Shawna Cain

The simplicity challenge of eating without distractions has been really difficult with grad school and full time work! My personal goal here was to minimize meals eaten in front of screens. I think I'm doing good if I can manage at least 2/3 of meals without screens, because school is at dinner time! Still, small improvements of mindful eating at breakfast and lunch have proven to ground me, help me appreciate my fortune of such nutrition, and to slow down. Plus, food just tastes better when taken in with all the senses!

Also, I signed up for the Blue Sky Renewable Energy with Pacific Power for my partner's home. I'd been meaning to do this for months, and this challenge gave me the incentive to make it happen. 

Finally, after a hard day of work yesterday, I decided to stop at a park on the way home and walk slowly through the trees and listen to the rain on the leaves. It was an incredible autumn day, and it was really amazing how even 10 minutes of this practice brought me down to earth. Being under such tall trees reminded me of how small my problems were, and that the real meaning in life is to share joy with others. I hope to use nature walks as a stability activity more often.

So I'm trying out a serious challenge - two weeks of mindful eating. That means no electronic distractions during any food consumption. No TV, no computer, no phone. Just me, food and friends, the way I wish it always was...but let's be real. Probably 50% of my meals are currently consumed with some form of electronic distractions. I hope this challenge will bring me more insight into my eating habits, more awareness of where my food has come from, and gratitude for the nutrients they provide me. I will be posting on how this challenge goes. Want to get in on a challenge too? Join EcoChallenge, and learn how to raise awareness of how your day-to-day activities affect our environment.