17. Moving!

Decisions, decisions.  "Is it life-giving, or life-taking?" 

For instance, fried foods--life giving?  To some extent, one can find some nutritious value.  In another vein, the emotional attachment to good times and comfort can feel life-giving, and, a well-prepared fried chicken leg or breast can provide a life-giving smile and sense of satisfaction from the delicious taste. (Believe me, I experienced this last weekend!)  However, in another vein--one's actual veins--it can lead to clogged arteries.  The leading cause of death in the United States is heart disease!

Many days I have the will to pursue healthy eating. 

Many other days, I use my will to bring me back to a healthy eating plan which I've departed from! 

If I am not doing one or the other, I eat the wrong foods, often too much of them. I go with the flow, eating whatever comes my way.  Where is my will on those days?  Am I using it?

Some would argue, yes of course--I'm using it to willfully overeat unhealthy foods!

I would argue I've turned off my conscious thought process, my conscious will, and let my sub-conscious rule the day.  That place in the sub-conscious which controls involuntary actions (like breathing) and which stores countless messages and patterns from my past, is incredibly willful!

Becoming aware is the first step. 
Step two is quieting the sub-conscious. 
The goal is moving from desiring with great intensity to do what's right (regarding food choices and every other kind of choice,) to simply doing what is right. 

Many years ago I was raised with the idea that, "practice makes perfect."  Through elementary, junior high and high school, I practiced the piano many long hours.  I experienced the result of all the practicing, when performing in recitals or passing performance exams.

I'm practicing again. Practicing in a very concrete way, I will move from the intense desire to climb the mountain next October (and the desire to climb the steps of the John Hancock building Feb. 27th) to simply climbing--physically moving way beyond the desire, to the doing.

In the moment, consciously involved and fully aware, life-giving decisions take place, as one foot rises to take the next step.