Green Eggs and SPAM

I started my draft of this blog writing about the popular Dr. Seuss book, Green Eggs and Ham.  But, to be honest, it felt generic and manufactured.  Every word placed carefully to say the same clever thing that has already been said a thousand times.  So, instead, let’s talk about Green Eggs and SPAM.

Yea, I said it, SPAM.

What is SPAM?   Does anyone even know?  I’m going to look it up real quick. So, Google AI Overview tells me that spam is, “any type of unsolicited, unwanted, or irrelevant digital message sent in bulk to a large number of people.”  Obviously this AI bot doesn’t have taste buds, but no, no one wants THAT kind of spam either.

Let’s try again…

SPAM is pork shoulder and ham ground up, funneled into a can, and topped off with some salt water and preservatives.  Yummy!  Everything in my body is screaming no, don’t do it, anything but that!  But at the same time, I’ve never actually tasted this delicacy – one that has graced many of household dinner tables since the 1930s, assisting families through economic hardship.  And most of all, my husband thinks it’s amazing.  The last time we were at the grocery store, he searched the aisles to share the salty meat nostalgia with our daughter and I, as I quickly changed the subject and hurried them towards the checkout.

 As Sam I Am so eloquently states, “You do not like them.  So you say.  Try them! Try them! And you may.”

There are a few lessons to learn here. 

First, and most obvious, always try new things!  You can’t assume that you will dislike something if you’ve never actually tried it.  You’ve never tried roller-skating?  It could become your new favorite hobby!  New experiences open new doors and help you to figure out who you are.

Next, the hard things are worth doing!  Those decisions that cause the most resistance are most often the ones that pay off the greatest.  Do you deserve a raise, but have been too afraid to ask for it?  Fear may be the only thing standing in the way of a pay increase!  Be confident and create your own opportunities.

Always remember, assuming something bad will happen is not the same as something bad actually happening. 

Finally, as important as it is to know what you DO like based on experience, it is equally as important to understand what you don’t like, and why.  If you know that you are afraid of heights, it’s much easier to say with certainty that you won’t be getting on that record breaking drop rollercoaster your friend is telling you about.  Figuring out what you don’t like helps to define personal boundaries, to appreciate your core values and to prevent future mistakes. 

Challenging yourself to try new things is what promotes personal growth and change.  The more that you open yourself up to new ideas and experiences (whether you enjoy them or not), the closer you are to becoming whole, because you are learning exactly who you are based on evidence and doing.

So, I think the lesson learned here is that I have to buy some SPAM the next time that I am at the grocery store.

Maybe growth doesn’t always come wrapped with a big, glitzy bow.  Maybe it can sometimes be found at the bottom of a meat stuffed can.