DAY 102 -- Taste, smell, and feel.

I often fall into the habit of eating without paying attention to my food.  I need to take time to really taste, smell, and feel the texture of the food.  When I remember to do that, my meals are even more enjoyable.  Food tastes great without all the chemicals and processing, so why don't I take more time to celebrate that and give my food a good long sniff?  And then savor the taste on my tongue?


Years ago I challenged myself to really taste my favorite foods.  I mean REALLY taste it as though I was putting it in my mouth for the first time.  I let the foods sit on my tongue while I felt the texture, and then concentrated as I tasted it.  

When I did that, I was surprised at some of the results.  For instance, (keep in mind this was back in my "sugar" days--daze), one of my favorite treats was a Twinkie (or two or three).  I took a bite, rolled it around in my mouth, felt the texture--grossly grainy with an oily film that coated my tongue.  I took a long taste and realized the flavor was horrid!  I was shocked that through the years I had wolfed down countless Twinkies never realizing how truly awful they tasted to me!  I never ate another Twinkie after that.  


It's amazing what we can discover if we really taste, smell, and feel our food.  I'm going to challenge myself to pay attention to what I eat for the next couple days and see what I discover.