Log in Subscribe
Musings and Memories

Change is here to stay

Doug Dezotell
Posted 1/16/21

Several years ago there was a TV commercial that I really enjoyed. I would sit in my recliner in front of my TV with a smile on my face every time it came on. There was a little boy sitting all by himself at the dinner table, his arms crossing his chest, a look of defiance, anger and disgust on his face...

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in
Musings and Memories

Change is here to stay

Posted

Several years ago there was a TV commercial that I really enjoyed. I would sit in my recliner in front of my TV with a smile on my face every time it came on.

There was a little boy sitting all by himself at the dinner table, his arms crossing his chest, a look of defiance, anger and disgust on his face.

You could hear the voice of his mother booming in the background, "You can't leave that table until you eat your vegetables!"

The next frame shows him still sitting there, aged many years, his face wrinkled, his hair grey, and his grey beard long and scraggly.

There before him on the table were the vegetables, still sitting there on that plate, untouched.

Oh, how well I remember those words from my own mother when I was a little boy.

"You can't leave that table until you eat your vegetables!"

I refused to eat those horrible green or orange or purple things Mom would dump on my plate.

The only vegetables I would eat when I was young were green beans, or pork and beans, and potatoes and gravy, and of course?donuts.

In my estimation peas, carrots, spinach, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, corn, or beets were just NASTY?NASTY?NASTY!

To my way of thinking they may as well have been poisonous!

I remember many dinners ending with me sitting at the table all by myself staring down at that plate with a pile of peas there by themselves.

I had already eaten my mashed potatoes and gravy. My meat and my buttered bread were long gone.

But, no Sir! No Ma'am! I wasn't going to eat that gross pile of spinach.

I didn't care whether Popeye loved spinach or not!

My siblings had moved on to other things, but I sat there staring at my plate with that spoonful of vegetables staring back at me.

Dad had left the table by then, but Mom stood watch.

Her threats hanging over my head, "No dessert for you, young man!"

"Douglas, you will sit there until those peas are gone!"

In time, she softened, "Okay, just one little bite!?"

The longer I sat there the colder the food on my plate got, and I could imagine the mold forming over that serving of nasty green stuff shriveling up before my eyes.

That was a long time ago, and it's really something how my taste buds and dietary likes and dislikes have changed through the years.

I remember back to Pre-COVID days, when we would gather at a church potluck dinner and I would load my plate with vegetables.

I would help myself to green beans (still my go-to veggie), onions and peppers, peas, turnips, lima beans, black-eyed peas, and sweet potatoes.

And I would enjoy every bite!

Oh my! How things have changed over the years.

I now get up from the table when I'm good and ready.

And I don't have anyone telling me to clean my plate or eat my veggies. "Or else!"

Lots of things have changed with me over the years, not just my evolving taste for vegetables.

But, there have been a lot of changes.

A friend of mine, Brother Paul, had served for many years as a missionary to Japan. I remember him saying on numerous occasions, "One thing is constant, 'Change is here to stay!'"

We are always evolving, always changing. Not just physically, but emotionally, socially and spiritually as well.

At this time of the year, many people want to change certain things about themselves, certain things they do, habits they have developed.

So many of us want to change the numbers we see on that bathroom scale.

And I know that we can change our behavior when we put our mind to it.

We have to change our mind if we want to change our actions. And the greatest change agent that any of us can have is the Holy Spirit.

The Apostle Paul, in Romans 12:2, tells us that we can be transformed, or changed, by the 'renewing of our mind.'

As we are transformed, or changed, and our mind is renewed, we'll find out what God's will is for us, what God's purpose is for our life.

Looking back over the years, I can see how my temperament has changed in so many ways.

I'm still Doug. But, just a better version of myself.

There are certain behaviors that have changed, and my way of thinking has changed.

I'm not the man I used to be, and I sure am glad for that.

The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:17, that when a person becomes a Christian, they become a new creation; the old things pass away, and things become new.

As we develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ we change.

We grow up.

We become more and more like Him.

It's not just about vegetables, or likes and dislikes. It's about becoming better.

Like Brother Paul used to say, "Change is here to stay!"

Make the most of it.

Doug Dezotell is pastor of Cannon United Methodist Church and a former staff writer for the Times-Gazette.