Many of us associate Easter with chocolate and it’s a nice treat to give ourselves the freedom to consume something we enjoy.
Thinking about eating chocolate (everyone does this, right?) got me thinking about how we nourish ourselves in general and I don’t just mean what we eat.
Are we filling ourselves with gossip and violent TV programmes or do we nourish ourselves with interesting reading material and inspiring podcasts?
How do we take care of our bodies and our minds?
Hopefully, there’s food for thought in what you read below.
Happy Easter 😊
President George Washington signed The Judiciary Act which established the US Supreme Court in 1789.
Almost 200 years later, in 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominated Sandra Day O’Connor to be the first female justice on the Supreme Court. Sandra was born in Texas and grew up on a large ranch. Sandra graduated from Stanford Law School in the top 10% of her class but had to work for free in her first job as her gender made it difficult to get a legal job in the 1950s.
In 1956, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of 9 females studying law in a class of 500 at Harvard. In 1993, President Bill Clinton nominated Ruth to the Supreme Court. She was the second female justice and the first Jewish female justice ever. She remained in the role until September 2020 when she passed away at the age of 87. Her legacy is far reaching and in particular she was an advocate for gender equality.
Making the news this month, following nomination by President Joe Biden, Ketanji Brown Jackson, became the first black female ever to be nominated to the US Supreme Court. Whilst at school, Ketanji got the chance to go to Harvard for a debating competition and that sparked her interest in pursuing law at Harvard. Her guidance teacher at the time is said to have advised Ketanji not to set her sights so high.
However, Ketanji nourished herself with self belief and got to Harvard University and Harvard Law School and later this year she will fulfil her dream of being a justice at the Supreme Court.
These are inspiring women. I enjoy reading about them and I applaud their ground breaking progress.
I also want to mention an inspiring man who was a contemporary of President George Washington. Benjamin Franklin was a printer, author, inventor, scientist and statesman. He is known to have had a part in writing the US Declaration of Independence as well as the US Constitution. His image has been on the US$100 note since 1914.
This Easter Sunday, 17th April 2022, marks 233 years since Benjamin Franklin died at the age of 84. At the time, this represented a lifespan that was about 30 years longer than the average!
Benjamin Franklin’s writings leave us an impression of his daily routines and how he nourished himself to live such a long life. He didn’t have the distraction of fast food, phones and Netflix to contend with but maybe we can learn something from how he managed his day.
He was attentive to what he consumed for both mind and body. However, he also made time for creating. If he were alive today, I think his habits show he would not have been someone who mindlessly snacked in front of the TV or thoughtlessly scrolled through social media. He lived purposeful days purposely.
He started his day early and spent time every morning clarifying his goals, reading, meditating and journaling before having breakfast. Most days he created a written plan of his intentions for the day.
Ben was an advocate of life-long learning and put aside time every day to better his knowledge. He was a believer in routine and dedicated himself to the task at hand when he was working. However, he generally took a generous break at lunchtime to savour his food and recharge his batteries.
He also enjoyed sport, especially swimming and having down time with family and friends.
Before he went to bed every evening, he reviewed his day to focus on what went well. Perhaps completing what we might call a gratitude diary today.
Maybe there are things that Ben did one quarter of a millennium ago that we can use today to motivate us in nourishing ourselves well?
“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” – Benjamin Franklin
“How would your life be different if…You were conscious about the food you ate, the people you surround yourself with, and the media you watch, listen to, or read? Let today be the day…You pay attention to what you feed your mind, your body, and your life. Create a nourishing environment conducive to your growth and well-being today.” –Steve Maraboli
“Reading is the key that opens doors to many good things in life. Reading shaped my dreams, and more reading helped me make my dreams come true.” – Ruth Baden Ginsburg
“Be open to new ideas and experiences because you’ll never know when someone else will have an interesting thought or when a new door will open to take you on the journey of your dreams.” – Ketanji Brown Jackson
Sinead Huskisson 