When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

I’ve never been a big fan of lemonade; I’m not really into citrus fruits, generally. Grapefruit’s good—bad for the teeth, though. However, it’s wonderful for boosting the immune system. In theory, it could be interpreted that when someone suggests you make an imaginary drink by spiking highly acidic juice with sugar, they’re letting you know the conundrum you’re dealing with is gonna fuck up your smile, but so long as you get veneers and pretend everything is A-OK, you’ll be just fine.

There are other fruits that won’t do that. Did you know guava has a lot of vitamin C as well? So do kiwis. And strawberries. These fruits have antioxidants, too. They may not taste the same, but they’ll bolster you and kick freewheelin’ bad shit outta there.

I’m not making a lot of sense, and this tangent’s hijacked my train of thought and run away to vacation in Fiji, but I started this post thinking very specifically about the trend of “positive thinking” for any and every situation life throws around.

I don’t think it does any good to sugarcoat: To inject something harsh and unpleasant with so much saccharine, you alter the very nature of it completely. Sure, when lemons are taken to make lemonade, a bad situation is handled to produce a more favorable outcome—but that doesn’t mean it was dealt with.

I understand there are situations where the bad flavor of medicine is too much to stomach on its own. A degree of palatability is necessary for anything to go down. Every once in a while, however, you need to feel that bite. Not always, but sometimes. Too much sugar in the diet can put the body on the brink of insulin-related disease. There are circumstances that require—no, demand—the acceptance of their real form. To disguise them otherwise can result in more harm.

It sounds masochistic, but there is a benefit: you learn. You discover where to get the same kind of nourishment without the adverse side effects.

You know, like in guava. Or kiwis. Or strawberries.

J. Crew dress and pants; Converse leather hi-tops; Noir earrings; Vintage belt