Your Plate Does Not Determine Your Portion

I recently attended my high school class reunion. As with most social functions there was food involved. As I stood in line at the buffet making small talk with and pretending to remember people, the time came for me to fix my plate. On the table were plates of two different sizes. Reaching for the smaller of the two plates, I heard a classmate behind me scoff, "You can't fit anything on that little bitty plate." She took the larger plate and began to pile on food as if eating were about to go out of style.

Too often in life we seek instant gratification. She piled all the food she could onto one big plate. Though I was hungry, I placed a few things on my small plate in order to taste test and get better acquainted with the skills of the hands that prepared it. Only then could I make an informed decision on whether or not to allow myself more. Sitting close by, I now hear my classmate bellow out, "This is not good!" She later added, "I shouldn't have even put this on my plate."

How many times have you piled stuff on your "plate" only to later find out it was a waste? An overcrowded "plate" in life is bound to detract value from things that are actually important. Learn to be strategic with your "plate." Save yourself some heartache (and embarrassment) by only taking on those things which you feel you can reasonably handle. You can always come back for more when and if the time is right. Never feel like you have to race to accomplish something. While growth is a process that should definitely be appreciated. Anything that grows too fast, or too slow, is not natural. The world is so vast that it contains exactly what is meant for you. Just because your "plate" is small doesn't mean you are missing out. It means you have the foresight to build your meal of life in a way that works for, is pleasing to, and satisfies you. Take some time to taste test life and all its many offerings. Then, and only then, can you sit back and reap the benefits of a well-balanced "meal."