Kinder and funnier...

A surprising food memory floated up as I peered back through the years recently. Visited a friend in Arizona many eons ago whose morning drink of choice was Pepsi. Early in the A.M., I can still see her carrying a 2 liter bottle and recall my sheer disdain for the act of DRINKING sugary soda first thing in the A.M. How could you?! How could anyone? In my value system, soda was a drink only consumed later in the day, for heaven sake’s. (Not sure who to thank for this judgmental component in my then-value system…)

“She who criticizes first hasn’t looked in the mirror.” Just made that up. And why? I’m prompted by my long-ago Pepsi memory and the desire to be the honest and challenged human being that I am. And speaking of challenges, a late-in-life purity departure (precipitated by the pandemic) led to my current predilection for Diet Dr. Pepper (talk about retribution!) Here’s my juicy rationalization. Considering life’s vicissitudes, sometimes a Diet Dr. Pepper nip in the early A.M is just what one needs for being ‘human’. Right? Having actually forgotten the name of the years-ago early A.M. Pepsi swiller, I’m tossing mea culpa’s in the direction of Arizona. (Well, at least it’s something…)

Moving to present-day food judgments, there’s the chocolate-covered almonds drama. Purchased at my food co-op, which in my mind, greatly differentiates them from chocolate-covered almonds purchased at a regular grocery store. At the co-op, there’s a tad less sugar and some fancy orchard name on the container. Oh, god, my inner food snob still thrives after all these years…

My point about the chocolate-covered almonds? Um, well, I have been known to sneak a handful for breakfast! Sneak? Sneak! I live alone! (I guess the word “sneak“ gives this away as a self-judgment.)

Where do I even start with these internal contradictions?

Um, well, how ‘bout: HUMAN, HERE! I guess that would be me, human, that is. Wait, you are, too? Oh gosh, knowing that makes me feel SO much better. I’m not alone in my human-ness.

As a human, I’m just a veritable bundle of contradictions. I bet you are, too. How could we not be in this patchwork culture? The problem I face is that I’m not very nice to myself when I notice these human imperfections and contradictions. Nope, not at all.

And, of course, in the self-compassion literature (be nice to yourself!) we are reminded that talking to ourselves, with kindness, is ultimately a gift. (I’m all in for gifts, aren’t you?) While continuing to work on developing a kinder inner voice ( a seemingly eternal work in progress) my chosen life raft is humor.

“Laughing doesn't just lighten your load mentally, it actually induces physical changes in your body, including stress relief.” (Take it from the Mayo Clinic!)

Yep, this human bundle of contradictions (moi) will remind herself to giggle when consuming my next tasty handful of chocolate covered-almonds, early in the morning (perhaps, accompanied by a Diet Dr Pepper.) And while noticing any personal behavioral inconsistencies, my lips will just curl into a smile. I’ll shake my head in irony and feel the stress drain right out of me. Kinder and funnier…not bad, not bad at all.

Slightly different version first posted July, 2022.