Why Ice Cream is a Good Thing
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I’ve been thinking a lot about ice cream lately.
You know, ice cream. It’s milky and cold and flavoured. But ice cream is something else too. Ice cream melts. It's impermanent. And it can slip through your fingers if you let it.
It also doubles as a very handy metaphor.
The first time I went to New York City, over 10 years ago, I remember walking through the streets of Manhattan. It was busy, as it always is. And at first I found myself absolutely in awe of the busy-ness. It was a rush. A wild, mad, indescribable rush. It was like taking some sort of rush-giving drug. It was like getting to the top speed in a car as the road rushes by. It was like... well you get the idea. But then. Well then I started to feel overwhelmed. The immense kind of overwhelm where it seems like the world is closing in. I wanted to escape. I needed to. It was all too much. I couldn’t enjoy it. I felt trapped. In my desperation, I walked into a nearby an ice cream shop. It was one of the big American chains, possibly full of flavours with amusing novelty names based on celebrity puns. I bought a two scoop cone and reluctantly stepped back out into the Manhattan streets.
Only, this time I focussed on the ice cream. I began to lick the edges to shore up a foundation. I watched carefully to see which angle the drips were coming from. I turned my hand in a certain way to be ready for each bite.
I gave the ice cream my attention and in that moment, other than keeping an eye on the traffic, it was the only thing on my mind. If I didn't pay attention, it would melt. And by the time I had finished the last of the cone, my overwhelm from those Manhattan streets had passed too and I found myself taking everything around me one moment at a time. It slowed me down, and it saved me from melting in New York City all those years ago.
And more than ever, I’m finding that approach that is saving me today.
I’m not going to lie. Pandemic life has made for some pretty strange times in my mind. Some times are good and things seem easy. My head is clear. I’m comfortable in my surroundings. It all feels okay. But there are other times where all I’ve wanted is for this whole thing to end. For a chance to escape. To ignore the world and simply wait in a dark room for the COVID-19-free world to arrive. I’ve found myself thinking that if I just get to this date or to that date it will be okay. And it can all get pretty unbearable and frightening.
But then I think about ice cream. I think about moments. I think about focusing on what is right in front of me. And it helps to keep me in the present and from wishing one moment was another. It’s going to be a long road ahead, but if we can all just focus on the ice cream, on the moment in front of us, then I think we’ll get through this just fine.
And that is why ice cream is a very Good Thing.
Ice cream is impermanent, moments are impermanent. See where I’m going with this?
Step back and enjoy the moment as if it was ice cream.
You could also replace ice cream with a good, hop-forward IPA beer. It’s impermanent too, but instead of a few minutes, its shelf life could be a few months. Maybe assume that to be a longer moment.
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