Roots
The Roots column is devoted to herbal and health questions.
Even my kids said, "Momma, YOU ATE at McDonalds!"
I had to. It was that or fall out. Maybe even in front of hundreds of people that I didn't know...or not be able to remember my last name.
Let me explain.
I haven't eaten or even been in McDonalds since my eldest son, turning 20 on July 12th was 2.
At that time, (before I knew so much about parasites), I would take him to play in the "balls". I later learned, that those "balls" are so nasty & full of parasites, germs and bacteria, they need to throw them into a toxic waste dump and burn them.
But, one part of this story is that I had committed to give a presentation on the main stage of the Texas International Hair & Trade Show on Sunday.
This was a act of faith for both me and for them to have me there,because neither of us was familiar with the other. So my presentation had to be great!
Normally, I plot & plan my public seminar visits around a Health Food Store, (like Whole Foods) when I am out of town, then, I find my hotel.
This time, I honed everything around the Dallas Convention Center and my found a hotel a short taxi ride from there. (Supposedly 10 minutes) I assumed, & you know what they say about assuming that Dallas was so big, & the convention center was centrally located, that there would be several health foods stores along the way in easy access to my daily ride.
Absolutely, not true...
First of all, my very 1st taxi ride in on Friday, cost $35 and it was the longest 10 minutes of my life. This couldn't have been 10 minutes...unless it was the "Texas ten minutes"...big!
So, that changed my plans....I wasn't prepared to pay $35 everytime I went somewhere...and the only food places around my hotel was Subway, in one direction and in the total opposite direction was a McDonalds & Sonic.
I have absolutely no knowledge of Sonic and after 3 days of eating Avocado, lettuce balls of bread from Subway, I started to feel nauseous everytime I thought of Subway. Actually, as I type this my stomach is starting to rumble...
I left all of my personal herbals home to accomodate the 2 suitcase rule (never again)because I am always searched at the airport...I have decided to take that as a compliment...I obviously look more exciting than I am.
After the "$35 Big Texas 10 taxi ride", I met a great person, Fran, that offered to pick me up on her way in each day and I thankfully accepted and bought gas, and paid parking...but, of course, I didn't want to intrude on her schedule, by asking her to take me off the beaten path. ( I eventually
I walked down to Mickey D's early that Sunday morning, 8:00am Atlanta time (Dallas is one hour behind us & I was on my same schedule), I had ran all the possiblities about what I must do to present this talk at my highest standards and that included EFA's (Essential Fatty acids) basically, some fat, for my brain. Normally, at home, daily, I have a Hemp protein shake with a Greens Powder, Red Powder and Hemp oil. I do this most days, then I have fruit or oatmeal, whole, rolled, organic oats...sweet. There in Texas, I didn't even have breakfast for 2 mornings, the Subway sandwich was all I had for the day.
And I didn't have any of my herbals with me.
So, now I was faced with the ceiling menu at McDonalds...it looked the same after 18 years....what could I eat that would give me the boost, the fat for my brain, yet be kleanzed out in a few days when I got home...?
The chicken biscuit looked to be the most likely candidate.
I ordered it. It was frumpy...and quite flavorful, even with absolutely nothing on it, probably MSG and other flavor enhancers...I walked straight next door thru the connected doorway to the Chevron gas station and bought a Fiji water, my current favorite..
What a breakfast, a McDonalds Chicken Biscuit and Fiji water, standing in the gas station parking lot, waiting for my ride, I couldn't believe that I was eating this, of all things, on my trip, my 1st trip to Dallas.
I practically had an out-of-body experience. Then, I sobered up and looked for the lesson.
The motivator for me, is always to look at what the lesson is in all of my life choices.
This one took me back to a conversation that I had with a couple of people in the parking lot at Return to Eden several years ago.
This sister was going on and on about her raw food diet and this convention she had attended and how much light there was from the people who had eaten raw food for varying numbers of years.
She was extolling one guys light and energy because he had eaten only raw for 18 years, another for 28 years, etc. She was saying this was her goal and this was the only way to live Life.
At this point, my elders being from Mississippi, I said,
"You know, we can't knock chitlins, many of our brains were formed on chitlins, and even though I wouldn't choose them now, because I know better...our elders ate what they had and we are fine, our brains were formed on them and we are okay."
She gave me a look that would freeze water. Oh well, I thought, lets' just tell the truth and shame the devil...we all know that its' true.
She stopped talking to me and spoke only to the other people in that little group for the rest of that conversation.
Well, its' true, many of our brains were formed on that type of food, unless your elders were 7th Day Adventists or followers of the honorable Elijiah Muhammed...you were probably formed on something that you wouldn't eat now.
But we have to accept that and respect our Elders for making the "way". that we have now to be able to choose our foods. To be at that place to reject certain foods and be comfortable with our choices.
Not all of them had that choice. Even now many people don't have that choice. Now, I'm not going into the talk that your mother had with you, when you were a child about kids in other countries wishing they could eat from a plate rather than the garbage, but, I believe that some perspective is in order.
It brought into focus for me how "middle class" most of us are...
When you can pick and choose your food, and what you want to eat and just get in the car and buy anything that you want to eat or plant something in your yard or patio and have it be there when you decide to harvest it...you are middle class.
I thought about how there are no grocery stores in certain neighborhoods and the ones that are there, one comes to mind...
"Piggly-Wiggly", I went in there one time, my niece was working there, I went in there and every vegetable was attached to a piece of green styrofoam and wrapped in plastic wrap.
You had little to no choice of what produce to select. And on the underside of the produce on this green styrofoam tray, sometimes it wasn't so fresh, usually spotted, or even rotten. And their policy was no returns, no exchanges on produce. So they effectively, were dumping the fruits & vegetables on the unsuspecting..and just getting their money.
My point is that some of us, we choose this food path, as just one of the paths that we journey on during our life...its not the only one...We have several food paths during our life.
We, I know that I, could stand to loosen up and release some of my judgements about and obsession with food-styles.
Trying to live a proper food-style is causing many people much grief, more than is necessary..suffering, either from over-indulgence or sacrifice and is not a necessary component of eating and enjoying your food and your Life.
But now, I'm noticing that McDonalds may be fulfilling a need in certain neighborhoods. In some places, the food at Mickey D's may be better than the grocery store, if there is one. And I can't believe that I'm saying that, but, "lets' just tell the truth and shame the devil."
It was true in this case.
P.S. The woman the same one that gave me the icy attitude after the chitlin' comment,well, I got the biggest shock of my Life the other day, when I was told that she passed away from a heart attack (and possibly Cancer.) What??!!!
