My Big Fat Greek Gyro

     Tuesday night, I was craving Greek food. In the rural South, however, locating authentic Greek food is no easy venture. Luckily, I happened to know of a precious little Mediterranean restaurant in the heart of town with a large woman in the back, whom you know cooks everything with gusto and love. I drove excitedly up to the door.... It was dark inside, curtains drawn. A sinking feeling came over me, but I emerged from the car to check things out.

     The door to the shop next door was hanging wide open, so I asked the cashier if she knew when the Mediterranean place would be open. "The owner's wife died," she stated solemnly, and wasn't sure when he was reopening. Quite saddened by the notice of loss and prospect of no Greek food, I turned to walk away. "But there's one other place with fantastic Greek food." Whaaa?? "It's in a little trailer at the bottom of the hill."

     My feet could barely travel fast enough to jump into my car and fly down the hill. And there it was, a glorious Gyro food truck. How had I missed it before? Some people scoff at food coming from such mysterious vehicles. I revel in the authenticity and genuineness of it. I pooh-pooh at chain restaurants. They offer mass-produced, chemical-ridden nonsense. Hole-in-the walls, food trucks, farmer's markets. That's where real food lies.

     I marched up to the Gyro food truck window with a sort of nervous excitement. I was met by two smiling faces. "I'm a first-timer, what should I get?," I stated bluntly. The two men looked at each other, and without a second's hesitation, "The lamb!," they shouted. "It's almost a requirement for a first-timer." I paused but for a moment, and agreed. The older gentleman of the two began whipping up my gyro. He off-handedly mentioned the feta, the tzatziki sauce, etc.

     Oh no, dairy. I quickly stated that I could not have the feta or the tzatziki sauce, for I am dairy-free. He shot me a sort-of sideways glance, and stated with a smile, "Everything in moderation!" Hmmm,.... eeeeehhhhh. Ok!

      Now I must note here that this man was 100% Greek. He hailed from Athens for Pete's sake. So when he said, "Everything in moderation," there was nothing I could do, no protest to make. One is defenseless against the charm of the Greek accent! While on this note, what is it about the Greeks? What did they do to deserve unmatchable dotings from God in the area of charm? On the other hand, it could just be that all Americans are enthralled by accents. After all, we believe anything spoken to us in a British accent to be pure scientific truth. Whatever the case, I gladly took the gyro. The man was headed back to Athens this coming week for a visit. I told him to have a grand old time, and to think of me being stuck in boring Arkansas.

     As I walked away and enjoyed my glorious gyro, I began to think about the Greek man, and how everything is perspective. Just because he is from Athens, I have this notion that he lives a fabulously adventurous life. It is possible that this is far from the truth. In Greece, he might be a lame-o. In the same respect, a young woman in the Sudan would look at my life, and consider it an unthinkable dream.
    
     Tuesday, I learned two things from a gyro.
1. Everything in moderation.
2. Find the adventure in the life I have. Perhaps my circumstances are not what I desire, but they're a heck of a lot better than what they could be be. So maybe I have acne. Maybe I'm a little nuts sometimes. I think I need to find the purpose and joy in the life I've been granted.

     One of my favorite authors (and personal role-model), Elisabeth Elliot, once wrote, "The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances." So enjoy the exotic gyro moments, but enjoy the mashed potato days too.

~ Tarah

Adios cows!

Next major attempt at eradicating the acne circus performing on my face: Dairy-free!!!

 

My plan is to go without dairy for at least 3 months, and see what happens. I've read that the hormones from cows remain in the dairy foods we eat, and can affect our hormones. Also, dairy products contain protein casein, which is difficult for human digestion. Digestive and hormonal issues are very much linked to acne. Plus, a restriction from dairy greatly lessens my possibilities in the realm of desserts, which is always a good thing. For I am a chocoholic. Therefore, thees eez me next challenge!

 

And just because I love funny cat photos...



 

 

You're welcome.

 

This week I also tried a kitchen rememdy for shrinking pores: egg whites. You just whisk up one little bad boy and slap him on. Let it dry for about 15 minutes or so, and then rinse. Voila! Pores sucked tight into submission!

 

One blog I read also suggested taking the inner skin of the egg shell, and placing pieces of it on pimples. Hence the weird white patches on my face. What I read stated to practice the egg-white remedy 1-2 times a week, so I think I'll give it a whirl for a while. Try it too if you wish!



A Flop?

This Tuesday marks Day 30 of the challenge.

The first week of the challenge, I handled the No Picking experiment quite well. But I caved, and popped a white head. No one can eat just one Goldfish cracker. And I cannot pop just one pimple. It always leads to more picking, and I just never stopped after my first week of victory.

So was the challenge a flop? Perhaps. Most of my other attempts to quit lasted about a week.

I do not feel, however, that this venture has been all for naught. Yesterday I went to our local walking trail without a stitch of makeup, and I didn't really mind it. Opening up via the web has allowed me to feel less self-conscious about my acne. I've realized that going sans makeup will not cause the earth to cease turning.

 



I do, however, wish to continue the fight against picking. Anyone have any ideas?

Day Eleven

It's Day Eleven of the challenge, and I've come to an impasse.

