Sunday, July 13, 2014

July 13th, 2014 What Isn't Written

July 13th, 2014 What Isn't Written

Part of sharing the details of my life on a daily basis is the risk of sharing too much. I've become much more seasoned in keeping a level of privacy despite being a "daily diary." Still, if you try, you can draw conclusions by what isn't written. A prime example was my sleeping in today, on a Sunday. I tweeted my first meal of the day shortly before 1pm. I received a very nice message from an acquaintance who expressed concern about whether or not I was a member of a good church. Her intent, sweetness and caring was clearly evident. She wasn't passing judgement, it came from a place of genuine caring. She told me she reads my blog and twitter regularly and has noticed I never mention attending church. She then, very graciously invited me to her family's church, describing their non-denominational style and mentioning how it took her years to convince her husband of 40 years to go, but now he doesn't miss a service. I thanked her for the invitation and explained to her things I normally don't share in my writings.

I'm not ashamed of my faith, I'm just very private about it. This is a non-denominational weight loss blog. I respect other people's freedom of religion and I rarely "go there" for that reason. My faith isn't something that ever needs publicly examined. I have my spiritual moments each day. I pray and I believe. I abundantly give thanks and I don't dare take all of the credit for my dramatic turn around. It's true, I don't have a church home, but I do have a relationship with the divine spirit. I just don't write about it. The fact that this very sweet lady reached out to me like this was touching because she clearly cared very much, even mentioning how much she's enjoyed reading about my wonderful relationship with my mom and grandson Noah. Rest assured, I'm okay, and if ever I decide to once again seek out a church to attend, that nice lady will likely see me sitting in the back row of her non-denominational house of worship. When I have attended, I like sitting in the back. Not because I'm shy, I'm not necessarily. You're able to have a broader perspective back there, where everything is in front of you.

I enjoyed a fabulous workout this afternoon at the YMCA. Turning up the resistance on the elliptical has proved to be a wonderful enhancement! I confirmed the spinning class schedule before departing. Looks like my rear end will be perched atop a spinning cycle at precisely 5:30pm tomorrow afternoon. That's the plan! I'm part nervous and part excited. Mix that together and oh my-- it's a party! I'll be fine. I'm not making any plans in regard to the spinning schedule further than one day out. I need to get in there and see how I do. It was a challenge at my healthiest and lowest weight. I will remember what the spin instructor said to me: "Just do what you can at your own pace." I will. And it'll be good. I can't wait to tell you all about it tomorrow night!

I visited Stillwater this evening to celebrate mom's birthday. I missed the official celebration night on Wednesday, so this was an extra celebration. My Aunt Kelli's husband Tim just had a birthday yesterday, so we were also recognizing him and his. I stopped by Brace Books and More, our big-locally owned and operated independent bookstore, on my way out of town to pick up the book mom requested as a gift. The book was "The Doctors Diet," from the popular daytime television show The Doctors. I felt a sense of irony in buying my mom a book all about weight loss. I joked that I think she has a crush on Dr. Travis Stork, who graces the cover of this latest offering from that show. As I turned to leave the store, I glanced over to see my book nicely displayed on one of the many shelves. Seeing it there made me smile.

We decided to skip the bigger restaurant and visit what has long been one of my favorite fast-food Mexican places. Taco Mayo has some choices I can feel okay about, even though I had some serious mental hurdles to leap, simply because I haven't had any fast food whatsoever in nearly three months--and not that there aren't some good options available out there in the land of fast food, it's just that I was kind of proud of my record. You see, I haven't gone three months without fast food since I was fourteen months old.

I contemplated my dinner options on the way to Stillwater and made my selections in my head prior to arriving. The crispy beef tacos check in at 161 calories, but I didn't want the grease that is often found dripping from those. After all, I was wearing a new shirt! They are incredibly tasty, I'll admit. Taco Mayo always had these crispy ground beef tacos on sale when I was a kid. Twenty-nine cent tacos, then thirty-nine cent tacos were regular specials for many years. It was eating on the cheap--and we loved it so much! Tonight I chose a simple bean tostada, not too unlike what I sometimes make at home, and two white meat chicken crispy tacos with lettuce and tomato only. It was a big, satisfying meal--and I left feeling confident in my choices.

My meal tweets of the day:






And my #lastfoodofday tweet:


Thank you for reading,
Strength,
Sean

7 comments:

  1. You're doing a wonderful job in all categories Sean - I am proud of you! Standing strong when a "religionist" tries to "help" you, choosing well in the food dept even tho it was a celebration - and sharing on your blog with us. Thank you for being here for us - you are my major inspiration and motivation in my wt. loss journey!

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  2. Anyone who has read you for very long will know you are a spiritual person. It comes through here and there... it's who you are, how can it not? But I know what you mean about the type of blog writing you do... it's meant to be sort of all-inclusive, everybody's welcome type approach. Meant to help anyone who is interested.

    When I first started my blog (yikes, about 5 years ago!) I was deeply influenced by a wonderful writer named Ralph Marston. Sound familiar? ;-)

    He is a Christian, but doesn't make his daily encouraging articles "religious", but rather inspiring and motivating, uplifting and instructional for everyone. All are welcome. And that's the feeling I get from your blog, too. You write with open arms to all. I like that. :-)

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  3. I stopped going to formal church services, although I still pray a lot ( on my walks, etc). The 10 United Methodists Ministers that I know were much more questioning that I gave up grains for my health and long term weight maintenance than the fact that I gave up going to church.

    Hilarious. Glad you are setting good boundaries. So important.

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  4. It's such a delicate balance trying to figure out what and how much to share, isn't it? I mean, unless you are specifically trying to write a Buddhist or Christian or Atheist Weight Loss blog you probably wouldn't mention specifics about your beliefs. I think at times we've all probably shared a bit too much and wished we hadn't and learned our lesson so don't feel bad about the past.

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  5. I agree with your Mom--Dr. Travis is mighty FINE! I can't imagine someone questioning you about religious beliefs and practices. Isn't anything private anymore? You are very open about some things people who aren't struggling/recovering food addicts might find too personal, but it helps those of us who can relate, to know we aren't alone. But religion? Perhaps she could look up other bloggers, I'm sure there's some out there who address religion and how it relates to food addiction/dieting/losing weight. You have chosen not to address that area of your life here, and I respect that decision.

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  6. Awesome post!! I'm sittin' on the couch with you :) I haven't been inside a church building in over a year, but my faith has grown deeper, God more intimate, our relationship transformed. Changing this "food stuff" requires changes in mind, body, and spirit. For some, its about a spiritual journey, for others it's not. Both can be successful in finding freedom from a hurtful relationship with food. I like that. :)

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  7. This is just my opinion, but the oranges seem oranger than the apples.

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