Love & Food

A few weeks ago, I was asked to write a post for my schools newsletter. I had no idea what to write about. I always write about food. I always write about my family. I always write about my food and family. LOL. I emailed my professor a few times and we went back and forth about the topic. She made it clear that I needed to only write about the things that I was passionate about. The things that make me sit up at night and worry, stress and even sometimes cry. Those are the things that you feel strongly about and those are the things that make a good story.

I pondered over this awhile and I thought about the word PASSION. What is passion? Why do people become passionate? Passion defined through Wikipedia is a state or outburst of strong emotion. I didn't know that one could be passionate over anything until I turned 26. Up until that point, my life consisted of things that I liked. Not actually loved. I liked to play basketball. I liked cooking. I liked being adventurous. I liked people. Besides my family I only truly loved a few people.

During the summer of 2013, I met someone who introduced me to passion. They introduced me to what it was like to actually love something uncontrollably. I never understood it until I heard them speak about the life they wanted for themselves. They talked with so much enthusiasm and possessiveness that it was intriguing to my every senses. I wanted that. I wanted to feel the tingling in my feet and the urge to do whatever it took to make my dream a reality. I wanted love and I wanted food.

I know it was strange. I fought with myself a lot about it. Jelisa, really? Out of all the things in this world, you are passionate over those two things? Neither one of them will make you a millionaire. No, it wouldn't make me a millionaire but it would make me happy. When I was a child, I always wanted the American Dream. The house, the car, the dog, the kids and a husband. Despite my promising life, I really only wanted the simple things. As I got older, life happened and we seem to forget what our likes and dislikes are and we focus on just making it. When I met that "passionate person" it drove me to find what made me happy and I was willing to do anything to make it happen.

When you are passionate about something you do whatever it takes to make it happen or to keep it. You squeeze out all of your resources trying to just touch it. Passion is a drive that comes from within. Dreams are fueled by passion. I remember driving 8 hours just to get inspiration for my next project. I drove there Monday and drove back on Tuesday at 7 am. This happened more than once. Nothing stopped me. No one could make me stop. Passion can sometimes be tested during tough times. I remember crying for days at a time when I didn't think I was going to reach my goal. There were times when I couldn't focus on my work. There were times when I couldn't breathe because I was so scared of losing. It never gets easier when you want something extremely bad but the goal line seems so far away. But keep going. Don't give up. That's the advice I gave my fellow students. Don't give up. Your dream can become a reality. The passion is what will make you better and stronger.

I am on a journey to find "My love and Food." I promise to fill you guys in when I get there. :)

Just Lisa.