The Misunderstanding about Potatoesby 파란백조

The Misunderstanding about Potatoes

Like potatoes, could there be other things that we have misunderstood and have thus failed to benefit from?

During the period when the Europeans were pioneering a new ocean route, they entered the land of America. At that time, a lot of American produce was transported to Europe: potatoes, corn, tomatoes, cocoa and turkey. 

Among them, potatoes grew especially well, even in barren land, and did not require much management to grow, so people could harvest them quickly with little effort. They were a great food source for the Europeans, who had suffered from hunger and starvation during the Medieval Ages.  However, when the Europeans were first introduced to potatoes, they went for 200 years without eating them.

Potatoes were coined the devil’s fruit by the Europeans. The reason was because people didn’t realize that potato sprouts were toxic, so they would often get stomach pains from eating them. Rumors began to spread about potatoes’ being bad for one's health. In addition, people saw that sliced potatoes turned dark over time, so they misunderstood that potatoes transmitted leprosy. Furthermore, potatoes were considered lowly food by the noble European families, who did not consume them, since they were dug up from the ground, not picked from the ground.  

The potatoes must have felt so egregious, don’t you think?  People failed to recognize their true value due to the absurd rumors. Potatoes actually have many pros. First, they have good preservability. Therefore, when Spanish sailors were out at sea in the past, they would use potatoes as their main food source. Second, potatoes grow well even in cold and dry areas. This was like a blessing for the land of Europe, where fertile soil is scarce. Third, different from rice and wheat, potatoes do not require the process of threshing and milling. The Europeans could just dig them out of the ground and proceed to steam or bake them to eat. It was that simple.    

When Europe faced several bouts of famine, the Europeans had reluctantly resorted to potatoes, presuming that they may die after consuming them. But after eating them, the Europeans realized that potatoes were filling and boosted their health, so they started to appreciate potatoes as food.  

Because of potatoes, the population of Europe gradually increased, and the rate of death caused by starvation and the rate of sickness due to malnutrition declined. Potatoes were the number one contributor to the increase in population. Therefore, similar to the case of the potatoes, might there be other things in life that we have failed to benefit from due to misunderstandings? 

In particular, the Word of God, which saves our lives and even brings us to Heaven, holds so much value, yet absurd comments and assumptions have clouded its true worth. Just as the starving Europeans had turned to the presumably lethal potatoes once no other food options were available, why not give the Word of Heaven a try, since you are living in an era when life itself is struck with severe hunger and famine?  

By eating potatoes, the Europeans became well-fed and lived better lives. In the same way, by listening to the Word of Heaven, your spirit will also become well-fed and lead a better life.  

Although the valuable potatoes had been transported across the sea from America to Europe, due to ignorance, didn’t the Europeans fail to recognize their value, and didn’t they misunderstand and mislabel the potatoes as the devil’s fruit instead? The price for their ignorance was the suffering of starvation for approximately 200 years. 

Likewise, the precious Word of God is transported across the atmosphere from Heaven to us, but because of ignorance, do you fail to recognize its value and instead misunderstand the Word due to all sorts of false rumors? The cost will be an eternal life of starvation.  

 
Being tasty, potatoes have transformed the history of the world, despite looking ugly. In the same way, although your life seems ugly, if you listen to the Word of God, it will become tasty and the story of your life will also change. Therefore, putting up the sail of Heaven, let’s sail upon this new ocean route of life!