There?s no question?I love cheese.
I could handle life without sweets and meats, chips and dips, butter and oil, eggs and bacon, biscuits and gravy, and even milk and ice cream.
But life without cheese? I don?t think so.
That would mean life without Canadian sharp, pizza, enchiladas, lasagna, macaroni and cheese, fettuccini Alfredo, crackers and cheese, bleu cheese dressing, and my best college buddy?cheese and mayo on rye.
Nope?that was not going to happen. Until it did.
It didn?t happen in a day?more like a thousand days. No joke?I was that hooked on cheese?until something magical happened.
The sniff disappeared.
The what? You know?the sniff. That thing that happens when your nose runs away with you?the sniff.
The sniff and I had been good buds since birth. He loved me and followed me around constantly. He was with me when I first woke up?sniff, sniff, sniff; after meals?sniff, sniff, sniff; and on and off during the day?sniff, sniff, sniff.
I was clueless?the sniff and I had been together so long that I had no idea that we could live without each other.
Not only that, I had no idea that I could live without earaches, sinus headaches, and those stomachaches that bugged me after almost every dinner in high school?the ones that I had to lie down to get rid of but never got me out of the dishes.
After tearing myself away from my true love, cheese, and all its kin, one day I noticed that something was distinctly different?I was sniff-less.
The sniff was gone. So were my earaches, headaches, and stomachaches. My energy had kicked up a notch or two. And my head was clear.
Ohhhh, my goodness, I get it now?that?s what noses are for?to breathe air through?something I had never been able to do before. I just thought they were built like broken faucets?drip, drip, drip.
How could I have been so dense? Amazing?what I ate actually had something to do with how well I felt every day and how well my nose worked, and the rest of my body.
It?s funny how sometimes it takes ?feeling,? not just ?seeing? to believe.
Sure, I had read that dairy products, those very foods that our mothers taught us to eat and love, were sneaky little devils that cause ?little problems,? like fatigue, colds, sinus infections, allergies, asthma, bronchitis, psoriasis, eczema, bedwetting, pneumonia, mood swings, PMS, and?get this?headaches, earaches, stomachaches, and drippy noses.
Sure, I had read that dairy products cause ?big problems??like diabetes type 1, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammation in the arteries and kidneys, and heart disease.
Sure, I had even read about the dairy-cancer connection?like breast, prostate, ovarian, and pancreatic cancer. Whew, scary, huh? Those sneak up on us without a sign or a symptom.
But it wasn?t until I actually felt the difference?life with cheese and life without cheese?that I finally ?got it,? a sense for the old saying, ?You really are what you eat.?
As much as I loved (and still do) cheese, I finally figured out that cheese, milk, and yogurt were not only unnecessary for my strong bones, teeth and body (how do elephants and milking cows get enough calcium for their strong bones, teeth and all that milk?), but dairy was actually harmful to me.
The choice had become as clear as my sinuses: To sniff or not to sniff?
I say, ?Good riddance, sniff, you?ve been hanging around far too long, and hello body I was born to be.?
Okay, I?m not going to try to kid you. I?m still hooked on cheese. I stay away from it by following my motto: I trust myself, but I don?t tempt myself.
I keep a safe distance (miles and miles) between me and cheese. I just never know when that hunk of extra sharp cheddar cheese might get a mind of its own and fly directly into my open-like-a-baby-bird mouth, and always when I least expect it.
Sometimes perceived sacrifices are not sacrifices at all, but bearers of gifts?like the gifts of comfort, activity, energy, joy, and purpose.
So, my friend, I continue to applaud you and your life and all your efforts to make better and better choices on your journey called, ?Your Life.?
Above all else, remember that you and ?Your Life? count?to me and to all those whose lives you touch.
