The People Who Season Our Lives

Some people are salt — simple, steady, always there to bring out the flavor of everything else around them. Some people are pepper — bold, grounding, sometimes a little sharp, but always adding depth. And then there are the spices — cayenne, cinnamon, saffron. The ones who make you sweat, make you smile, make you pause.

Not everyone enjoys cayenne in their dish. It can feel too hot, too much. But in the right moment, in the right measure, it wakes something up in us. That’s what people do too. Sometimes the ones who rub us raw are the very ones who call something forward — strength, boundaries, purpose.

I used to think the “spicy people” in my life were mistakes, disruptions, even punishments. But now I see them as flavor — sometimes intense, sometimes subtle, but always shaping the meal that is this life.

Every person who crosses our path becomes part of the recipe. Some stay for the whole pot, others for a single dish. Some sweeten things. Some make us sweat. And all of them remind us: the feast wouldn’t be the same without variety.

So, here’s to the cayenne, the cinnamon, the ginger, the cumin. Here’s to the ones who spark us, stretch us, and sometimes challenge us. They aren’t here to ruin the dish. They’re here to teach us how to taste life more fully.