lead to absolute and complete burnout. I’ve met many people over the years who have “tried everything” and still do not feel better health-wise. What if we peeled back some layers there? What does a day in the life look like? Are you running from one place to the next and do you need to? Are your kids in every afterschool activity possible and do they need to be? Do you really have to go to that random event someone invited you to or can you just say no? Do you really need the expensive shoes or are the ones you have serving you well? Do you actually have the time to cook but are just filling it with television or bored-scrolling?

If you are in a tailspin of to do-lists right now, I implore you to take a deep breath and put “evaluate my schedule” on your list. Ask the above questions. Really ask yourself if certain things need to be done or if they can wait or be cancelled altogether. Once I stopped comparing myself to others, and really sat in the presence of what I already had, things really changed. I donated so many things no longer serving me to allow space for simply more space, physically and mentally. I started every day with gratitude and spent more time hiking, getting outside, being with friends and family, and taking care of the things I already have. (Btw all of these things are pretty inexpensive if not free!)

What the heck does this have to do with cooking, Meghan?! Realizing that life does not have to be a hamster wheel is what ultimately lead me down a path to ‘Slow Food,’ a term coined by Carlo Petrini in 1986. After reading Alice Waters’ book, We Are What We Eat: A Slow Food Manifesto, my view on the American culture really started to shift and I realized the connection between so many things. I want to share with others what I have learned and help them slow down their lives so they can intentionally connect with themselves and the world around them. Food helped me heal from chronic illness but it wasn’t until I started understanding how I interacted with food that I felt 100% recovered. Food became the “gateway drug” into slow living/slow food for me.

If you have made it thus far, thank you for reading my thoughts I have been sitting on for a while. I think our relationship with the world is so crucial to our success in life. I think starting with the way we interact with our food can change a lot of things. We eat food everyday and we have the choice of how we eat that food. Some ideas for connecting to that food is taking some deep breaths before each meal. Chew your food until it is completely liquefied and then swallow. Support a small business instead of buying from a large grocery store where who knows where all that food came from (i.e. farmers markets, small ranches selling sides of beef, or independent grocery stores), set the table if you are home and maybe even light a candle. Set the stage for a pleasant meal experience. You are in the drivers seat and it just takes that one step to make a change. And who knows, it could produce a ripple effect of becoming more intentional in your own life.