“Daddy, I Don’t Want The Onions”

I recently cooked pineapple fried rice for dinner and when served, the entire family commented how delicious the dish looked. I told them to withhold their comments until they tasted it. My wife took the first bite and her face gave it all… it was delicious! (reminder to self: self praise is no praise) My three year old daughter scooped the rice into her mouth and flashed a thumbs up to me. And then my 6 year old boy’s turn. He took a spoonful and exclaimed, “ummmm, delicious!”. After giving me his smile and affirmation, he looked at the plate of rice and told me

“Daddy, I don’t want the onions. I want everything else, but I don’t want the onions.”

I half expected him to say that because at practically every dish that has onions, I will be picking it out for him (Cue: best father in the world). I then turned to him and said:

“Son, if there are no onions in this pineapple rice, it would not be as fragrant you are tasting it now”

Life is never presented to us on a silver platter. It always come jumbled up with all kinds of form and expression — just like my pineapple fried rice. There’s the sweet stuff — where things are rosy and comfortable and then there’s the pungent season — where we have to go through pain and suffering, just like the onions. But combine them all together (don’t forget the oil, garlic, chilli powder, chinese wine, chicken meat), you get one delicious plate of pineapple fried rice!

When we view turmoil and pain as part of growing up and building our inner resolute, we are in for a treat. Take a lesson from this delicious (according to my family) serving of pineapple fried rice. You are who you are because of a mix of experiences and seasons in your life. Yes, the ‘onions’ you take in now feeds to the fragrance you will soon experience.

So here’s to celebrating pain with a smile. Heartache with confidence. Suffering with joy. Brokenness with radiance. Defeat with purpose.

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way. — James 1:2–4 (MSG)