Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket

Dear Friends,

“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” my mother used to say. This is an expression I never really understood until like, yesterday, because I don’t own a basket, nor do I pick my own eggs, and also, I’m Jewish, so I always kind of thought this was a taboo Easter reference. I guess it’s not. Would you like to know what this catch-phrase means? It has withstood centuries. I bet Abe Lincoln used to say it at the White House, along with Laura Ingalls Wilder on her farm, Nancy Drew on a haunted showboat and now Miley Cyrus. It means…keep your options open. Do not settle for one thing when you have a lot of things (eggs) to offer. Since I’m a woman, I ironically do have a lot of eggs to offer. But I don’t think that’s what this expression is saying.

It’s saying don’t put all your hopes on one job, one man, one apartment, one friend, one sister, one anything. Don’t rely on one thing to make everything go away, or one thing to revve the engine. It turns out life is about options. When do the options fall wayside, though, and suddenly it’s evidently clear what single thing to depend on? Is it true what they say of New Yorkers? Are they constantly job searching, apartment hunting and dating multiple people? Who blows the whistle, and why? And more importantly, if we are told not to put all of our hopes and dreams into one basket – how are we at all prepared to make a final decision? The job. The man. The book deal. The apartment. The feeling. It’s unfair, I think.

If we are raised to be so independent, how do we know when to be semi-dependent on these things? If you have the answer to the question, please comment, because I certainly don’t. I’m trying to be one with the universe, and to “feel” things out through good vibes or not. Because otherwise, we’re all screwed. I don’t have ADD and hate making decisions. I don’t even like social media except for my own website. How will I know?

What’s next? Don’t put all your eggs in one person? That seems to be the theme of my generation, but hopefully not yours. All I can say is, go buy yourself some eggs and contemplate how many options you constantly have. I wish life was simpler with less eggs or more baskets, or something.

Kisses,

Jessica

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