YOLO

The End.

Last year, me and one of my best friend’s Jonathan
(Jesus wept – how many best friends do you have?)

decided to make it our PERSONAL MISSION to have NON BRUNCH ITEMS for BRUNCH.

Some people set themselves yearly goals to further their career.

Or travel more.

Or meet the love of their life.

Oh no – we wanted to eat NON BRUNCH ITEMS for BRUNCH.

Most of the time this mean’t waiting until a restaurant opened for lunch and not ACTUALLY HAVING BREAKFAST beforehand.

However, let’s just ignore this small loophole, and continue on with how OBSESSED I am about BRUNCH.

We had pizza for brunch.

We had tacos for brunch.

We had waffles for brunch.

And now, we have sexy VEGAN FOOD for brunch.

And today (without him- sorry Jonathan) I am having BURGERS for brunch.

Brunch is WITHOUT a doubt. My favourite meal OF ALL TIME.

It celebrates the HOLY RITUAL of BREAKFAST in all it’s GLORY.

I don’t self profess to be the QUEEN OF BREAKFAST,

although I don’t have much going for me at the moment so THERE YOU GO I SAID IT ….

ALL HAIL JOYFULL JOY FOOD THE QUEEN OF BREAKFAST!

(already regretting typing that)

From someone who never ate out in restaurants in the fear of the calorific content,

Or that my waitress might pour butter and oil ALL OVER my food to try and INCREASE the calories and make me FAT (seriously, this is what went through my head)

Or that miraculously if I ate brunch ONCE, I would become HUMONGOUS over night.

To now being FULL ON OBSESSED WITH BRUNCH…..

What gives?

Let me state this now, so I make myself VERY CLEAR……

YOLO!

YOLO is an interesting phrase which I find HIGHLY IRRITATING and only ever use in a derrivative, MOCKING WAY, but (and that’s a big butt (#puns))

You only live (this LIFE) ONCE.

And let me tell you, you will cut your LIFE dramatically SHORT, if you starve yourself to look thin and what you perceive to be ‘beautiful’.

Beauty comes in EVERY SIZE and EVERY SHAPE and EVERY FLAVOUR.

How much better is LIFE if you strive to be a GOOD PERSON and to be HAPPY rather than THIN?

And …… there will never be a thin enough…

I was at my thinnest and it still wasn’t thin enough.

Eating disorders don’t want to see you HAPPY, they want to see you DEAD.

I KNOW, if you are in the grips of an eating disorder, it isn’t going to take these words to make the CLICK in your head.

My friends and family could tell me a HUNDRED times,

It could take most of my hair falling out,

Or my periods stopping for years,

And other horrible, harrowing things

(I don’t want to go into too much detail as I know eating disorders become a competition for those still in it’s grips)

But none of those things made me realise that SOMETHING NEEDED TO CHANGE.

It took ME.

I had to make that decision.

I had to take recovery into my own hands.

Like I’m doing now with my current mental health writing this blog.

Only you can make the CHANGE.

And one day, food will be JOYOUS again.

The first time I had brunch I was in my early twenties,

And had a caring boyfriend who introduced me back to chips,

Back to burgers,

And to my first ever BRUNCH.

He helped me learn how BEAUTIFUL food is.

And for that, I am eternally grateful.

The first time I had a burger then, it was bunless.

I didn’t have any chips.

And I had extra salad.

Today in honour and support of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week,

I am having a burger for brunch

And chips.

Because…….. YOLO.

Much love,

Joy xx