The other day I was listening to someone near and dear to my heart. I would say we were having a conversation, but really, they just needed me to sit and listen. Sometimes we all need that in our lives. After we hung up, I found myself sitting with sadness about how bitter and hardened their heart was. Somehow that led to me thinking about two vegetable potatoes, because when we bring them home from the store are hardened, and kale which can be bitter if not treated properly. Interestingly when transformed, they can become soft, tender, and nutritious.
Kale can be quite bitter, but massaging it with one’s hands causes it to break down the structure of the kale and causes it to wilt, change color and shrink. You can also add a little olive oil or salt to assist with the process if desired, however, in most cases, a little tender loving care will do. Isn’t that how our hearts can be as well. Sometimes we have allowed life to harden our heart and cause us to become bitter. I remember being part of a meditation group once where we were told to see ourselves opening our chests and taking our hearts out and examining its condition. Was it smooth and soft or were there hardened spots. In those places where our hearts had hardened, we were guided to gently massage our hearts, like the kale, until they had returned to their softened texture and we had transformed them. Then we gently placed our hearts back in our chest and secured them in place allowing ourselves to feel the release of all that which had hardened our hearts. Sometimes, we need to work with our hearts, like we do with kale and gently massage away that which has caused our hearts to harden.
However, sometimes our hearts can be so filled with hurt, anger, and bitterness, that they are more like potatoes. Hardened beyond digestion, yet containing the potential to be transformed through intense work, such as boiling or frying until tender. The ability of the potato to be transformed from hard to soft after boiling reminds us that no matter how we have been through in our lives, we too can be transformed. We have the potential, as with the potato, to go from harsh and angry to soft, tender, and desirous.
In their transformed states, they can be combined into an amazing salad[1] which bears little resemblance to their original state. Gone is the bitterness and hardness. Love, mindfulness, time, and healing have led to a blending which leaves us wanting more and reminding us of our own human potential to find peace in every experience in our own lives.
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[1] http://withfoodandlove.com/creamy-dreamy-avocado-potato-salad/