Lessons from our journey {so far}

I had a great conversation a few nights ago night with my dad.  He is working really hard right now on his diet, health and fitness.  I am really proud of him.  He committed to his hard work at just about the same we started FFE.  I don’t think it’s just a coincidence that the timing lined up that way.  It was fun to be encouraging of each other, and to hear about the ways in which he is pushing himself towards his goals. 

I also shared with him about some of the blessings I’ve received from our food month.  I cannot overstate the exquisite, God-led awareness and thankfulness that this is stirring in me. 

• I have relied on God in the last month and turned to Him FAR more than I have in quite some time.  This is a beautiful thing.
• I feel better physically after losing some weight and cutting out mindless snacking.  No more mid-afternoon energy lulls.
• I feel unexpectedly better about myself, not directly from my own efforts, but as if the weight of doing it all myself is off of me.  My over-functioning nob has been turned a little lower, and I hope lower still in the coming months.  (This is a biggie for me.  Thanks be to God.)
• There is a HUGE upside to having drastically fewer options:  less stress.  If the option of going to the grocery store is not there, if the option of getting takeout is not there, if the option of a zillion potential meal choices is not there, things are A LOT less complicated.  Voila -- less stress.  (As an aside:  it makes me realize how much stress is completely self-created and self-imposed in suburban America.  What a mess we make of ourselves!)
• I have been stretched in delightfully creative ways as a cook.  Case in point:  sweet potato gnocchi with browned butter maple glaze.  Who knew?
• Sharing and fellowshipping over a meal is awesome!  The number or complexity of the ingredients on the plate is completely beside the point.  I got an odd kick out of sharing from our dwindling supplies.  The sharing meant just a little bit more that way.
• We’ve had lots of family meals together because we haven’t had lots of “made up” reasons to run around on errands.  (We also have had a relatively slow month of kid activities which helps a ton on the family meal front.)
• We are proud of our kids for rising to the challenge with us.  They have been troopers when they could have chosen to complain endlessly about the sweet potatoes and pork again.  They have each showed a sensitivity and awareness of waste and excess that I don’t know that they would have voiced otherwise.
• The we’re-in-this-together spirit of FFE has been good for Tom and me.  We’ve had really great conversations about what we’re doing, why, what it all means, and what it’s preparing us for.

The biggest thing for me is that I’ve discovered at a profound level that less really is more.  More God.  Better health.  Clearer boundaries.  Less stress.  More creativity.  Sincere generosity.  More face time.  Growth as a family and as a couple.

I love this journey we’re on.