The Knife and The Fork

A lot has happened since we last spoke. I got new glasses. I baked my first cheesecake. We elected a new President and I spent more than a bit of money on Black Friday sales. Life has been a little crazy lately and my anxiety levels have me wishing it was socially acceptable to spend all day in bed, but alas, it is not.

A week ago I had a moment of insight inspired by a fork and a muffin. I bought a muffin on my way to work and as usual, I asked for a plastic knife. I find that using a knife allows me to cut the muffin into bite sized pieces while making the least amount of mess. However, when I sat down with my latte at the bookstore, what I found in the bag was a fork.

(source)

Right away I thought, "A fork! What am I going to do with a fork? This isn't going to work. What a disaster!" Then I took a moment and realized how silly I was being because of course a fork would work. Maybe it's not what I thought I was getting, or what I normally use, but eating a muffin with a fork would work just as well as a knife. I don't know who was to blame for the mix up. Maybe the lady accidentally grabbed the wrong utensil, or I may have just said fork instead of knife. Either way all that matters is that I had a working untensil and a muffin to eat.

I couldn't help but see this fork/knife debocle as a metaphor for life. In life we're not always given what we want, or what we believe we're being given. Occasionally life gives you a fork instead of a knife. Maybe the fork makes more of a mess, but it's still a useful tool for getting the muffin into your mouth. Am I getting too deep into this metaphor now?

The fork was a reminder to always look at situations with an open mind. Next time I feel stuck, I should consider looking for an unexpected solution. Of course, I'd still like to get what I want (wouldn't we all), but life rarely works how I want it to.

-S