Let me take you back a couple of decades when my pot roast had the same emotional depth as cardboard. Yeah, it wasn’t my kids’ favorite meal growing up, and honestly, I can’t say I blame them. Picture this: a hunk of meat, slow-cooking in a crockpot with all the enthusiasm of a sloth on a lazy Sunday. I had seven kids, so you can imagine – I wasn’t aiming for culinary perfection; I was aiming for “survival dinner.”

But the pot roast? It was, how shall I say…an experience. If you asked me to describe it in one word, I’d go with “dry.” Not just any dry – I’m talking about the kind of dry that made you question if you were chewing on actual meat or if someone had snuck a shoe into the crockpot when I wasn’t looking. There wasn’t much tenderness to speak of either; it was more like “I hope your teeth are in good shape” roast. Oh, and the flavor? Well, if you like “vague essence of beef,” then boy, were you in for a treat.

But I wasn’t about to admit defeat. I had a solution – gravy! Lots of it. Like, I’m talking a flood of gravy to mask what could only be described as a flavorless, tough, meat-sponge. My kids used to drown their plate in gravy, probably hoping it would somehow make the roast more edible. I can’t blame them. This pot roast needed all the help it could get.

Looking back, I realize that my pot roast needed to evolve – and let’s be real, I – needed to evolve. And evolve we did.

Fast forward to today. My pot roast is no longer that sad, chewy brick of meat sitting awkwardly in the middle of the table. Nope, my pot roast now is the stuff of legend. It’s fall-apart tender, packed with flavor in every juicy bite, and – here’s the kicker – it doesn’t even need gravy! That’s right, I said it. Gravy is officially optional in my household. What changed? Well, let’s just say I traded in my “easy dinner” mindset for a “let’s do this right” approach, experimenting with herbs, spices, and proper cooking techniques. I learned the value of patience, seasoning, and embracing a process.

And isn’t that how life works? We all start somewhere – sometimes dry, sometimes bland, sometimes, well, a little tough to chew – but the beauty is, we’re all capable of growth. Just like my pot roast, I’ve become a better version of myself. I’ve learned that who I was back then doesn’t define who I am today. I’ve grown, added some flavor, and learned to let the process of life tenderize me in all the right ways.

And here’s the best part; my kids actually enjoy my pot roast now. No more scrunched-up noses or desperate cries for more gravy. Just compliments and clean plates. They’ve evolved too, just like the roast, just like me. Life has a way of doing that, doesn’t it? We’re all just a work in progress, slowly cooking in life’s crockpot, waiting for our flavors to fully develop.

So here’s to growth – whether it’s in your cooking or in your life. Let’s embrace the process, add some spice, and trust that one day, we’ll all be as tender, flavorful, and full of life as a perfectly cooked pot roast. And if things are still a bit dry at the moment, well, there’s always gravy.