Food is central to our celebration of the holiday season. It expresses our joy and love of life.
Yet the holidays inevitably bring our cultural anxieties about food to the surface. We swing between over-consumption and deprivation – neither of which nourishes our bodies.
The month of December presents us with the opportunity to observe and transform our relationship with food. All we have to do is bring our yoga practice to the duck confit.
Cultivate Presence
Be present with your food. In Vancouver we have begun to recognize how organic farming practices and local food choices are essential to the health and well-being of a whole ecological system. Yet this mindfulness doesn’t end at the farmer’s market or the grocery store – it continues into our homes when we choose healthy food for ourselves and others.
Create Space
Food can be meaningful in our lives when we offer it our time and attention. Create the space in your life to lovingly prepare food and share it with others. The simple act of engaging with food – cooking meals at home, sitting down to eat with the people you love, and savouring the flavours of a chocolate mint truffle –that is yoga. When we create the space, then we recognize it as such.
Share Yourself
What better way to love than through food? Those of you familiar with Laura Esquivel’s novel, Like Water for Chocolate, understand how food can be a powerful expression of love. From seed, to grain, to bread, it’s our intention and interaction with food that enhances its level of nourishment in our bodies. Share your joy with others through the foods that you love.
Food is joy and pleasure, and its joy and pleasure that bring us true health. Staying connected to your food over the holiday season is an act of loving acknowledgment for your body.
So be present, create space, and share your love when you celebrate with food. And remember that Ardha Matsyendrasana (seated twist) is there anytime you need it.