The Joy of Juicing
January 2, 2021 by Kim Stokely
Filed under Humor, Stories
By Kim Stokely –
My husband and I have started juicing. (Just as an aside, when did nouns become verbs like juicing or texting? And I no longer exercise, I “ellipticate.”)
A friend of ours gave us a juicer. “It works great,” she said as she handed it to me.
“It could juice a cracker!” her husband promised.
“If it’s so great,” I asked, “why are you giving it away?”
“We just don’t have the time.”
Time? How much time can juicing take? You throw some stuff in the machine and voila! Juice, right?
A recent Saturday morning found me in my kitchen surrounded by various fruits. A veritable orchard out in the Nebraska cornfields. I had mangos, strawberries, tangerines, apples and pears all piled high and ready to go. I plugged in the juicer, let the motor run for the allotted ten second “start up” time and then threw the fruit down the chute.
The machine roared to life. It shook and rattled as the inner blades decimated my offerings into a tall glass of colorful goodness, chock full of various vitamins and antioxidants.
*sigh*
Really? All that fruit and all I got was one lousy glass of juice. Ok, it wasn’t lousy. It was actually quite tasty, but besides the cost of the fruit, I now had to clean the machine. I understood what my friend meant about the time factor. To squeeze the pulp out, the machine chops it up then spins out the dry pulp. The juice runs out a little spout, the pulp collects (theoretically) in the tub behind the machine. In reality, it goes everywhere. The machine has to be taken apart and each component washed separately.
With the cost of fresh fruit and veggies nowadays, I hated the thought of wasting all the pulp. We’ve started putting it into waffle and muffin mixes. They’ve been delicious. The other day I snuck veggie pulp into my meatballs when the kids weren’t looking. They loved them and anytime I can get them to eat an extra vegetable is a good day for me.
It got me thinking about how God views our lives. (It’s a stretch, I know, but work with me here!) Every moment of our lives is precious. It costs us something, time we can never get back. It’s easy to spot the good stuff that comes out of each day. We drink that down easily and thank God for his gifts. But even the bad stuff, the “garbage” can be turned into something good if we take the time to let God clean it out and mix it with His love and mercy. It may take some work, but the results are well worth the effort.
Kim Stokely has toured throughout the country in a one-person musical about women in the Bible. She lives in Nebraska with her husband and a variety of creatures including: two teenagers, two dogs, a parakeet and a legless lizard. Her stories have been printed in Chicken Soup for the Soul, Vista, and Writers’ Journal and she invites you to visit her website @ www.kimstokely.com to read her award winning short story, Bingo.
Thank you Kim–I have been using my “Magic Bullet” to make smoothies and goodies trying to get more vitamins–I like it cause it’s quick–and it uses the whole fruit–there is no separate juice and slug–it’s kept together and makes a great drink. It’s compact so I’m taking it with me to the quilt shows and eating alot better than before. So what does that say about God–mmm–thinking on your thoughts–give it all to Jesus–all of me–God is a God of 100%–he knows me 100% and he loves me 100%. Good–and sludgy–he loves me and I pray he uses me–and YOU for his continued Glory! You bless me Girl!
Thanks Penny! We used our Magic Bullet for years until it finally “bit the bullet.” Loved it. Went with a high power juicer so we could do some tougher veggies, but now I’m thinking we should go back to the bullet. And I agree, God does want 100% of us, even the sludge!
I know of whom you speak! You had all the same ideas and dreams I had about juicing. Always love reading your columns, Kim. You truly are so multi-talented & I love you!
Ahh yes. All the gunk we want to ignore. God truly does do beautiful things even with the ugly parts of our lives.
It reminds me of Isaiah 61:3 (He will)….give unto them a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of Jehovah, that he may be glorified.
Angela D. Meyer
Love you too, Julie!
Absolutely love the analogy. God does make flavorful meatloaf out of our dried pulp. We simply have to be wise enough to eat it.
Kim, I’m intriqued by the idea of adding pulp to muffin mixes. I may try that. Thanks for both the culinary and spiritual tips!
Holly,
Just FYI, you have to play around a bit until you get the “right” mix. I tried once with some pulp that had orange peel in it, and the muffins were too dry and a little bitter. Carrots and apples seemed to work the best. I have to admit, the time thing means I haven’t been experimenting as much, but I hope to start back up soon.
Hi Angela!
Thanks for commenting on my story. For some reason, the site didn’t post it until today!
I am a juicer, too! I made carrot cake with the carrot/celery pulp. Loved your analogy at the end of your story! Thanks!
Working with you on that.