COOKING AND EATING WITH SPIRIT! A Recipe for Self-Expression

Food fulfills a basic human need: it gives us the sustenance we need in order to live. But while it is true that without food we can not sustain life, and frankly, with too much food we will likely develop any number of health issues that could inhibit or do away with life altogether, there is more to take into consideration with food than merely the gross amount or even the nutritional value. Food is not just a thing to maintain life; food is an invitation to life, particularly a life of Spirit Wellness. Finding inspiring ways to cook and eat provide a great avenue for Self-expression. And Self-expression is the greatest example of the human spirit in action!

Now there are plenty of resources that can tell you what specifically defines a healthy diet; likewise which nutri­tional components are essential in order to keep your body alive and well. Admittedly, I am not one of these resources, and this post is not a guide for body wellness. This post is about learning how to express your Self through cooking and eating in order to help you better satisfy your deepest desires and achieve Spirit Well­ness. And there are lots of great ways to do just this! Here are a few examples.

Resonant Recipes: We all have favorite recipes that speak to our deepest desires. What can be fun is to marry these together in order to create a meaningful meal with friends or family. Before a holiday or special occasion, ask guests to give you a “Resonant Recipe,” (one that either you will make or they will bring for the event) and to tell you briefly what is the story behind it—in other words why it resonates with them. Then put together a small booklet with each recipe and story for each person (or couple) to take with them.

The Full Mealtime Monty: We often think of going out to dinner as a “date.” But some­times staying home can be as much fun, if not more. The next time you want some special time with a loved one (either someone new or a long-term partner), make a dinner date, only both choose the recipes, both shop for the food together, and both cook and eat the meal. Allow “Desert” to be sponta­neous!

Family Food Time: Despite many efforts to the contrary, the days of the entire family eating together seven days a week seem to be past. But this shouldn’t mean that we give up on the spirit of the practice. Mealtimes have always provided a way for people to get out of the daily chaos of tasks and to-do lists and catch up on the goings-on of their individual and collective lives. So if everyday meals seem too much, create a time, at least once a week, to come together and con­nect as a family, but also connect specifically around food. This doesn’t mean, however, that only one person (like the parent) is in charge of making the meal. Get everyone involved, including the young ones; make each family member responsible for some aspect of the meal. And then share and savor it together. The sooner we make cooking and eating a priority in our families, the sooner everyone will feel in­volved in and enthusiastic about the process.

Throughout time and across culture cooking and eating has served as a way for individuals, fami­lies, and communities to come together. In fact, almost all the great wisdom traditions have food as a central part of their rituals and identity, and so is evidence of its role in the collective aspect of spirit wellness. But food is also important to our individual effort for Spirit Wellness: what we consume is a window into our being; what’s more, it is an act of Self-expression, and can be a useful measure for how well we are living from spirit. So harness your inner voice and vision in the service of food. Use your imagination, creativity, resourcefulness, ideas, and humor to start cooking and eating with spirit!

BOOST YOUR SPIRIT BY CREATING A SPIRITFUL SPACE!

The ancients knew that creating spaces that nourished, stimulated, and awakened the spirit mattered to a well-lived life. And because they didn’t have dedicated networks, magazines, books, and media personalities to enlighten them on a daily basis about the “latest trend,” their experience of design was anything but creating flashy, dazzling, or hip rooms that were “in style.” You see history’s sages knew a little secret about the “good life,” one that has seemingly escaped our modern culture; and it is this: the purpose of design (and décor) isn’t to go for what’s “in”; rather it’s to go for what inspires. Our spaces, whether they be a room, an office, a workshop, an entire home, or even a small cubical, should symbolize and provides us with a deeper sense of meaning, purpose, value, connection, resilience and transcendence—the Six Fundamental Human Desires that keep us happy and well, and make life worth living.

