Breaking Down Barriers

I was going to try to make this post kind of election-themed, but it didn't really fit so I won't worry about it.

My husband is one of those people who are decidedly un-picky when it comes to food. He has his preferences of course, but there are few things he just won't eat. One of those foods was fruitcake. He has always sworn up and down that fruitcake is one of the worst flavors he has ever had, and he will never learn to like it. Other people seem to have the same prejudices against this concoction. Here is a quote I found from Johnny Carson: "The worst gift is a fruitcake. There is only one fruitcake in the entire world, and people keep sending it to each other." Even my mom, who advocates the "clean-your-plate" policy and does not allow picky eating, considers fruitcake to be one of those foods that you are totally allowed to avoid. Obviously, fruitcake is not universally liked.

But as for myself, I had never tried fruitcake. Since Mom didn't like it, I wasn't ever exposed to it and never had the opportunity to try it for myself. A couple years ago I realized that I actually like the way that fruitcake sounded - a heavy cake studded with candied fruits and nuts. Doesn't that sound good? I thought it did. But Jeff was adamant - I wouldn't like it, it's awful, all that stuff.

Well, today I actually convinced him that I was serious - I wanted to try a fruitcake, gosh darnit! There were several of those little one-pounders on the clearance rack at Wal-Mart and I wanted to try one. He hemmed and hawed a bit, then gave in and we put it in the cart.

We got out to the car after purchasing and I eagerly tore open the package. I took a small bite. Hmm. I took another bite. Huh. I took another and another, the bites getting larger and larger - it was actually yummy! I actually liked the fruitcake! I passed bits of fruit and nuts to the kids in their car seats, and they liked it too.

But the clincher came when Jeff requested a tiny bit, just to verify that it was, indeed, as horrible as he remembered. I gave him a little piece and he cautiously tried it. He admitted that perhaps it wasn't quite as terrible as he had thought. He tried another bite, and another, and finally decided that except for the orange peel, he actually liked the fruitcake. We both had a good laugh, and continued snacking all the way home.


And we all lived happily ever after.