Chasing away the cabbages

I've mentioned my health issues before but the recent uptick in symptoms, which honestly may or may not actually be related to the hashimotos' diagnosis, have lead to a my taking the whole thing more seriously. If that sounds confusing to you, you probably have it about right :-)

But I've given up gluten and a host of other fruits, veggies and beans that tests have revealed I am reacting to in addition to starting a gut healing protocol. Luckily dairy and eggs were not an issue which makes my life a whole lot easier but overall the whole thing has been much simpler than I was expecting. I dragged my feet on taking out the gluten for a while for two reasons 1) it seems trendy which kinda put me off the idea because I'm not doing this to lose weight or to look cool to my cross fit friends* and 2) I like bread.

But having committed, I don't actually miss it. I do feel like God has laid the plans for this change with other changes in the past few years. I spent all last year (yes, the whole year!) making a month's worth of seasonal menu plans. Two 2 week dinner plans for spring, summer, fall and winter that used leftovers and double batch cooking in an optimal way. All I could think of was how that was all worthless now but looking at them, only I have to change a few meals or make simple substitutes (lettuce for me instead of tortillas when we have tacos for example) and seeing those menus in black and white was quite relieving. The other changes have been pretty easy as well. I miss bananas because they are such an easy on-the-go snack as well as a wonderful gluten free replacement for a peanut butter vehicle but I've survived. But you know what has been surprisingly hard - cabbage!

I didn't even think I particularly liked cabbage nor would I have said that I ate a lot. But the cabbage in my life is all hidden so I don't even think of it as cabbage - coleslaw, kimchi and last week, sauerkraut! I keep accidentally eating it only to realize with one bit to go that it was cabbage. It is very frustrating.

It reminds me a lot of sin actually. I don't normally struggle with what one might consider "big sins." Those are gluten. They are bad but they are also obvious and I'm on the lookout for them. But those little cabbages of frustration and impatience, of vanity and pride, of selfishness. Those sneak in when I'm not looking. So there I am, living my life, not even thinking about those sins in my life that are currently eating away at me (as in the case of cabbage and my body, it literally is!). I won't try and stretch the metaphor too much, it was just one of those little thoughts that popped into my mind while I was catching myself accidentally eating a forbidden food - again. But now I think I really have all the cabbage in my diet weeding out.

*I don't have cross fit friends. Not because I'm a loner but because I don't do cross fit. But if people find paleo/cross fit/gf to be something that makes a positive change in their life, more power to them. I just don't want to be perceived as being a hipster - that's not cool. Hmm, maybe that means I really am a hipster though. If a hipster eats gluten in a forest ...