Is your love like raspberries or strawberries?

Tom looked worried, very worried. It was obvious. I asked him what was bothering him.

He said, “My wife will soon be having our new baby.”

“That’s wonderful,” I replied.

“Yes, but I’m afraid that when our new child is born I will love her more than my first daughter,” Tom stated sadly.

I could see his dilemma. How could somebody be in the presence of two people and not like one more than the other? No two objects are equal, are they?

Then a bolt of lightning instantly struck my brain. If you asked me whether I like raspberries or strawberries better, I would be hard pressed to give you an answer. I like both of them for different reasons. I really couldn’t say that I like one more than the other. On one day, I might say strawberries. At other times, my answer would be raspberries.

I relayed this message to Tom. He listened intently and was relieved with the nugget of wisdom I had tossed him. I smiled, too. “That’s very profound,” I thought.

Well, that wasn’t the end of this idea. Oh no, it was about to expand faster than the universe.

It all happened the next time I walked into my local ice cream parlour. First, you need to know that I LOVE ice cream. To me, it should be one of the basic food groups all on its own. Next, you need to know that this place had many, many flavours, and I was going to get two scoops. The girl behind the counter started asking questions that weren’t fair and she smiled as she saw the torture each one was putting me through.

“Would you like a cup, a waffle cone or a regular cone?” she purred.

“Give me a waf…, no a reg…, no, yes a regular cone,” I stammered.

The first question was like a bullfighter waving his cape. The next was like the sword thrust that ended the spectacle.

“What flavours would you like?” she teased.

“Chocolate peanut butter and ….” I paused for what seemed an eternity, pacing up and down the counter like a caged lion. I still can’t remember what my second choice was. I did learn another valuable lesson from life, though.

My profound thought had expanded well beyond strawberries and raspberries. People are like different flavours of ice cream. The combinations are limitless. Yes, there are some flavours I don’t like, but there are many I do. I can appreciate all the ones I do like for what they are. And, you know what? I can do the same with people. All I have to do is remember ice cream when I see them and celebrate the individual flavours they bring to the world.

Oh, by the way, would anyone like to be my rocky road ice cream?