Why Do You Eat?

I had a grandfather who used to say, “I don’t eat because I’m hungry, I eat to keep from getting hungry.”  Even if he was telling the truth, I don’t think that would be true of most of us.  Why do you eat?  Whenever you eat, it’s probably for one of the following reasons:

·        It’s time (according to the clock)

·        It’s time (according to the stomach – i.e. you’re hungry)

·        For comfort

·        You “deserve it”

·        You have a craving for a particular food or for something sweet or spicy or salty, etc.

There could be other reasons you eat, but really the thing I would ask you to consider is this, whenever you eat, for whatever reason you eat, why do you eat what you eat?  Do you eat what you eat primarily for the taste or for the nutrition?  Is the choice of what you’ll eat mostly driven by what will taste good to you, or what will be good for you?

As you contemplate that, think back in your history and consider, has that changed over time?  Regardless of how young or old you are, has the choice of what you’ll eat changed over time?  If so, in which direction have your choices changed, and why?

While that might be a fascinating conversation to have with ourselves, it led to me to see a connection between my choice in what I eat and my choice in what I’m after in life.  In my earlier years I ate what I would enjoy most, what tasted good in my mouth, and similarly, what I wanted out of life was to have fun, enjoy myself.  As I’ve gotten older I’ve started eating what provides the most health benefits, what’s good for me, and similarly what I want out of life is meaning, significance.

How about you?  Are these shifts I’ve noted just coincidental as we age, or, regardless of age, is there a connection to be made between what you want out of your food and what you want out of your life?  “You are what you eat” isn’t in the Bible, but I wonder if what we eat reflects what we are after?