The Secret Ingredient

The Secret Ingredient

Lorraine (my 9yo daughter) and I share an enjoyment of the Simpsons. I cook most every night and she sometimes joins me after pleading for some help. Not a big surprise to any parents I'm sure! Well, there's an episode where Marge is cooking and after receiving some praise from Homer for the dinner she prepared she exclaims, "My secret ingredient is salt!". It's a great joke and Lorraine and I will repeat it most every time she or I adds salt to a pan or pot as we prepare our food. It's an obvious "secret" ingredient to us all but one that can be so easily overlooked as it can be so easily taken for granted. It's not like it's truffle oil or black garlic after all but as we know it lifts every note of flavor in a dish. Virtues are the salt, the secret ingredient, to any mindful based practice.

Mindfulness without Virtue is like guacamole with only mashed avocado (mmm avocado). Really every ingredient plays a special role in making it the fabulously delicious dish we call guacamole. The avocado is like kindness, the lime is like respect, cilantro- truthfulness, red onion (we all know it's purple)- courage, jalapeño- patience, garlic- perseverance, black radish (my secret ingredient that's no longer a secret)- gratitude, cumin- non-envy, cayenne- contentment and salt like humility. If one practices mindfulness without the essential ingredient that is the practice of virtue that how in the world can we honestly determine whether our behavior is out of step with these highest of ideals. If we're not practicing truthfulness than how would we be mindful enough to course correct when we're tempted to lie or, maybe more importantly, not be able to see the damage done by a lie to ourselves and others effected by the lie. How could we make positive change to our behavior if we're unfamiliar with the virtues that teach us what good is?

Leave no ingredient out as the joy you might experience will be less than fulfilling.