Chicken Terry-bull Yucky

"Fear is a question: What are you afraid of, and why? Your fears are a treasure-house of self-knowledge if you explore them.” Marilyn Ferguson

The other day I needed to reheat some barbecued chicken for dinner. We have a new microwave, replacing one that was ruined by rainwater when our roof developed a leak a few months back. So we have a new-fangled microwave oven with all the bells and whistles one could possibly want for reheating coffee or, as in this case, chicken.

I put in the bird, set it to reheat, pushed the Start button, and busied myself with my other dinner-time tasks. The machine has built-in sensors that adjust the time and power levels automatically, so I was interested to see how that would work out. Electronic gizmos and gadgets fascinate me, so I couldn’t hardly wait. It was almost like Christmas morning!

At the appointed time, the microwave signaled it was done (with a delightful little tune – none of this old-fashioned ping or ding – the oven called for the chef, like the Piper for the rats (or was it children?)). I pulled the casserole dish out, but what greeted me was not the hot, fresh, delectable meal I had anticipated, but the petrified cremains of a fossilized pterodactyl! From barbecued chicken to chicken terry-bull yucky, in one fell swoop!

Fortunately there were enough other side dishes and options to gnaw on, so we did not go hungry, but I did discern there’s a learning curve that comes with using new equipment. I was not discouraged. I learned a long time ago, when life throws you lemons (or in this case, when life throws you petrified birds), sometimes you’re going to swing and miss, and that’s OK.

Things don’t always work out the way we think they can or should. That’s life. We know all the cliches about getting back on the horse that “throw’d yuh,” or We have to crawl before we walk, or Every journey begins with a single step. 

I suspect those have become cliches because the acts of trying and failing are so common amongst us mere mortals, we need reminding so that we don’t become discouraged. How many filaments did Edison have to try before he found the one that would keep that bulb floating over his head in the comics lit, eh?

I have heated and reheated a number of dishes since my misadventure with the barbecued poultry-geist. None is a culinary masterpiece, of course, but each has been as edible as is possible for a dish that has been zapped. 

Fresh meals are always prepared the old fashioned way – by my wife. Reheats are my specialty; fresh eats are hers.

One of the things I appreciate about new things isn’t just their novelty or newness (although nothing beats the smell of a brand new car). What I like are the challenges they pose in getting to know what they do and how they work. 

The other day I was watching a video by a dude who identifies things he “didn’t know until I was in my thirties.” He showed how the automobile sun visor can extend when turned toward the side window. For decades I have cursed how sun visors would never go where I needed them most. Then he showed me. Duh! He learned that trick forty years sooner than me!

I wonder if that feature is included in the truck’s manual (which I’ve never read).

Live and learn. 

There was a time I would have rather died than admit I didn’t know something. I was terrified that people would think I was as dumb as I often felt. But admitting to myself and others the things I do not know or know how to do has simultaneously given others the relief of knowing they are not the only luddites in this world of ours. 

We are humans, we are finite, and we have more wisdom and experience collectively than we do alone. 

As FDR told us many moons ago, we have nothing to fear but fear, itself. That’s a lesson I need to learn repeatedly, for while a microwave cooks quickly, my brain is a slow cooker. But that’s OK, for I’m no chicken (spring or otherwise) here in this, our valley.

Keith Axberg writes on matters concerning life and faith. Author of: Who the Blazes is Jesus? Good News for a Vulgar World (available through Amazon in Print and e-book)