At the buffet
Sung to the tune of "At the Ballet" / Issue 1,132
Oh, hi friends!
"When the universe hands you something on a plate…eat."
Brian Stokes Mitchell shared this advice during a concert event this week commemorating Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty's 40-year musical collaboration.
He told a story about when he was first offered the part of Coalhouse Walker Jr. in Ragtime.
"Thanks," he thought. "But I am so wrong for this part."
Then he remembered a saying he tries to live by.
"When the universe hands you something on a plate…eat."
Yes!
Why is this so hard?
What is right in front of you that you might be ignoring?
It might be coming too easily.
Or you don't trust it.
Or you're too distracted by what isn't working to see what is working.
Something good is on your plate right now — I know that.
And I get it. It’s hard to appreciate what you have when you want, want, want.
But look right here.
Today.
What is being held out in front of you?
And how will you respond?
Ahh. A great message this morning. And sometimes, the 'thing' being offered to eat isn't that desirable. But it might just be as important to "eat" anyway.
Like yesterday, I was 'handed' a doozy on a plate. Frankly, it was less of a plate offering and more of a shoving down my throat. Basically, a challenging situation that had to do with the surprise of waking up with no Internet or phones due to a cut cable. The service provider assured me it would be fixed within 24 hours, which was OK. But I had a deadline I was working on a workshop to give (via Zoom) the following day.
I really didn't want to accept the food being offered, but I had no choice in the offering. What I realized the part I did have a choice in was how I 'ate' it. There was some initial panic, but after that, I calmed down, focused on what I COULD work on, let go of what I had zero control over, did some creative problem solving, and opted not to go down the negative self-talk rabbit hole.
By the evening, I had finished what was a needed for the deadline and made alternate plans for presenting if I was still without Internet and phones by today. I also realized how much more I accomplished without having the interruptions or distraction of the Internet, social media, phone etc.
I woke up this morning with Internet and phones restored, as if nothing had ever gone wrong. While the dish served wasn't what I wanted, in the end, I was grateful to give my creativity and resilience room to grow.