Convenience

Today I had an opportunity to find and listen to a great podcast. While I am sure I will be discussing many of their topics from time to time, there was one that struck me as particularly poignant today. It was from the most recent podcast (episode #008) from Wellness Break Radio. The podcast itself seems relatively "new" with only 8 episodes so far, so it is not too late to jump on in and listen to them all to catch up while you await the next episode (I am definitely subscribing to this one). Episode #008 was their first to address listener feedback. The first call they had truly struck a nerve with me. It was simple enough, the caller was a fan of the podcast and the message of wellness they share, but he was wondering if there was a way to do it more conveniently.

I was struck by this comment because, at the time I was dragging my brand new old-lady shopping cart jammed full of groceries back home for a 2 mile drag on a warm October afternoon.

My new "old-lady shopping cart"

And I thought to myself, "The other day, when I blogged about 'My Well-Fed Life', I had convenience down as a criteria too." So, what is our obsession with convenience? And when did getting food become something that was supposed to be convenient? I am guilty of this thinking myself from time to time, so I have to stop and reflect when any moments of clarity strike.

Questions That Attacked Me In My Moment of Clarity

• WHY does our food have to be convenient? 
• When we look closely at our lives, at the world we have created for ourselves - with our family, our job, our social life, our extra-curricular activities - why is it that we choose our own nutrition to be the part of our life that is not worth our time and effort? 
• Why can't we (and, guys, when I say "we" I hope you realize most of this is coming from the first person perspective here) recognize that the time and effort that we spend on food and nutrition will enhance our entire livelihood, our health, our joy? 

Realization That Attacked Me In My Moment of Clarity

• Why can't we recognize that if we don't have time for this, than we are truly running out of time... a human life can not sustain itself on all the other "life stuff", but it can flourish with good food.

It was all clear to me as I heard the man request convenience; when I heard my own request outside myself. It was clear because today was not only a day when the words "convenience isn't a solution" sounded right, but the actions felt right, too. I had just spent about an hour in the produce section of my King Kullen (I mistakenly thought it was a shorter walk than the Stop N Shop) scrutinizing the labels of every single fruit or veggie I picked up (this is really quite ridiculous looking with my limited vision - I don't want to know what the other customers were thinking!) searching for where they came from, what was organic and what I needed to make it through until Saturday's Farmer's market. I had also walked to the store, getting in my exercise and spent a gorgeous day outside. I walked my groceries through the park on the way home and enjoyed the ducks and geese swimming in the pond that haven't left us just yet for southern shores.

I spent nearly three hours doing something that normally takes my husband and I a half hour, at most. If I did not, I would have had to order some take-out for my husband so he could eat in the brief 45 minutes he had at home tonight before he had to return to school for Parent Teacher's Night. The entire trip - the walking, the heat, the shopping on my own with my own silly, broken eyes, the cooking and preparation in time for my husband's arrival - looked at, in print, can be seen as really, really inconvenient, but in the end, it was worth every damn second.

...And I am pretty sure I'll be spending more of days on medical leave doing this same exact thing.