You Would Be Required to Always Have Food With You

I personally would make it mandatory that everyone carries some sort of food with them. I know that traveling from one country to another there are restrictions on what you can and can't bring. But I am hear to tell you that you can travel with chocolate all over the planet freely!

I am going to share with you some personal stories about the times when I did and did not have food with me. Having food with me... made all the difference in the world.

On a recent trip to Iceland I flew into JFK airport. It was after the ice storm that occurred in the month of February when the planes were frozen on the runways. I got off of the plane in New York went through customs and went to the American Airlines counter to check in. I waited in that line for 8 hours. My flight from Iceland to New York was approximately 6 hours. I got hungry in the line, like many others around me. Even if you were with someone who could hold your place in line there was no place open at the airport to get something to eat. It was an ordeal that could have been a bit more pleasant if I had a granola bar in my purse.

Last December I flew from Christchurch, New Zealand to Queenstown, New Zealand. The weather was rainy and windy. The pilot tried 3 times to make a landing and just couldn't. He informed us that we would be flying to Dunedin, which is a one hour flight and a 3 hour ride back to Queenstown. A bus was waiting at the Dunedin airport to bring us back to the Queenstown airport. I sat next to this girl who was born and raised in New Zealand. I started talking to her. She said her name was "Pru", short for Prudence. We were both beginning to get hungry and I remembered I live by my rule. I asked her "Would you like a granola bar?" She asked, "Is it from America?" I said, "Yes." She sat up in her seat so very excited and said "Sure." A few minutes later I asked her, "Would you like a piece of chocolate?" And she asked, "Is it from America?" I responded, "Yes." She said, "Sure." A few moments later I asked, "Would you like a piece of gum?" She asked, "Is it from America?" I answered, "Yes." She said, "Sure." During this time we talked about life in New Zealand. How the people in the south island feel about people in the north island and vice versa. It was a 3 hour ride and we had lots of fun. Bonding over food was amazing. When we got off off the bus Pru gave me a hug and said, "Thank you so much for sharing your food from America." I think it was the highlight of Pru's month.

I am a fan of perception. To me it was just a granola bar, piece of chocolate and stick of gum. But to Pru it was food from America!

On December 6th, 2008, I got on a plane in Houston and was blessed to have sat next to 2 amazing women. Women who will be in my life forever. I pulled out my bag of chocolate and asked "Would you like some?" They both reached in their purses and pulled out bags of chocolate and we had a great laugh. It was so much fun getting to exchange chocolate with each other. Another bonding experience with food.

So if I were God... one of my commandments would be... Thou Shalt Always Carry Food

With Love & Light ~