What I've Learned In 2022

 

Christ

I'm not a staunch Calvinist. I'm not going to die on the TULIP hill. However, the cultural conflicts that have arisen since 2020's infamous lockdowns have certainly brought some introspection. The questions arise on what beliefs am I holding that are actually backed by Scripture and which are just cultural habits. This year has brought home the realization that it actually goes beyond that; The Godhead Trinity is magnificent far beyond what totally depraved humans can comprehend. 

I think I'm a pretty good woman. I go to church every week. I serve on our church's music team. I studied Bible and music at two Christian colleges. I even teach at a Christian school, listen to and support the local Christian radio station and eat Chick-fil-a for breakfast (another topic discussed under the title, Coffee). Yet, the Bible is clear: "as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10) 

Hey wait a minute! Not even me?

Nope. 

I remember that time a "little white lie" just passed through my lips without hesitation. The time when I dismissed another depraved human for being depraved, even though I know that's just what we do. Indulged in gluttony and sloth, "just because". I could go on, but it hurts.

To tie that in the the whole point of Job 19:25, yes, we're all a hot mess down here. The difference comes in whether or not we "know our Redeemer lives". The cultural conflict comes from those who are resisting that knowledge, for whatever reason, and those who remember that He, our Redeemer, Christ, the Son, the second member of the Trinity, will be the last to stand upon the earth.

Clarinets

In the music category, I think the main thing I learned this year was that music should be enjoyed by everybody. 

Wait, didn't you already know that?

Well, yah, but did I demonstrate that in practice? I think I held too tightly to a belief that the only way to REALLY enjoy music is to learn it classically. Students need to know that music is another language and should become musically literate at as young an age as possible. The Suzuki Method? GARBAGE! Once the student gets past Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, how are they going to sight read the new piece we need to learn in our band class? I believed that because it was exactly what had happened to me too many times. 

It's like Jesus turned and gave me a look that said, "really?" and pointed to some blind maestros that He had created. A quick Google search brought up many of the greats. The big ones I thought of were Andrea Bocelli, Ray Charles (a famous Tampa resident for a time), and a new artist, whom I've come to really enjoy, Blessing Offer. Then Jesus gave me several students with reading challenges. Not really much different in practice than not being able to see the music.

Maybe Dr. Shinichi Suzuki was on to something? 

2023 will be a continuation of my learning how to incorporate some of these methods into my classroom. 

Coffee

Things that have come out of my mouth over the years:

• Fasting? I can't fast, I get too shaky if I don't eat.
• Intuitive eating? I feel like I need donuts.
• I need to eat a good breakfast, and then maybe go lighter during the rest of the day.
• I need to eat several small meals to keep me from being so hungry all the time.
• The four food groups: Cookies, Candies, Cakes and Pies! (OK, that last one was Mr. Beaudry's line)

My total cholesterol has gone from "normal" to Doctor saying, "Maybe we should start statins.

My glucose and A1c levels, though in the normal range now, have gone up into the area where Doctor declared me pre-diabetic. Happily, the levels are back under that big, red line. He's not calling me pre-diabetic anymore. That's a win.

I lump all of my food discoveries under the word "coffee" not only because it works with the alliteration, but also because coffee is one pleasure that holds me together. At first, it was coffee with Stevia. This year, I've been delving more into the subject and discovered that any sweet taste, even without carbs or calories, will trigger an insulin response, which in turn will make me hungry. I've found a great mentor, who backs all of his thoughts with medical research in Dr. Ken Berry. Here's just a sample of what he says about hunger and bulletproof coffee. Every day now, it's a French press full of coffee, poured into a cup with a little ghee and mineral drops, frothed up to delightful perfection. It's satisfying, hacks hunger hormones and when properly frothed, is reeeeally good!!! 

It's been amazing to me also to discover that fasting can be accomplished by such a mess as I am. I'm following what is commonly known as a 16:8 plan, without snacking. It didn't start off easy, I had to push through a few days. The more I learn about how big food and big pharma are changing our culture it makes it easier to stick to a "Proper Human Diet". I know I've dumped a ton of links in this post, but if you choose to watch this last video link to Cynthia Thurlow, see if you can watch it without feeling you've been duped. 

