Sandwich Circles

When I was a kid my parents used to make me eat the crust on sandwiches. Like any normal kid, I hated the crust and this seemed like quite the demand. But I was also one of those kids who tried to listen to her parents, so I found a way to cope.

It was simple—I would eat the crust first, then I could enjoy my sandwich with the worst part over and done.

Funny thing is, even though my distaste for crust has long gone, I still eat my sandwiches like this. It's a habit I rarely think about, but sometimes a friend will point it out and I have to stop and explain the origin of my silly habit. It always reminds me that not everyone eats their sandwiches in a circle like weirdo me. And then I start thinking about just how many ways there are to eat a sandwich, which is ridiculous and yet telling at the same time.

There are so many ways to DO things. Not just something as small as sandwich-eating, but even big things like giving birth or making a living. And yet we as people constantly seem to forget that doing something in a different way doesn't mean it's wrong.

Could you imagine if people shunned me for eating my sandwiches in circles because they believed sandwiches should only be eaten from top to bottom? It sounds silly, but people fight over perfectly acceptable options/preferences all the time.

As a writer, I've come to find all these different ways of living to be some of the best story fodder out there. It's so interesting to dig in and figure out why a character makes the choices he does, whether it's eating a sandwich in circles or going completely vegan. Stories come out of these seemingly random choices. They build the fabric of character and thereby plot.

I think the best of writers are also the best of observers, the best of investigators, and people who seek to understand. I also think these are qualities passed on to readers. What we do, this creating of worlds in words, is a powerful thing in that it grants us a peek into different ways of living, and thereby broadens our understanding and empathy.

If only we could get more people to write and read, right? Or maybe I should start the Circular Sandwich-Eating Revolution instead. It is, of course, the superior way to eat a sandwich!