Pizza nights in my home growing up were on Thursdays. We would buy whatever frozen pizza was on sale on that week along with a bag of salad, and it was the only meal we ate on the couch in front of the TV. It was survivor night so that was the "treat" meal of the week.

 

I remember these nights being my favourite because, other than how many slices one may choose to have, it was one of the only times I could eat something without my mom making a comment of some kind. I think she viewed these evenings as "cheat nights" on her long life of fad and yo-yo dieting so she allowed us all to have a little space from the critiques as well,

 

As I got older and ventured into life on my own, I lost the childhood sight of what food was made to be. Growing up food was bad, evil, scary, and control-less. It was a necessary evil, really. I found a love of cooking through my best friend. He grew up in a home where food was seen as creative, fancy, and meant to have joy. They spoke about using colours, textures, and flavours to create experiences. Plating was even important, even just at a cozy family meal. We lived together for some time when we both move out of our family homes, and I learned to cook through him. We had next to no money, so would take $20.00 to the grocery store and would choose random ingredients that sounded tasty in that moment. We would bring those home and create something together, even when the ingredients did not seem complementary. Regardless of how inexpensive the individual ingredients needed to be, we always made something that sparked joy, laughter, and creativity.

 

Weird Pizza Wednesday's have become my way of reclaiming what used to be feel like a 'fun' evening in my childhood (read, the only meals that did not come with immense negativity) and combine it with new ideals and values. My husband and I now watch survivor weekly (when it is on) and we make pizza from scratch, dough and veggies from our own garden included. We pick in-season toppings that... you do not normally find on an average pizza. This is not an exclusive idea of ours, many people get weird with their pizzas, but it's something we do to find connection and playfulness.

 

Healing Your Inner Foodie is going to be a space where people can come to find connection, community, creativity, and, hopefully, some healing from the narratives and scripts they hold around food. I will admit, this space is likely to come with some triggering stories and shared experiences, so please always be kind to others and care for yourself first. We all heal in different ways, and we all need to hold space and responsibility for our own selves.

 

Thank you for being here with me, and I hope together we can find healing for our own inner foodies