True but Partial

In about 2nd grade I became a voracious reader as I figured out I could be magically transported into the world of the story and learn stuff too.   My mom was always telling me to focus of avoiding "bad" and striving to "good", her philosophy was fueled by her recent 1960 discovery of the impact food could have on health.  A highlight in our home was the monthly arrival of Prevention magazine by mail, from the mid 1960s until I left home in the late 1970s.  The magazine had articles about natural healing, living in harmony with nature, and about healthy food.   I read it cover to cover as did my mother along with the other health books she would order.  Consequently my childhood was full of natural food and avoiding unhealthy living practices.

I thought I knew the recipe for a good life.   My knowledge was True but Partial. 

Didn't know it at 18, but in a couple years I would begin to learn by experience that there were other than physical good food and natural living that were needed to feel I had a good life.

I distinctly remember the first occurrence, I was walking to work from one end of campus to the other in the rain, and didn't know why I had tears flowing down my cheeks.   I felt a sadness, so I racked my memory as to what could have caused me to cry.  As I neared work I decided to stop the tears and put on a pleasant face, so my coworker wouldn't notice I had been crying.  

The last 2 years of university were hard as I had times of sadness that I choked down, put on a smile, kept active and focused on my studies.  The stress of it all resulted in being down a couple dress sizes by graduation.  Mentally I felt I had no friends because I had not been able to share about my recurring sadness. 

 

Knowing I couldn't go into the workforce as a newly minted college grad and continue in this condition of choked down sadness, I took a year off in a different environment.  It was a good move in that I could physically rest, and did begin to recover from the burnout and constant sadness I had felt in university.

Much later in life I would learn about the concept of emotional health and that it is needed in addition to natural food and healthy living for a good life.  Now with experience and tools, I wish I could have chatted with my 20 year old self .  Had she been given a few tasks and a pile of books to read she would have fast tracked me to a much happier life 30 years sooner........

  

It can be hard to understand that all the knowledge we have at a given time can be True but still Partial for a successful life.  

Signing off for the Saltroom of Spokane & the Salt Crystal Cottage, supporting being healthy on all levels. 
-Faith