Soul Food Revolution

Let that chicken go! Let that chicken go!

Creative Commons License photo credit: leoncillo sabino

Yes. It lies deep within each of us. The chicken that says we can’t. Oh, you’ve heard it! Remember the time your friend needed help and you talked yourself out of it? That’s the chicken. Remember that lady on the side of the road–the one with the flat. Five miles past her you kept thinking, “I should have stopped.” You didn’t. Chicken. Remember that business venture you’ve always dreamed of trying? Everyone else said it wouldn’t work but it was your passion! Now, 25 years later you wonder, ‘What if?’ Chicken. He lives in all of us. That stinkin’ chicken…

But very deep within lies something stronger. Where do those thoughts of kindness and love come from? From where does that innate sense of motherhood in women come from, or the warrior/provider mindset in men? What about those creative, crazy ideas? Why do they stick with us all these years? Those ideas, friends–thhose innate senses and acts of spontaneous kindness–they derive from the soul. You see, that chicken we talk so much about is our own undoing. It is our fear rising against our nature telling us we can’t accomplish greatness. But the soul? The soul cries out, yearning for us to live! To live a life of imagination and sharing. A life of response and action. Our soul cries out for us to live…..well……..from the soul.

I like to say, ‘Let that chicken go! Live life from the soul!’

“We can’t depend on ourselves.” This statement was made in a recent interview by Michael Osterholm, the head of the Center for Infections Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. This statement was made in reference to what America would do if a true pandemic came about. “We can’t depend on ourselves” he said.

The funny part of this story to me is that pandemics occur everyday in some form or another. They happen through the recent rising climate of job layoffs. They happen through divorce or death. Through addictions and poverty. Through debt and acts of hate. A pandemic occurs every moment in all the world. So really the answer to the question is given everyday. It is given in the way we handle stress. It is given in the way we treat one another. It is given in the way we sacrifice for someone. It is given in the way we live. And Mr. Osterholm is right, ‘we can’t depend on ourselves.’

If this statement is true, then who or what do you depend on? You cannot live life alone. You cannot survive alone. You cannot overcome hardships or celebrate victories alone. So if we can’t depend on ourselves, then who or what do we depend on?

photo credit: qualla

What did you accomplish today? It’s a question I continually ask myself. I’m one that comes from the school of thought that states it’s always better to focus on the positive than the negative. In my days of retail management, I was taught a great lesson in dealing with people: it takes 3 comments of praise to overcome a comment of confrontation or negativity. Now, I would like to apply this principle to you. Actually, I would like YOU to apply this principle to YOURSELF! Encourage yourself. Engage yourself. I know I’m not the only one with that little conversation going on in my head all day long. Constantly telling ourselves we can be successful. Or reminding ourselves that we are making the right choice. Maybe clearing out the confusion in our minds of the direction we are headed. I’m learning that the best way to affirm our actions in life is to simply accomplish something. Be successful today at something simple. Take a moment to celebrate then move on to the next project.

So, what did you accomplish today? I would love for you to share your accomplishment with our Soul Food community. Doesn’t matter how big or small. We want to know what you accomplished! It’s simple: just post in the comments below, anonymously if you like, and share your short story of accomplishment. We will all celebrate with you!

Breathe…My kids and I used to do Yoga together. I still enjoy participating in this fun filled act of stretching your body beyond human ability, I just haven’t done it in a while. The first thing you concentrate on in Yoga is breathing. It’s amazing how one little subconscious act can give life–or the lack of breathing can bring death.

Many deal with what is termed ‘sleep apnea.’ Years ago I worked with a home health care agency. I can’t count how many oxygen machines we set up simply to allow people a good night’s rest. In other words, they can’t breathe. Maybe you suffer from asthma. You can’t breathe. Have allergies? Then you know that certain times of year……you got it….you can’t breathe. I know for those that are smokers in our society frustration became reality when the law was set for no smoking in restaurants. The reason? There were people that couldn’t breathe because of the smoke. People in big cities get it. Smog. Smoke. Exhaust. Waste. Sooner or later it catches up to your lungs…….you can’t breathe. A simple question for you: What happens if you can’t breathe? You die. Life cannot be lived without breath. Because breathing brings oxygen and freshness to the body. Plants need it. Animals need it. Humans need it. Without breath there is no life.

What about in your life, in general? Are you breathing? Or are you so suffocated by life’s activity that you can’t breathe? Have you crowded your life with so much ‘smoke’ and ‘smog’ that it is scarring your mental and physical lungs? You can’t breathe. The harder you try the more difficult it becomes. Life, my friend, should be like breathing. You shouldn’t even have to think to do it. Maybe I can learn something from those Yoga classes. Maybe I can learn how to breathe.

Today I’m thinking about 2 words. One of them often used, or mis-used, the other only heard in certain arenas of life. The 2 words that are coming to mind are: recovery and deliverance. Recovery is a word that you hear used in the medical field quite often. Maybe you had surgery and have been assigned a room in the recovery wing. Possibly you were an addict of some sort and can tell the story that on July 2, 1998 you began your recovery from alcohol. You were watching Fox News last night and they mentioned that our economy is showing signs of recovery. I would guess that most of us hear the word recovery often. Which brings us to the word deliverance. When was the last time you heard the word deliverance used, outside of that religious, makeup wearing guy in the fancy suit on TV? Maybe your family recently added a member, that baby was delivered. Possibly UPS just delivered a package to your front door. Are Friday nights the night you have pizza delivered to your doorstep? Recovery and deliverance.

In thinking of these 2 words, I began to seriously analyze and study them. I began to ask myself, ‘what are their meanings?’ Without looking up Webster’s or clicking on Wikipedia, I used my simple common sense to come to this rationalization: Recovery is totally based upon my own power. Deliverance is based upon something greater than me. In other words, when it comes to recovery, the healing is based on what I do. I don’t have to depend on someone else. I overcome whatever is happening to me on my own. Deliverance is totally the opposite. When it comes to deliverance I must depend on something greater. Whether it be for healing or for that pizza being delivered, I must depend on something or someone else. Deliverance is out of my control. Oh I can pick up the phone, order the pizza and HOPE it gets to my door! But in reality it’s not up to me for the pizza to get delivered. Recovery is different in this way. When I had my knee rebuilt I had an option, do rehab or not. My knee recovering was up to me.

I say all of this to ask you another question: which would you rather have? Recovery or deliverance? I know that our human pride shouts, “I want recovery! I can work hard and do it on my own!” But in the long run….is that really what is the most healthy? Or would it be more beneficial to depend upon deliverance, true healing? Friends, our ecomony can RECOVER, but it doesn’t make us any more healthy. My knee can recover and I can keep working hard to stay in shape physically, that doesn’t mean I’m fit mentally or spiritually. I don’t know how you feel, but I’m really tired of recovering, and the signs are showing it. I’m ready to be delivered.