Monday, July 18, 2011

The Pits

I pack my lunch when I go to work.  There is a pretty standard menu that I follow that takes the stress and thought process out of preparing lunch.  I tend to eat a lot of left overs or re-mix them into a different dish.  But this also helps clean out our fridge and save the budget.  If I don't bring in the left overs they tend to find their own spot in the fridge until they grow their own fur coats.  I know that's disgusting, but has happened (frequently).  Biggest culprit we throw out is produce.  When I buy it I have all these menu plans and ideas and excitement to cook.  We'll say shopping day is Saturday and the next time I think about the fruit is Monday nine days later.  Most of the good stuff is no longer good.  So I have to monitor what I buy and constantly remind myself.  Remember how you bought the berries for snacks.  Eat them!!!  I think my four pound strawberry buy from Costco is brilliant until I eat three of them.  It helps to pack fruit for snacking at the office.  It doesn't take that much time to prepare but I tell myself it does.  For instance blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries are delicious.  And they just need a rinse and go.  Summer is absolutely my favorite season for fruit ( I am so a berry girl!)  So constantly we have to monitor our produce drawers.  Currently we are seeing a lot of red in our fridge, raspberries, strawberries, and cherries.  Ohhh I love a good cherry.  They are so pretty, that deep ruby shade that slowly swirls among the berries fading lighter or darker.
Today I was preparing for tomorrow's lunch golden honeydew melon mixed with some cherries.  If I am at home I love to pluck the cherries and spit out the pits.  Which is a solitary activity or for those who truly know and love you.  It doesn't sound like a pleasing work atmosphere activity.  Which means I need to pit my cherries.  I pluck my stems, pluck, pluck, pluck.  And as I grow more accustomed to working with fruit.  I give myself a thumbs up for wearing a red shirt as the cherries are staining my fingers that beautiful ruby shade. And nearby I have a handy bowl to collect my stems and my pits.  Now I have the fruit container on the stove and the cherry garbage over by the sink as I have just rinsed the cherries.  It takes me three individual cherries pitted.  Cut the cherry in half, twist, and push/thumb out pit.  I then turn around and walk the three steps to the fruit container I am bringing to work.  I drop off the cherry halves and walk the three steps back to the sink.  I repeat this cycle two more times.  Then it dawns me.  Bring the container to the sink.  If I was doing this for exercise so be it.  I wasn't, at least not intentionally.  But this visual struck me.  How often do I repeat the pattern?  It's working, its getting the job done; but it isn't enhancing my life nor had I explored different ways to tackle the problem.  I was so focused on removing the pits that the means got lost.   Too often I do this.  Focus on the problem and forget that there could be more than one solution.  Some ways are better than others, and which path depends on the goal.  It is important to remove the pit/obstacle but keep thinking of solutions.  You never know which path will lead you to be your best.

May your HealthFULL Journey never focus on the pits but the numerous solutions.  "Til we meet again. . . 

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