I fall off the wagon way too much. I like Chick-fil-a for breakfast. I still don't look like I know what I'm talking about. Thus, it's hard for me to even bring the subject of diet up in a conversation. Have you even noticed how our culture tends to dismiss those who are overweight, no matter the topic? However, I've learned a lot and hopefully, I can initiate the things I've learned into a habit of much better health in 2023!

How I plan to make 2023 "My Year"

I'm hearing it more and more. Different sources from all different health perspectives; MDs, DCs, NPs and just every day people who have found something that works for them. What are they saying? 

Americans eat too much. 

I look at myself and the guilt washes over me knowing that to be true. But what about all the chatter we hear around us from media, friends and even medical professionals saying things like:

• Breakfast is the most important meal of the day
• Vegetables and grains should make up the main part of your diet. (MyPlate.gov)

I had a house guest who was very sweet and also very thin and fit. She asked that I keep ingredients for her smoothies every morning; yogurt, fruits and veggies. Holy smokes! That thing contained more carbohydrates than I consume in 2 days! But how could I say anything to someone when I am so obviously overweight?

Or the typical carb-laden breakfast I hear my students talking about; cereal and orange juice. 1 cup Cheerios=20 g, 1 cup of skim milk to pour on it=10g, 6 oz of orange juice=18 g. Total 48, if you can only eat one small bowl. (I've been known to tear through half a box.) That's more carbs than I should eat in 3 days! 

I get it, kids do need more carbs and more frequent meals. However, I keep wondering if I had developed better eating habits when I was young, if I would be healthier today. With the limited time I have to research better habits, one topic kept recurring: Intermittent Fasting. After first dismissing it outright, I stumbled across this video from Cynthia Thurlow. 

From this video I learned the following:

• 2/3 of women 40-50 yo are overweight and more than 1/2 are obese. (There's me.)
• Women gain an average of 1.5 lbs/year in the 50's and 60's.
• Breakfast is not the most important meal of the day.
• The concept of "calories in and calories out" is just not effective. Balancing hormones is a big part of the picture. 
• Intermittent fasting is free, it's flexible and it's simple.

Benefits from fasting:

• Fat lost in the visceral area
• Improved mental clarity
• Spikes human growth hormone
• Induces autophagy
• Lowers insulin levels, blood pressure, improves our cholesterol profile, can reduce the risk for developing cancer and Alzheimer's disease.

This was all new to me! I was a huge subscriber to the "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day" club. If I didn't get my breakfast, I would get grumpy and shaky. I also had a high glucose level and suspect my insulin levels were pretty high as well. And eating in the morning would make me hungrier throughout the day. 

What I know and what I practice are not exactly the same things. I give in to pressure too much. But I have found that IF and keeping my carb count low definitely help. In fact, I was doing Atkins as a young adult and found it very effective. That was back when conventional medical knowledge warned against such a diet. January 2023 will be my testing point. I will be combining very low-carb with IF. I've been between 10 pounds, up and down, now for about 5 years. I 'll keep you posted on the progress!

Christmas Jewels

 

Each year since 1980-something, when pins were popular, I pop on this nativity pin between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The cross necklace? It's there most of the time. I like the combination of the two simply because it represents the journey Jesus made while incarnate. 

 I like to think I've grown a little in my understanding of how big of a deal it was for that to happen. This year we've gotten the Webb Telescope images back to view. Between that and my learning more about how cells deal with sugar, I've been a bit taken aback how a god so humongous would even care about these little obnoxious humans He created. Yet, He did.

It's kind of a big deal.

The kind of deal that could change the world.

We're not talking some random smart guy who decided to do something nice for us, it's the same One who created huge galaxies down to things tinier than cells. 

Someone asked me if I was a little hesitant to wear this jewelry with our current cultural climate. I replied, there's never a bigger need for this jewelry's story in this current cultural climate. When a thinking person takes it to the basic level, and allows their ears to hear and their eyes to see, they will see the awe as well.

Merry Christ-mas one and all! 

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas 2022

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. - Psalm 19:1