Growing up, my brother and I would spend summers on the farm with my grandparents. We would help grandma and grandpa with chores inside and outside—from moving sprinkler pipe and baling hay to making breakfast and baking treats; we stayed busy all day.

One particular time, my grandma was excited to bake a strawberry pie with us using the strawberries from her garden. She knew I loved strawberry pie. She sent us out to pick the strawberries. We picked every red, ripe strawberry we could find and ran inside. Her face showed disappointment. She explained that there were not enough strawberries for a pie.

After a few moments, she asked if we had seen the raspberries in the garden. We responded affirmatively and we knew where this was headed. We ran out and picked all of the ripe, red raspberries we could find and ran back in. Between the strawberries and raspberries, we had enough berries for a full pie.

As the pie baked, we wondered how it would taste. We discussed what it should be called: it wasn’t a strawberry pie and it wasn’t a raspberry pie. Whether one of us suggested it or she did, we settled on ‘strasberry’ pie. In the years that followed when she would tell the story, she would attribute the naming to me with a twinkle in her eye. In truth, the idea for the pie originated with her and she should get the credit.

I don’t remember how it tasted to be honest; it must have been good though because we always talked about baking it again. More importantly, however, is an underlying lesson for me about resourcefulness: doing what is required to get things to turn out.

Sometimes life doesn’t give us enough strawberries. Life does not always go how we plan or expect it to be. But often life gives us raspberries to complete the pie.

I don’t think anyone’s life goes exactly how they planned it. The ingredients we receive in life may not always be in our control. However, what we do with the ingredients we receive and how we use what we do receive says everything about how we have decided to live that life.

More memories about my grandparents…