Are We Really What We Eat and Think?

Are We Really What We Eat and Think?

If it is true that we are what we eat, then I should look like a very large bowl of chocolate ice cream.  Nice and rounded.   No sharp edges.  Maybe with a little carmel drizzled on top.  A dollop of whipped cream, some nuts and maybe a cherry.  Oh--a banana?  Might be time to think about veggies.  Seriously.

If it is true that we are what we think, I believe I have a little work to do in that area as well.  Sometimes I think the kindess thoughts.  I see a little old lady and think awwww.  Isn't she sweet.  But then the dark side of me grabs hold, and I think other thoughts.  Who knows?  Maybe she is not nice at all.  Not every old lady is gentle.  My own grandmother was a little different from my friend's grandmothers.  She smoked all day.  She loved to play dominos and cards with her daughter, my aunt.  My aunt was older than my dad yet she lived most of her single and married life with my grandmother.  When I think about that, I wonder why.  Too late to investigate that.  She could throw out a colorful word now and then.  And she and her daughter, my aunt, got in the worst arguments about cheating.  At both games.  They would yell at one another and walk out of the room.  Eventually, things would settle down.  They would pick up the game where they left off.  I doubt I would call Granny sweet.  I would certainly call her interesting.  One thing is a given.  She loved all of her grandchildren.  I have kind thoughts about her.

It is true that our thoughts have the ability to drive our actions.  If I think long enough about needing a pair of shoes, it won't be long until I am in the store trying on twenty pairs in search of the one that is just right.  When I am dissatisfied with the way a room in my house looks, I will think about it until I have a new plan.  What to do to make it right will almost drive me crazy.  Only when I have redone the room will I be able to remove the thoughts from my mind.

Sometimes thoughts appear from nowhere and simply won't leave.  They hang around and bother the heck out of me.  It's like a little nagging noise in my head.  The more I think about the thoughts, the more I want to dismiss them.  But, they won't go away. So I am left with this conversation that has no end.  Only when I bring something else into my mind to think about will they leave.  Does that even make sense?

When I think about the world situation, my mind almost shuts down.  Too much information.  Too much disaster.  Too much worry and war.  Too much death.  While I want to know what is happening in the world, the constant replay of oppression is overdone.  Maybe there isn't anything good to report.  Maybe those who report the news give us what they think we want.  Sometimes I think if they didn't publish all the horrors over and over for days on end, those who are loving the publicity would have no audience.  Would that change things for the better?

So I turn my attention to the good in this wonderful world.  Beauty all around.  Wild flowers grow with no attention.  They simply give.  Pets think we are better than sliced bread.  They love us even when we are not especially kind to them.  They simply love.  Families love on one another every day.  Homes are places of refuge from the outside world.  Strangers help others when they see the need.  On and on it goes.  I think all of this is so wonderful.  Thinking about the best in life moves my mind to a new and better place.  I still know that horrible things are happening.  But, I make the choice to think on those things that bring peace to my mind.

Actually, I am more than what I eat and think.  Yes, I am.  So are you.  We are masterpieces.  We are the paintings that one day will be talked about and studied by another generation.  We are the colors and beliefts of the ages.  We are the makers of life.  We produce and then send ourselves into a world that is waiting for something better.  We know deep within our hearts that while we are here on this planet, we have a purpose.  As we seek that deeper purpose, we live our lives day by day.  And our purpose often is just that--to live our lives with understanding, caring, love, and acceptance of others.

Ice cream?  Thoughts?  Both are part of my fabric.  One much more important than the other.  Any guesses?