Wednesday, June 08, 2011

Growing leaps and bounds

A friend of mine was talking about turning 30 and looking forward to all of the good things the next decade of her life would bring. So I wanted to take this moment to commemorate the tremendous growth I have experienced in the few short years at the beginning of my thirties:

1- I have learned to like avocados. Seriously, I had my first avocado as an almost-teenager in the kitchen of the neighbor of a friend and I almost vomited. So. mushy. I'm not sure what I expected, but that was NOT it. It's a fruit, but it's savory. Wrong, on so many levels. (For this same reason I absolutely despise durian. If you've never had it, thank your lucky stars. Maybe in 20 years I'll have the same revelation I've had about avocados. But I doubt it. I seriously doubt it.) Anyway, somehow I've decided that avocados are OK. I regularly buy them and make guacamole! No, I've never eaten guacamole before my 30s either. Tried it, still thought it was nasty. Look how much I've grown as a woman in her 30s!

2- Blueberries. I have always eaten blueberries, but never REALLY enjoyed them. Same deal with avocados...I thought they were mushy. I'm assuming most people have aversions to food because of the texture issue. I used to force myself to think about something else when first biting down on a mealy-blueberry. But now, as a maturing adult, I can eat blueberries and not try to divert myself from the fact that I'm eating a blueberry!

3- Tomatoes. I NEVER thought I'd get over this one. Tomatoes gave my the dry-heaves. Again...a texture thing. But after years of forcing myself to nibble on them here and there, getting used to that texture in my hamburger-layering, I can eat tomatoes. And not just on stuff, but I can stick an entire, plain, slice of tomato in my mouth and chew it up, not running for the nearest garbage can but actually enjoying it. Growth.

I just wanted to share these little gems of thought in case there is anyone out there anxious about moving into a new decade... because there are always new wonders to discover, like the fact that you, too, can overcome aversions to mushy foods! They can actually become palatable to you! Just imagine all of the doors that will open up to you! You're welcome.

readers