Must have been a psychic thing because I woke up this morning thinking about blueberries only to discover that today, July 11 is National Blueberry Muffin Day, and I ate the last of the blueberries last night. Maybe that is why I woke up thinking about them. Blueberries are one of my top four berries (raspberries will always be number one, followed by blackberries, strawberries, and then blueberries). Like the other berries they not only taste good, but they are helping me become more impeccable with my food choices as they are rich in vitamins and antioxidants and low in calories.
I laugh because in our family the only way blueberries are eaten other then out of the container is if I make blueberry muffins. Learning to make the perfect blueberry muffin took some time. The first few recipes I tried it seemed as if the blueberries always sank to the bottom of my muffins while baking. I also noticed that sometimes my batter began to turn blue as I folded the berries. I also found that the results varied depending on what kind of blueberry I was using (fresh, frozen, or dried).
Over time, I found ways of resolving my problems. As I watched someone making blueberry pancakes on the food network, I got the idea of putting the filling the muffin pan with batter and then dropping the berries into the batter. For some reason, this seemed to help them distribute more evenly. It also kept a cleaner separation between berry and batter. I have found that I like using the fresh, the dried, or a combination of both in making my muffins. I like my berries dry when I put them in the batter and that seemed harder to accomplish when using frozen blueberries. I also found that when I combine the fresh and the dried, they provided a diversity of textures when the muffin baked.
As I spent some time thinking about, and drooling over the muffins we will not be having today, I began to think about the spiritual lessons to be learned from these muffins. There have been times in my life when that which should have made my life special, like the blueberries just kind of sank to the bottom. What I came to realize is that when I step forward in faith and then open up my “batter” to receive, then the “berries” (the healing power and energy) will go where it needs to go in my life. My friends who practice Reiki have taught me that the healing energy will go where it needs to go, so I have learned to let my prayers be answered as they are supposed to be and know the healing will go and the answers will come as they are supposed to.
I have also come to realize that how God hears and answers my prayers are not the same as how someone else’s is answered. Sometimes our prayers are best answered with “frozen blueberry” responses; others need “fresh blueberry” responses and still others, like some of mine, sometimes need a combination of “fresh” and “dried” responses.
I have also come to realize that I need to let go and stop messing with how the Universal Spirit is trying to answer my prayers. When I over stir the batter, it is as if I am not trusting the prayers will be answers and the Universe will ensure that all will be well.
So the next time I go to the store and buy blueberries, I will be mindful of how I need to let go and let God, in my baking and in my life.