A lifetime of...?

One of my favorite pans is a simple cast iron. 

I remember buying it a good 15 years back. Bright eyed and ready to explore a new style of cooking. 

I also remember cleaning the dust off it just a few year years ago. Because for most of those years I hardly ever used it. 

It was messy. It took forever to clean. 

Everything I put it in came out charred on the outside and raw on the inside. But there was nothing wrong with the pan. I just didn't know what I was doing. 

I neglected it. 

I didn't wash or dry it properly. 

I never seasoned it. 

On the rare occasions I did use it, I treated it like any other pan, so I never gave it enough time to heat up, and wound up constantly over-adjusting the heat. 

So it's no wonder that the few things I cooked in it came out "meh" at best. 

Stress and incompetence will do that. 

I realized that there are a lot of things in life that are like a cast iron. 

If you try to treat it like any old pan, it'll work against you. 

You'll be disappointed. Frustrated. 

The more you neglect it, the harder it becomes to use. 

But if you love it and care for it, it will serve you well for a lifetime. 

This is true of your body. 

It's true of your thoughts. 

It's true of your emotions. 

And it's definitely true of your relationships. 

A good cast iron will last you a lifetime no matter how you slice it. But it will be a lifetime of frustration if you don't care for it...

Just like you. 

Take care, 

Nick