Pans and Pancakes

I prepared the ready-made pancake mix and made a good batter. Now, I’m ready to cook it quickly using a non-stick pan. So, I grabbed a non-stick pan and placed it directly on the stovetop. After a minute, I poured out the pancake batter with enthusiasm.

The batter was bubbling and ready to be flipped to cook the other side. As I turned it, the supposedly perfect circle of pancake transformed into a mashed potato! The batter kept sticking to the pan. Any attempt to lift and flip the cake resulted in it sticking to the pan, and as I persisted, it crumbled like sand in my hand.

Disappointed, I grabbed another non-stick pan and placed it on the stove. After a minute, I poured out another batch of pancake batter, but the same thing happened! What on earth? I thought. There must be something wrong with the pans I used. Aren’t they supposed to be non-stick?

I tried again and again, but to no avail. My dream pancakes no longer looked appealing. At the end, I had to throw the pulpy pancakes and the remaining batter into the trash.

While sipping my coffee without pancakes, I realized that I might have used the non-stick pans incorrectly. I remembered that despite being called “non-stick,” you need to heat the pan to a certain temperature to achieve its “non-stick” properties.

Life is like that too. If you don’t know how to use the things you have properly, they may appear to malfunction or be useless, leading you to throw them away, thinking they don’t serve their purpose. The things you’ve done might not have given you the results you wanted or expected. You think you’re a failure because your stuff is useless, even though you know it’s useful to you. However, when you realize that it’s you who’s not doing the right thing, the non-stick pans don’t perform as expected, causing disappointments, regrets, frustrations, exhaustion, and exasperation.

That’s why I believe we should reflect on everything we do in life. We should consider whether we’re using our God-given faculties effectively and in accordance with its intended purpose or nature.

I’ve come to realize that the things we possess are valuable when used appropriately. However, if it’s not performing as expected, it is important to examine whether our actions are truly aligned with its rightful use.