Time is a funny thing. It's that one thing we can't hold on to, save, bank, spare or otherwise take back. It's directional. It's intangible.
At some point, every man reaches the moment in his life where he utters the words of his father, a timeless echo,"...Youth is wasted on the young."
There are no take-backsies. That statement is so evident to me in the time that has passed since I began this journey; it is even more so evident in the time I spent "pausing" my journey. It is evident in the comparisons of where I was and how far I've come and the goals I've reached. And haven't reached.
A lot of time has passed since I first watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, the Joe Cross film that contributed to my evolution. As such, a lot of time has passed for the main characters.
It's amazing to see what they did with their time, over the past few years.
Mr. Cross has gone on to build a juicing empire, with the Reboot brand. Man, am I ever proud of that man, and I haven't even met him.
And his guy Phil. Phil the trucker. Phil, my identical twin from another mother. Phil who, much like myself, found himself slipping back into the gaping maws of the Sarlacc pit known as Depression, Stress Eating, and Emotional Eating. Phil who bared his soul to the world, and shared his sadness about regressing yet is clawing his way back into healthy living. Man, am I ever proud of that man too, and I haven't even met him. But I know him.
And yet, it was the times that we experienced - good, bad and ugly - that put Life into perspective and allows us to course correct. Let's face it - if it was all smooth sailing, it would be bloody boring!
In fact, would it be fair to say that without revelations about what we're missing, we wouldn't change? No new experiences! No experimentation! There would be no need for difference if it were unnecessary!
Fast forward nearly two years after my veg*n transition began, I live in one of the most culturally diverse cities in North American. I work for a Middle Eastern-family owned company. Our first company dinner was at a Lebanese restaurant. I couldn't pronounce a thing. And I loved it.
Take for example, a simple seasoning....
Za'atar meet Fat Guy. Fat Guy, Za'atar.
Like the nice, quiet girl or boy reading their book in the far corner of the library, who has been walked by a hundred times, but never spoken to, I've probably passed canisters of Za'atar in the spice section, without paying a single notice too. Not because it isn't deserving, but simply because I wasn't looking for it.
Za'atar is a delightful spice blend. You can read about it here. It's really nothing more than a concoction of spices in a similar manner as curry, jerk, all-season, or any other common regionally-focused, culturally-enhanced blend inspired by the local available herbs and ingredients. And by gosh, it's good.
You can buy it commercially made, of course, but the real beauty of this blend is in making it from scratch, to your personal preference. The prime ingredient is thyme. Naturally, I opted to dry out fresh organic thyme and grind it down in my handy dandy mortar with pestle, rather than use the canned stuff. That's when it clicked. Again.
I've known for two years now that processed foods are less flavorful, contain more chemicals, and are simply less enjoyable. Seeing fresh ground Thyme up against processed dried Thyme was a visual reminder of all of the things I'd forgotten. In a ring of spices, with three piles of a dried, commercial variant sitting above it, my fresh thyme stood out. Thyme stood still.
Suddenly, I remembered. I realized everything I'd forgotten. I was reminded again of my appreciation for fresh foods, free of preservatives and unnecessary processing. Life became simple again. Healthy eating became clear again. Sharing my pleasures of living simple, but living fully, came back to me in a rush of emotion.
It wasn't just about salads for weight loss. It was about eating healthy, eating right. Moreso, it was about opening back up to the world about my journey.
So here I am. Back again. On the air. Reminded that my journey wasn't just about weight loss or well being. It was about enjoying the moments, the experience. Although significant time has passed, there is no looking back. I don't have time for that. It's all about looking ahead. I've got time on my side.
I'm still not fully Vegan. Some days, I'm not even Vegetarian. I guess you could say, I'm still trying to figure it all out. But I've got Thyme to figure it out.
Never a thyme-less beauty,
FatGuy
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