1. A pan of peanut bars made by me that turned out wrong. Totally wrong. That's not like me. I was very disappointed. When I fail at making a dessert my whole self image suffers.
2. A fear of DNA. The gene pool from which I sprung proves to be quite questionable and rather murky. Luckily my parents overcompensated on the nurture side of the Nature vs. Nurture theory and we turned out okay. Didn't we?
3. A cousin who is right out there with her chemical dependency and denial of same. Who snorts cocaine in the woods at a place filled with happy childhood memories? It just doesn't seem right. Maybe the memories weren't so happy.
4. An uninvited mammal with four paws and a disregard for tasty snacks for humans.
5. Relief over the ownership of a small plot of land on a small lake in a small township. It didn't go to those who are totally unworthy and oblivious to its charm.
6. A trip to the emergency room.
7. A death in the family, not related to the trip to the emergency room.
Photo credited to Tim Booth
Life is filled with ups and downs and it is up to us to make the most of it. The happy times arm us with the ammunition it takes to get through the more trying times. Sometimes people are put in our lives to serve of examples of how not to be and to remind us of how we have fashioned a lifestyle suited exactly for ourselves. Trauma, illness, and death give us pause to be grateful, caring, and compassionate. Sometimes the less festive times in our lives are necessary for us to appreciate how good our lives are in general.
Family is family. They are who they are. Sometimes it takes my extended family to remind me of how much my family of origin means to me. I'm grateful for their presence in my life. I'm also going to throw away that recipe for peanut bars.
1 comment:
I know that feeling when something does not turn out the way we want it too. That goes for baking as well as relatives!
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