The Mango Life Lessons

I think my love affair with Mangos started when I was in high school.  I was looking for a nice refreshing snack at Wawa one day, and they had a fruit cup of Mango chunks.  Now, up until this point, I didn't recall having a life-changing experience of enjoying a mango - although I find it hard to believe the first time I had a mango was when I was 15.  But the moment I tasted those sugary fruity cubes, I knew I was in love. 

A decade later, Mangos still are one of my favorite fruits.  They are sweet - but not so sweet - and have a tropicy flava to them.  When you get them chunked they are great!  It didn't take long for my Wawa mango chunks to progress to Rita's mango water ice (YES- WUDDER ICE - I am from Philly afterall...).  It then progressed to Trader Joe's Frozen Mango Chunks - an alltime favorite dessert. 

But the problem has always been that I don't know how to really eat a real mango.  I have picked them up at the grocery store before.  They are bigger than an apple, and although I usually dig around for the ripest ones, they are still tough and have a giant pit inside.  I have had countless experiences of coming home with a mango, getting out the knives and going to town.  (Usually this process requires an abundance of paper towels, maybe a newspaper covering on the kitchen table, and near catostrophic incidents regarding a finger and the knife.  I have actually switched to the little plastic butter knives because I have grown attached to my fingers after a few decades with them, but it only seems to make the task harder.)  At the end of this ordeal I am usually left with a large mess, sticky mango juice up to my elbows and on my face, and an amount of mango meat which is unproportionate to the work and labor invested.  But even though it is difficult, I always grin at the end as I cut up and enjoy the few peices of mango I was able to salvage. 

The funny thing is, that I always get frustrated when opening the mango.  But in a weird way, I really enjoy the process.

But I say this all, because in the last week I have learned a lot from my mangos.  My Egyptian friend Ezzat had been telling me about the Mangos they used to eat back in Egypt, and it started my stomach yearning for a good mango.  I shared my problems with Ezzat that I always struggle to open them, and he told me it was so easy!  So I figured buy a mango.  Take it to work.  Learn how to open it easily.  BRILLIANT!

I came in last week, prepared to learn how to open my mango in a clean and easy way.  - it did not work out that way.  With an audience of my fellow co-workers, Ezzat explained to me that what I had purchased was not a Mango.  I argued with him, that yes it was.  I even showed him the little produce sticker that said very clearly "M-A-N-G-O."  Well the two of us went to town on that mango.  It was a struggle - as I had always experienced.  There were moments of sheer comedy as we bantered back and forth and Ezzat in his heavy accent says "That is NOT a mango.  Never in my life have I done THAT to a mango!"  About 15 minutes in, my co-worker was laughing at both of us, and I found myself in a familiar situation - covered in sticky mango juice, with very little mango fruit to enjoy.  But I cleaned up my mess, and went on with my day.




What do you think?  It looks like a Mango, right?  

 
But Friday I went to Sam's Club with my friend, puppers' mom.  It was a lot of fun to just catch up, take it easy, and get a few things for a bridal shower (pictures of which will be posted soon).  But while we were there, I found a crate of mangos.  But these mangos looked different than the mangos I always bought at the grocery store.  Excited to bring them to Ezzat and see if THIS was the mango he was talking about, I swiped a crate immediately, anxious to give my sweet mangos another shot.

Well, today Ezzat and I dissected the new mangos.  I prepped my workstation for the mess, and Ezzat and I sat down to break into the mango.  I did exactly what Ezzat said, and within 5 minutes I had a clean workstation, sliced mango, and actually had some of the mango meat to enjoy! 

So, now that yo uheard the long-winded story, I bet you are curious about how that led to my life lesson of the day?

I realized, that without Ezzat, I never would have realized how easy enjoying a mango can be.  I would have continued to enjoy fresh mango the hard way.  I would have found myself in mess after mess, and although I enjoy the mango at the end, sometimes I'd wonder if all the work warranted the joy.  But just by learning that I was using the wrong type of mango, sharing the experience with a friend, and laughing, toiling,  and almost cutting my finger off - I realized I had to change my approach to the situation.  Draw wisdom from his experience.  I know that in life I will always have messes, and there is never a shortage of them in life.  But by seeking wisdom, using the right tools, and not going at it alone - your mango mess can become a mango feast when you finally make the change.

Rotated pictures are not uploading will fix later - but look - no mess!

My season right now is change, and I'm ok with that.  I just need to be checkin myself to make sure that I am allowing all this change to be for the best.  And if I feel for a moment that I am not changing into the person I want to be, I need to be able to switch up my tools and perspective, and grab people to show me how to change.  Otherwise, I will end up creating mess after mess, with a little fruit in the end.