This morning I woke up to a text from a good friend who lives on the west coast. Because of the time difference I often don’t see her texts until the next day. And I’m really glad I got this one this morning.
Full disclosure, and I think I’ve talked about this before, but I’ve been having a whole lot of anxiety lately. Some of it brought on by the medication I have to take from my previous bout of b.c., but much of it also coming from old wounds surfacing, I believe, in order for me to deal with them and let them go.
Pluuuuuusssssss….as some of you may know, we got a puppy. An infant. The kind you have to watch constantly. (As I speak he’s ripping something apart under my desk…and oh, he just peed. So I’ll be right back….) If you’ve ever brought up a puppy, you get it.
So this morning’s text included an excerpt from a 60 Minutes segment about how French women don’t get fat even though they eat a lot of what most people would say is bad for you. Butter, wine, chocolate, cream, etc. The woman in the segment wrote a book under the same name. I read it years ago and it’s a pretty good read. This friend an I have both lost some weight recently and are looking to keep it going/start it up again which is what lead her to send the text.
But here’s the part that got me thinking. The reason French women don’t get fat really doesn’t have anything to do with the food. It has to do with their enjoyment of life. It has to do with the fact that they savor every bite. That their meal times are always an experience. That they use all of their senses to ‘eat.’ And how they focus on joy everyday in their lives.
Did you know that much of France literally closes down midday so folks can relax and enjoy a full blown meal? While we here in the U.S. rarely even stop to eat. In fact, we’re pretty much constantly going. Whipping through life just to get it done believing that THEN we can kick back and enjoy life. But here’s the thing…
When is THEN?
As I watched the segment my friend sent I found myself asking myself that question. I’ve been talking a lot lately and working a lot myself on ‘enjoying the journey.’ I think it’s time I started walking my talk and actually CHOOSING to do just that.
So. Even though the puppy just got excited and peed in my office right after I brought him in from outside, I’m going to choose to enjoy this time in his life (luckily he’s extremely cute…). In fact,
I’m going to choose to live the life I love RIGHT NOW.
Who’s with me?
Live and learn with love…