This is my second post of a three part blueberry-tastic recipe series made in partnership with the US Highbush Blueberry Council. You can check out the first recipe, a Blueberry Mint Matcha Latte, here. You can expect the final installment next week. xoxo

I could tell you that this recipe comes together in less than 5 minutes, and that all you have to do is refrigerate overnight. I could talk about the health benefits of blueberries. I could talk about the protein content of this meal. I could talk about my deep love of oats. But I don’t want to talk about any of those things. 

I want to talk about life. And love. And friendship. And the things that really matter – like, holding each other’s hands through the dark times. I want to laugh. I want to get crumbs on my shirt and blueberry stains on my fingers. I want to get messy. I want to feel alive. 

It is easy as a food blogger to sit down to each post and simply tell you about the recipe. There are often a lot of details to discuss. And at times talking about food is a much needed reprieve from the world. But I simply can’t do that. There are too many other important things in this world to discuss. 

We could talk about books or podcasts or the ways in which I were nicer to my mother. Because in a world of health trends and grab-and-go meals, I’d like to have more substance. I’d like to say something that means something to another human. I’d like to not just be a recipe resource, but I’d like to be a human you can talk to and engage with. I’d like this to be a place with some meat on it’s bones, metaphorically. 

Because what makes me come alive isn’t sitting around a table discussing the nutrition of a bowl of oatmeal. What makes me come alive is fueling up with something deeply nourishing, like this Blueberry Almond Overnight Oat situation, and then going out into the world and conquering it. I love how alive food can make us; I love the sensory experience it can give us; I love the way it can comfort us; I love that a dinner table can be a gathering place; I love that it has given me a voice in this world. 

But I hope none of us confine ourselves to a life as small as just the food we eat. We are meant to be bigger than that. Dream bigger, act bigger, love bigger, laugh bigger, and use food to give us the energy for those moments. There was a time in my life where I defined by worth, my value, by the amount and quality of food I ate. It consumed my desire to truly live. So I’d like us to all take a moment to remember what it is to be truly alive. Because I bet it has very little to do with what food you ate that day and has everything to do with how bold you were, how big you loved, and how much you showed up. 

There are just so many more important conversations to have than, “how many calories are in this food?” There is so much more life to live. So this is a friendly reminder to us all (myself included) to do a little more living and a lot more loving and a lot less time wasted talking about what you’re going to eat. Or can’t eat. Or won’t eat. Or “shouldn’t” eat. Be as kind as you can with your body. Nourish it well. And then go forth and live. xoxo.