A Lesson In Every Lemon

  

I love the maxim, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”  I’ve seen the amusing alternative that says, “When life gives you lemons, break out the salt and tequila and invite a few friends over.” I like this one too. The fact is, it’s all about perspective. Either choice is making a somewhat positive decision.  However, I have been considering the lemon itself. It’s sour and unpleasant. Most people don’t like the sour things in life. We alter them, dress them up, and try to make them enjoyable …. and so we should. But has anyone ever considered just taking the lemon straight? I figure, if I add sugar to make lemonade, in a few days time, it will add weight to my thighs. If I add tequila, well, despite well-meaning friends, the next day may be painfully punishable AND I still have the alcohol to sugar to fat ratio to consider. Dang, can’t win for losing!  So how about that lemon?  A lemon has sprouted from a seed, the seed took root and grew into a lemon tree. Like all good fruit bearing trees, it produced after its own kind.  I believe in every lemon, there is a lesson. If life is dishing out some unsavory things for you, should we not look at the seed, the root, ….. the tree we have been tending? Perhaps it’s not something we’ve done and surely it’s not our fault that we’ve been served a dish that’s best served sweet or drenched in alcohol. Whether we planted the seed of the lemon tree or not, somewhere along the way, we have attended to its needs for growth …… watered our minds by entertaining ideas and thoughts, nurtured growth through unforgiveness, and suckled upon the fruit of complacency.. In other words, that lemon didn’t grow all by itself. What if …. now think about this, really contemplate ….. we just ate the lemon!?! A few minutes of discomfort and it’s done, over, gone. No fat cells or hangovers to deal with, no side-affects, just taking our medicine, sleeping in the bed we’ve made, learning the lesson, and getting on with our lives without drawing it out and creating new problems? Yeah, that sounds good to me! Over and done!  When I face adversity, I have the choice of casting blame or making lemonade. I believe we should always, always look for the up side. But first and foremost, look to ourselves. Is there a lesson here? Could I have done it differently? What can I learn?  Search your heart, dig deep. Look within yourself, be honest. If the lemons being served to you hold no purpose and have come to you by no nurturing of your own, ….. toss it in a pitcher and add sugar!  It has been my experience that 99.999% of the time, I’ve grown my own lemons. I pray we will all learn to see that growth is not weakness, forgiveness in not vulnerability, and lemons aren’t all that hard to swallow! ~ Sandra K. Yates