I have always had rather a passionate love affair with food, It is, after all, vital for our very survival. For some, though it is just fuel in order to keep the body functioning properly, and not something they particularly think much about. They eat when they need to, and ensure that they consume the right balance of nutrients to keep them within a healthy weight range.

For me, though, food is so much more than that, it is an experience. I love to savour and enjoy; it is a pleasure to be shared with others, whether it be around a huge table, or sitting on a towel at the beach! Give me a buffet and I am in my element; Eying up the selection of foods laid out, enticing me with their irresistible looks, and inviting me to devour them.

Even more than this is my desire to attend a ‘Medieval Banquet.’ Get out of the way Henry, that ham is mine! Just the thought of the succulent meats, tender vegetables, and plump juicy fruits not to mention all of the other goodies that would be on offer, is enough to send me into frenzy!!

Food is also linked to events, dates or occasions. For me Bonfire Nights as a child were wrapping up warmly against the chilly November night, watching the fireworks, and then eating something warm and hearty, such as a stew and jacket potatoes with chunks of bread. Christmas dinners, of course, with the traditional roast turkey, stuffing, pigs in blankets, sprouts (the only time I eat them), roast potatoes, and all the other trimmings. Once that was eaten, it was either a brisk walk or a slump on the sofa for a nap!

One more food I have to give a mention to is bacon. Just the smell it cooking, can rouse the laziest teenager from their bed to breakfast in record time! For me, it is caravanning holidays with my family. We always had cooked breakfast when we were on holiday, and the ‘full English’ was the perfect start to set us up for the day.

But, my love of food has cost me dearly. Well, actually, truth be told, not my love of food, more so my greed with food. As I got older, and life became a little tougher, I sought out my loyal and faithful love. It was always there for me and made me feel better. It gave me comfort and, for a while, respite. Unfortunately, it also gave me Type 2 diabetes.

My over-indulgence was to blame, I did not heed the danger signs, the weight continued to pile on and I did nothing to counteract it. I used food too much for comfort, paying no heed to the negative effect it was having on me.

However, this is a positive post. I can still have a good relationship with food, but not so much of an obsessive one. I can still eat the foods I enjoy, just in smaller quantities and not as often! The best thing though is that food can still be a pleasurable experience to be shared with others, and as long as I rein in my urges to eat everything in sight, I might even get to that banquet!

Those people who I did not understand who ‘ate to live’ rather than my philosophy of ‘living to eat’ had got it mostly right. However, I do believe that there should be no shame in enjoying food; I can still feel the comfort and warmth that food gives me, but I can eat sensibly so that my body can feel the benefits of it too!

This post was part of BeWoW