Eric and Lisa

from Lisa

My friend Andrea was reading this book, and after hearing a brief synopsis from her, I was intrigued. Not the "I-have-to-read-that-now!" kind of intrigued, but the sort of curiosity about something that you know will shake up your life a little bit, even if you don't really feel like shaking things up. Deep down, I really like complacency. It's comfortable. It feels better to be a little ignorant and keep living life the way you always have than to stumble across new information that shocks you a little bit into making some changes.

Which, of course, is what this book by Michael Pollan did, to some extent. Now, our household has been on an on-going quest for a healthy lifestyle ever since Eric and I got married. Little by little, we've been educating ourselves on finding the right balance of nutrition and exercise to keep our bodies and minds working as well as possible. So it's not like I've never thought about the things In Defense of Food pontificates on. Pollan just gave me a little more information...."food for thought," if you will.

The premise behind In Defense of Food is that we Americans don't eat like we were intended to eat as human beings, and we need to get back to the basics. Pollan suggests a mindset that is driven by reminding oneself to: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." In other words, eat mostly real, whole food, not "food products" created by science. Don't stuff yourself; it's just not healthy. And while there are some definite health benefits to eating meat, dairy, and grains, try to focus more on eating plants instead. For more information, read the book.

While Pollan didn't convince me that all "food products" are evil, he did convince me to at least think more carefully about the food I purchase and consume and its affect on both my body and the environment. For instance, I'm trying to frequent our local farmer's market more often for my produce than my local mega-mart. The food I can find there comes straight from the earth and has mostly been raised without pesticides and fertilizers...and is a heckuva lot cheaper than visiting the organic section of the regular grocery store. Thankfully, South Bend has an indoor farmer's market that is open three days a week, so I can actually fit this into my lifestyle in a more convenient fashion. Also, instead of going straight for the nutrition facts on food labels, I'm trying to worry less about the fat/protein/carb/calorie content (although those things should still be considered in a balanced diet) and concentrate more on exactly what is in the food I'm buying. Ideally, an ingredient list should consist of mostly food. I know, I know, that sounds crazy! But all those food derivatives (high fructose corn syrup, sodium bicarbonate, maltodextrin, monosodium glutamate, to name a few) are simply not food.

So anyway, I came away from the book having learned some things, as well as having more questions pop up in my mind to be considered in later research. But for now, I'm taking to heart his admonition to eat food, not too much, and mostly plants. What do I have to lose?

I've been reading St. Augustine's Confessions lately, and in Book I, in the middle of one of his worshipful descriptions of God, he said this phrase, and it really rung true with me. Yes, God is very often hidden from us. Whether it's because of our sinful nature that causes a rift between us and Him, or simply because He sometimes chooses not to make Himself known to us as completely as we would like, He is a mystery to us. We may never fully understand His nature or actions...and that's as it should be. If we knew everything about Him, why would we need to seek Him? What purpose would there be in pursuing a relationship with Him? Without that constant struggle in life, what would there be to live for? It is His hiding that makes us long for Him more.

Yet, He's also "intricately present" -- with us in every minute detail of life. He is there when we wake up in the morning, as we go about our day, and as we sleep at night. He is there when we are laughing or crying, rejoicing or hurting, acting or contemplating. He is there in our memorable days and our forgetable days. And the best part is, He cares. He cares about those days of struggle when we feel so lost and alone. He cares about those days of triumph when we feel like we're on top of the world. He cares. And He is with us.

He is indeed hidden...but He is also intricately present. Praise God for both.

--Lisa

At the same time that Eric and I were reading Jean Twenge's book entittled Generation Me (see our previous blog), I was also reading Max Lucado's devotional-style book, It's Not About Me: Rescue from the Life We Thought Would Make Us Happy. The juxtaposition of the two books was striking. One discussed the current trend of our generation to focus inward and attempt to achieve happiness through self-preservation tactics -- an attitude that has caused (in Twenge's point of view) record highs of depression, anxiety, and laziness. The other book described the attitude and focus that we should have -- that of focusing on God instead of ourselves. Max Lucado posits that if we could see that our bodies, our talents, our successes, and even our struggles are all for God's glory instead of our own, we would then find the true source of contentment and happiness in life. In God's system, we are definitely appreciated, valued, and loved, but we are not central or pivotal to his overall plan. Important? Yes. Essential? No. There is a difference there that "GenMe-ers" don't often get. We have been taught from Day One (by our parents, our school teachers, etc.) that we are invaluable and intrinsically special. While that is not necessarily false, it's also not necessarily the correct perception of ourselves. Taken too far, it can breed narcissism, an extremely unhealthily high opinion of one's self. According to Twenge, there is no data that shows that high self-esteem creates a good, hardworking and happy person. Lucado takes it one step further and suggests that turning our attention toward the holiness and specialness of God (rather than ourselves) and attempting to live our lives in such a way that we display and honor His character will give us a life filled with more happiness and contentment than we could ever dream. With that attitude, we can work hard and be productive and respectful not for our own glory, but for God's, which will lead to a much more satisfied life.

This whole experience with reading these books has (obviously) made us think, especially now that we're parents and we so desparately want to raise a child who is compassionate, hard-working, respectful, and honest. How does one instill such characteristics in a person? We think the biggest source of information for Ian will be by our own example. We're going to really try -- with God's help -- to be these things so that our children will see God, not us. After all, it's not about me.

A couple weeks ago I found on a friend's blog (www.castingoutnines.net) a reference to a book entitled "Generation Me", by Jean Twenge. The book came out of work Twenge did on her dissertation in regards to analyzing psychological survey data from different time periods (roughly 50's thru the present). Since in many cases the same survey instruments were used for over a half-century, she was able to make direct comparisons between responses recorded in different decades. Essentially, her research method allowed her to come as close to comparing "apples to apples" with respect to generational differences as one can. Some of her results were both interesting, and well..., rather disturbing.

In "Generation Me", Twenge sets out to create a broad picture of the thoughts and attitudes of those born since 1970. As she states, although 30+ years is a long time period for a generation, there are some important common denominators which make the grouping a valid one. Primarily, the emphasis on self-esteem driven education (i.e. everyone is taught to feel good about themselves regardless of what they do), as well as the perpetuation of the myth "you can be anything you want to be", has resulted in a generation of duty-less, depressed, and self-centered individuals. Twenge spends much of the book discussing how this generation thinks and feels about issues; everything from political involvement, interpersonal communication, work relations, and (in a highly disturbing chapter) sex.

Although I disagree with some of the conclusions Twenge draws from her research, as well as with her unbalanced and obviously biased portrayal of some issues, I think "Generation Me" should be a must-read for anyone who works with or wants to understand those born since 1970.

--Eric