green eggs and ham
Dr Seuss changed our family mealtimes, writes
Orla Breeze
.
I
am not a fan of cooking. I don’t
understand how anyone could
enjoy the process of spending
time creating something only to
see it demolished in minutes. Yes, I
know there are many who claim it to
be relaxing, but for me it’s about as
relaxing as listening to a pile driver on
headphones.
However, when my children were
younger, I decided that it was my
duty to prepare beautiful, healthy
meals for them as a sign of my undying
devotion and motherly love. I would
spend hours in the kitchen chopping,
slicing, roasting and grilling organic
vegetables and free-range meats for
their little mouths to enjoy. So when
they used to greet all my efforts with a
chorus of, “I don’t like it!” before they
had even tried it, it would send me ever
closer to the precipice of insanity. I
knew something had to be done.
My eureka moment happened
when we were reading one of their
favourite bedtime stories. Dr Seuss’s
Green Eggs and Ham
has always
been hugely popular in our home. It’s
a rip-roaring tale of a grouchy old git
who is pursued by an over-enthusiastic
character called Sam I Am, who’s
hell-bent on getting him to try the
latest and greatest cuisine. Needless
to say, Grouchy is not too keen. Even I
know that matching a food capable
of carrying salmonella with green
food colouring borders on insanity.
However, Sam I Am is not deterred. He
chases him o’er land and sea with his
plate of food insisting that Grouchy
at least try it. Eventually Grouchy is
worn down – he just can’t take the
constant repetitive asking. I know how
he feels, and even though I would
advise against it, he gives in to Sam’s
demands. This has to end in disaster.
But wait! It turns out that Sam was right
all along. Grouchy doesn’t just like
green eggs and ham, he absolutely
LOVES it! And that was when the penny
dropped.
From that moment on, I took a
whole new approach to mealtimes.
I decided to become Sam I Am
and serve every meal with a good
dose of Dr Seuss. Every time I heard
the words, “I don’t like it”, I simply
replied with, “Well, what about
Green
Eggs and Ham
?”
The first time this
happened, all three grouches looked
at me with blank expressions.
“
Green Eggs and Ham
?
You know, the
one with Sam I Am?”
“
Eh, yes?”
“
And he said he wouldn’t eat it on a box
or with a fox or in a shoe or on the loo?”
“
So?”
“
And then he tried it and what
happened?”
“
Well, he loved it.”
“
Exactly. So what if it turns out this dinner
is your absolute favourite food ever and
you won’t even try it?”
For a few moments, I wasn’t entirely
sure that this was going to work, but,
lo and behold, suddenly my kids were
trying and eating something they
claimed to hate just a few minutes
before. It was a mealtime miracle.
You see, the thing is, kids hate
the idea of missing out. We’ve all
experienced the child who will forego
a nap just in case a spontaneous
party erupts while they’re sleeping.
Or the child who would rather pee
their pants than go to the loo, just in
case a whole new scene appears on
that DVD they’ve already watched
4,279
times. Turns out, it’s the same
with food. They simply can’t cope
with the possibility that today could
be the day their most favourite food
ever appears before them. And all it
takes is one little phrase to get them
to try. “Green eggs and ham.”
Orla Breeze offers workshops, evenings
and individual sessions for new parents
and parents-to-be. For more information,
visit
www.orlabreeze.com.
She also runs
her popular workshops Daddy 101, The
Truth About Motherhood and Joyful
Parenting at Annerley.To check the dates
of her next workshops, please visit
www.annerley.com.hk
.
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