Cleansing Fast

I had this friend in the Peace Corps who I admired for his spiritual discipline. He was a devout Christian, an avid prayer and confident evangelist. The other thing he did well - and often - was fast.

I've never been one for limiting my caloric intake. I love to eat, not in a foodie type of way where I know quality, but in a 'let's get together and chat over a tasty meal' kind of way. Also, I get distracted by food, or by thinking about how it will make me feel.

Dominic and I are in a time of transition. Again. So last Saturday I thought I might try a one week fast. The problem is I made it up myself. Basically, I thought that I would limit what I ate, but I wouldn't limit the volume. What I learned is that this turned into a detox more than it led me to the Lord.

From Saturday through Friday I consumed about $40 worth of produce - and camomile tea, dried basil and dried cilantro (I don't know why, they're just my favorite herbs). There wasn't much method to my shopping. I allowed unlimited fruit including: grapes, bananas, kiwi, oranges, grapefruit, pears and apples. Then I added in the vegetables available to me at Modern Food Center: beets, red cabbage, leeks, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, mushrooms and spinach. I decided to exclude potatoes and avocados.

All week when I would feel hungry I thought it would remind me to pray, or I guess I had hoped the hunger would help remind me to pay attention to how the Lord was leading our lives. As it turns out, I wasn't able to focus at all. In fact, I slept in most days and went to bed early because I didn't have much energy. This wasn't what I had intended.

I admit the whole approach was a bit misguided, but I ended the week realizing my failure to prioritize the Lord more than usual. I was constantly thinking about myself and my life and my plans and my purpose, but very rarely did I take a hunger pang as an opportunity to pay attention to how the Lord is working, is present and does have a plan.

This morning Dominic and I listened to a sermon in which Annie Dillard was quoted:

How we spend our days is how we live our lives.

May my days be spent paying attention.

Loving the Locks

Locks of Love, a non-profit in Florida, that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis. On Monday I decided I had loved my 10-inch locks long enough and chopped them all off.

Chopped isn't the right verb, I actually went to a super fancy, very expert salon in Pacific Place Mall called 7 where a highly trained expert shaped my hair to match the bone structure in my face (which I learned is rectangular). I found it online by searching for locks of love + salons + Seattle. For those who might not know, most upscale salons will offer complimentary cuts if you plan to donate the ponytail afterward.

The salon 7 has a concierge who offers you a robe, beverage (which is generously made by the in-house barista) and a 70% dark coco chocolate bar. I could barely contain myself! Here I am with my 7 freebies (I just chose water, I already had enough energy without sipping on a latte at 6 p.m.):

This is also my 'before shot'...

I sat back and let Tonya work her magic as she determined the bob was for me (and then proceeded to assure me that the bob was 'in style' for fall).

Little by little Tonya and I got to know one another. We chatted about her training, my job, her boyfriend, Locks of Love and then much to my surprise she asked about my church.

Nervously, I started to describe Bethany Presbyterian. It's not that I don't like talking about my faith, it's that I didn't want her to feel uncomfortable doing her job. I described the Wednesday Night Dinner outreach, the strong leadership, and the sense of community we had found there. Much to my surprise she started telling me about her church and her faith. It was amazing! She described the difficulty she faced in balancing a job that required her to work Sundays and the desire she felt to serve others. She told me about the prayers she has for her co-workers and how she'd even taken one or two with her to worship. I sat there in awe of this person who spoke so boldly about her faith and had an excellent opportunity for ministry by interacting with others constantly at work.

Many of my thoughts have been on work since Labor Day as we've been in a mini sermon series on what Labor means to the Lord and how work is really fulfillment of our lives in Christ. The thought to "do good work" regardless of what it is we're doing has resonated in my daily routine.

I liked Tonya and wish I could afford to go back to her again. She offers a great haircut and uplifting conversation. I guess I'll just have to start growing out these short locks again...

Tonya and I