A Diamond Is Forever, And So Is A Diet

      The older I am, the more I feel my life runs in a cyclical pattern.  Like the hands on a clock, I see the calendar year move in a similar motion. I feel this way most, as the holiday season approaches and moves into the new year.  The whirlwind begins at Halloween and continues through Thanksgiving,  Christmas, New Years and is then followed by "diet season". This precedes Valentines day of course where the diets are then broken for the worship of loved ones and chocolate.  Which brings me to the thought of the day in my random, rambling mind.
      It is diet season, and Valentines day is around the corner in a month and the thought that popped into my head today was, "Wow, diamonds are forever (just saw that commercial the other day,) and so are diets.
     In the true sense, the word diet just means food that you always eat.  So everyday we are on a diet, as one must eat to survive.  However, in our culture we think of diet as eating, or not eating, specific foods.  If the diet we choose in the "diet season" is so healthy and good for us, then why do we wear out on it and quit in a month or so, returning to our old habits?
     I polled my friends one night at a gathering as we were comparing our "diets" or the need to go on a diet, or even what diets we had tried in the past.  It was January after all, and "diet season".  Some said they had done fairly well during the holidays, but were frustrated that clothes were not fitting as well as they liked, so would be starting a diet again.  Others said they still had travel plans so, alas couldn't begin their "dieting" for a few weeks. You know it is impossible to "diet" when away from home on a vacation.
    When asked what I was doing, I said my husband and I were revisiting the "South Beach" diet.  We had done this one before and my husband liked it best.  I feel like it is one of the healthier ones. Maybe this time we will keep it for always....it could happen.
     A couple of my friends lamented that they had tried all the diets available and were just not going to do it anymore.  They liked food, they were in their 50's and for goodness sake, they were just going to enjoy themselves.  I admire them.
     I want to be healthy, but I confess, I lack discipline to always eat well. I jump on the bandwagon and shun sugar, white bread, and white potatoes the day after New Years, just to purge my system of all those yummy toxins it has ingested the last couple of months.  I embrace instead protein, green veggies and whole grains.  But come February, the chocolate cravings will begin to rage and then next October, I will once again be craving comfort food  as the weather begins to turn cold and winter dreariness approaches. Finally, the "eating season", um I mean holidays, will happen once again with its luxurious edibles and sharing of joy. I will struggle to not indulge in "eating season" but as so many times before, I know I will probably fail, knowing the light of "diet season" is just ahead.
     As I age, I am finding that somethings are forever, and some are not. Diamonds are beautiful gems that will last many lifetimes if cared for correctly. A moderate, wholesome diet can also last throughout a lifetime if a person has the discipline to make smart food choices and eat appropriate portion sizes.
      Personally, I reap what I sow and I eat what I will.  Although I do facetiously believe in the "diet season" of the year which follows the "eating season" (the traditional holidays),  I also feel that everyday is an opportunity to be healthy and make smart diet choices.