On The Mend

I guess breaking my jaw really distracted me from eating and cooking for awhile. It distracted me from a lot of things, as I had to cancel some shows I was really looking forward to, and couldn't sing much in others. But when I did finally get those awful plastic-metal braces off (most horrifying experience ever!) and was allowed to open my mouth in any direction I could think of, I was most excited to get back into singing and playing music, and into eating apples and salads and things that were not cooked or blended!

At the same time that I am now relishing the ability to bite into a sandwich or a piece of fruit, I have a new appreciation for blended foods. I lost several pounds during my healing, and that felt good. It felt good to eat minimally. Aside from being limited in what I could consume, I just didn't want to eat as much because I'd have to clean my braces and teeth so carefully afterwards. Also, I started getting full more quickly, probably because what i consumed was of a higher water content than normal. I had smoothies, coffee, juice, soup, and more soup. And ice cream.

My mom came to stay with me for a week after I got out of the hospital. I felt pretty weak and injured but she helped me to heal by being so excited about how beautiful Göttingen is. We took careful, slow walks all over the place. And we both decided that the liquid diet has got to be the best way to lose weight fast: only eat blended or liquid foods! It's pretty nice, actually. I started to feel more healthy than I have for a long time. (Eating ice cream every night isn't my ideal vision of healthful living, but I needed a few extra calories, I guess; or I just felt sorry for myself and wanted a treat.)

Now, four and a half months after breaking my jaw, I can eat anything again. But I also feel less excited about cooking and preparing food this summer. I think it's because life has felt sort of chaotic and all-over-the-place. We went to the U.S. for three weeks, I brought my cats back with me, I'm preparing for a month-long tour in the UK and learning to be a "Business English" teacher on the fly in the meantime. I feel distracted and unfocused. And I gained back some weight!

But being conscious of nourishment, nutrition, food and general health always makes me feel stronger and more able to focus on accomplishing things that are meaningful to me. So I think I'll try to do this again. I'm going to start writing about food and health here, whether or not anyone is reading!