Spice, baby. Spice.

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It is said that variety is the spice of life.   I believe this is true.

Today, I talked with quite a few people in a number of different places and times.  And this evening, when I recounted those conversations, something occurred to me. Each of those individuals spoke about something they really enjoyed, or things they loved.  There was a big-heaping-spoonful of variety, I’ll tell you.

Take little old me, for example. In just a few moments, I happened to think about how much I love dogs, and apples, and music.  And football, Mary Poppins, oatmeal, Van Gogh paintings, and mysteries.    The list is pretty endless.

The people I interacted with also had a wide range of likes.  There were yo-yos,  flowers, soccer, and Mercedes.   Other things too.  Like hot apple pie with cinnamon ice cream on top.  Guitars. Walking. Cigarettes.  Biscuits and Gravy.  Autumn days, Paris, outdoor patios, and Frog Legs.

Here is the thing.  It seems to me, the more we talk on social media…. the more we Tweet on Twitter,  post on Facebook,  snap on Snapchat, and text on Smartphones, the less we really talk.  More importantly… the less we truly listen.

We “like” things all day long on Mark Zuckerberg’s Frankenstein.

Sometimes, we don’t even know the person we are giving the thumbs up to.

Maybe it would be a neat idea, if we took five minutes of our day, just to find out what someone likes.  It could be anyone.  The man at the nursing home;  your boss; the neighborhood boy; the woman at the grocery store checkout; a friend at church; your daughter; your spouse.   Just five little minutes… to listen … about something they like.

We might just find that.. not only is “Variety is the Spice of Life.”  it is also the common thread.

It is in our beautiful differences that we are very much the same.

If only we would take the time to listen.


The essence of the beautiful is unity in variety. — Felix Mendelssohn

 

There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. — Martha Graham
Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else. — Margaret Mead