I wonder how many of you have settled for second best.
I've stumbled upon many conversations about people dreaming, wanting, yearning to go somewhere, have something, be with someone....but ends up somewhere far far away from their initial destination, their ultimate goal; dangerously steering off the track.To shift this into yet another metaphor (as I obviously cannot mention the real case here), let's think of this as your preference for foods, so to speak.
So after years of years of living and reading cuisine magazines; after countless dining in restaurants, cafes, and home-cooked meals; you finally, finally, at last, know what you want as your last meal before you die: a slice of mushroom pizza. (i know it's called fungi, you pretentious culinary freaks. But this ain't a foodie blog so just scram and hurry back to your kitchen).
With mushroom pizza in mind, you are now set to explore the world and the magical restaurant adventure to search for this one perfect last meal to have for the rest of your life. You cannot wait to taste every bite of it and you appreciate each and every ingredient in it; you yearn for the creamy, slightly cheesy sauce; the soft pizza dough, the tangy sauce and the crisp, finger-lickin-good slices of mushrooms. You admire them all. And you cannot wait to have them as the perfect choice to close the final chapter of your life.
But there's one catch--you still don't know yet which restaurant has them. Of course, most restaurants do. But when you take that first bite, you realize that either the mushrooms are limp, the dough is far from edible, or the sauce smells funny. Either way, you get back on your feet and resume your journey to find the most exquisite, exceptionally good mushroom pizza you've realized you've been wanting all your life. But the challenge is tempting. And I'm not talking about the weather or the far distance--rain, storms, strong sunshine; you can take all of these. It's the temptations of other foods you cannot stand.
What's stopping you from sitting down, resting your super tired legs on a streetside bench one day, and eating delicious hot dog sold in the cart right in front of you? What about those fettuccine? Did you see the cheese on that burger? And don't even get me started on deserts..........And one day, one very tiring day, just when you feel so down and you're so sure that you will never, ever find the restaurant that sells the dream mushroom pizza, you finally stop in front of a steakhouse, panting and out of breath. It's been weeks. Months. Years. And still you haven't eaten anything because you're so sure you'll find your pizza. So you raise your hand and push open the door to the steakhouse, where the OPEN sign dangles happily. You took each step to the counter with unspoken embarrassment and disappointment at yourself, but oh, well. You finally raise your head and face the smiling waitress ready to take your order. Your hand trembles when you have that first slice of chicken steak.
And just like that--you've settled for second best. Congratulations.
I wonder how many people are fine with it. I wonder how many of you said "FINALLY" instead of "Oh, well." I wonder how many of you finds that mushroom pizza in the end and feeling so happy that you ignored all those burgers and pretzels and steaks. I wonder how many of you are smiling full of admiration at your pizzas right now, feeling content, fulfilled, satisfied. Finally. And the question I'd like to know most, is why. Why did you ever stop on that bench to smell the foods? Why are you so easily settling for second best while you know that something greater is waiting for you on the other side? Are you so scared that you won't get to meet other foods, so you decide to eat whatever's in front of you? Is it the not knowing that kills you? Are you so sure that you'll never find that restaurant? Because settling for second best doesn't work--you know?
Not when you've had that pizza before.
This, I should've told you in the beginning, isn't the case where you don't know whether the mushroom pizza exists or not. You know for a fact that it does. You've had half a bite of it, so you know it's here. Somewhere. But you don't want to go back to that half bite--this time you want the full slice. So when you've been craving mushroom pizza all these years, and then you end up thinking what the hell and opt for a chicken steak instead, you know what happens?
It.doesn't.taste.the.same. All the time you're savoring that steak with your fork and knife, you cannot help thinking the two most dangerous words ever invented together: What If. And by the time you chop that first slice of steak.....I hope you realize that you're saying goodbye to those delicious sauce, warm pizza dough and crispy mushrooms forever. You can't even afford to sneak a glance at it. Adios. All because you bought a chicken steak. Come on, it's a mushroom freaking pizza. It's not exactly rocket science. And that satisfied sigh you let out once you lips touch the dough; won't that be priceless?
This probably doesn't make sense to you. I'm just jotting down certain thoughts that I've been hearing endlessly from people around me. Certain stories that make me scream silently--of course you're not happy; you settled for second best!
Anyways. This isn't a personal story, not really. I will make sure to let you know when I find that delectable mushroom pizza. And by then, I most definitely will let you know whether I'll decide to say 'finally'...or 'oh well.'
