I scream. You scream.

Scream. Noah defines this to be “to speak or write with intense or hysterical emotion”, although I can’t imagine Mr. Webster screaming or having any sort of emotional outburst. Let alone, screaming for ice cream … which wasn’t commercially available in Noah’s time (and besides farming implements, what was?) Yet somehow the mantra of “I scream, You scream, we all scream for ice cream!” has become a favorite chant, especially among those who have intense emotions about it. Such as myself.

I get it. Ice cream and weight management are not a likely marriage. So being the abundant woman that I am, why do I review brands and flavors of ice cream? Cream, carbs, sugar, calories are the very elements that I supposidly track - so why am I inviting ice cream to the table? Well, I’ve giving up fighting it. I was tired of constantly saying no, I shouldn’t, I can’t! That thinking created a pervasive control over me. So now, I am embracing ice cream.

A few years back, I was listening to a comic, turned motivational coach by the name of Kyle Cease. The message I heard so loud was to let go of the negative thinking that I created towards my actions and simply accept them. Just love them.

“Last night, I ate a pint of rum raisin ice cream in a single sitting!” And, added … “and I love that about myself!” Ahhh, the judgement, the guilt, the shame, the resistance seem to evaporate. It cleared itself by accepting and loving it. By embracing my love of ice cream, I have moved this from a cognitive fight in my head to a loving decision in my heart. So … I’ve fallen in love with ice cream. No longer is eating ice cream a hysterical emotional response to some trigger. Eating ice cream is an intense, intentional act. For those things we love, we seek to understand them, appreciate them, make time for them. Really? It’s just ice cream! But it is a part of me, and I love that about myself.