Popcorn: The beautiful result of a sudden, but planned, explosion. A person has to apply a great deal of heat in order for that unique, creative outburst of starch to occur.
Without applying the heat and pressure to the kernel, nothing will change, and the seed simply stays in a state of potential, without a result.
I’m always pressuring myself into feeling like I should be aiming for “the popcorn” when all I really want is to sit still, sifting the cool, smooth kernels through my fingers; to revel in their stasis, their uniformity, their predictable shape.
Once popped, if the corn is not devoured very soon by hungry and enthusiastic consumers, it will swiftly begin to grow stale, and will no longer be enjoyable. Is it better to keep the un-popped kernels tucked in the freezer door, and to never see the potential become a reality?
If all of our kernels turned into popcorn without any effort on our part, we would end up drowning in a sea of popcorn. We would hate having it around. It would get crushed underfoot instead of being enjoyed. We would grow fat on eating it, but would never appreciate it’s effortless abundance.
I hope that I can learn to not feel guilty about the time that I spend enjoying my un-popped kernels for what they represent. I also hope that I have the courage to sometimes turn on (and to endure) the heat, and the good fortune to get a great big bowl of popcorn as a result. Best of all, it wish to surround myself with the right crowd of hungry people to help me appreciate and enjoy the end result.