Feeling Overwhelmed? Consider a Dessert Spoon.

Ever since I could feed myself, I have used a dessert spoon. I can’t quite say what defining moment led me to develop this preference, but I can say with confidence that the dessert spoon is superior. Whether it be chili night or an on-the-go morning yogurt, I reach for the dessert spoon.

There is no one reason that I prefer the spoon, but more an accumulation of grievances with its standard counterpart, the tablespoon (not to be confused with the measuring tablespoon). The tablespoon expects far too much. Its ostentatious size boasts the largest surface area of any spoon. When I look at the array of spoon options in my drawer, its presence becomes daunting and evokes an image of some over-stacked pile of fruit or a steaming heap of mashed potatoes-a bite that no one should attempt to consume in one go. What I’m trying to get at is that the tablespoon has eyes far greater than its stomach. Whenever I am given the misfortune of being dealt a tablespoon, I find that whether intentional or not, the amount of food it holds is too much. After one helping, I am overwhelmed, and a battle ensues in my mouth, chewing violently in order to get it all down (pardon the imagery).

It may be terribly hypocritical for me to profile a spoon in such a harsh manner, because admittedly I too bite off more than I can chew now and again. I think that may in fact be why the tablespoon is the standardized spoon. It is typical to take more than you can manage. For example, scheduling two things at the exact same time may be perceived as biting off more than one should. My eagerness to attend both a powder puff practice and a non-profit organization meeting at twelve confirms my hypocrisy. In my haste to attend both of said events, I found myself bra-less, sprinting down the sidewalks of Iowa City in flip-flops, in hopes of being five minutes late as opposed to twenty-one. Occasionally, my haphazard and overtly greedy scheduling is to my advantage, and on some rare occasions has allowed me to almost feel impervious to the constraints of time.

Perhaps the reason I like dessert spoons as much as I do is that they allow me to keep at least one aspect of minimalism in my life. With a dessert spoon, the amount I consume is satisfactory and permits me to continue enjoying appropriately proportioned bites without feeling gluttonous. It’s truly just enough. Each bite leaves enough room to want more-like a well-strategized television series- it gives just enough but not so much that you become spoiled and eventually lose interest. So, next time you reach for the tablespoon, consider its manageable sibling, the dessert spoon.