Cow? Really Paula... where can you possibly be going with this? Get as big as a cow? Be gentle like a cow? Have gorgeous, long lashes like a cow?
Nah, something much more practical! Chew like a cow people. Chew long, luxuriously, peacefully, and gently.
95% of the clients and students I work with have some sort of GI Tract upset. Their digestive tract is struggling to do the job of, well, digesting. So many more of your bodily processes (all of them really) rely on your digestion so the rest of your body's functions can happen effortlessly. Yup, the bottom line is that efficient digestion is what creates the downstream effects of well nourished body cells or not so well nourished cells. Good digestion and a healthy digestive tract lead to:
- food well broken down into usable nutrients that are
- absorbed through that health 1 cell thick gut lining and then
- circulated effortlessly through the blood stream until these nutrients
- arrives safely at each and every body cell's doorstep and then they
- move across the cell membrane with ease and peace to be
- utilized by every intercellular organelle to make the miracle of you happen in each and every moment.
Digestion IS a sacred and beautiful thing.
Just because these below images leave out the mouth and esophagus... don't fall for the same foolishness. Both are very important parts of your digestive tract... as is your brain and nervous system! Mouth to brain to gut communication is so key for release of your digestive juiciness.
So I ask... why do we, as a culture, shovel food (or worse yet: food products) into our mouths with no thoughtfulness around what we are eating say nothing about how we are eating it. We then expect our bodies, minds, and spirits to soar with great health and carry us through our days effortlessly and with ease?
I have written numerous times about the sacredness of food, meal times, and chewing. Is anyone listening to me? I know my kids are not...
Here's a suggestion:
So many of us do realize that bedtime routines/rituals are so beneficial to creating deep and peaceful sleep every night. (Although, many of us are in need of embracing this bedtime sacredness as well.) My suggestion is to start seeing meal time rituals as important and sacred. Relax, breathe deeply, and chew well. Maybe light a candle to remind yourself how important you are and how important it is to slow down and nourish your body, mind, and spirit with food and eating (chewing your food well much like the cow does instinctively and intuitively with every bite and every mouthful of grass!).
