Bones

This weekend, I made BBQ Pulled Pork in the slow cooker to take to a family who just had a baby. After we had taken the meal and ended up back home, we ate the same thing.  One of the first bites I took, I found a bone! Aside from being mortified that I may have delivered a meal to a family with a TODDLER that was possibly riddled with bones, I had lost my appetite for dinner and no longer liked or planned on making my easy and delicious pulled pork.

That seems extreme to some people, but the thing is, I HATE bones. Like a lot. I rarely buy food to prepare with bones in it (boneless skinless chicken breasts are a favorite around here) and I don't order food out with bones in it. I also hope that when I eat at other people's homes that they haven't prepared food with bones either! They're just gross to me, eating around big bones is tricky and weird and not easy to do politely and the sound they make when you cut them or when someone else is gnawing on them. Disgusting. And little bones- those buggers sneak into food and give you an unexpected crunch, or stab or chocking and it's just all around terrible!

When I encounter unexpected bones, I am done. It doesn't matter how expensive, delicious, healthy or anything else the food is, I'm over it. That's just me.

While I was thinking about this and my bummer pulled pork, I had one of those 'God in the Crock-Pot' moments.

Bones aren't always a bad thing. In fact, cooks and chefs will tell you they add to the flavor of things and that boneless meats don't taste as good. Some people prefer bones (my husband) and really, with a few notable and unlikely circumstances, bones won't hurt you. Here's the thing, you can take them out or eat around them. I just don't.

Life is like that too. There may be something wonderful in front of us; something that's delicious and full of nutrition, something special even. But there are bones in it. Those bones may look different-people, styles, words we don't prefer, but bones nonetheless. They are something small compared to the good meat. They might be obvious, like a t-bone steak or something not so obvious, like a fish bone.

Either way, it doesn't mean the whole thing needs to be thrown out. I've been wondering what the bones are in my life, what I need to learn how to pick around or remove, without losing the good stuff...