Running Out Of

Time - where has it gone? I'm still here; taking care of my boys, my husband, myself. I've been running, walking, biking - just a little bit of everything. My left hip area is still giving me trouble. I'm trying to stretch, massage the area, some home hydro-therapy, but all I really want is for it to just go away and stop hurting.

Today is one of those "I just can't get going" days. I'll be back when I can.

Food, Glorious Food!

Since I was a young girl, I’ve had issues with my weight. Some of it was in the genes. My mother, at eighteen years of age, was 5’1” and over 200 pounds. Also, my parents were in their forties when I was born. Back in the sixties, this was unusual. It was very much liked being raised by my grandparents. They did their best to spoil me, which in most cases meant I could eat whatever I wanted. No green vegetables for me, I liked French fries and mashed potatoes. If I wasn’t hungry for breakfast, I could eat a couple of homemade frosted brownies instead. The absolute worst “food” I was allowed to eat on a regular basis had to be grease bread. This was the white bread that my mother used for draining her fried chicken. I didn’t care much for the chicken meat, just give me a plate of skin, corn and my beloved grease bread and I was happy, happy. As the old song goes, “Mama’s lil’baby loves shortenin’ bread!” Actually, I think shortenin’ bread is spread straight from the can. Grease bread is the term post-frying. Needless to say, I was an overweight child. Now I know my parents loved me, they just didn’t know much about nutrition and they didn’t realize the damage being done, both physically and emotionally. I suffered mercilessly at the tongues of my peers. Now over thirty years later, I still have memories of their hateful taunts. Satan still brings them to life, trying almost daily to undermine my confidence and happiness.

It took many years for me to eat green foods, broiled items, fruits that weren’t drenched in heavy syrup or pudding. I’ve gone from eating everything fried and overly processed to being a lacto-ovo vegetarian, a vegan, and now finally a flexitarian. I understand that term stands for someone who is mostly vegetarian, eating whole grains and fresh produce with an occasional piece of poultry or fish added to the mix. I guess that’s not entirely true either. Since I’ve lived in Texas forever, it’s a requirement to eat an occasional piece of brisket. I’m not kidding – it’s in the State Pledge: “I vow to eat cow - smoked to tender, juicy perfection – as my carnivorous cravings shall allow.” So, I won’t turn my nose up at a BBQ plate if it’s placed before me.

All in all, I’ve come a long way since my grease bread days. I exercise regularly; running and biking and keeping up with my boys. I eat healthfully; avoiding trans fats, high fructose corn syrup and using as many fresh ingredients as possible. Most importantly, I understand that I’m wonderfully made. I’m a work of art designed by the Master of the universe who looks upon my heart. And in heaven, there will be no cellulite.

Link and Read

As a member of a local non-profit organization, I volunteered to write one of the monthly devotionals for our website. I felt inspired to write about my half marathon experience and Easter. Seems like an odd combination, huh? Check it out at www.liveitonline.org.

More later...