Wisdom Nuggets

One of the things I love about eating healthier is that the items that are packaged always seem to have little inspirational notes on them. I made myself a cup of tea this morning and the little tea bag tag read "Be patient. Things will soon be back to normal." I will not deny that I smiled at my teacup. Some things have been falling into place recently (a few potential job opportunities) so that we're starting to see that normalcy might actually be kicking in. Such a wise tea bag. Part of me wanted to go through the entire box of tea just to see what other gems are in there to kick-start my day in a positive way.

I like to think of these little messages as nuggets of wisdom. So not only is my body benefiting from taking in more natural foods, but my mind & soul are being nourished by my enlightened kombucha bottle. I have a love/hate relationship with kombucha, but I'm pretty much addicted to it now. There's a local guy in Seattle who sells it down at the farmer's market, but his just comes in plain glass bottles (recycled back to him, of course) and it has no nuggets. Today, my store bought bottle of this fizzy, mushroomy goodness has a quote from a philosopher in New York; "If the space that separates us is the same, then we are only different in name," (Daniel Olsen). That there is some deep kombucha.

Coke doesn't have any nuggets. All a Coke can will tell you is "carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, phosphoric acid, caramel color, natural flavorings and caffeine." I don't know...it doesn't have that same "pow!" that my box of pure pink Himalayan sea salt has with "Fashion your life as a garland of beautiful deeds." Noted, pink sea salt, and thanks for the inspiration in addition to seasoning my veggies.

So yes...while working on cooking and eating healthier, I am definitely attracted to packaging with thoughtful quotes and inspirational messages. I don't necessarily buy one bag of quinoa over another due to Zen sayings. Although it is rather nice to grab your grains out of the pantry and be reminded "Nothing is there to be done. There is nothing to do. One has just to be. Have a rest and be ordinary and be natural. “ (Osho). Words to reflect on while waiting for water to boil. I like the idea that the people who are manufacturing these items are thinking enough to, not only be ethical and natural in the growing and packaging of the goods (because I can pretty much guarantee that if there's a quote on the box, that box is made from recycled materials), but they're passing along these wisdom nuggets that might actually be meaningful to the consumer as a human.

Maybe I'm just a sucker for inspiration wherever I can get it. Maybe McDonald's and their "I'm Lovin' It" would speak to me if I was on a fast food kick. Although I don't know many people who reflect on "lovin' it" thirty minutes after a double Big Mac and jumbo fries hit their system. Regardless, the little sayings make me feel good. When I am sipping my kombucha while checking Facebook for the 18th time, it's nice to have the bottle remind me, "That is the problem of life. If we are not fully ourselves, truly in the present moment, we miss everything," (Thich Nhat Hanh). Why, thank you for the nugget, bottle of healthiness...I will put down the iPhone and look out the window now.

UPDATE: I drank tea the morning after I wrote this entry and the tea bag tag read: "You'll be going on a long journey. Wear sensible shoes." Whoa...