Some things are easy to consume in their entirety. Donuts, for example. I think donuts are easy to consume. I think a decent pizza is easy to consume. The little pseudo-articles that seem to make up the bulk of most magazines today…those are easy to consume. A bite here, a nibble there. Done. The world is filled with things that are consumed.
There’s a term we use around our house to describe things that initially appear easy but wind up not being so easy to consume: powdered donuts. I, for one, don’t have a problem with powdered donuts. We have this friend, though, who thinks powdered donuts are gross. Specifically, he hates the little powdered donuts that come in the box with the crinkly, clear plastic window on top. They look so good to him. When a box is opened, they smell so good. Everyone digs into them with gusto, sometimes devouring them in one bite. The people eating them seem to be having such a good time. They lick their lips clean of the white, powdery sugar that coats them.
Sometimes, he gets carried away in the frenzy, in the enjoyment. “Those little donuts look so good!” he thinks. So, he goes for it. He reaches in; takes a donut; pops it into his mouth. Then…then the realization sinks in: he hates these things. They taste like crap, at least to him. He spits it out. He wipes his tongue. He takes a swig of milk to erase the taste from his mouth. Those donuts should taste good to him, but they don’t. They should be easy to consume, but they aren’t.
Powdered donuts.
There are other things in life, more universal things, that should be easy to consume but aren’t. Unfortunately, a good many of those are things which could prove beneficial to us. They should be beneficial, but they aren’t. We don’t let them be. Today, I was reminded that, as far as I feel I have come in my journey of discovery, of connection to purpose, I still have some abandoned pathways to revisit. I know why they are there in the state they are in. They should have tasted good, but they didn’t. They should have been beneficial, but I sabotaged them. That’s OK; there’s a reason why I let them be. I wasn’t ready. Now I am.
Looks like it’s time to clear some half-consumed, powdered donuts off my plate.
Illuminate Possibilities 