Frying in a Crowded Pot

Mood: Pensive
Music: Soldier of Love - Sade
Date: Thursday, 11 February 2010

I find that my best moments of inspired thought come in the most inconvenient places: in the shower, while cooking, or while falling asleep. These three places have the same thing in common – it’s hard for me to pull out pen/paper/phone or laptop to record my thoughts. My hand is either wet, covered in food or refuses to move because I’m groggy.

On Wednesday afternoon while cooking dinner, it occurred to me one of the lessons I eventually learned while cooking, applies to life: you can’t fry something properly if the pot is crowded. There are lessons you learn more than trial than error when it comes to both cooking and life. Then there are other lessons you need to learn through error and not trial.

If meat is wet, it doesn’t brown in the pot. Dumplings need the dimple in the centre. Never bake in a dirty oven. These are things they don’t teach you in cooking classes, and in the class of life...the most important lessons are the ones you figure out as you go along.

One of the most exciting things about life is that there’s no script, but one of the most frustrating things about life is that there’s no manual. No one walks the path for you, and breaks down in graphic detail what you will experience and how to deal with it. You pretty much wing it from the moment you’re born till the moment you take your last breath.

And if there’s nothing else you remember about this entry: do not forget that you cannot fry something properly if the pot is crowded.

If your mind is crowded by regrets, failure, pain, drama, hatred, angst, and negativity...how will you think about anything happy, successful, pleasurable, comedic, lovely, calming, and positive?
If your life is crowded by negative elements – how will you ever open your mind long enough to see the truly great moments when they occur?
If you crowd your life with unworthy persons, how will you have room for the persons that genuinely care about you?

If you don’t understand my analogy, as soon as you finish reading this entry, I challenge you to get up and fry something in a crowded pot. Fritters, plantains, dumplings, fish, chicken...it doesn’t matter. Fill up every possible cooking surface in the pot, and see how long it takes you complete the meal...or you can just put in a few pieces at a time...and see how quickly the process takes to finish.

Apply the principle to your life, and clear out a little clutter each day: mental clutter, emotional clutter, physical clutter, bad vibes, negative people, negative thoughts, bad memories...it doesn’t matter what it is, as long as you get rid of it.

Live. Love. Let Go.

Love,
Ally.

Photo Credit: Bud, Tina, Carol, Nick and Bubby do Thanksgiving; Thursday, November, 26th, 2009; Photo taken by Curragon Lights Photography