I found a poem the other day—or rather, excavated it!
I’d been contacted by Joanne Fedler, a writer from Australia, and we were exchanging emails about our work, and I visited her website. On a page about her book When Hungry, Eat, she shared “An Eating Meditation or Spiritual Principles for Losing Weight, Leaving Home or Letting Go.” (You can check it out at this link, if you’d like.)
As I read Joanne’s list of 10 principles, I thought I saw a poem hidden in her words. I began to play, carving away the “excess” to find the core. This is what I came up with after 15-20 minutes and ended up sending to Joanne. It was fun.
The finished poem is about more than it seems. See what you think:
WHEN HUNGRY
when hungry
eat
let need
guide you
always ask
no assumptions
come
begin
thank the food
sacrifices others made
you can
practice gratitude for whatever
is before
you
there is enough
have faith
there will be more
savour the taste
every bite
like breath
now
how is it
how it is
slow down
space between mouthfuls
hunger between meals
digest
your body knows what to do
give it time
flush
wash
what is not needed
must go
come back
begin again
let how you do anything
be how you do everything
Lovely!