Such are the thoughts a person has occasionally after considering that maybe the only thing required of living is dying after birth. These could be daunting thoughts and could make life seem bleak and pointless. A human life involves growing up, going to school, working for a living, and doing the daily drudgery of chores until he or she is unable to do so anymore. On the surface, what people do on a daily basis counters the idea of life being “full of wonders and uncertainties.” Human lives are quantitatively a predictable routine with no surprises. However, life does not come with guarantees; not everyone will grow up to be an adult, go to college, become employed, or anything in that order. Life is full of uncertainties.
Such thoughts grew at an alarming rate in my mind during the first days of my college life. I was miserable staying in a place foreign to me, sharing the space with someone not related to me, and sharing restrooms with strangers. Misery wasn’t my only companion. Anxiety and tension joined it as classes started. Ten percent of the freshman class flunks out of college. Would I be one of the ten percent? But I had to persevere for my family had sent me to an excellent yet expensive college with the expectation of me doing well. The pressure was on and would only build up in the coming weeks. Where could I find some relief?
Of course I could have some relief. With its uncertainties, life is also full of wonders. To relieve my fears, I turned to food. Eating familiar dishes provided me with a break from college work without having to compromise time with other tasks. Food is necessary for living and requires very little effort to consume. There was a catch, however. The relief was brief and not many for comfort. Over time, eating became tedious and a sob waiting to happen as it remained me of what I had left behind.
Nonetheless, I had to persevere. Life is not only full of uncertainties but also of wonders. My life was overdue for a wonder to happen and if I could name one wonder, I would ask for a bowl of chocolate rice. Chocolate rice is a dish from my family’s homeland and is comprised of boiled rice drenched in melted, creamy chocolate. To my friends who have had it, chocolate rice looked odd and perhaps unappetizing. However it was my favorite and if I could have even a teaspoon of it, I would be the happiest person alive. Walking into a nearby restaurant, I wished for such a wonder to happen.
As if someone had read my mind, my wonder materialized. The restaurant I had walked into was serving fried rice. It was not chocolate rice but it was quite the next best thing. Fried rice was a dish with its own variety. No two food places had the same kind of fried rice. Fried rice was a dish composed of rice mixed green peas, scrambled egg, shrimps, and chopped pork. It was often cooked with leftover ingredients but even so, a little effort can go a long way as the taste fried rice always produce was worthy enough to be its own full meal. After scooping spoonfuls into my bowl and eating several helpings, my craving was appeared.
No longer prey to my anxiety and misery, I thought far and beyond the now empty bowl of food before me. Rice must have also met other people’s need than just satisfying my hunger. Rice must have served as merchandize for other people to live on. Rice was a crop which needed to be planted and harvested, and the men and women harvesting the rice made their livelihood trading it, the proceeds of which put food on the table, send their children to school, and pay for other necessities needed by the family. Rice is often depicted as the minimum meal but even so, its influence rivals the more extravagant dishes anywhere and the fact that it is easiest and cheapest to obtain make it seem like a real bargain. However, rice is food used as an object of trade or as a source of wealth; it helps people who assist others for a reason, becoming more than a mere necessity of life.
The bowl of rice has transformed in significance to me. It became a bowl of life, symbolizing man’s aspirations and success through his willpower, wit, and creativity. Life is full of wonders and uncertainties but actually, life is just as much as what people make it.
Life can either be bleak or promising. People can create countless things, produce food, build homes and temples, find cures for diseases, or try to solve the world’s problems just as people can also do the opposite – destroy. The atomic bomb comes to mind. Then U.S. President Truman had to make the decision to use it or send America’s troops to fight on for an unknown extended period of time which could have led to more lives lost. Depending on Truman’s decision, solders could have died in the ensuing days of a continuous war or safely return to their families. It was a profound decision to destroy in order to create a new life. Thus, I reasoned to myself, I should view a bowl of rice, not as a life of drudgery, but a life full of promising possibilities.
What we lose in a life full of uncertainties we gain by our willpower and wit, a life full of opportunities to be met and overcome. Henceforth, my bowl of rice will be my bowl of life, filled with happy memories of home, family and friends. With those memories, it will also include opportunities that, if met, will hopefully lead to a fruitful and fulfilling life for me. And when that time comes, I will gladly share and pass on my bowl of life.
Bibliography:
Datol, Shirley. "Champorado or Chocolate Rice Porridge Recipe." Easy Healthy Recipes. http://www.1001recipe.com/recipes/food/champorado_chocolate_rice_porridge/ (accessed September 27, 2009).
Gebauer, Renee. "Purchase Pottery Bowls." TR Pottery. www.trpottery.com/images/pottery-shapes/rice-bowl.jpg (accessed September 27, 2009).
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