Whom Will You Nourish Today?

Have you ever had a parent thoughtfully prepare your favorite dish so that when you get off the plane you’re travel-induced hunger pangs quickly subside?

Or a best friend invite you over for a spontaneous lunch taking special care not to include any of the ingredients you have intolerances to?

Or a thoughtful lover prepare you a wholesome breakfast along with fresh squeezed orange juice while you gently awaken?

When you nourish someone you aren’t just providing their body energy for the day, to help make sure they are prepared to navigate the hardships that life sometimes brings, you are nourishing their spirit.

You’re subconsciously saying '“Hey, you aren’t alone. I’m here with you. I know that life is heavy and that sometimes the news brings you to tears. I know that sometimes you feel an overwhelming responsibility to help others who have been dealt a less than favorable hand in life and that you feel guilty when you are brought to joy or laughter by a blooming flower or a silly animal companion. But your cells, muscles, and organs need love too. Here, my love, eat.”

To volunteer to go into an active war zone - I don’t know what kind of courage that takes. I can’t even bring myself to share the atrocities on my social media accounts without overthinking about what pain it might cause someone, or what judgments I might receive. But to enter an active war zone with the intent of nourishing the bodies of civilians who have had everything taken away from them; their safety, their autonomy, their livelihood, their loved ones, their cultural identity, and even their dignity, and then to be targeted, to be decimated, to be robbed of the ability to nourish the hearts, minds, and bodies of friends and family forever more, well it it unfathomable.

It brings me to tears. I know the tears will eventually stop but the pain, the pain of being human, of witnessing a genocide unfolding in real time will linger. And yet through the ache in my heart, I will try to remember to simultaneously appreciate all the beauty that surrounds me, like the abundance of wildflowers greeting me on my morning walk, the warm Algarve sun kissing my cheekbones, and the spiced Moroccan coffee I will soon brew for myself when I return home. 

Later, I will nourish my body with vegetables from the garden and I will say a silent prayer for those who do have access to such necessities. I will gratefully toast to all the friends, family, and lovers who have lovingly nourished me when I could not nourish myself and I will vow to do the same to whomever I can, whenever I next get the chance.

Whom will you nourish today?