For the Love of Food: Part III
Dear reader,
This is chapter 3 in my food journey. An ode to Food Herself. Food, with a capital F.
For the Love of Food Part I was written in 2016 when I first started The Free Spirit Foodie. It was one of my very first blog babies. I wrote it to share my life’s food journey and how I went from a Taco Bell fanatic to a Whole Foods snob, how my love affair with food navigated a major shift in my life, and how I let that love affair guide me into part II.
I then wrote For The Love of Food Part II in 2017 as a declaration. I had just hit a fork in the road and made a very tough, but conscious decision to become a vegetarian. Prior to writing that post, I was having the identity crisis of all identity crises. I was living in an Ashram in India, meditating one too many hours a day, shedding layers upon layers, digging deep into my core.
The summer of 2017 I felt so far removed from who I was, yet had never felt more like myself. Stripping the labels was painful. It was like ripping off a bandage that covered my entire body. “Foodie” was one of those labels. I had to redefine what foodie meant for me. And for whatever reason, that was quite challenging.
For me, foodie meant a lover of food. A lover of ALL food. That, I was. It was a title I was extremely proud of, one that defined me so heavily, I didn’t know who I was without it.
I was, afterall, The Free Spirit Foodie.
How can I be called a foodie if I was eliminating the staples of meat and fish from my diet? How can I possibly live up to that title as a vegetarian!?
I didn’t know. There was a lot I didn’t know during this transitionary period of my life. But I knew one thing. That I had to honor the s*%t out of that little voice. She brought me this far. I had to trust where she was asking me to go next.
Every ounce in my being just knew I had to embrace a new title. “Hi, I’m Janelle, The Free Spirit Foodie, The Vegetarian”.
This brings me here, presenting to you For the Love of Food Part III. Yet another ode to Food Herself that I’ve been needing to write for sometime now. This is my story of how I redefined what foodie meant to me.
-
Becoming a vegetarian in India was easy.
I was spoiled with the most fragrant and flavorful vegetable dishes on the planet. Daily consumptions of dal makhani, masala dosa, and saag paneer left me feeling anything but deprived. It was a painless, tasty transition.
After a year of backpacking India, I came back home in 2018 with the worst acne of my life. My skin was inflamed, irritated and begging for help. It was then that the Universe brought me the Medical Medium. That same little voice that told me to go to India and become a vegetarian was now telling me to take medical advice from a medium. Having suffered with acne for over 15 years, I was desperate. So I did.
I made the decision in an instant. I did everything my new health guru told me to do. Everything he said resonated with me on such a soul level. I learned how to drown out the noise from the overwhelming health and wellness industry, honor my intuition and eat intuitively.
I cut out dairy, gluten, soy, corn, and canola oil. I began juicing celery every single day and eating a lifetime of fruits in a matter of weeks. I took all the supplements, read all the books, listened to all the podcasts. The funny thing is, I forgot all about my skin and started feeling good just as I was.
This was when I transitioned into plant-based.
Yes, my skin healed! Plus, I had no more migraines, UTIs, brain fog or sinuses. Things I didn’t even know needed to be healed were healing. I had a newfound love for foods I never before appreciated. Food at its simplest, purest form; Fresh fruit, raw vegetables, freshly squeezed juices, smoothies, vegan and gluten-free everything. I felt amazing!
Then I hit a plateau.
I felt stuck in my healing journey. I wasn’t exactly sure where I was trying to go, but I felt stuck. Then eventually frustrated. Honestly, I missed bread. And pizza. My God, did I miss pizza! After 9 months of strict Medical Medium living, I started to feel a little sad. Am I really NEVER going to eat pizza again!?
I was so worked up about avoiding all the no foods, my healing started to feel counterproductive. I felt restricted. And for those who know me, I don’t do restrictions.
I am, afterall, The Free Spirit Foodie.
It wasn’t bread I needed. It was a shift in perspective.
That happened in Cuba. I remember the exact moment the shift took place. My uncle told me he loved to bake. He wanted to bake me a cake, but he knew I didn’t eat eggs and didn’t know how to make the cake without eggs. I was heartbroken. My family, whom I just met, wanted so badly to selflessly share the little they had with me, and here I was, being PICKY about the ingredients! In Cuba, out of all places. I was disgusted with myself.
I told him I would love to try his cake! His face lit up. He spent the rest of the afternoon whipping up the most beautiful Cuban sponge cake, soaked in sugar syrup and lovingly decorated with the famous meringue. “Felicidades Jenny”, he spelled out. I am brought to tears just thinking about that damn cake. For the next three days, I devoured it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I came home from that trip with the flu, a fresh perspective, and zero f*&ks. I realized then that it was never about what I was or wasn’t eating, but my intention behind each bite. I can inhale all of the celery juice in the world, but if I’m doing it out of fear, then it’s more detrimental than healing. Moving forward, I was only going to eat out of love.
This was when I became a conscious foodie.
For me, a conscious foodie is an eater who eats with intention and awareness. Someone who doesn't blindly eat simply because it tastes good, but takes into account every life that was involved in making that dish. She thinks about the farmers, the land, our animal brothers and sisters, the truck driver, the kid who stocked the shelf, the chef, the entire supply chain before, during and after her meals.
A conscious foodie buys the story, not necessarily the product. She doesn’t stand up to eat. She sits down for each meal, eats slowly and deliberately, thinking of God with each bite. That’s because a conscious foodie views food as God Herself. When she eats, she communes with God.
A conscious foodie doesn’t eat to fill a void. She eats to nourish her mind, body and spirit. She knows that her relationship with food is directly linked to her relationship with her higher self.
A conscious foodie chooses to sacrifice other areas of her life so that she can spend her hard earned money on food products and cafes that care. A conscious foodie chooses to pay the price so that those at the beginning of the supply chain don’t have to.
My newfound love and appreciation for conscious food had me eating my best food life in Thailand, drinking third-wave coffee from passionate baristas in Vietnam, and being gifted with all of the delicious vegan and gluten-free goodies in Bali!
I still eat predominantly plant-based. I’m still a vegetarian. I’m 90% vegan. But I don’t identify with food labels because absolutes don’t work for me. I eat plants because I genuinely love the flavors, the variety, and most importantly, the way it makes me feel.
Not to mention, plant-based food is incredibly creative. To turn a cashew into a pizza takes so much loving imagination. To make a burger out of beans requires will from the higher self. To bake a moist, gooey chocolate cake with flax seeds instead of eggs is the epitome of creativity.
But if I want a pizza, I eat the pizza. A quality pizza pie that’s been blessed with my intentions. I enjoy the s*%t out of that pizza with gratitude, awareness and purpose. That pizza is just as much God as the kale chips. For me, it’s all from the hands of Spirit.
I am, afterall, The Free Spirit Foodie.
For the past four years, I’ve been writing about how much I love food, but I sit here today understanding what it means to be in love with Food (with a capital F).
I finally understand what it means to be The Free Spirit Foodie.
