A Life Lesson: Using the Good Dishes

I enjoy Vanilla Coke. This statement isn’t meant to be particularly interesting or any sort of product endorsement. Instead, it’s noteworthy only because of the fact I can’t get Vanilla Coke where I live. So every time I head south of the border I am always on the lookout not for bargains or brand names but for vanilla-flavoured carbonated beverages.

The thing is… whenever I drink a Vanilla Coke I feel guilty. My supply is limited and enjoying a beverage now means there will be one less to enjoy later. I find myself questioning every can. Is the occasion special? Am I thirsty enough? Have I allotted myself enough time to truly enjoy and savour it? It’s gotten to the point where drinking only half a can is a moral dilemma and sharing is limited to only my most deserving of friends. Last week I even took the last few sips home from work because I didn’t want to feel rushed and ruin the experience by finishing it in a matter of gulps. Yes, I took a pittance of beverage down the stairs, out the door, into my car, all the way home, out of the car and put it back into the fridge so I could finish it when I deemed it appropriate. Excessive? Very. I find myself worrying so much about enjoying every last drop that it actually takes all the enjoyment out of it. And why? Because the end is near? Isn’t that when we should let go and enjoy things the most? Savour the moment and not worry about what lies ahead? It is, after all, only soda and it surely wouldn’t be the end of the world if I had to live my life Vanilla-free.

The more I reflect on my seemingly bizarre behaviour the more I realize it’s not so bizarre after all. Take, for instance, fine china. Isn’t it so ‘fine’ that most people bring it out only on Christmas and Thanksgiving? Keeping it housed, the remaining 363 days of the year, in a china cabinet for the entire world to see, as though it were a museum exhibit and not a dinner setting? And for what purpose? So it doesn’t get chipped or broken? So it can be passed down, from generation to generation, with the unwritten rule that it is to be enjoyed only by looking, not by using?

It took me a long time to realize I was letting life pass me by in the simplest of ways. That by the time I got around to using my new plates they wouldn’t be new anymore. That they’d be out of style long before they ever made it to the table. Every time I used one of my ‘everyday’ plates it just made me long for an occasion in which I could use my fancy dishes. Instead of making every day special, I spent each and every day lamenting on the fact that it wasn’t special at all. Well let me tell you… I now use my good dishes. And you know what? Food tastes better off those plates. Now when I use my ‘everyday’ dishes the only thing I lament about is the fact it’s time to run the dishwasher because, gosh darn it, meal time just isn’t the same without my fancy plates and bowls!

It’s so much more than plates. It’s the fact my mom spent an entire day every year of my childhood polishing silverware that would never have tarnished if they had been used regularly. But, alas, it sat in its velvet-lined box, anxiously awaiting Christmas. Unless, of course, one of the clumsier relatives were in attendance, upon which it would wait another year. It was a similar story for the crystal goblets. After an unfortunate incident that depleted the supply by one they were put in the cupboard where their pinwheel pattern and melodic ‘ting’ during toasts were never to be seen or heard from again.

And then there is my couch- its one corner lovingly covered with a blanket so the cat won’t lay directly on its surface. Sure, the blanket is an eyesore but that one piece of couch is in pristine condition. Never mind the fact it’s been four years and the rest of the couch is nearly worn out. But that one snippet? Well it’s perfect! Was it worth four years of looking at that stupid blanket, quickly hiding it in the ottoman whenever company arrived? Heck no.

We do this with so many things. We put area rugs to preserve the flooring, only to have the flooring around the area rug fade. We baby new vehicles to avoid getting door dings and rock chips until, one day, the vehicle is no longer new. And we leave the protective film on our Kindles and cell phones’, rendering us unable to fully enjoy the vibrant colours and glossy screen until, before we know it, the device has worn out long before the protective covering has. I’m guilty of this. I immediately put a cover on my iTouch so the silver backing wouldn’t get scratched when, really, I should have enjoyed its sleek design and chrome exterior and, only when scratched, put a cover on later. Now the cover is stretched and, wouldn’t you know it, the back still managed to get scratched. The end result is the same, except I didn’t get to enjoy it when I had the chance.

There are so many things in life that are truly worth worrying about. There are wars and environmental disasters; disease and the economy. Perhaps trying to control the things we can is our way of dealing with the things we can’t but, really, shouldn’t we enjoy things while we’re able to? The bottle of wine that waits for an occasion worthy of its vintage and grandeur… instead of waiting for the moment couldn’t it, itself, be the moment? The saffron spice that grows stale while we search for a recipe worthy of its extravagance… can’t the memory of the meal it creates be the reward we seek? And the dishes that sit there collecting dust, waiting for someone to use them… couldn’t you be that someone? Imagine how great an evening could be with dishes like those, a meal like that and a beverage that’s just begging to be sipped and savored. Instead of waiting for a moment worthy of the things you have try using the things you have to create moments and memories. The next time you have a grilled cheese or some weenies and beanies I ask that you consider putting away the paper plates in favour of pulling out the good china. And as you toast each other with fancy goblets that are reflected by every silver knife, fork and spoon my you be reminded of how great it is to not only have such nice things but how lucky you are to actually be able to use them.

Kristel is a Physicist, computer programmer and blogger, writing about everything from depression to dating… and sometimes even both! She lives in Saskatchewan, Canada and can be contacted at gilsner@gmail.com