Potato Salad & Paddle Boarding
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
There are some things I just can’t do. Saturday reminded me that one of them is make potato salad. I’ve made potato salad before and it’s inevitably mediocre. Why?!? I can cook other things, but potato salad eludes me. I asked my family to remind me to just go to Publix the next time I want to try again. I’m apparently not meant to make potato salad.
It’s a silly little thing to not be able to make a good potato salad, but there are other things I’d like to be and am not. For the first decades of my life, I was more focused on who I’m not than who I am. I’d like to think that has shifted over time.
Where does your focus tend to linger? On who you are or who you wish you could be?
When I was in middle school, high school and even college, I was quick to quit something I wasn’t good at upon first try. That’s a pretty limiting mindset. I’ve gotten better at not quitting so quickly, but it’s still something I struggle with. I’m not sure if it’s fear of failure, embarrassment or both. Occasionally, I can overcome my fear to try something new and stick with it.
A few years ago, a friend posted that she was going stand up paddle boarding and had an extra board. I love the water and decided I would give it a try. I did fall that first time, but I found I was actually pretty good at balancing on the board. I bought my own board and have paddled dozens of times since then. Last summer, my back was hurting and balancing was difficult. I fell several times and ended up mostly paddling sitting down. When this summer rolled around, I wanted to try standing again. The first time up, I felt a little tense, but the second time was easier and more natural. I’ve learned it’s worth trying (even if I fall) for something that makes me feel as alive as paddle boarding does.
I don’t physically look like most of the people you see paddle boarding. Surgical menopause has changed my body. I was nearly fifty when I began paddling. I try to not let these facts deter my enjoyment of being on the water and seeing the wildlife from the unique perspective of a stand up paddle board.
Is there something you long to do? What’s stopping you? Is there a way you could let the longing be bigger in your mind than your fear?
In Laudato Si, Pope Francis says, “[D]eveloping our individual, God-given capacities… can inspire us to greater creativity and enthusiasm in resolving the world's problems and in offering ourselves to God.”
There are things much more important than potato salad and paddle boarding, but these two tiny examples are good illustrations of Pope Francis’s point. Making potato salad seems like something I should be able to do. I cook regularly and have made dishes that are far more complicated. But every time I try to make potato salad, I end up feeling frustrated.
Paddle boarding doesn’t necessarily seem like something I would be good at or enjoy. I’m not very coordinated, so things that require eye-hand coordination are not fun for me. But paddle boarding is more about balance than coordination — and being on the water is good for my soul. I leave feeling energized and soothed, not drained.
One way we can discern the work (or play) we are made to do is to notice whether they energize or drain us - do they inspire “creativity and enthusiasm” as Pope Francis says? Or do they require we push through in our own power, feeling drained and depleted? If we will learn to listen, our bodies will show us the way.
What are the things that leave you feeling like you’ve gained as much energy as you’ve given? What aspects of your work or daily life inspire you to daydream? What gets your creativity flowing?
What’s your potato salad? Is there something you think you should be able to do but you don’t really enjoy it?
What’s your paddle board? Is there something that others might see as out of character that speaks to your heart?
Paul reminds us in chapter 12 of Romans: “We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us…” Instead of focusing on who you aren’t, can you lean into who you actually are? That’s the biggest gift you can give yourself and our world.
Book Corner:
What I’ve Been Reading Lately
via library loan:
None of This is True by Lisa Jewell
This thriller was imminently readable and had a creepy quality I enjoyed. There was a nice twist at the end and the resolution felt an appropriate level of realistic. If you want a quick escape, this book fits the bill.
The Rainfall Market by You Yeong-Gwang
This book is magical and light. As I read I could almost see the Studio Ghibli movie it should be. It’s filled with a cast of quirky and lovable characters and tells a story of friendship and family.
via audiobook:
Save Me the Plums by Ruth Reichl
This memoir is delightful. It’s about food, leadership, cooking, work relationships - all wrapped up in the author’s career as editor of Gourmet Magazine. The author reads the audiobook which made for a great listening experience, albeit one that made me hungry.
Ms. Rapscott’s Girls by Elise Primavera
This is a story of a school for girls with busy parents … parents who go out for a run and are gone two weeks, parents who have two sets of octuplets, etc. The story is whimsical and a great listen as an audiobook on a road trip.
via library eBook:
Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner
June is the perfect month to read a lesbian love romance. This one is set in the world of professional women’s soccer, which makes for a great backdrop for teammates who fall for each other.
May you have a week that is more paddle boarding than potato salad.
Peace & Grace,
Shannon
Your potato salad looks delicious.