Spritzers and Simplicity

I asked my large human of a boyfriend what I should write about next.
"banana hammock.

No but really Nate, what do you think?
"boner jams."

A huff and a giggle, a simple sip of my wine.
"Spritzers."

He had something here.

A little over a year ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of having a glass of wine on a delightful snowy evening. Four years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of only have one. 

We love extremes, we love severity, we love obsession. Whether it's the BIGGEST Loser or Little People, we live in a world of excess highs and lows.  Shows on addiction, crazy brides, and teens poppin' out twins, our society lives for it all...anything besides simplicity.  A complete disregard to moderation. 

This naturally carries over to beliefs, thoughts, and practices with diet, food, and exercise. In my experience, there are two common points of view: food as reward and food as punishment.  
Whether it was in a college basement bar or among bodybuilders at a competition, many of these individuals hold the same frame of mind.  One or the other. A or B. Yay or Nay.

After seriously plunging into both (hello Franzia and Ellio's pizza....hola deprivation and denial), I have found the most meaningful, the most satisfying, and ultimately, the most MANAGEABLE outlook comes from a completely different philosophy-

Food as nourishment. 

(To be perfectly honest, that sounds like something that would typically receive a head nod, eye roll, and brush-off from me.  The title of an article in Yogi's Health I would bypass.  The topic of a seminar in India.  But I'll break it down in a way I learned to appreciate).

When you look up "Nourishment" in the thesaurus you find words like encouragement, ammunition, propellant, advantage, kindness, and support.  
Food as nourishment can mean a LOT of things.
Food as fuel.
Food as fun.
Food as a necessity.
Food as a delight.
Food as a requirement.
Food as energy.
Food as experience.

None of these words or thoughts view food as a prize or food as discipline.

Nourishment can mean a glass of wine.  It can mean a bowl of rice.  It can mean a walk on the beach on a warm summer night.  It can mean a twist of lemon in a glistening glass.  It can mean an apple, pear, or banana.  It can mean a toast of champagne. It can mean anything that fuels your body or fuels your soul.

Many things about extremity feel good.  A gallon of ice cream feels good at the time but can give a doozy of a bellyache.  A strict, clean diet of broccoli and chicken feels disciplined and quite badass but can give troubles in consistency and sustainability.  

The balance of basic GOODNESS for the body and mind is how I've been able to appreciate this quaint term and this simple perspective.  Goodness isn't reckless nights at a bar because it tolls on the body in more ways than a headache the next day.  Goodness isn't ice cream, pizza, and candy everyday because that typically leads to factors that influence self-esteem.  Goodness isn't zero carb meals for days on end.  

Nourishment, goodness, and admiration for the body and mind is a simple lifestyle rid of extremes. 
It's hard to attain but even harder to lose.
It's gratitude and delight.
It's movement and mobility.

It can be a snowy, cozy evening in the winter.  It can be a glass of wine, a silly boyfriend, a soft candle burning, and thoughts, prose, and passion desired to be shared.