Fruitful plate (Part 2)...

Do you know why we have to wash and rinse rice before cooking it? When I was a kid, I thought the reason was because the rice is dirty. When I started learning to cook rice, I wash it thoroughly, until the water is crystal clear; just imagine how much water I wasted on my first rice wash. When my mother saw the result, she knew right away what I did. She asked me why and I told her that I wanted the rice to be completely clean. Then, she give me the do's and the don'ts. Do: Wash the rice just to make sure that it is clean from the insects/weevils. Don't: Wash too thoroughly because we might miss the nutrition.

No matter how careful we are, we might miss a few insects. Every so often, we found small stones or insects in our food. These food are not safe for us to eat. Same thing if we are served with the food that we are allergic to. If you know there are stones in it or you know that you are allergic to it before you eat it, stay far away from it. It could be tempting, like serving an ice-cream for a diabetic. But it is dangerous. However, if you have accidentally eat it, get a cure. Let the experts handle it. Fetch a doctor, get medicine. Do whatever you have to do except eating it.

Same thing in life. We play fair. We stay clean, or at least we try our best to live safely. However, life is full of surprises and sometimes it surprises us with these dangerous challenges. It could be anything, from the smallest of things to the highest of things. It could come from your neighborhood; a neighbor could be asking you to lie for them, it could come from a workplace; a client giving you a hamper just before you approve their loan. These people could be your dearest friend or a family member. As a human, no doubt that we will feel incline to abide to their request, but DON'T.

This is the poison of your life. You are not helping anyone by doing that. You have to learn to say NO. If it has to do with legal procedures, let the other responsible party deal with it. And, if you are involved in it unknowingly, get out right away. Then, ask for an expert's advice. If a damage control needs to be done, do it. You are after all responsible for your own action.

My mother put dried chillies in the place where we store the rice. Her reason is that it will keep the insects away. I'm not sure if it really works. But at least she tried, to keep us healthy. Same thing in life, prevention is always better than cure. But like the rice, don't wash it too thoroughly, you might take away the life's many nutritions.