an apple a day.. lessons in fighting the choke

 I recently wrote about apples. I have often heard about their health benefits, that "....keep the doctor away" line repeats like a mantra in my head. The Good Lord knows after my cancer keeping the doctor away except for things such as annual physicals is exactly what I want to accomplish. The thing with me is that for some reason when ever I have attempted to eat raw, unpeeled apples the peeling would choke me. No, not the grabbing the throat, gasping for air, going to my knees choking but that coughing fit that has people looking at you as if they expect the a fore mentioned fit. I am able to eat cooked apples all day long, but raw, no.

 It was a shame too, apples are really delicious raw. You get that first crunch as you bite into them and the sweet juices flow into your mouth awakening your taste buds to something very special. How is it that something that tastes so good, is also packed with such a good for you punch? How many natural things curb your hunger? How many natural things have all those anti-oxidants and nutrients that help prevent cancers and balance blood sugars? And this is a very short only partial listing.  Still, that choking thing can be and actually is..embarrassing.

 When I thought about it, I couldn't help but wonder how much of the choking was real, and how much was something subconscious? Is it possible that at some point long ago in my childhood I did actually choke on an apple and a buried fear of apples and the possibility of another choking incident causes the coughing and therefore ending my desire for apples? Could it be that I'm simply not chewing them thoroughly enough allowing the bigger sections of peel to grate against the inside of my throat, and the irritation then causing the cough? I really doubt that I will ever ask the doctor that line of question. My doctors wonder enough about my thought processes, why make it worse?

  But now today, today was a different story. I had gone out the other day and purchased a bag of Fugi apples. My husband had eaten some of that type not too long ago and loved them, so I thought I would give them a try. I brought the bag home and placed it on the counter, then walked around it for days. I could see them there, waiting their turn. I saw them when I reached over the bag for my daily banana. I saw them as I went about cutting up the sweet peppers for my salad. I kept looking over the bag, knowing I purchased them, I needed to eat them.

 Finally I opened the bag and brought out the first apple. My first apple in a very long time. biting into the apple was an experience of many facets. There was that initial crunch, the flavor of the juice, the texture of the fruit and the knowledge I was eating better as the apple replaced that sandwich of peanut butter and honey on whole grain bread with flax seed. It sounds okay, but when I say peanut utter, I mean a layer thick enough to mire up automobiles. I ate the apple slowly, chewing carefully and fully, enjoying each bite. I managed to consume the entire apple without getting choked once.  I was almost arrogant in my joy as I moved to trash the core. Slam dunking it into the can, then wiping my hands but not able to wipe that smile from my face.

  You may wonder why I'm making such a big deal out of eating an apple. When I do something like eat an apple it means I didn't eat junk food. It means that I didn't consume half a jar of peanut butter on one sandwich. It means, that I ignored that long list of reasons/excuses that would have stopped me and I ate the apple anyway and in spite of the voices reciting the list with items such as candy, pastry, chocolate. It shows that I am growing ever more serious about this new healthy decisions I'm making.

  We can all do this. We can grow determined to be better, be healthier, be more in tune with what our body needs. We can fight back against all of the things causing us NOT to do what we know needs doing. We can make the time to exercise, even a few minutes a day makes a difference. Take the stairs, walk, don't spend all your time sitting, strength train, join a fitness club, etc...We can do what we need do if we so determine that we will.