There is a Hebrew blessing called Shehechiyanu which translates to Blessed are you..who has granted us life, sustained us and enabled it to reach this occasion. It is a widely used blessing for significant life events, the beginning of holidays and when experiencing something for the first time.
I often think of all the firsts that await my niecelettes and I just get excited on their behalves. I like to imagine the travels that await them. There is literally a whole world waiting for them. There are mountains and oceans and deserts just waiting to be explored.
And then there are the experiences they are yet to have. There are tons of books for them to read, music for them to listen to and performances for them to watch. They have never seen a professional ballet performance or been to see their favorite band perform live.
And, when I think about all that lays ahead for my niecelettes, it reminds me that the number of opportunities to truly experience something for the first time diminishes as we age. But they are certainly not gone. In fact, I have one that I am savoring at this very moment.
I have never eaten a rambuntan in my life, yet I have a small bag of them sitting about 5 feet from where I am typing this. Rambutans are small, read hairy fruits that are generally grown in tropical areas. And, as I just recently found out, that includes Hawaii. As soon as I learned that I could get my hands on a locally grown rambutan, I set out to find one. After visiting three separate farmers markets I hit the jackpot.
I was good and held back from buying them at the very first stall where we saw them for sale. I actually walked through the entire market and bought souvenirs for my niecelettes before I made my way back to purchase the rambutans. I was kind of tempted to pop one in my mouth at that very moment, but something held me back. I didn’t want to spoil one of the diminishing number of firsts remaining to me in my life.
When I got back to the hotel room, I was too hungry and cranky to appreciate the experience, so I set the fruits aside. Now I am full (from a very delicious lunch of red bean-filled bun) and don’t think I am in a position to truly savor the rambutan. Perhaps this later this afternoon after we are done wave jumping and boogie boarding I will be in the right frame of mind to take my first taste. I sure hope so.