on being okay with life lessons

oh, life lessons - those humbling quirks that remind us that it's okay to make mistakes. they're inevitable. they tend to result from carelessness, type-A-ness, or one's own naivete. and they're plain ol' annoying.

but someway, somehow, these life lessons are just that. they teach us something, hopefully useful.

you know the usuals: don't leave gum in your pocket - just wait until you see the mess in the laundry. don't visit the drive-thru after getting your car washed, unless you remember to open your door instead of the window. even though most sunscreens are "waterproof," wait at least 10 minutes for it to set before jumping like a wild woman into the water. and whatever you do, make sure to keep your passport and credit cards with you before leaving a junky hostel in rome - unless, of course, you don't mind waiting in an embassy all day long.

what i've noticed about these life lessons: we go through them, we accept them, and then we move on. even if we are pissed.

that being said, why in the heck was i so frustrated today when i burned half my batch of granola?

i am on a mission to perfect my granola (or at least make one that will forever be my staple). so i'm already going into each baking session with a drive. motivation. expectation. the recipe i used today called for more oil than my other recipes. focused on the end product - the lovely crispiness with each future chew - i didn't think to hone down on the careful instructions. yeah, the explicit "check every five minutes after the 15-minute mark because it burns quickly." with such carelessness (or eagerness), i ended up with a studio smelling of burnt seeds and a trash can filled with half a batch of inedible granola.

pissed at my failure, i refused to appreciate the half that was saved. thanks to g, who seems to be my "life lesson guru" these days, i was reminded that it's just granola and it's okay to mess up in the kitchen. apparently, the only way to be good at something is by sticking to it. 

so that's what i did. i literally tossed the mistake away and set my eyes ahead. i know there'll be a day when i'll have my perfect bowl of granola, and i'll just laugh at these lessons. but in the meantime, i'll just enjoy the little bit of success that was saved from the heat.