awareness
social
Unfair. Cruel. Confining. The words revolved around Joe’s head, blurring the world he stared at out through his window, as he counted every drop of rain rippling down to the sill. A little meatball who felt maybe a few ounces on the meaty side, Joe was having trouble with a relationship. Not the type where he had had a fight with his mom, or disagreed with his brother. No, Joe’s issues had been running far longer, and were going to run much deeper with every day. Joe hated the look of food. And he especially despised what it did to his body.
Joe stepped away from the window to study his reflection in the mirror, but quickly realized it was a rookie mistake. His self-esteem had just deteriorated to almost nothing. Food was the villain of giving him his plump body, and the consequential lack of energy and surplus of depression. Frankly, this was a daily routine Joe kept to himself. Bathroom. Crying. Sleeping.
Now he can hardly ever be enthralled by the sight of the delicious, heavenly, simply divine foods he once relished. The worst? Though it’s his arch nemesis, it’s all he ever thinks about. And today is no different.
He decided to call Jess, his fellow meatball friend whom he trusted with his whole heart. The only one who might come even close to understanding the torment his mind goes through. A charismatic queen who loved helping people out no matter what, Jess picked up the phone right before it went to the tone. “Hellooo lovely,” she responded, voice bright and unrestrained as usual. She was beaming over the excitement of a gig she had just finished. As Joe glumly recounted his nuisances, though, her mood suddenly shifted into one that was whist and worrisome. “Here, just wait. I’ll be pounding on your doorstep like there's no tomorrow!”
And so, she started the car and rumbled all the way down the flooding streets of Meatball Mania to Joe’s, where she parked her car and dashed towards the door. Almost the instant after she had begun ringing the doorbell frantically, it creaked open ever so slowly. There stood her dear meatball friend right across from her - pale as a ghost. She jumped up and hugged him. “Oh what you’ve been going through… I think it’s time I help you out here with another one of Jess’-jolly-Jackpots. I will stir you up with something so irresistibly mouthwatering, you will have no choice but to devour it right in front of me. Let’s make mini meatballs together!”
Jess knew that Joe wasn’t going to talk much, especially since he wasn’t super comfortable sharing about his eating disorder. But, she was determined to help Joe turn around his perspective on food, about which she knew what Joe was ignoring: at the root it stemmed from his lack of self-love. And what better to foster some compassion than cooking mini meatballs, her Christmas specials?
Soon after, one could hear not only Jess’, but Joe’s cackles too, from outside the kitchen. It was the first time in ages that he was genuinely having fun, and more importantly for him, having fun with food. He and Jess were cooking together, laughing together, and he was truly enjoying the smell of these meatballs. As he tentatively picked up an extra baby meatball to take a gracious bite, Jess felt her heart fill. At that moment, she had never seen Joe so happy, his eyes so bright, and it felt like she'd finally gotten a breath of fresh air.
From that day on, Joe started eating a small breakfast every morning. Although he didn't take lunch to school immediately, as he wasn’t yet comfortable eating in front of others, he still took some snacks mindfully when he came home. Change does not have to be automatic, or even fast. It can be gradual, and as long as it comes from an open heart and is faced with an open mind, starting a change will transform your life.
If you know anyone with an eating disorder, you can support them by encouraging them to seek professional help, avoiding talks about weight, offering help with meals, supporting them through their struggles, and advocating for them through their recovery journey.
Becoming an ally is not a replacement for medical treatment, but as much as they might need professional help, those with eating disorders need friends.
Project Metropolis will be selling meatballs on Food Day. Come support us and buy a bowl, 5 warm meatballs for $3!