Of the numerous times I have attempted to quit picking, this is usually the time that I give up and give in. I cheated... bad. I've been picking for a few days now, to the point where my face is worse than the day I began the challenge. My ingrained perfectionism and need for control beckons me to call it quits. "If I can't be perfect, why try?"

 



I came to the realization long ago that picking is a sin. I dare not trust that God created my body in such a way that it heals itself when allowed to. Rather, I grasp for control and determine to do something about it. Like a good American, I pull myself up by my bootstraps and take action.

But this is not the way to conquer sin. In his book, Celebration of Discipline, Dr. Richard Foster writes, "Willpower will never succeed in dealing with the deeply ingrained habits of sin." He goes on to quote Emmet Fox, "As soon as you resist mentally any undesirable or unwanted circumstance, you thereby endow it with more power - power which it will use against you, and you will have depleted your own resources to that exact extent" (p. 5). So what are we to do if resisting sin only makes the situation worse?

Christ alone can alter the wicked heart of man. So do we simply sit back and wait for Him to change us? Not quite. The Apostle Paul wrote, "the one who sows to his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life" (Galatians 6:8). In order to experience the transformation of Christ, we must position ourselves to be open to His Spirit.

Dr. Foster offers the example of a farmer. He plants his seeds, waters them, and weeds the ground. He has created the correct environment to grow crops, but he has no power within himself to cause photosynthesis. Similarly, we must create an environment for spiritual growth through reading and meditation of the Word, prayer, corporate worship, and so much more. Only then are we open to accept Christ's remarkable sanctifying work.

So my solution to quit picking? 1. Stop trying to quit. 2. Spend more time in God's presence, utilizing the spiritual disciplines.

I'm pressing on.

 

P.S. So can you.

A Whole Drawer of Thoughts

I have a riddle for you... What do exercise plans, new marriages, and guitar lessons all have in common?

They always get worse before they get better. Day two of a new workout, your muscles feel like you were hit by a bus. First months of marriage? Fights, misunderstandings, miscommunication. And swollen, bloody fingers accompany guitar lessons.

But over time... what happens? Strong muscles, beautiful harmony, and melodic tunes.

I think God purposefully allows truly great things to come only by struggle. As humans, we would be too ignorant to cherish them fully if they could be accomplished with zip effort. That being said, I think you know where this is going.

Last night and today were tough. Whiteheads aplenty, I stared fitfully at the mirror.

The picture really doesn't do the struggle justice. I have never just let whiteheads go without popping them!

For me, going to work today with pimples was like going to work with no shirt on. Even with makeup, it was all I could think about.

But while I was driving home, I remembered an idea from a dear friend of mine who was struggling with distracting thoughts one day. She said she simply closed her eyes and imagined a lovely dresser. Each drawer was labeled with a specific train of thought. She simply opened the drawer she was struggling with, put her thoughts inside, and shut the drawer. She then walked away clear of mind.

The mind is a place of war, and we oughtn't deal with it lackadaisically. I long for my mind to be full of the thoughts of Christ. King David said, "I meditate on Your precepts and think about Your ways. I will delight in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word."

Oh that I may do the same always.

In a Big Pick-le

And so begins the first challenge... which begins with a truth.

I have struggled with an obsessive-compulsive addiction called "picking" for about seven years now. This horrid habit has resulted in uncontrollable acne which I feign to cover every morning with an astonishingly long makeup routine that requires numerous touch-ups throughout the day.

Bottom line, I'm sick of it.

Throughout these seven years, I've tried countless products, visited dermatologists, and even gone to therapy. Despite all my efforts, the the only attempt that has worked is public humiliation. While living in South Asia one semester, I went two full weeks without makeup, and I completely quit picking! But it returned about the time the makeup returned.

So here is attempt Numero Dos.

For 30 days, I am going to attempt to not pick a single time, in hopes of eradicating this destructive habit. In the meantime, I will post photos of my progress! My goal is to go somewhere in public with no makeup at the end of the 30 days.

Ready?

This morning, sans makeup!

                                               
                                                     And ready for the day :)

Part of my challenge is to also use natural products, as my skin is UBER sensitive! Many acne products I have used before caused more damage than good. Although organic products do come with a steep price, they are so worth it for sensitive skin.

Right now, I am using the Yes to Carrots brand, whose acne line is Yes to Tomatoes. Since my local Walgreens does not carry their spot treatment, I am using a Burt's Bees ance spot treatment.

I'm excited to share my triumphs, failures, and discoveries along the way!

Slightly hippy

Honest to Goodness.

The title of my blog bears two meanings. The first of course refers to the coloquial phrase commonly used in the South referring to complete and utter truth. The second meaning describes a transformation, beginning with honesty and taking a journey to arrive at goodness.

I know, this sounds rather metaphorical and slightly hippy-dippy-trippy. And perhaps I am, but I'm quite all right with that.

To put it in layman's terms, we all have issues. Some major, some minor. Many of us face personal battles that would rival the Cold War. My goal in this blog is to honestly reveal truth, and approach it creatively, naturally, and spiritually. My hope is for goodness to result in all matters.

I plan to embark on challenges, explore ideas, and discover the wonders of living life to the fullest as God intended.

If you're up for the journey, feel free to follow along and even join in on the fun.