11 Sep …and a Strawberry on Top
My daughter is not at all fond of strawberries. Unfortunately, at our
favorite Mexican restaurant last night, her chicken tacos came on a plate with
a side of fruit… which happened to be strawberries. The strawberries were touching
the tacos, and – almost as if to taunt her – one bright red strawberry happened
to be sitting right on top of a taco, like a cherry on a sundae.
She was not at all pleased. After a long day, it was especially hard for her
not to fall apart at the sight of strawberries touching her tacos. “I don’t
know what to do,” she lamented. “I love the tacos and I’m so hungry AND the
tacos have disgusting strawberry juice on them.” She stared at the plate.
It’s hard when foods you don’t like are mixed with foods you do like. And
it’s hard when your thoughts are mixed together, too – like whether or not to
eat strawberry-tainted tacos.
Everything touches. Even when we don’t want it to. We see this often while
working with people who say they have lots of good reasons to change… and in
the same breath mention the many reasons keeping things the same sounds pretty
good, too. Even when change begins, that dilemma persists. Our chosen path
brings delight for what’s gained and sorrow for what’s lost.
So often we find ourselves caught between these conflicting thoughts and
emotions. They feel so big and so true. Everything’s all mixed together. With a
strawberry on top.