I recently read a quote that I love: What someone else thinks about you is none of your business. It sounds kind of harsh but when I thought about it I realized it was a blunt way to say if someone else is judging you then you don’t need to pay attention. How I wish I could have realized how true that is when I was younger. How much time did I waste worrying about other people’s opinions of me? It made me so insecure in my own skin because I thought I wasn’t living up to other’s expectations. I was too fat, too nerdy, too ugly, too unpopular, etc. Why do we do that to ourselves? Even more importantly, why don’t we listen to our parents, aunts, teachers, mentors and all those others who try to tell us it doesn’t matter what other people think of you?
Yesterday I went to my niece’s high school graduation and listened to a lot of speeches directed at the graduates. I thought back to my graduations and realized the speeches were probably petty similar and yet I could not remember a thing from them. Words of great wisdom such as don’t let anyone discourage you from your goals and take time to enjoy life and be prepared for rejection were offered up yesterday and I was feeling very motivated. That’s when I thought the speeches probably meant more to the adults in the crowd than the graduates. They were in all likelihood more focused on when to move their tassels and when the first party was going to be. I know, because that is what I remember from my graduations. I am not sure at what age we start listening to advice, but it is definitely something that comes with age. We stop rolling our eyes when someone older offers up helpful hints and start dispensing our own suggestions (because we’re older too!). I love the saying that youth is wasted on the young. There isn’t an age I would go back to because I remember the anxiety, the drive to please everyone else and the uneasiness I felt about myself. I wish I remembered feeling comfortable with myself, with being able to look in the mirror and be happy with what I saw and with being able to feel proud of my accomplishments. I wish I had paid attention to the commencement speakers and tried to incorporate some of what they said into my life. I will say I am so much happier now at age 48 because, like so many humans, we learn things the hard way. At least I learned!
Summer has finally arrived! Both by the calendar and by the temperatures outside. I discovered this salad recipe in Wegmans Menu magazine and have been making it nonstop. It is so yummy and so easy! I serve it as a side or as a main meal. It is great on top of a bed of lettuce or with a nice piece of garlic bread. I sometimes add feta cheese on top.
Summer Bean & Corn Salad
from Wegmans
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 cups corn (I use frozen)
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I use a mix of Extra Virgin Olive and Canola)
1 red bell pepper diced
1 cup celery diced
1 cup sweet onion, diced
2 jalapeños, seeded and minced
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can black eyed peas, drained and rinsed
Salt to taste
