You inhale sharply through your nose, pausing before exhaling in semi-yawn fashion as you go to stretch from your evening slumber. But you are somewhat stuck. As you go to stretch your arms overhead, you realize they are bound behind your back. In tunnel-like fashion, you become fixated on the reality that you aren’t even in your own house much less your own bed. As you probe your surroundings, as best as you can amidst the single flickering, dimly lit bulb hanging in the center of the room, you aren’t sure what to make of it. The room is bare; containing only yourself, bound at the wrist and ankles to a heavily anchored metal chair, and in front of you sits a serving carousel atop a finely decorated dessert food cart. You still can’t process your current reality, so in a last minute hopeless effort, you scream. But, you've been so obsessed with your surroundings that the muffled air that has just passed through the packed cloth gag quickly solidifies that there truly is no hope in alerting others as to your location. As you start to panic, footsteps escalate until you can see the silhouetted boots through the tiny crevice beneath the frame. Keys jingle, the lock tumblers rattle, and the door swings open to reveal a mountain of a man, whose frame and face are hidden beneath a finely tailored suit and Halloween mask. He says nothing as he makes his way to the cart. He lifts the lid and reveals 3 tiers of beautifully decorated delicacies: a bowl of cereal, a beer and 3lbs of crawfish, and a plate of chips and salsa. Your brow furrows as you try to make sense of it all. He makes his way towards you. Simultaneously, he loosens the gag as he draws a pistol from his coat pocket. The gag falls and gently drapes around your neck as the cold steel barrel presses against your sweaty temple. He leans in, as the tip of his nose touches the crest of your ear, he utters, “Now, eat…”
So, the next time you find yourself in a conversation where you are explaining something that you ate or drank, that you and everyone listening knows that you probably shouldn’t have, DO NOT use the words “I just had to” while telling your story. The above scenario represents a “have to” situation. What you are explaining is a poor excuse for your lack of commitment to your goal. Big difference! And the harsh reality: even in the above scenario, you still have a choice!
Okay, Okay. You’re probably right. Perhaps the scenario is a bit theatrical given the topic at hand, but then again, we are quite unintentional with our lexicon nowadays, aren’t we?
We don’t “have” to do most of the things that we say we do. Right?
We don’t “need” the majority of what we claim. Do we?
The short and sweet message that I have intended to get across:
Every time you eat or drink, you have a choice. And choosing requires thinking. You have no one to blame for your failed health efforts besides your poor choices up until this point. If you genuinely aren’t sure about a certain food in a particular situation, click here and ask. If you prefer a problem that you can’t solve to a solution that you don’t like, then click here: www.webmd.com.
"Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom." - Viktor E. Frankl
