NO MATTER HOW YOU SLICE IT....

Leave it to the mysteries of language development to name a kitchen tool after a music instrument associated with the Middle Ages. For years I had casually called my sturdy wired “egg slicer” a mandoline. Well, there are several spellings of the word (with its ending “e”) that denote both a more energetic kitchen slicing tool and a guitar-relative that dates back hundreds of years to Europe. Just envision a young man with his pear-shaped “guitar” serenading a young woman (usually in a coned hat) who is leaning out her tower bedroom window.

Let's settle with the simpler kitchen tool for this “blog.” Those who research idioms suggest several similar meanings for this seasoned saying: “No matter how you slice it, the outcome is the same.” To put it another way, there will always be two sides of the bread. Or, two sides to a viewpoint. (We can thank a 17^th century Dutch philosopher, Baruch Spinoza, for writing that.)

And there resides the common problem of human communication and conflict. We're not computers or robots who process bits of opinion and fact and respond with a totally correct answer. Our outlooks are influenced by life experiences, good or bad. I could slam my fist on a peeled, boiled egg and pieces would fly. Or I can slip it into my slicer (a cousin of the bigger kitchen mandoline) and have a pleasing result.

So where am I going with this? Our “slicer” or mandoline for Biblically processing life is...scripture. On our own, we're vulnerable to just chopping a life situation haphazardly, leaving quite a mess. Our “mandoline” (or “slice guider”) is a sensitive personalization of scripture and Biblical teaching.

Yes, it's hard to admit to two perspectives on the same issue, whether in business practices, life goals, or interpersonal relationships. Solomon observed that, too: “The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him” (Proverbs 18:17). God has a better way, often when a deepening of faith through scripture or when adversity has “chopped us down to size.” And sometimes, if the stakes aren't that high, we have to let the other person continue to cling to his or her opinion (until they discover they're wrong!).

By the way, a related word, “Mandolyn,” is among baby name book choices for a girl, reported to have originated in Italy. Its inspiration was the music instrument, not the kitchen egg slicer!

Here's one site featuring a mandolin (and other instruments) with relaxing music selections: Bing Videos And in case you have never heard of a kitchen “mandolin” (with or without the final “e”): Best Kitchen Mandolin Slicers