I still indulge in a glass of wine or chocolate - treats are

In the words of Alanis Morissette, “I still indulge in a glass of wine or chocolate — treats are mandatory. Without deviating from the day-to-day healthy diet once in a while, it wouldn’t be sustainable for me, and that’s what I wanted: an approach to eating to last my entire life,” there lies the wisdom of moderation, the sacred balance between discipline and delight. Her words are not merely about food, but about the art of living — the ability to embrace health without forsaking joy, to pursue well-being without falling into rigidity. Like the sages of old, she teaches that a life too tightly controlled soon withers, while one that allows for moments of sweetness endures with grace.

When she says, “treats are mandatory,” she speaks with the insight of one who understands the nature of the human spirit. The ancients called this temperance — not denial, but measured indulgence. It is the virtue that allows pleasure to coexist with purpose. For what use is health if it becomes a cage? The body may be sustained, but the heart will hunger. The philosopher Aristotle, in his Nicomachean Ethics, taught that virtue lies between extremes — courage between cowardice and recklessness, generosity between stinginess and waste. In that same spirit, Morissette’s words remind us that a truly healthy life is one that honors both discipline and enjoyment, both the nourishing and the delightful.

Her confession — “Without deviating from the day-to-day healthy diet once in a while, it wouldn’t be sustainable for me” — reveals a profound truth that the ancients knew well: that endurance is born from balance, not perfection. The monks of the East who practiced ascetic living still allowed for small acts of celebration, for they understood that to sustain a path, one must also honor the human need for joy. Even the Spartan warriors, paragons of restraint, would feast after victory, acknowledging that the soul, like the body, requires renewal. Morissette’s indulgence in wine or chocolate becomes symbolic — not of weakness, but of wisdom, for she knows that a fire too long denied fuel will flicker out.

Her words are not the rebellion of indulgence, but the philosophy of sustainability. She does not seek fleeting perfection, but longevity of spirit. “An approach to eating to last my entire life,” she says — a line that echoes the Stoic pursuit of consistency over excess. The Stoics, such as Seneca and Epictetus, taught that wisdom is not found in extreme austerity, but in a steady rhythm that can be maintained through the seasons of life. The same principle applies to all endeavors — whether diet, ambition, or love. To persist, one must allow both effort and rest, both focus and freedom. Morissette’s philosophy, though modern in tongue, carries the eternal rhythm of harmony that the ancients called eudaimonia — a balanced and flourishing life.

Consider the story of Cato the Younger, a Roman statesman known for his austere discipline. He lived with strict simplicity, shunning luxury even when surrounded by excess. Yet those who knew him spoke of his quiet admiration for beauty — the poetry he read in secret, the rare wine he allowed himself on festival days. He understood, even amidst his stoicism, that life without moments of pleasure becomes a burden rather than a blessing. So too does Morissette’s wisdom echo through the ages: restraint without reward becomes despair; indulgence without restraint becomes decay. The true path lies between them — the path of harmony.

Her philosophy is not only about food but about the spirit’s relationship with life itself. The wine and chocolate she names are symbols of joy, of the sweetness that makes the labor of self-care worthwhile. To deny such moments entirely would be to live half a life. The ancient poets understood this — Hesiod wrote of the “golden mean,” a life not too heavy nor too light, not too grave nor too frivolous. The wise seek not to banish joy, but to integrate it, to make it part of a greater design of balance and well-being.

Let this be the lesson carried forward: sustainability is born of compassion, not control. Treat yourself as you would a dear friend — with kindness, forgiveness, and joy. Allow moments of sweetness to remind you why you strive for health in the first place. Eat with awareness, rest with gratitude, and when the moment calls, raise a glass or savor a morsel of chocolate as a celebration of life itself. For the ancients knew, and Alanis Morissette reminds us still: the path of wisdom is not austerity, but balance; not denial, but harmony.

Thus, remember: the body thrives on nourishment, but the soul thrives on joy. Indulge wisely, live mindfully, and walk the golden path between rigor and pleasure. For it is not through perfection that life becomes meaningful, but through the graceful dance between discipline and delight — a dance that, once mastered, can indeed last a lifetime.