Happy Mother’s Day, thanks for the Lean Cuisine!
I was raised on organic peanut butter, the kind you have to refrigerate, the kind with oil at the top, the kind impossible to spread – the kind every kid hates. Extrapolate that to every other food/beauty/household item and you’ve got my childhood.
What I had > What I Desperately Wanted
- Tom’s Natural Toothpaste > Aquafresh
- Organic peanut butter > Skippy
- Egg noodles with hand-grated sharp organic cheddar > Kraft Mac ‘n Cheese
- Odd-sized dolls with ugly clothes > Barbie
- Reusable canvas bag > new plastic shopping bags that you could throw out and never use again
- Brisket, green beans, and mashed potatoes from scratch > Swanson fried chicken, corn, and brownie TV dinner
- Nature’s Own shampoo > Salon Selectives shampoo
But I realized something yesterday as I excitedly and guiltily opened up a 280 calorie Lean Cuisine. I’ve been so indoctrinated with the belief that processed/frozen is bad and fresh/local is good, I now view such not-so-bad for you items like frozen dinners [the healthy ones] as treats. Which is not-so-bad for my waistline. Thanks Mom.
Actually, Saya, I’ve just recently discovered that you don’t really have to refrigerate organic peanut butter. I now buy the grind-your-own kind and leave it on the counter for days. It’s so easy to spread — especially in the middle of the night, when I go for a midnight snack.
I apologize for any biases, prejudices, deprivations, oddities, and eccentricities I may have foisted upon you in your childhood. It’s all so that when you get to be my age, you can enjoy the freedom to do whatever you want.
Love,
your mother