Chew Your Food

I was a slow eater as a child. I would chew my food endlessly and my brothers used to tease me about how slow I was eating. My mom told me you’re supposed to chew your food 40 times according to Arabic culture and that stuck with me for some reason. Lately I’ve been remembering things from my childhood and what I liked to do then. I’ve been asking questions about those quirks and what they mean, how I am wired. I’m definitely the contemplative type. I like to ponder things and mill them over and dig deeper, especially when it comes to the word of God. The discoveries I make through my newfound interest in the Hebrew language keeps blowing me away. 

The whole idea of chewing your food a certain amount of times spiked my interest so I decided to look it up. This is what I found:  “According to studies food should be chewed about 32 times, foods that are harder to chew, such as steak and nuts may need up to 40 chews per mouthful”. 

In the Hebrew language even numbers have meaning so I looked up the numerical value of 32 and what I found felt like such a gift from the Lord. 32 is the word for Heart, Lev. 

32 is seen as the joining or junction between the inner world and the outer world. It’s also the numeric value of the word Kavod which means glory, dignity, substance (literally weight). The verb Labab means to hearten, strengthen, make wise, ravish, but also “make cakes”. This is why I love the Hebrew language so much because it’s so hands on. It gives you down to earth pictures to hold onto. In Bible times they made raisin cakes (or cakes of dried figs) to strengthen and sustain travellers on a long journey. These cakes were also used in religious celebrations. This is why the Shulamite in Song of Songs 2:5 says “strengthen me with raisin cakes”. 

Talk about mindful eating! In our fast food culture we could definitely need more slow food that we chew over 32 times – with dignity and feel that connection between the inner world and the outer world. If you need more food for your thoughts you can also ponder this: the letter for God – shin – the eternal flame, the consuming fire of love, literally means teeth. He’s the warrior for our souls, ready to devour the enemy and anything that rises up against the knowledge of God. Ponder that next time you chew away on your BigMac (or you might make a more wholesome choice). God of the universe is so close and intertwined in our lives. Just be aware! 

“But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it.” Deut 30:14