Lemon Drop Martini

Day 146

“I believe that if life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade…And try to find somebody whose life has given them vodka, and have a party.”

– Ron White

I came across this somewhat kitschy story, but I thought the point was still a good one – to make the best of all of your experiences…when life hands you lemons, make lemon drop martinis!

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans.

Without saying a word, she let them come to a boil. About twenty minutes later, she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots, eggs and coffee out, and placed each into a separate bowl.

Turning to her daughter, she asked, “Tell me, what do you see?”

“Carrots, eggs, and coffee,” she replied.

She brought her daughter closer and asked her to feel the carrots.

She did, and noted that they were soft and mushy. The mother then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hardened egg. Finally, she asked her daughter to sip the coffee.

The daughter smiled as she tasted its deep flavour and inhaled its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, “What’s the point, mother?”

The mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity – boiling water, but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting, however, after being subjected to the boiling water, it became weak. The egg had been fragile – its thin, outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After being immersed in boiling water, they had changed the water.

“Which are you?” she asked her daughter. “When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?”

Which one are you?  Are you the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, do you wilt and lose your strength? Are you the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Do you have a fluid spirit but, after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have you become hardened and stiff? Does your shell look the same, but on the inside are you bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart? Or are you like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water – the very circumstance that brings the adversity, the pain, the hardship – into something quite wonderful. When the water gets hot, it releases its fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you for the better.

The reference to soft carrots and hard eggs reminds me of Exposure, the post I introduced Kurilane to the public with. The post is my creed; I wrote it as my “answer song” to Mary Schmich’s Sunscreen, where she advises us to “Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.” And to “Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.”

I’m more of a tea or lemon drop person rather than coffee, but nevertheless, the point being, don’t let life’s ups and downs change you – transform the difficult experiences into something positive. Keeping with the kitsch theme of this post…if you are going to get down, do it with KL Beats Boulevard. 😉

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Blog Beats: Get Down On It by Kool & The Gang

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Happiness is the journey, not the destination. Embrace it!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!