The Parable of the Red Delicious
Leaning into the diversity of thought and belief that world offers us can bring greater depth just like my understanding of the apple world has been expanded so greatly as I learned that I was wrong in believing that the apple world was confined to just three varieties. Being truly curious about other people’s lenses on the world can open us up to all kinds of new opportunities that might lead to some very rich and tasty perspectives.
Growing up I was perfectly aware of a few standard apple varieties: granny smith, golden delicious, and most particularly, red delicious. And to be totally honest, though I don’t ever complain about eating apples as a kid because I liked them better than Brussels sprouts or broccoli. Thankfully I developed a taste for vegetables too, but apples back then were very disappointing.
Golden delicious always seemed sickeningly sweet, granny smith too sour, and then red delicious. My feelings about that variety are more complicated. You see, every single red delicious I ate seemed to have its own nuance of flavor and firmness. I almost felt like it wasn’t worth even biting into them because they would never live up to expectations. One of my first memories of having my own independent thoughts as a toddler were from watching Disney’s Snow White and wondering why in the world world she have fallen for a red delicious apple of all things?! I might have been tempted by pizza or a good carrot cake. But a red delicious apple? What a silly waste! They generally don’t even taste very good and are often mushy too boot.
Some years later, though, I happily discovered other varieties that I have grown to love. In my teens Gala and Fuji and Braeburn varieties got more popular and so I could typically find them in regular grocery stores. And now that I live up here in the Pacific Northwest, I’ve become a bit of a fruit snob. I generally eat organic honeycrisp apples as my apple of choice, but I know the difference between store bought or fruit stand or farmer’s market acquired. Well at least I like to think I can.
But this childhood aversion to apples wasn’t built on a good weighing of options and determining what was best for me. It was built on three varieties that made up my whole apple experience. And if I had sworn off apples forever, I wouldn’t know of the subtle notes of a nice pink lady or the sweet tartness of a jonagold or a crimson crisp.
And though I certainly would have missed out on a lot of pleasurable munching and some new flavors, when push comes to shove, my life wouldn’t have been altered in huge ways either way, but there are other beliefs that we might erroneously believe to be the only way of seeing the world that could truly stunt our growth as people and stunt the growth of learning and of relationships.
I don’t blame anybody for wishing to believe that we have things figured out and so we can just sit back and rest in our current thinking and way of viewing the world. But the truth of the matter is that none of us have everything figured out. We are all looking through the glass darkly trying to make sense out of this confusing life and world we live in. There’s a natural gravitation towards groups and individuals who think and believe the way we already do because that validates our own thinking which empowers us to stay who and where we are instead of having our well-founded thoughts and beliefs—from politics to the best way of raising a family to our beliefs or non beliefs and everything in between when it comes to religion—challenged occasionally which might make us evaluate those thoughts and beliefs from time to time.
It may seem counterintuitive, but when I’ve had the chance to interact with people who see the world differently than I do, I haven’t had to throw out my beliefs or thinking. In fact, having that diversity of thought and belief has brought greater depth just like my understanding of the apple world has been expanded so greatly as I learned that I was wrong in believing that the apple world was confined to just three varieties. Being truly curious about other people’s lenses on the world can open us up to all kinds of new opportunities that might lead to some very rich and tasty perspectives.