Creating a Spiritful Space is ultimately about leveraging these Six Fundamental Human Desires to inspire our spirit (and the spirits of those with whom we reside) to truly give us a sense of home. In this way, our spaces become a reflection of who we really are, and what really stirs us, rather than merely some shadow of what some magazine, show host, or trendy designer says we are or should be. When someone walks into any space that we inhabit, that person ought to immediately be able to say, “I really have a sense of who this person is and what drives their deepest desires.” Contrary to popular opinion, design and décor is not about copying and pasting from what others have already done; rather it’s about invest­ing in and creating based on who you already and uniquely are.

So what do you need to create a Spiritful Space? The answer is a Spiritful Blueprint which comprises five things: a room, inspira­tion, a map, a plan, and the desire to express your Self and keep your spirit alive and well. (For more detailed information, click here to read an excerpt from the “Design & Décor” chapter in Spirit Wellness.)

No place is perfect, but everywhere can be home. Creating a Spir­itful Space is not about being cool or artistic, nor is it about necessarily “doing over,” “buying new,” or finding the most expensive item or treatment. It is about using our innate and unique creativity to leverage those things that lie at the heart of each of our lives, and which can most inspire our spirit.

Seek Out the Small Stuff

Richard Carlson's book Don't Sweat the Small Stuff became an overnight success when it gave readers advice on how to keep from letting the little things in life drive us crazy. He was right (and not alone in saying so) insofar as he stressed the importance of not allowing ourselves to get caught up in or dragged down by the everyday mire of life. But let's not forget that life is also full of "little things" that can, in a single moment, transform the way we live.

If you realy want to experience how even small change can lead to profound transformation in all areas of your life, try this: instead of just focusing on, and trying to manage, the negative effects of all the little crap in life, try "SEEKING OUT THE SMALL STUFF," specifically finding things that give you a sense of Meaning, Purpose, Value, Connection, Resilience, and Transcendence, the Six Fundamental Human Desires that make us happy and whole, and keep our spirit well everyday, come what may.

Here are six tips:

• DISCOVER MEANING. Meaning helps us to make sense of life and find significance in life. It helps us understand how we fit into the world. It gives us the feeling that we (and stuff in general) matter. And it helps us to craft a rich and rewarding existence. Meaning speaks to our desire to have a life filled with understanding and awareness, peace and satisfaction. Each night finish the statement, "Today I found meaning in..."

• REALIZE OUR PURPOSE. Purpose unifies our life by directing us toward some ultimate concern around which we shape our lives. It shows us what we're meant to be doing if we're really to be us and not someone else. Purpose speaks to our desire to have something that gives us a reason to live, and the will to live. Each morning finish the statement, "I can and will find purpose by doing..."

• EMPLOY OUR VALUES. Values help us to determine what we give priority and precedence. What's more, they focus our energy on what's right and real. Values speak to our desire to have something to work for, find deserving, invest in, and live by. Once a week take stock of the values operating in your life. Ask yourself, "What choices did I make or actions did I take that show what I value most? How can I increase this next week?"

• CREATE CONNECTIONS. Connections help us relate to and form relationships with others. Moreover, they make us plug in rather than opt out. Connection speaks to our desire to bond and belong, to have a type of familial warmth and security. Before you go to sleep, finish this statement, "Today I found connection with or by doing..."

• BUILD RESILIENCE. Resilience shows us how to flourish, not despite but because ofadversity, in a way that actually improves rather than hurts our lives, and fortifies rather than weakens our spirit. Resilience speaks to our desire to live fully, love deeply, and endure...every day, come what may. At the end of the week ask yourself, "What did I do this week to overcome challenges? How specifically was I resilient?"

• EXPERIENCE TRANSCENDENCE. Transcendence helps us to wake-up to the fullness of life--to touch or experience something greater than our day-to-day lives, something extraordinary. Transcendence speaks to our desire for wonder and awe. In the morning ask yourself, "What one thing can I do today that will give me a moment of transcendence? And at the end of the day ask, "What experience of transcendence surprised me today?"

For more information on "seeking out the Six Fundamental Human Desires, visit www.spiritfulliving.com.