Where Gladness And Hunger Meet
The start of a new year. It’s all fresh and new, sweet little baby! Whether you feel pressure and carefree curiosity around resolutions, I feel Kate Baer’s Poem “New Year” says it best: It just wants to live.
I’m not feeling called to proclaim a bunch of resolutions here, but it does seem fitting to connect with this community by sharing why I do what I do.
The work of walking with someone on the journey to body trust and food freedom can be slow, confusing, and full of highs and lows. The path is anything but linear and the destination is an ever moving target (because we are human and we change our minds!). I don’t take this work lightly, but I meet it with gladness.
“The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”
— FREDERICK BUECHNER
Mr. Buechner could never have known that my deep gladness intersects with the world’s literal deep hunger. I am heartened and honored to pull a chair up to the table to teach and defend eating.
The following is my best effort to describe the “why” behind my work. The words change a little every time I return to them, but the basic sentiment stays firm.
My Passion + Purpose:
Empowering girls and women to find healing and hope around food and their bodies as they navigate the chaos of our culture and connect with the answers they already have within.
My Vision:
A world full of girls and women with the freedom to choose a path grounded in their true purpose in the fullest expression of their wellbeing - mentally, physically, and spiritually - while side-stepping the rules of culture.
My Values:
The other side of identifying and sitting with discomfort is where you find your true self. Go to where the pain and suffering is. Stay anchored and grounded as you navigate through chaos to reach a state in your life that sustains your whole well-being. That is where you’ll find an inner voice of truth and kindness.
You belong on your own path. From your view of health to your body’s appearance, break free from the mold of society’s existing constructs to allow what’s trapped inside to emerge. Appreciate and value your unique needs, and recognize the only path to be on is the one your own.
Control and “arriving” at a static point of health and beauty is an illusion. Don’t let the ‘shoulds’ in life rule your world as you strive for peace around food and your body. Keep an open mind and heart, stay adaptable, and find beauty in the mess that is life. Life happens in seasons and rhythms.
Be a catalyst for change. Encourage hope as I support others moving through chaos and discomfort.
Identify and get to know the values behind beliefs and actions. Values bring a deeper connection within yourself and others to sustain true well-being.
Curiosity and wonder are a guide to inclusion. Listening closely to the stories of others leads to a better understanding of ourselves. Pay close attention and ask the questions, and you’ll find a more meaningful connection within you and your surroundings.
We cannot think ourselves into a new way of being with food and our bodies. We need to act our way, be our way, into new relationships.
Nourishment comes in many forms. Sometimes we need to relearn, learn for the first time, start from scratch, let go of the old ways, making space for something newer and kinder.
We cannot do the work of healing along. Healing happens within safe relationships with people, nature, and the Greater Love at work in the world.
I am not in this work to heal anyone, but I am here to witness the healing. Reach out if you would like help finding your “why” in your efforts to move away from dieting or heal from an eating disorder.