# Strawberry ice cream on spaghetti bolognese

- Teacher: Ajahn Brahm
- Type: Story
- URL: https://beingmindfulstories.com/stories/brahm-strawberry-ice-cream-on-bolognese
- Themes: fault-finding, humour, monastic life, acceptance
- Life situations: things not going as planned, food

## Synopsis (editorial summary)

Monks eat everything from one bowl. Once, the person serving Ajahn Brahm tipped strawberry ice cream straight on top of his spaghetti bolognese. Why think it's nasty? — though, he admits, it actually is. The fun of monastic life is treating such things like a child would: interesting, let's try it, and tell your friends afterwards.

## The story, as told by Ajahn Brahm (verbatim captions)

And just all in one bowl, all gets mixed up. I say, that's amazing. When you see the way we eat, and sometimes you just get these things. You tried to separate them, I must admit, but was this one occasion, I had strawberry ice cream on spaghetti bolognese. [laughter] There's spaghetti bolognese and it was in one part. There's some ice cream. And the person who took my bowl up just must have just went over the lid. Oh my goodness. So you're getting bolognese and the strawberry ice cream was on top of it. Have you ever had that? [laughter] Why do you think it's nasty? Why do you think it's terrible? Actually it is nasty and terrible.

## Teaching point

Meet life's mix-ups with a child's curiosity instead of a fault-finding mind.

## Reflection (in the spirit of Ajahn Brahm's talk)

Monks eat from one bowl, and once someone tipped strawberry ice cream onto Ajahn Brahm's spaghetti bolognese. Yes, he admits, it was nasty. But a child would find it interesting, try it, and tell their friends. Meet life's mix-ups with that kind of curiosity, and even hard work can become fun.

## Source

- [The Fault Finding Mind | Ajahn Brahm | 7 May 2021](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bekYLQ5buRQ) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 10:30 to 11:26: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bekYLQ5buRQ&t=630s

Other tellings of this story:

- [Seven Monks and Bandits | Ajahn Brahm | 25 October 2024](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br-ASglsGl4) (Buddhist Society of Western Australia) — watch from 16:47 to 17:32: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br-ASglsGl4&t=1007s