Grunge version of Fiji's Flag, by COLD

Do you ever, in the midst of clipping your fingernails, start wondering about the meaning of life?

Do you ever, while tweezing those stray hairs, start wondering “who am I, anyway?”

Do you ever, while watching a movie, start thinking about what food your soul might be made up of?

The other night we watched “Cold Souls,” an offbeat film about the possibility of removing the soul and freezing it until needed again. The main character (played by Paul Giamatti) extracts his soul only to find out it looks exactly like a chickpea.

A chickpea.

It made me laugh. Then, rather abruptly, I stopped laughing.

“Wait a minute,” I thought “What food might mine be made of?”

A flood of possibilities crossed my mind- basically my favorite foods – but none seemed suitable. Basalmic vinegar is too tart and runny, artichokes are too prickly at heart, garlic is too stinky. I simply couldn’t decide.

Fiji’s Answer

One look at Fiji’s flag and I could tell – they’ve already figured out their answer. But they didn’t stick with just one food. Oh, no. Depicted on their flag’s crest are four of Fiji’s most beloved foods:

• A lion holding a cocoa pod: Cocoa is a very important crop in Fiji – there are entire villages that survive and thrive on cocoa farming.
• Three sugar canes: Sugar makes up 1/3 of industrial activity in Fiji.
• A coconut palm: Coconuts and their milk make their way into countless Fijian dishes. From what I can tell, the creamy goodness is so common, coconut milk might as well be Fijian salt and pepper.
• A bunch of bananas: Bananas are all over Fiji and the people enjoy them for dessert or dinner. At times they even enjoy the for dessert and dinner.

There’s also a dove on the flag, but don’t get any ideas. She represents peace, not food.

So what about you?

What food(s) would be on your “flag”?

What food(s) represent you best?

And, just for fun – a little poll:

Photos: Claus Ableiter, Enzik, Medicaster, Dan Iserman