If you love them, feed them!

If there is one thing that makes me feel amazingly warm inside and hopeful, it is watching other people enjoy a meal I've cooked for them. The process of cooking, itself, is wondrous and fulfilling to me. I learn so much about myself in the process. Probably because I am so focused on what is happening, that I don't have the space in my mind for the clutter of the outside world.

When I cook, I reminisce, but more often than that, I envision the type of lifestyle I want in the future. In my future I picture snowy white winters filled with warm stews and delicious home baked bread. I see kids running around competing with each other to see who gets the biggest cookie right out of the oven. Thanksgivings filled with so much food that everyone walks away with loads of leftovers to take home. More often than not, I see myself falling asleep peacefully and with my mind cleared.

It's easy to fall into a rut and think that no matter what we do, nothing will ever make us feel better. Remember those movies where the girl who is so sad over her breakup that she stuffs her face and never leaves the bed? Well, sad to say, a lot of the time for many people that is how they handle pain. It's understandable. After all, seeking comfort in familiar things tends to heal the heart. The thing those movies never tell you, however, is that sometimes it feels even better to take yourself to the market, get a bunch of ingredients, and cook your heart out.

For the sad hearts, I suggest cooking pastas with rich tomato based sauces, delicious bread full of herbs, and mushrooms with loads of cheese. For those seeking bravery, definitely go with a strong steak (if you're a meat eater that is) and potatoes with a nice glass of wine, nothing makes you feel more ready to tackle anything than a good old fashioned meal. For those in love, bake a cake, a pie, whatever is sweet but tart and keeps your head in the clouds but your feet on the ground. I swear, there is a meal for every emotion. Food is such a beautiful thing when it is handled right. Food should NEVER make you feel guilty. You should love what you're eating and your body just as much after eating it. The right food, will never make you feel disgusting.

It's important to know how to cook food in a healthy and delicious way, as much as it is important to enjoy it wholeheartedly. If you feel guilty about what you've eaten, chances are it was not cooked the right way and that is why you feel so sluggish and depressed about it afterward.

I have friends who have severe issues with food. I love each and every one of them so much that it is often on my mind that I would love to show them that food can love them back in a healthy way, not in the frightening way they've become used to approaching it. I also had severe problems with my relationship with food. In middle school and high school I battled with bulimia, with long periods of not eating, and pill popping, all to fit into an image of myself that I really thought I wanted. It's not as though food is the real problem, but approaching it with a fresh idea of what is POSSIBLE to do with it, might help overcome this.

When a friend gave me this website to view new recipes as well as a fresh perspective on what food is really about, my passion for cooking escalated and any guilt that used to accompany left in an instant.

Visit: TasteSpotting

You're probably thinking "That is not possible. Things like that don't go away so easily." and you'd be right, it wasn't JUST the site that gave me that closure. It was the many hours I spent reading and discovering how other HEALTHY people approached food and how they felt about it. It was beautiful. The food that we disregard so often is actually gorgeous when you see it for what it is. Sans chemicals, food tastes BETTER. With less salt/oil and more herbs, food tastes light and filling without the "ugh" factor after it.

When I finally have my own home one day, I intend to take those friends by the hand and lead them to a table where the food invites them in, and says goodbye to them in a healthy way, a happy way. I want them to eat the yummy things they are afraid of and smile happily in the process. I want to see them enjoy who they are, the body they in, and the food that they get to have that day.

Eating disorders are not funny, chronic dieting is frightening, and pill popping is just downright reckless. If you love someone who has these issues, discover a new way to cook, get them psychological help, and feed them the guiltless foods you learn about along the way. Remind them that they are wonderful, but hold them when they are in doubt without trying to force them to see themselves differently. It will always take time, sometimes even a lifetime.

Eat safe, Dine happy, Live free,
Always with love,
Plutonia