Jackie: Re Food

Yes, it sure did feel like the holidays! We did not, however, even eat a quarter of what we had been eating before the food strike, and we did discuss the phenomenal excesses that our society seems to encourage--such as the cakes and pastries Dawn mentioned in her old workplace. I can see how that would be nice once in awhile, but we all seem to do a whole lot more of that than is good for us, as everyone knows. But the nasty stuff is SO addictive. The champagne I toasted Nina with a few days ago...that sort of thing is plenty of sugar for me. Also, as a Recovering Fat Old Lady, I am quite clear about my own excesses...I can barely believe that I used to eat AT LEAST four times as much as I do now, and for no reason whatsoever. No hard labor.

In Kate Chopin's book The Awakening, there is a character, an older woman, who seems to pride herself on how little food it takes to sustain her life. I can totally understand that feeling now. I want to be proud of how little it takes to keep me alive...and proud of how little power I use to cook it and wash up after it, how little garbage I produce as a result of it, how little water is wasted to grow it, and how much healthier I am growing as a result of declining it. I cannot wait to hear about my blood test results next month.

It's true that I reaped a satisfying benefit of this hunger strike. It's also true that it was extremely difficult to break so many bad habits all at once in support of people I have never met and don't expect to. But I have learned a great deal about this American life just by eating like a North Korean for a month. I have also learned a bit about North Koreans, who never once crossed my mind in 55 years, until this year. I won't forget them ever, either.

PS. Dawn's photos below are of our LEFTOVERS, not what we ate!