We all know what to do when life gives us lemons. Some, like myself, would say to chuck them back and demand chocolate, but the rest of us are probably thinking "make lemonade," which is, of course, easier said than done.
But what about when life gives us lemonade? Obviously, you can't go backwards and make lemons. And you can't chuck it back and demand chocolate either. Now I'm making it sound like it's a bad thing to get lemonade. And it's not. But lately, life has given me a lot of it, so much so that sometimes I'm afraid I can't drink it all. I'm a little sad to say that life has given me a pitcher of lemonade, and after only a glass, I'm left to leave the rest on the table.
This past school year has been little but sweet and refreshing. Last year handed me a few lemons, and I have since squeezed their precious juice into a sugary sweet nectar. I have made some wonderful friends, I've enjoyed my classes, I'm working my two dream jobs, I've been offered a job as a research assistant and editor for one of my favorite professors, I'm volunteering as a senior editor for a linguistics journal in which I'll be published this semester, I have an incredible roommate who lives with (and in many cases feeds) my quirks, giddiness and enthusiasm—toward indexing lately, and toward life in general. And just this past week I was able to start my application to leave this summer on a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
When talking to a friend about a mission I confided in her that last year it would have been so easy to leave, because I wouldn't really have been leaving much behind. But now . . .
"Of course I still want to go, but I don't want to leave you," I told this good friend.
And then the thought occurred to me that if she is a true friend and we stay so for some time longer, it doesn't matter when I leave, for I will always be leaving a friend behind. It may seem like a rather sad thought, that I will always be leaving a friend, but it means the reverse is also true: I will always be returning to one, too.
And so when life gives me lemonade I recognize I don't have to drink it all now, because there will always be some waiting for me. Or perhaps I may return to find something even better. Perhaps I will find some sweeter, juicier lemons while I am gone. Or perhaps, if I am fortunate, I will find with my lemons some chocolate too. And then I can return to a steaming mug of hot chocolate, which beats lemonade any day.
So, when life gives you lemonade, sometimes, but not always, its best to leave some, trusting in better things to come.
Candidly,
Cookie
