body temples: making peace with food part 2
interestingly enough, ever since i wrote this a few months ago, i've had this weird feeling of increased respect for people who eat meat.

allow me to explain myself. i'm not talking about the people who buy hamburgers or chicken nuggets. i'm talking about people who cook their own food, who's hands prepare the meat. people who de-bone their own chickens for soup. people who prep the food from scratch. people who hunt and eat their game.
why those people? because they have an intimate connection with the animals they are preparing as food.

the societal disconnect between food source and food product is tragic. fast food customers, ground beef or frozen skinless/boneless chicken tender shoppers at grocery stores - these people have little-to-no connection to the food that they are putting in their bodies.

this came up twice this weekend.
first, sarah, scott, erik, and i had a discussion about hunting over dinner. i had always thought that hunting was a stupid sport - "let's kill animals for fun!" but i heard myself say, "you know, i really respect hunters that eat the animals they seek out, kill, clean, prepare, cook, cut up, etc. are more aligned with my food philosophies than most other meat eaters." paradigm shift #1.

second, a chef-in-training friend of mine came up and told me that she made a huge batch chicken soup for the first time, from scratch. she had to put a whole chicken in boiling water. she had to skin it. she had to take the bones out herself. she said to me on sunday that she thought of me as she put the chicken in the pot. she heard my voice and she said she felt a little guilty - she had never really had a whole chicken in her hands. i don't want her to feel guilty!!!! paradigm shift #2. i told her that her experience was awesome. i told her that she, in taking this animal and fully preparing it from start to finish into food, she was connected to it. she was connected to nature. chicken soup in a can doesn't quite do that. she fully agreed with me, and said that's why she cooks. sweet.

i still probably won't eat meat again. and chances are, i'm not about to go hunting.
this body is my own temple, and i will treat it as i see fit.
in that same respect, other people's bodies are their own temples. they need to nourish and treat their temples in a way that's alligned with their own needs. i just hope that these needs find a way to intrinsically connect with the earth and the life-cycles of other living things.
have you skinned a chicken recently?