Resurrection.
Revival. Renaissance. They have slightly different definitions, but their
general meanings are the same: being reborn, being infused with a new sense of
vitality, even coming back from the dead. What do these have to do with this
blog? This is a nutrition and health site, so why is it starting to sound like
a church sermon? Am I about to ditch the beef tallow and bacon and head on down
to the pulpit? No. So where is all this coming from?
Well,
I had an experience with a plant a few days ago that got me thinking. (No, not that kind of experience…this is a
PG-rated blog, thankyouverymuch!) See,
my niece and nephew bought me a very pretty plant for Mother’s Day this year.
(The gift was all the more special because I’m not a mother, but they still thought of me. Or maybe they just
pitied my poor little eggs, shriveling up and dying inside my cobwebbed
ovaries. HA! Just kidding. I think I
might have been born entirely without a biological clock. Either that or I
can’t hear it ticking over the sound of me crunching on these. Also, being 7 and 8 years
old, they probably just wanted to do something nice for their aunt and my mothballed
lady parts never entered the equation.)
Aaaaanyway,
this plant is pretty hardy. It survived a four-hour, 200-mile car trip from New
Jersey to Virginia…barely. As I mentioned in a previous post, my car’s air conditioning is
broken. So this poor plant was basically in an oven the entire time, and boy,
did it show. By the time I pulled up to the ol’ homestead in Virginia (just a
phrase, as I live in a busy suburb and it’s definitely not a homestead, no matter how much I wish it would magically turn
into one), the poor thing looked like it had seen better days. Much better days. I gave it some water,
put it in the shade, soothed it with encouraging words, walked away and hoped
for the best. And darned if the next morning, it didn’t look like a million
bucks. (Or a really healthy impatiens. It was nice enough that the plant came
back to life. It would have been a real
miracle if it had turned into an actual million dollars.)
A
similar thing happened just a few days ago and it struck me what a good metaphor
it is for what I’m doing here. I’d neglected the plant a little because we’ve
had so much rain lately. But when it’s not
raining, it’s been about a zillion degrees. (To use the precise scientific
term.) I’ve come to realize that this plant doesn’t do so well in the heat, especially not when in direct sunlight.
This gal prefers the shade. So one morning as I was on my way out the door, I
noticed she was looking a little peaked. But I had to hurry off to the park
& ride to catch the bus and didn’t have time to go back in for water. So I
told myself I’d water her when I got home. Well, by the time that
happened—about eleven hours later—she was a sad, sad sight. Even worse than
after the aforementioned car ride. But she’d come back from the edge once
before. Maybe she could do it again. So I did the same thing—got her some
water, talked to her lovingly, and left her alone in the shade. (Yes, I talk to
my plants. They’re living beings, y’know. Plus, they can’t talk back! Now tell this aunt that’s not better
than kids!) And the next morning, she
looked like THIS:
Flowers
blooming, leaves nice and full. Literally, revived. (I
don’t have any “before” shots. I wish I’d thought of it. But trust me, it was bad. So bad I considered tossing her in
the trash right then and there. Can’t do that
with real kids either. Another point for aunthood!)
Why am
I telling you this? My point is that plants aren’t the only things that can
have miraculous transformations. We can
come back from the brink. We can be lost, hurting, scared, worried, and broken
seemingly beyond repair, and we can come back.
I
don’t know if there’s an area where this is more true than health. If you live
in chronic pain and can barely get out bed because of joint and muscle
stiffness…
If
you’ve resigned yourself to accepting it’s “normal”
to pop antacids after every meal or to open your zipper so you can breathe
comfortably after a meal…
If you
plan all your travel around the location of the nearest restrooms or live in
fear that your IBD/IBS will flare up when you’re away from home…
If
you’re following the standard dietary recommendations for diabetics but your
blood glucose is still all over the map…
If
you’ve been following a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet, eating lots of whole
grains, fruits, and vegetables, and spending all your free time exercising but still can’t seem to lose weight like all
the formulas and equations say you
should…
If
you’ve been doing “all the right things” but your biomarkers for health and
disease are going in the wrong
direction…
YOU CAN HELP YOURSELF.
It is never too late. No matter how: old,
young, fat, thin, short, tall, silly, serious, smart, dull, courageous, timid, broken,
or WHATEVER you are, you can come
back from the brink. Do you hear me? You.
Yes, you. You can reclaim your energy. Your fitness. Mornings
without pain. Meals without indigestion. Days without blood sugar crashes.
Don’t
believe me?
Check
out some of these success stories from people who transformed themselves a
little later in life. It’s one thing for a twenty-something who’s already in
decent shape to lose a couple of pounds. The inspiration level jacks way up,
however, when we’re talking about older folks who’ve decided not to let their extra weight and
various ailments keep them down. - http://robbwolf.com/2012/12/10/8-months-paleo-lost-70-pounds-people-recognize-me/
- http://robbwolf.com/2013/07/08/idea-transformation-kind-update-robert/
- http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-unconquerable-dave/#axzz2Zhq4GtAQ
- http://whole9life.com/2013/02/whole30-success-story-gerry-c/
- http://robbwolf.com/2013/06/24/weight-loss-doctor-seen/
It’s
never too late to reclaim your health and vitality. But it’s not just an age
thing. It’s a life thing. ‘Cuz let’s
face it: older people aren’t the only ones with health challenges. Younger and
younger people are facing heart disease, diabetes, autoimmune conditions,
digestive issues, infertility, mood disorders, and a laundry list of other issues
that suck a good deal of fun out of life.
That
plant reminded me that it’s never too late, and there is no such thing as being
too broken or too far gone. Whatever your obstacle, it can be overcome. If not
completely, then at least reduced enough to give you a little more pep in your
step.
That’s
where the name “Tuit
Nutrition” comes from, y’know. We can spend time wishing for better health, more energy, clearer thinking, a
pain-free body, clearer skin, or just a smaller spare tire and less junk in the
trunk, or we can DO SOMETHING to make those happen. We can get to it. (Or Tuit, as it were, hehheh.)
 |
It’s time to finally get around to it. Get it? A round tuit!
(Makes more sense now, huh?)
|
So
what are you waiting for? If your leaves
are drooping, all your flowers have dried up, and your soil is parched, give
yourself some proverbial water and shade, some encouragement, and maybe you’ll be revived, too. If that plant can come back after the
way it looked, I’m convinced all of
us can look and feel better than we ever thought possible.
For
some inspiration, check out these other success stories. And these aren’t just
the AARP crowd; they’re everybody.
Young, old, large, small, very sick, not-so-sick, fitness pros, desk jockeys,
and people with every ailment under the sun, from acid reflux to vitiligo. (And
if there were a health issue that started with Z, the folks at Whole9 would
have that covered, too…see what I mean in the first link below.)
(And
no, I don’t think everyone needs to eat the way the sites above indicate. I’m
sharing these links only to show that positive changes do come to even the most seemingly far-gone people, when they find
something that works for them.)
Need
some inspiration in a part of your life outside
of health and nutrition? I’ll be blogging about that in the future. (Along with
the zillion other ideas I have rattling around the ol’ noggin.) I love writing
about food and health, but I’ve also got a lot of thoughts to sort out about
things that make for a happy life beyond what we cram down our pieholes. And
who can I share those with if not everybody? (Or at least the four people who
read this blog.)
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