I've always eaten way too fast. I just scarf that food down as if I were starving, which of course I'm not. As long as I've been living and eating people have observed this unattractive, unhealthy habit of mine, and making jokes about it, or asking me if I came from a large family,
which I did not. No, I've simply always been a super-fast, voracious eater, and I don't really know why.Eating is one of the most basic and obvious forms of consumption that humans do. It's not only a necessity, it's pleasurable. Depending on what you're eating, it can be sensuously and joyously so. Ramming food down your throat before you've had a chance to taste it defeats the whole purpose of eating fine food. Yet that's what I've been doing all my life, even when I'm partaking of gourmet cuisine. Kinda stupid, really.
Well, that's all changing now, and not just because I've been missing out on the subtleties and refinements of good food. Fast eating, like fast food (which I don't eat) reminds me of all the things that I most hate about what's wrong with the world - greed, gluttony, and the consumption of more more more. It's the-person-with-the-most-stuff wins mentality. Aargh!
Since I'm always going on about leaving as small a carbon footprint as possible, eating slowly will certainly help this particular human eating-machine do that. I'll eat less because I'll be giving my stomach and brain time to figure out that I've eaten enough. (It takes about twenty minutes to do that, and in those first twenty minutes I sure can pack it in.) That's a win/win situation for both me and the planet. It means I'll lose weight and take up less space, as well as pollute less.
There was a time when I had such a low opinion of myself that I figured all I was doing on this earth was consuming, polluting and taking up space. A friend of mine had to point out to me that we all do that. But we should all be doing less of it, and that includes eating slowly and mindfully. As strange as it seems, eating has become a spiritual disicpline for me. After eating so quickly and unconsciously all my life, slowing down, masticating and tasting my food isn't as easy as it sounds. At this point I'm still diving right into the food as soon as it's laid down before me. (Old habits are hard to break.) It usually takes me several mouthloads before I remember to slow down and chew. To heighten my awareness of zen eating habits, I also say grace to myself before I eat. Or at least I've been trying to. When I forget to say grace before I eat, I'll pause momentarily for a silent prayer of thanks during the meal. Better late than never. It still serves to slow me down while I'm being grateful.
The beauty of all this is that I also get to to indulge in another favourite pastime of mine - breathing. Deep breathing and slow eating go very well together. Really. Slowing down helps me to actually taste the food, and taking long, leisurely breaths every so often makes the food taste better, because it clears out and freshens the olfactory pathways. It also helps with digestion. What's not to like?
Best of all, my new-found discipline in better living suits my sensibilities concerning the evils of a consumer-based society. I want to consume less because it's not just better for me, it's better for the environment. You don't see herds or packs of fat animals in the wild. They live according to need and not greed.
I enjoy eating more than ever these days. I'm eating less and with more grace. It's a great way to apply the human gift of reason to a basic necessity of life. Yum.
-G. P.
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